Dad first. Performer second.

One More Story was built at our kitchen table, after bedtime, by a parent who could not find what he was looking for.

Hello again. I'm Haydan.

On screen I go by Mr. H. Off screen I'm a dad in Adelaide, South Australia, and I have spent my working life as a performer and singing teacher.

I toured the country in the stage production of Possum Magic. I did a season of Hairy Maclary at the Opera House. I played Mikki in Mikki vs. the World on ABC TV. Years of stagecraft and vocal training taught me something simple that I use every single episode: how you say something to a child matters as much as what you say.

Then I spent time at home with my own kids, and bedtime taught me the rest.

An illustration of Mr. H

Why this exists.

When my own kids were small, I went looking for something calm to end the day with. What I found was content that called itself calming but behaved like everything else. Fast cuts. Bright colours. Songs that wound kids up on the way to winding them down.

The research backed up what I was seeing on the couch. Studies have found that even short bursts of fast, frantic programming can temporarily affect how well young children focus and settle. Researchers in child development have been raising questions about overstimulation in children's media for years.

So I made the thing I could not find. Stories read slowly, by a real person, beside a fire that crackles all the way through. A lullaby at the end, played live on guitar. Nothing that flashes. Nothing that shouts. Every choice, from the pacing to the palette, is measured against one question. Does this help a child who is trying to wind down?

“We are not trying to entertain them into sleep. We are trying to give their nervous system permission to stop.”
Gerry the Giraffe

And this is Gerry.

Gerry the Giraffe sits beside me at the campfire for every story. He doesn't say much. That is rather the point.

Gerry never lectures and never hurries. He notices things. He waits. Children seem to understand him completely, and tired parents tell us he is the most relatable member of the team.

In the books, Gerry finds his voice, and the stories follow him and his friends through small adventures about noticing other people. The whole series rests on one quiet idea. See others.

Where things stand.

Three episodes are live on YouTube and Spotify, with the fourth in production. Three picture books are out in paperback and hardcover, with the fourth days away and a fifth on the drawing board. Activity packs go with every book. The whole thing is made in Adelaide with a small team of artists, animators and musicians who care about this hour of the day as much as we do.

It is early days, and we are building slowly. That is on purpose too.

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