Play Chef

is a Canadian cooking show aimed at children ages 3-12, hosted by a father and his two daughters.
==Premise==
Play Chef is a cooking show like no other - it focuses on making actual recipes, but the recipes are made with children's "food maker" toys, mainly "play ovens" like the Easy-Bake Oven. Every episode focuses on two different recipes, and features cooking segments as well as imaginative segments starring the daughters, often featuring fun songs.
==The Hosts==
William Wayne and his two daughters Jenna (10 years old when the show began production) and Lana (8 years old when the show began production) from Richmond Hill, Ontario host Play Chef. The cooking segments, which take place either in a kitchen or on a wooden table outside, are narrated by all three and just show their hands. These segments also feature kitchen safety tips.
The "imaginative segments" star Jenna and Lana, placing them in fantasy worlds (sometimes with William playing along) relating to the recipes. For example, when using a blender-like milkshake maker, Jenna and Lana were placed inside a magical milkshake world where they spun around and around; and when making pretzels, the girls saw themselves as comedians in Germany. Green-screen is used to film these segments. There is one segment per recipe (leading to there being two per episode). Some of the segments feature songs, as well.
The scripts for the episodes are written by the family, too. William writes the majority of the scripts, while Jenna and Lana help contribute to the scripts of the imaginative segments.
==Broadcast==
In Canada, Play Chef was aired on local Canadian TV stations from 2006-2008, and in re-runs on those same channels from 2009 until 2012 in some markets. It did not air in any other countries until over 10 years after its Canadian premiere, when American channel Qubo picked up Play Chef alongside PaRappa The Rapper: The Animated Series on June 19, 2016. Currently, it is aired everyday on Qubo at 6:00 PM, right after PaRappa The Rapper.
==Cooking at Play==
In April 2013, Jenna decided to start a YouTube channel entitled Cooking at Play. The content on the channel is essentially what can be called a "sequel to" Play Chef, because the videos simply star Jenna using kids' food makers to cook.
The major differences between the two are that there are no imaginative segments on Cooking at Play, and Jenna uses the real names of the food makers due to Cooking at Play just being a web series.
It is a moderately popular YouTube channel, with over 4,000 subscribers. Most of its views and subscribers are Canadian, though.
Lana made a guest appearance in a September 2015 video entitled "Episode 50: Around The World | Surprise Guest! | Cooking At Play". William may appear on the channel sometime soon...
==Trivia==
*Strangely, in the US broadcasts, the URL on the top left-hand corner of the screen during Play Chef episodes, "williamwayne.ca", is left intact.
**Said URL, as of October 2013, now redirects to the Cooking at Play website, cookingatplay.ca.
*Play Chef's theme song is a fast-paced, exciting instrumental rock song at 176 BPM in F-sharp/G-flat major.
**It bears a resemblance to the theme song of the Nicktoon The Loud House, which would premiere 10 years after Play Chef.
*Early Canadian promos for Play Chef used the slogan "Anyone can be a chef - just play along!". Qubo's promos for Play Chef use the slogan "Cook up some fun with Play Chef!"
Category:Television series
Category:TV Shows
Category:Children's series
Category:Web Series
Category:Canadian TV series