Gullah Gullah Island: The Show, the Cast and the Real Islands
The 1990s Nick Jr. show, its cast then and now, where it was filmed, and the real Gullah culture behind it.
Is Gullah Gullah Island a Real Place?
No. There is no island called Gullah Gullah Island. The family’s house and yard were sets at Nickelodeon Studios at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, and the outdoor scenes were filmed around Beaufort and Fripp Island in South Carolina. But the world of the show is real: it was modeled on the Gullah culture of St. Helena Island, near Beaufort, where Ron Daise grew up, and of the Sea Islands up and down the coast, Hilton Head among them.
About the Gullah Gullah Island TV Show
Gullah Gullah Island premiered on Nickelodeon’s Nick Jr. block on October 24, 1994. Created by Maria Perez-Brown, Kathleen Minton Catapano and Kit Laybourne, it starred Ron and Natalie Daise as Ron and Natalie Alston, parents of a house full of children on a Sea Island, with their friend Binyah Binyah. Each episode mixed songs, games and small life lessons with Gullah stories, words and music. It was among the first shows of its kind to star an African American family in a Black community, and it earned a 1995 Parents’ Choice Award, a Daytime Emmy nomination and NAACP Image Award nominations, and a 1996 place on TV Guide’s list of the ten best children’s shows.
Gullah Gullah Island Cast and Characters, Then and Now
The Alston family, the children who filled their house, and Binyah Binyah.
Ron Daise
Ron, the dad
Then: A former Beaufort newspaper writer from St. Helena Island and the author of a book on Sea Island heritage. He and Natalie were also the show’s cultural advisors.
Now: Became vice president for creative education at Brookgreen Gardens near Myrtle Beach, chaired the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, and won South Carolina’s Governor’s Award in the Humanities in 2019.
Natalie Daise
Natalie, the mom
Then: A storyteller from upstate New York, starring opposite her husband and co-advising on Gullah culture.
Now: A storyteller and self-taught painter, known for her one-woman show, “Becoming Harriet Tubman.”
Simeon Daise
Simeon, the son
Then: Ron and Natalie’s real son, playing their son on screen.
Now: Announced the grown-up revival, “Gullah Gullah Island: The Portal,” in 2024.
Sara Daise
Sara, the daughter
Then: Ron and Natalie’s real daughter, playing their daughter in the early seasons.
James Edward Coleman II
James
Then: Played James, one of the children on the show.
Vanessa Baden
Vanessa
Then: Played Vanessa, one of the children on the show.
Shaina Freeman, then Tristin Mays
Shaina
Then: Shaina Freeman played Shaina first; Tristin Mays took over the part in the later seasons.
Now: Tristin Mays went on to roles in Everybody Hates Chris, Victorious and Big Time Rush.
Binyah Binyah Polliwog
The family’s friend
Then: A five-foot polliwog, a full-body puppet worn first by Philip D. Garcia and then by Justin Campbell.
Now: Is part of the 2024 revival announcement.
Binyah Binyah, the Gullah Gullah Island Frog
Binyah Binyah Polliwog is the character most people remember: a five-foot polliwog, which is a tadpole, so he is the “frog” of the show. His name is Gullah. Binyah means a native, someone who has “been here,” and on Hilton Head and the other Sea Islands the word is still used for people born on the island. He was a full-body puppet, played first by Philip D. Garcia and later by Justin Campbell.
The Gullah Gullah Island Theme Song
The theme, written by composer Peter Lurye, opens every episode with the family calling viewers to come along to Gullah Gullah Island.
Where to Watch Gullah Gullah Island
After its Nick Jr. run, the show was rerun on Noggin. Paramount+, which owns the Nickelodeon library, added the series in January 2021, and that is the place to watch episodes legally today.
The Real Gullah Culture Behind the Show
The show’s island was made up, but the culture was real. The Gullah Geechee people, descendants of enslaved West and Central Africans, have lived on the Sea Islands from North Carolina to Florida for three centuries, keeping their own language, food, crafts and music. Ron Daise grew up in it on St. Helena Island, and he and Natalie brought it to the scripts. Their work did not stop when the show did: Ron later chaired the federal Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission. Read our guide to Gullah Geechee culture on Hilton Head for the people, language and food, and the places to meet them.
Hilton Head is one of those islands. Gullah families have lived here since the Civil War, and the best way in is a tour with someone who grew up here: Gullah Heritage Trail Tours drives the island’s Gullah neighborhoods with guides born here before the bridge. Penn Center on St. Helena, Ron Daise’s home island, is an easy day trip by way of Beaufort.
Book a Gullah Tour
Meet the real Gullah culture with a local guide.
Booked through FareHarbor, the island operators’ own booking system. HHI.com may earn a commission.
Gullah Culture in the Lowcountry
Gullah Geechee culture on Hilton Head: who the Gullah people are, their language and food, the Gullah Museum, Mitchelville, and Gullah heritage tours.
Gullah Heritage Trail Tours: a narrated bus tour of Hilton Head's Gullah neighborhoods with native guides, from the Coastal Discovery Museum. From $25.
Hilton Head to Beaufort is under an hour: the drive, the waterfront, carriage tours, Penn Center, Old Sheldon Church and Hunting Island.
Movies filmed in Beaufort, SC and the Lowcountry: Forrest Gump, The Great Santini, The Prince of Tides and more, plus a day trip from Hilton Head.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Gullah Gullah Island a real place?
No. There is no island by that name. The show was taped in a studio at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, with outdoor scenes from around Beaufort and Fripp Island, South Carolina. Its setting was inspired by the real Gullah culture of St. Helena Island, where Ron Daise grew up.
Where was Gullah Gullah Island filmed?
Indoor scenes were taped at Nickelodeon Studios at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando. Outdoor scenes were filmed around Beaufort and Fripp Island in South Carolina’s Lowcountry.
What kind of animal is Binyah Binyah?
A polliwog, which is a tadpole, so he is often remembered as the show’s frog. Binyah is Gullah for a native, someone who has “been here.”
Where can I watch Gullah Gullah Island?
On Paramount+, which added the series in January 2021.
Is there a Gullah Gullah Island reboot?
In 2024, for the show’s 30th anniversary, Simeon Daise announced “Gullah Gullah Island: The Portal,” a more grown-up drama about the characters as adults, with Binyah Binyah. No air date has been announced.
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