Nanny 911 is loosely based on the British television programmeLittle Angels, in which Americanfamilies with unmanageable children are reformed by Britishnannies, including one who served for the royal family. The introduction features montages of several clips of unruly children, whereupon stock footage shows a "call" being made to Nanny 911 where "Head Nanny Lilian" answers "Nanny 911". After the intro the selected family is featured on a separate clip. Head Nanny Lilian and the other nannies - "Nanny Deb", "Nanny Stella", and "Nanny Yvonne" discuss the clip, whereupon Lilian announces which nanny will visit the family. The nannies are featured visiting the family in traditional nanny dress. The nanny's first day is spent solely in observing the family dynamics in order to determine a suitable plan of action for changing the children's behavior; at the end of the daythe nanny discusses what needs to be done. The remainder of the week shows the plan being implemented, along with the parents' reactions. At the end of the week, the nanny generally compliments the family for the changed behavior. The last segment shows the family receiving a substantial gift from the nanny. The families that are eligible for the show usually have four or more children, and the children are usually younger than 9 years of age. The parents usually have an income that allows them to be upper middle-class. After Season Two, the gift portion was removed. In Season Four, Nanny Yvonne did not appear due to budgetary reasons and the format changed. Rather than showing a clip to the nannies then deciding which one would go, Lillian just called one of them and sent them to the family. In some episodes this season, the nanny observes for two days rather than one.
International versions
Nanny 911 has been broadcast or slightly adapted in other countries.
The USA version of Nanny 911 has been shown on ITV2 and the main ITV Network.
Reruns of the USA version of Nanny 911 are shown on CMT and Up TV.
The China version is shown on :zh:贵州卫视|Guizhou Satellite Channel and known as 育儿大师.
The USA version is shown in Mexico on TVNL and known as Niñera S.O.S.
Katharina Saalfrank is the Nanny 911 in the German version, aired on RTL.
Cris Poli is the Nanny 911 in the Brazilian version, broadcast by SBT.
Dorota Zawadzka is the Nanny 911 in the Polish version, aired on TVN, and a co-host of the talk-show I Ty możesz mieć superdziecko, in which Nanny 911 analyzes episodes from her series, talks to celebrity parents, and gives her advice. It is broadcast by TVN Style.
Rocio Ramos is the Nanny 911 in the Spanish version, broadcast on Cuatro. Another version with teenagers called S.O.S. Adolescentes is also aired on Cuatro. In the Spanish regions of Catalonia and Basque Country, the original version is broadcast by TV3 with Catalan dubbing and by ETB 1 with Basque dubbing respectively.
The Dutch version is called Eerste Hulp Bij Opvoeden. The name is a play on Eerste Hulp Bij Ongevallen, the Dutch term for first aid. Other similar programmes exist, such as Schatjes, which use a slightly different concept.
The Italian version is called S.O.S. Tata and aired on Fox Life and La7.
