Dig It with Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball - AI Phone Scams, Strictly Legends and Bulb Lasagnes

Episode Date: October 1, 2025

It’s the first of October… which apparently means people have already started the Christmas countdown online (honestly, who shares that? Please stop). Zoe’s been inspired by a new cookbook and a night of sparkle at the Palladium with Strictly legends, while Jo has a serious warning about scams and just how scarily real AI voices can sound. Plus, Brody the dog makes his own unforgettable contribution… SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE SUBSTACK Stay up to date with Dig It — new updates every Friday straight to your inbox. 👉 https://digitpod.substack.com/subscribe GET IN TOUCH 📧 Email us: [e-mail] 📱 Text or Voice Note: 07477 038795 💬 Or tap here to send a voice note or message on WhatsApp:⁠ ⁠https://wa.me/447477038795⁠⁠ GARDENING EXPERT: CLARE FOSTER Gardening writer Clare Foster shares the brilliant “bulb lasagne” method — layering bulbs in pots so they flower one after the other, giving you colour right through spring. A simple but genius trick for anyone who wants maximum blooms with minimum fuss. 🌸 Follow Clare on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/clarefostergardens/ GET EARLY AND AD-FREE EPISODES Become a member of The Potting Shed for early and ad-free episodes and bonus content 👉⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://digit.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠ SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS This episode is brought to you by Ancient + Brave and Airbnb. 💪 Ancient + Brave — Discover the power of creatine, supporting energy, focus, strength, and even brain health. Perfect for midlife wellness as well as fitness, this tasteless powder blends effortlessly into your daily routine. Get 20% off your first order with code DIGIT at ancientandbrave.earth 🌍 Airbnb — Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at https://www.airbnb.co.uk/host/  CREDITS Exec Producer: Jonathan O’Sullivan Assistant Producer: Eve Jones Technical Producers: Oliver Geraghty Video Editors: Danny Pape and Jack Whiteside Dig It is a Persephonica production

Coming up on Diggett. I've never heard the Fratellis Chelsea Dagger done at that speed before. It was the fastest rendition of Chelsea Dagger I've ever heard. You will just emit this foul smelling stench from his bottom as I'm trying to talk to you. He's asleep. He doesn't even know he's done it. And all I can breathe in is his bottom. I've stupidly forgotten my wallet.

I can do a bank transfer if I text you the details. Oh my gosh. I never said that. Can I just say I never said that? That's so scary. All of that right after this. at Harrison Healthcare, we know that lasting health starts with personalized care. We're not just a clinic. We're your partner in prevention, helping you achieve your health and longevity goals.

Our expert team combines evidence-based medicine with the compassionate, unhurried care you and your family deserve. Today and for many years to come. When it comes to your health, you shouldn't settle for anything less than exceptional. Visit harrisonhealthcare.ca.ca.com. slash Toronto. Happy October Fest, Joe. Oh, does that mean we should be drinking beer? No, just wearing nice knitwear. Just wearing lovely knitwear and thinking about pumpkins. Yes. I quite like October, actually. Me too. I don't mind it at all. Although, can I say September went shockingly fast. I know. Where is time going? And I was told that it's something like 10 Fridays till Christmas. Why do people send those things? Just

to panic as all. Stop it. I very much enjoyed September this year. The weather turned out surprisingly nice and we had lots of lovely gardening days and the flowers all came back. So whereas I was despairing at the end of August thinking, oh my God, I haven't seen any flowers. I've really, really enjoyed a lot of colour in the garden and been out there doing stuff. I've got a new shaded border and I had such a lovely time last week just sticking in fern after fern after fern, a few hukuras, a few geraniums and it was just so lovely. It was really nice. It was a good gardening month. I have been so pleasantly surprised how that little bit of rain brought everything back to life. I've had, you know, third, fourth outing of bee blossom. So I'm really glad I didn't cut them back because

they have come back. The geraniums have gone crazy. Again, the roses. I've got that last few roses looking beautiful. On the gardening theme, can I show you something that I was sent the other day? Oh yeah, come on. Amazing guy called A-S-N, who is local to me. And he's sent me, I've got a few bits of his artwork anyway, and he's sent me this.

So this is a leaf cutting. It's an actual leaf. He lives near a park called Abington Park, which is quite famous in Northampton. And he gets leaves, and then he does cuttings. He does leaf cuttings, and he writes lyrics and words into leaves.

He's amazing. It's such a skill. And this one that I'm showing you right now says dig it in the middle. And this is our leaf. It's our very own. personal leaf cutting. Isn't it gorgeous? Honestly, what a great gift

and I must thank him for our dig it leaf. And then they last forever. They last forever and I was asking him how long it takes to do this. Four hours, the dig it leaf did because it's only two words. But some of them, like if you're doing the Foo Fighters lyrics or Teardrop explodes, like

12 hours, he's just sitting there leaf cutting. And he does that by hand. Yeah, yeah, he's a real craftsman, amazing. Exquisite. I love seeing crafts like that. And I am, I'm going to follow him. I'm going to find him. Sorry, that sounds quite ominous. Sorry, I'm going to find him because I think that'd be great for some presents. We'll show the picture on our substack as well, because we have this amazing substack where we show all the stuff that people send to us that

we wear, that we like, all the recommendations, and people can see all those details there. So the Digit Leaf from Aeson will go on there, Friday Place. Actually, you talking about great things, I must share my new favourite book, which has been put together by one of our favourites, Mariella Frostrup, fabulous menopause campaigner. We love her. And she's put this together with her friend Bells Berry. It is eat your way to a better menopause. It's called menelicious. But I'm going to say, not just for people in menopause, because everyone in my household has benefited from the fact that I've been making recipes from this. And as you know, well, Joe, I'm often saying I'm a terrible cook. I'm not a natural. I don't know what I'm doing when it comes to seasoning and things like

that. But I've made a few recipes from this book now, and they are easy, delicious and really impressive. Last week, I made salmon in Pactoy with mushrooms that were delicious. I made this delicious carrot soup that is so hearty. I put up a picture of my own version, which didn't look quite as beautiful as that. I was so impressed that you were cooking. Goodness me, it was so tasty. And then made that alongside Mariela's porridge bread, which is also delicious, actually. Do you know what? I can't find it. The next thing I've found this. Porridge bread. Yeah, so it's just made from oats and yogurt and there's a few other bits in it and it's got loads of seeds. So it's got pumpkin seeds and walnuts in there and

sesame seeds and chia and it is so good for you. And you have a little slice of that with your soup. And it's really filling as well. And I used the rest of it just to eat instead of a slice of cake because you're getting a little bit of goodness. Anyway, totally recommend this book. It's fantastic and I'm really excited to make more recipes. So thank you both to Mariela and Bells for making such a good book. Highlights of your week was, is there anything that, or was that it? Getting in the kitchen and cooking something. So I decided that I would try and be cultural last week and I went to theatre twice.

One night to see my amazing dance partner, Ian Waite, who I danced with on Straitly I've come dancing 20 years ago now. He was on It Takes Two with me. We did, it takes two for 10 years together. and he has done a show called The Legends Return and it's with some of my favourites. So you've got Brendan Cole, James Jordan, Vincent Simone, and Pasha Kovalev. So, and with Ian, that's five legends for your buck on stage together being absolutely fabulous. And they're not all in their 50s. I think Pasha might be younger.

But they are still so excellent watching them dance. you know, that I think once a dancer, always a dancer. But, you know, they all left strictly and they've all gone off and had other adventures. And I think that the way we've been talking about a lot of the bands who've gotten together and like Swade and Oasis and Blur. Yeah. You're seeing them up there on the stage, they are loving every moment. And they've been able to sort of get over all their misgivings, you know, or whenever they left the show. Because it's pretty hard as a dancer when your time is up on Strictly. And, you know, it's, I think it's pretty heartbreaking when you, you know, some choose to leave, but not everyone chooses to leave. And, you know, it's become so part of your life. But I think it's also pretty full on as a dancer, you know, depending on who you get as a partner and how each season goes for you. And, you know, there's injury and there's all sorts of dramas that can happen. And just watching them up on stage, loving every minute. They are hilarious as well. They all chat. And I'm so proud of it.

my friends. I love them all to pieces and the five girls that they dance with who are phenomenal. And I was watching with Oti Mabusi and her lovely fella, her husband Marius, who is a darling. And Elaine Page was there. And it was great to see Arlene Phillips. And the audience are lapping it up and loving it. And we're all on our feet dancing. At one point, Otee Mabusi climbed over me. And I was like, is she actually just going to fight her way off? To stage, but she needed the loop. Where is it onzo? I saw them at the London Palladium.

And again, you know, Brendan said how moving it was to be at the London Palladium because that's where Brucey had his ashes scattered. Did he really? Some of Bruce Forsyth's ashes are in the London Palladium because it's such an amazing theatre and everyone has played there. And that wasn't lost on the boys either. It was fantastic. So they're still on tours.

You can still go and see them. I think there's not many tickets left. but they also announced that they're going to do it again next year, a whole new show. So if you miss them this year, you'll be able to see them next year. And you will love it. It's so much fun. If you're loving Dig It, make sure you hit the follow on Apple or Spotify. It means that you'll never miss an episode and they'll download to your phone as soon as they're out.

I had such a contrast of a week to you. So I had really busy week, as always did a gig on Friday 90s anthems in Bradford. So hi to anyone from Bradford, who was there, a beautiful new venue that I've got there called Bradford Live. I saw the pictures. It looked like it kicked right off, Joe. Honestly, it takes it out of me when I'm on stage. It's like doing a Jane Fonda workout, an hour and a half. As we've established, I can't dance, so I will never be on Strictly.

But I do loads of nose of jumping up and down. So I was doing that. And then when it gets to like the morning after and the day after, I'm pretty dead and really, really tired. So my weekend was watching strictly, watching the people dancing. And we had such a nice evening. Coco and her boyfriend Joe came around. Disco and I sat on the settee. Jude's bonus turned up with Maisie. So there were the six of us on the settee for. And was it 13 hours that strictly went on for on Saturday? It was. It's so long in the beginning, isn't it? It is so long. But how many surprises there were, flipping heck. It was delightful to have it back. And to have Tess and Claude back on our screens and the judges. I saw Anton Zubet. other night. He was actually being mobbed by women of my age. It was really funny to see. But the

highlights for me, Nitro, Harry, oh, I was in tears watching him after his performance. Was he the gladiator? He's the gladiator and he'd had a terrible injury and he wasn't sure he'd ever get over that and to then be, you know, bench pressing Karen Hauer, hot lips Hauer, as I call her. It's just amazing. He's so brilliant. Can I tell you, Lavoire. So I've been watching Lvoire. And I'm like, what a great thing. First drag queen to do strictly to be partnered up. Aliash is so good.

I adore Aliash. And I'd message to just say, I thought you were brilliant. And came back. It's Chris. Chris used to do my makeup in a popular department store in London way back. I'd bought some products from the counter that he worked on. And I'd been going to a do. And he went, do you want me to do your eyes for you?

And he did my makeup. So I would often pop in and see him and he'd do my makeup, Chris. I've still got him in my phone as Chris makeup. No. He's Levoire. She is phenomenal. And Chris, I can't believe that I'd never realized it was you. So I'm so chuffed.

And Levoire did Panto with Vernon last year in High Wickham. And I think Scott Mills is doing Panto this year. So I am going to go and see LeVois. I mean, LeVois is going to be shattered at the end of Strictly and doing Panto as well. Can I just say, I've just say, remembered my favorite favorite moment of the whole thing oh yes i've never heard the frittellis chelsea dagger done at that speed before it was the fastest rendition of chelsea dagger i've ever heard i was like oh my god how are they actually singing this it was hilarious david archer his band

and the singers how they get their heads around that oh my god because also i tend to hate it when they use literal music for people i'm always like oh come on you're making yeah stephan denis dance to neighbors it's just like Oh God, this is hideous. But, you know, you can see when they do it. And of course, Jimmy Floyd Houselbank played for Chelsea, so it's got to be a Chelsea. I was thinking it was, I don't want to go to Chelsea. But of course, there's Chelsea dagger and you're right.

That'll be another week. That'll be another week. I know, exactly. We watched the Rider Cup as well, which was amazing. It was so entertaining. Women's Rugby as well, of course. Oh, the women's rugby. Did you see the film?

I bet you have. Is it Sarah? That's it. Sarah Byrne, if you want to look it up, she did a film about how she used to not like her body. And she used to not have a good relationship with her body because she wasn't like other people, other girls in her school. And then she became a rugby player. And she is now, you know, she recognises that her body is a sportsperson's body and she loves her body.

And she's proud of her body. And it's the most inspirational film you will ever see about a woman loving her body. It is, isn't it? You see her at the beginning. She's like, I didn't like my body. And then at the end, you're like, yes, go you. And I just love the crowds, the crowds. You know, what was it, nearly 82,000 people.

which is a record-breaking crowd going to watch women's rugby at Twickenham. I wish I'd gone. The atmosphere looked incredible. So well done, red roses. And I hope the celebrations are still continuing. Right, we're going to take a quick break for some ads. If you'd like these episodes ad-free, why not become a subscriber to the potting shed? You'll get longer episodes, bonus content, and access to our members chat room where we can share tips. This episode is brought to you by Airbnb. You've been running around a lot lately, haven't you? Because it's that time of year.

Oh, it sure is. Collecting, dropping off the kids, work deadlines, barely enough time to do the laundry. Honestly, it feels like that for a lot of people I know at the moment. I was chatting to a mate last week. She's got a lovely flat, travels all the time for work, so the place just sits empty. She wants to host it on Airbnb, but hasn't got the headspace to manage it all. I totally get that. My friend said the same.

She loves the idea of making a bit of extra money, but couldn't see how she'd fit it into her schedule, which is really busy. And that's where the Airbnb co-host network comes in. You can team up with somebody local who helps take care of everything. Okay, so if you're busy or maybe you just don't know where to start, you can essentially pair up with someone who will do it all for you. Exactly. So from writing your listing to messaging guests and managing bookings, a co-host can do it all. So basically, you can make hosting work even when life gets a bit of full. full on. Yes, and if that sounds like a win to you, find a co-host at Airbnb.com.com.org slash host. This episode of Digit is sponsored by Eight Sleep. Lately, I've really come to appreciate the wonder of a good night's sleep. And God, I wish I was like you. I am such an incredibly

light sleeper. One dog barking and I'm wide awake for the rest of the night. Honestly, I'll do anything for an extra hour of good sleep. And that's exactly what I got with Eight Sleep's new Pod 5. So this is the clever mattress cover that keeps your bed at the perfect temperature all night? Yeah, it cools you down if you're too hot, warms you up if you're too cold, it learns how you sleep. And it even tracks your heart rate and breathing. No wristbands, no watches, just smart, comfy tech. Eight sleep is designed to help you fall asleep quicker, stay asleep longer and wake up refreshed. Which means I can finally get back into the garden, getting things done full of energy. And if you share a bed with someone who runs hotter or colder, it adjusts each side independently. Amazing. Head to 8Sleep.com slash digit. Use code

dig it and get up to 350 pounds off the Pod 5 Ultra. That's code digit for up to 350 pounds off the pod 5 Ultra. If you're tired of being tired, sleep better with 8Sleep. Over the course of the weekend, I went to visit my mum and dad just to check in on them again. One of those things that is really lovely to do that sometimes when we're really busy, you neglect. people who just want to have a visit who the days are really long for and I'm really acutely aware that the older my parents get, the less friends they've got and the less people they have popping in and giving them a social life and they're battling their own health issues at the moment so they can't actually go out and drive. So the days are long. So Steve and I just went over there

and hung out with them when we watched the rugby and we did a bit of tidying up and it was so nice. But during the time that we were there, the number of times their phones went off or they got messages about scams or scam phone calls, scam alerts, scam messages. My poor dad is really confused at the best of times. And he's like, well, what do they want to speak to me for? And I was just like, no, don't answer the phone. Don't reply to the text. And he doesn't quite understand, really, that it's somebody trying to rip him off.

And it's quite scary for them. It's really scary. Yeah. It's awful. Really awful. Is there really a way to block these numbers and stuff? Because, I mean, I get it myself where I'll start, you know, where I look, if there's a number I don't recognize, I generally don't pick it up. I mean, I very rarely answer the phone.

I'm like, text me, call me if it's emergency. So when people call, I'm usually suspicious. Sometimes I start, and the minute they start asking me to give them any details, I'm like, no, thanks, bye. I've always felt really betrayed. I had one case when I was with, I picked up Coco from school and we were driving back. And I had, you know, like a 45-minute conversation with this guy. I can't even remember what it was now, bank or the phone. I think it was probably bank.

and he was so unbelievably convincing. And I was following everything that he was asking me to do, everything he was telling me to do. And then I got home. And I just felt a little bit uneasy. And then I said to Steve, I was like, I'm just going to pass you over to my husband. And then obviously the phone just went dead as soon as that happened.

But I just felt really betrayed by the fact that there was a man, a person talking to me, knowing he was trying to rip me off and steal some money from me. And he was being as nice as anything on the phone. And I was like, I'm a bit of a sucker, but also how can somebody do that to another person? But it's getting harder, isn't it? And more divis with AI coming along.

I had a thing where they were using my face on some weird advert, and it looked like a headline. It's like Zoe Ball has shocked and appalled herself, you know, shocking behaviour again kind of thing. I think one of them was quite funny because I remember Woody sending it to me, and it looked like I was attacking someone, and they'd stuck my face on someone else's body. And he's like, Mom, what if you're done now?

But anyway, you would click on the story. and then it was somehow me saying I changed my life by investing in this, you know, some scam. And it was encouraging people to invest. And I was getting a lot of messages on my socials from people saying, is this true? Is this a real thing? It's like, please, I'll say this now. I will never ever do adverts asking people to invest any money in anything. So please, if you ever see anything like that with my face on it, it's a scam and don't fall for it.

but they've used all sorts of people's faces and details. It's really scary and amazing what they can do with AI now. I know. I think our team have done something quite freaky with our voices on the subject of AI. Because people can, like, they pretend to be you and they confone your family and try and convince them to open doors and things like this. It's a whole new world that I'm just discovering about. But should we hear what the Digit gang have done with our voices?

Okay. Hey, so I'm at the Garden Centre. Great recommendation, by the way. I've stupidly forgotten my wallet. They can do a bank transfer if I text you the details. Would you be able to sort it? Oh my God. Oh my God.

I never said that. Can I just say I never said that? Oh my God. Shit, that's so scary. Oh my God. That I'm at the garden centre. How have they done that? I've never said those words about bank transfers and details.

Now I have said it. But our producer apparently just had five seconds of my voice and then was able to make sentences out of anything. Make me say anything at all. Just by the tone of my voice and how it sounded and was able to make me ask you for money. And they've done the same with you as well, I think. Hey, Joe, I've totally forgotten Nellie's birthday. I'm meeting her shortly and I don't have my wallet. Is there any chance you could get me a 50 quid Amazon voucher and just send me the code and I can text it onto her and I'll be back later on. Sorry about this. What the hell?

I mean, Joe, you know, this is the thing that is likely to happen. I forget my daughter's birthday. And I would believe it. I would totally believe it and buy you a £50 Amazon voucher. Yeah. Now, if they did a message like that to my dad. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's really scary at how that sounds exactly like you.

And that sounded exactly like me, apart from perhaps the way I would say Amazon. But with the traffic noise and everything, I mean, it really sounds like a phone message. So if our kids then got messages from us telling them to do something or maybe if the kids, oh my God, it's like a horror film. If the kids were at home tonight. No, that's terrifying. And then they got a phone call and trying to get them to open the door, pretending it was us behind the door. And then they opened the door and then there's someone out there. I mean, I am making this into a horror film.

How terrifying. Yeah. So this is basically something we should be completely aware of and perhaps have that discussion with our families, with our parents, with our friends. If you ever get a call from me or a message asking you to do anything to do with me. money. Yeah. I mean, what do you have to do? Do you have to have safe words, safe phrases or? I think a safe word is not enough, apparently. I mean, well, as we've just heard, they can make us say absolutely anything. So it has to be a super private, like, original safe phrase that you have as a family and also, you know, with parents or other people or friends. So it's got to be

something so specific that no one could possibly work out what that phrase might possibly be. Or you just have that conversation with your friends and your family just saying, the challenge. answers are me ever calling you, telling you I've left my purse and that I need to pay for something are really unlikely. I never even thought about this before, but I know that if India got a phone call from me on a late on a Friday night and it was my voice saying, panicking and going, oh my God, Indy, I've looked, my phone's been stolen. I've borrowed somebody else's phone or, you know, I've lost my wallet. Can you do this for me? She would do it because in that panic, you would, you'd go, oh my God, I've got to help mum or I've got to help whoever. Maybe someone's listening right now and

you've had some kind of horrible experience where you've been scammed and you can tell us about it. It might be really good to warn other people as well, but we'd love to hear your experiences. Show notes, that's where all the details are if you want to let us know and share with us. Your scam stories. Yeah.

I mean, it is the thing of horror films. Can I also just say on the subject of the thing of horror films, when I do the podcast, the animals just gravitate and they all come and sit with me while I do it. So Brody is always just to my right. And he did this last week when I was talking to you. At some point during the recording of the podcast, he will just emit this foul

smelling stench from his bottom as I'm trying to talk to you. He's asleep. He doesn't even know he's done it. And all I can breathe in is his bottom. It's disgusting. As you were talking then, I was like, what the hell is that? Oh, Brody. Brody. I love it. You're like Dr. Doolittle. Can I say on the subject of bad smells, I invested in some of those ESOP poo drops that you mentioned. Oh yeah. They really work. Because the sprays that people have been using in the house had run out because they're used. use so often and to mask the smells. Anyway, so good. I can invest in some of these poo drops and they're really good. Lovely smell they leave and they tend to get rid of the, yeah, the wafty smell in the loo. Great Christmas present for Christmas stocking.

I don't know if you can use them on Brody. Spot of gardening now. We have a question in from Ellie. Hello, Ellie. Hi, Joe and Zoe. My name is Ellie. I've listened to your shows on and off for about 25 years. In fact, I was late for one of my.

A-level classes when, so we had her last breakfast show on Radio 1 because I didn't want to miss the end. I have a question about bulbs because we have a new build garden and I don't have a green thumb. I have maybe a yellow to green thumb. I'm getting there. But my question is, if you want different bulbs and flowers to bloom throughout the different seasons, how do you plant them in your garden? Can you put bulbs on top of each other or do you have to make sure there are separate sections for each plant and flour. And if you've got a new build with like soil that's not very nutrient rich, I think we've got quite a lot of clay, for example, what are some good hardy bulbs that will be good for a novice when she doesn't really know what she's doing? Thank you. Bye.

Oh, Ellie, it's a bit hit and miss with bulbs as well. My garden's new. So I'm sort of starting again. My last garden was heavenly and I'd, and someone had done it all before. So we'd get snow drops and you'd have blue bells and you'd have crocuses and there were daffodils and then I'd put in loads of tulips and they did brilliantly and also there were quite a few in pots so they would come up you know but these were done by a gardener I had at a time called Theo who was great and he would do these pots that were honestly it was like a sort of slow firework display it was fantastic because the flowers would come up and then the others would come up and the others would come up so if you want to do this in pots a really great way to do that is to do a lasagna I've actually

actually done some this weekend, but rather me tell you how to do a bulb lasagna, if you're going to do it in pots, we have experts Claire Foster on hand to show us how to make a bulb lasagna. Fantastic. This is basically a really good way of extending the flowering season of a single pot. So what you're trying to do is plant a series of different bulbs that will be flowering at different times. So for example, today I'm going to plant this pot with tulips, with some narcissus and with some winter flowering irises, all of which will flower at a different time. So this is a 30 centimetre pot

and it's a height of about 25 centimetres. And I'm going to start with the bottom layer with some tulips. So what you do is you put the tulips in first because they're going to be the last to flower. So they go the deepest. I'm placing the tulips about five centimetres apart. and then you cover those with some more compost and I've got a mix here of peat-free compost mixed with a handful of grit so you want to cover those tulips completely

and then you go in with the next layer of Narcissus and they'll be flowering a few weeks before the tulips so again I'm putting another layer possibly a few more this time maybe eight Narcissus I've got Narcissus Salia there cover those with another layer and then we're on the top layer and I'm going to put some iris reticulata which is a lovely winter flowering iris three or four centimeters in between and then literally just cover those with a small scattering of compost they don't want to plant those too deeply the irises will be the first to flower around February followed by the Narcissus Thalia followed by

the tulips so you will literally have this pot in flour from February to the end of April. God, I've never paid attention more to a tutorial. I know, it's so great. So I'm going to say that I've been taking lots of inspiration from Claire and from Nictorian Diaries because there's a great thing you can do with pots which Nictorian Diaries on Instagram had done, which is if you use some chicken wire in your pots, if you've got your tulips in there and then you've got your dafts and then you've got your irises, If you've put chicken wire underneath the whole of that and you have some sticking out just at the size of the pots, when you get to the point where it's just foliage and you want to use those pots in the summer,

perhaps to put dahlias in or whatever you want to put in the summer, you lift the whole thing out with the chicken wire and then you've got your bulbs. You put those under a tree and then you can plant them again when the foliage has died off the next sort of autumn, which I thought was such a great idea. The other thing is I've got an issue with squirrels and they, destroyed some lovely tulips that had come back from form plants that they gifted me. And I was absolutely devastated because they were really beautiful. And they just scoffed the lot. And they do love to dig up in the garden. Now, I've been told that alliums, which come up much later, they don't

like, because they don't like the onion family. So I bought some alliums. I'm going to put them in the ground and we'll see if they survive. But in some of my pots, I have put a chicken wire layer quite near to the top. And then that's under soil and under a little bit of grit. Yeah. So I've been told that once they start to shoot up, you can probably take that chicken wire off. So this is a bit experimental for me.

Also, I looked at lots of other tips. Arrett Anderson gave me some other tips, if you've got a squirrel issue, that you can use the cuttings from your roses. So when you've pruned your roses, they're really spiky bit. So I've laid some of those across the top. You can use holly cuttings as well because anything spiky.

The squirrels don't want to go near. And I've also read that you can scatter a bit of chili powder across the top of your bulbs so they'll stay away from them. Now, whether any of these methods work, I don't know. I've also taken a bit of a risk because really tulips shouldn't go in until it's much colder. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I'll let you know how those pots do. And if those tulips survive, I've got loads of other tulips to go in the ground later.

but is it pointless because will the squirrels dig them up? This is going to be fascinating. It's like a soap opera. I mean, genuinely, I am engrossed. Will my bulbs survive? So Ellie, with your garden, it might be a bit trial and error.

If I was going to plant bulbs in the borders, if you have got a new build, the ones I think are really worth the foliage, which annoys me a little bit, are the parrot ones, the massive parrot tulips, because they last a really, really long time. They are so spectacular when they flower.

that I don't mind putting up with the green leafiness of everything. They're really great presents as well, bulbs. I always, when I'm buying some for myself, because you can buy them in the supermarket now as well. I have one issue when it comes to pots, which is why I'm not throwing myself into the bulb planting at the moment, because all my pelagoniums, which I've gone really big on, and I love them so much, they're all flowering.

They look amazing at the moment. I've got countless pots, and they are all full of deep burgundies and pinks and gorgeous colors. And I don't know what to do. I'm going to let them flower, and then when they stop, that will be fine. Where do I put them after? Because in the past, I've let them die over the winter,

and I don't want to do that this year, because they're really healthy plants. I've got a shed. I haven't got a greenhouse, and I just literally don't know what to do with the plants. I want to have them next year. Don't want to go out and buy them all over again. I don't want them to die over the winter as well.

But I do want to take them from the pots are in at the moment, and I do want to have bulbs, and I do want to have pansies and violas and things like that. So any advice, if anybody from the garden, world is watching right now. What do you do in this situation? Because I am pretty clueless. Great digging time, which I always love Joe, because you recommend some really great records. What have you got behind you this week? Behind me is this brooding masterpiece of an artist and an album. It is the latest one from Joy Crooks. Oh. The album is called Juniper. And it's Joy's second

album, I think. It's a double album. Joy by name, Joy by Nature. But she did say, I spoke to her the other day on my show when she was like, yeah, I have to be joyful, so it's not ironic because one of her teachers once said that to her at school. And she was like, it's kind of a blessing and a curse being called Joy. But she's amazing. She's got a fantastic voice. Shades of Amy Winehouse about her, I think, but she's very much a London female artist, very young. She has a Bangladeshi mother and an Irish father. They've had a huge influence on her musical upbringing and the way she is. She loves the clash. She loves Van Morrison. She loves a real myriad. of different artists and it all has come to fruition in this album.

There's a song on there called Forever, which is, oh, just really tugs at the heartstrings. And it's a great album. So Joy Crooks and Juniper would be my offering for the crate this week. And I love it because you bring out all kinds of weird and wonderful things from your record collection. What are you got this week? Well, this week I have cheated.

I've put it in position ready because I read this morning that this month, this film is 42 years old and it is a favourite. with an amazing soundtrack. It is The Big Chill, which was a great film about a group of friends who were probably in their 30s, 40s who got together for a friend's funeral. In the film, interesting fact,

the body of their friend who's died was originally played by Kevin Costner. But I don't think you ever got to see the body. But you had Tom Berringer and Jeff Goldblum and Meg Tilly and Glenn Close and Kevin Klein, one of my favorites, William Hurt, such an amazing cast and they are such a great group of friends

and they spend the weekend together and they talk about life and death and families and babies and careers and what they hoped might have happened and what didn't happen but the soundtrack is so excellent you've got Marvin Gaye, Temptations heard it through the Great Vine

My girl, you make me feel like a natural woman Aretha Franklin white a shade of pale and three dog night joy to the world. Actually, not on this album, but it does feature is you can't always get what you want by the Rolling Stones, but they obviously couldn't clear it to get it on the album because that plays in the church at the beginning when they're at the funeral and one of the cast plays it on an organ and it's just great. But the fashion is great. The characters are great.

You know, I guess some of the ideas when you watch it back now might be a little dated because We've come on leaps and bounds in relationships and how we talk about life and death. But it is such a great film and the soundtrack is excellent. So that is my offering on crate digging this week. I've just realised that Joy to the World, three dog night.

Three dog night. Memory like a sieve. That was a song that Billy grew up chose for me and that was his childhood song and he was talking about how he had a difficult relationship with his dad and his dad rolled up one day in a car and that was playing on the car stereo

and that was a really defining moment in his life, in his relationship with his dad. Oh, my goodness. Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. Joy to you and me. That's all we've got time for today back again on Monday to dig in and hear what you've been saying. If you have any questions, perhaps tips or general thoughts on what we've discussed, do contact us. Our WhatsApp and our email address are in the show notes. And if you're loving the podcast, we genuinely sincerely hope you are. please can you leave us five stars on Apple or Spotify that would be very nice also if you want to put a little review we'd love that too it just really helps other people to find the show have a great week my darling thank you and you too

anything exciting in the next day or two i am finally having my PRP with my hip so i will report back after my plasma rich platelets treatment to let you know if my hip is any better god i had my cortisone injection in my shoulder and found out I don't have to have surgery, not yet. Oh, goodness. Yeah, I know. I can almost move my shoulder around, yeah. Oh, so slowly getting better. That is very good. All of this to be discussed next week on Digit. Have a great week, darling. Yeah, and you too. Good luck with the PRP. Bye. Thank you. Digit is a Persephoneka production.