The Phonebox Podcast With Emma Conway - Claire Wetton: The Unhinged World of 80s/90s Kids TV!

Episode Date: July 17, 2023

Wanna be reminded of the plot of Count Duckula? Here two grown women singing Pugwall? Then this episode of The Phonebox Podcast is the one for you! I welcome my sister Claire who is part of the BAFTA award winning Horrible Histories team. She's written for countless children's TV shows and also is an expert in the field of kids TV. For more of me follow @brummymummyof2 on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and TikTok and follow the all new @phoneboxpodcast account on InstagramIf you have any guest suggestions or topics you would like me to cover email [e-mail] and be sure to tag so I can see where you are listening!Editing by Soundtruism. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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That way, we can say thanks for your opinion. Just go to mypodcastsurvey.ca and have your say. That's mypodcastsurvey.ca. Hello and welcome to another episode of the PhoneVox podcast with me, Emma Conway. How the devil are you? I hope you are all well. This is a much requested episode with my little sister, Claire. Claire Michelle Whetton aka Clara Bella. She is the youngest. I am the oldest and also if you are new here and you don't follow me on social media you might not know Claire is an award-winning children's TV writer. She's part of the Horrible

Histories team. She also has written things like Dennis Nasher, Mr Tumble, Supertato. She's part of the BBC children's proms team. She's doing all the children's writing. So if you have kids and they are watching stuff, more than likely she's had a hand in writing it. Now, disclaimer, a warning. This episode is very brummy. It's very brummy. I didn't realise quite how brummy I sounded when I was speaking to my sister.

So if you're not a fan of the brummie accent, go back and listen to another one. But if you are, please stay tuned. We cover all sorts of kids TV, from cartoons to dramas to Saturday morning television. Claire tells us her favourites and we just have a good old giggle. So I hope you enjoy this episode and I'll see you at the end for a chat hello and welcome to the phone box podcast my lovely little sister claire michelle wetten aka clara bella which i know she loves sister sister oh what a we're straight in we're straight in with the content was that 90s or noughties i don't know it was timeless it It was classic.

We need somebody to fact check it. Fact check it. I can't... Fact check it. I can't even say it. I'll fact check it. They're about our age, aren't they? So it must be...

Fact check it. Yeah, Tear and Tamara. Must be the 90s. It's got to be 90s. It was a classic programme. So Claire is here today to do a children's TV bonanzaanza much like i did the boy band bonanza with alison perry we're here to talk to claire who would you class yourself as an expert yes what are your qualifications i watched a lot of tv when i was a child i thought you were gonna go because i was part of a bachelor award within

children's tv you're like no no just watched a lot of telly watched a lot of telly and i loved all of it and people did write in write in nobody wrote in nobody's written a letter who's written a letter no one's written a letter people messaged in um for certain shows for us to talk about it what we're going to do is we've got i pick categories haven't i and i asked asked Claire to pick her faves. And then we might chat a bit about what some of the people who listen to the podcast chose. So we are going to go through favourite cartoon, then favourite drama. And these are 80s and 90s, aren't they? Yes.

Because we were kiddies then. We weren't kiddies in the noughties. No. But were you still watching children's tv in the noughties yes am i still watching it now yes did i say it's my job for my job yes so i can get away with it did i just turn off in the night garden to do this but no that's a joke she didn't was, I can't even think of a kids' TV programme. I did watch Count Duckula yesterday in order to prepare myself. Is there new ones?

No, old. Old. Okay. So we're going to do favourite cartoon, drama, Saturday morning TV, comedy. And then I added this one, favourite wouldn't be allowed today TV show because there's a lot of creepy TV shows that we had to watch that were put on the telly and we were just put in front of it and everybody thought it was normal.

Yeah. We'll save that to the end. So the first, not round, what should we call it? The first category. And you've gone for a, now how are we going to do it? You're going to do the winner first or the runner up first? Runner up first, then the winner. To keep the people in suspense.

Yeah, of course. So if somebody's driving, they might want to pull over to hear the winner. I feel like the people involved in making it are all at home waiting together. Like, will they win the award? I don't mean to be mean. Absolute celebration. Do you think they're still alive? Yeah. Yeah. together like will they will they win the awards i don't mean to be mean absolute celebration you think they're still alive yeah yeah we'll go with that i know people who worked on stuff that we watched oh look at you name dropping oh yeah everyone's really like jell aren't they it's

the same as knowing beyond saying it okay let's start off with your favorite cartoon runner up okay so this is the controversial one oh and i say it's controversial because the majority over full over the cast because i'd say the majority of my career is writing animation yeah i don't think we liked cartoons i don't think we like cartoons and i tell you what it's going to shock in fact people might turn off i didn't like disney cartoons growing up either wasn't interested and i call myself on disney adults wasn't interested but i tell you what was good yeah theme tunes oh my god cartoons had the best theme tunes ever and i remember on a saturday morning or even like

a wednesday afternoon we would think between channels trying to get the theme tunes then as soon as the show started no interest well what who's your runner-up and has it got a good theme tune there is no runner-up for cartoons because i literally couldn't even think of two cartoons that i liked but i could think of loads of good theme tunes. So the runner-up is cartoon theme tunes. When Rose. You wouldn't get this at the Smash It's Poe Winners party. If they did Best Haircut and then they just went, there are no best haircuts.

You've all got floppy hair. It's all the same hair. Piedmonton Peas, Shoe People. Down at the bottom of the gallon. Raggy Dolls. Raggy the gallon. Raggy Dolls. Raggy Dolls, Raggy Dolls. If you're not saying sad sack at least once a month when you see a miserable person.

Who even are you? What was the Shoe People? Shoe People. Shoe people. Who else? What other ones? Gummy bears dancing here and there and everywhere. Here and there and everywhere. High adventure. And you're right, I couldn't tell you the plot of any of them and one of the absolute worst

cartoons of all time uh 80 days around the world 80 days around the world we'll find a part of gold just sitting away in the rainbow The theme tune to Dog Tanyan, it was somewhere right at the back of my brain. And I just was like... And that was weird because it was like a French cartoon that seemed to be dubbed. But it still didn't quite work, even though it was just cartoons. OK, so there's no winner. We'll let the people decide. If you want to message us.

There is a winner. There is a winner. There's no winner. Oh, oh, God. Sorry. Quick, pull over again. Pull over again. Count Dracula.

Count Dracula was good. Now, I can't remember the theme tune. Count of Bermuda. Count of Bermuda. It was like the story of Count duckula duckula count duckula so he was from a long line of vampire ducks yeah they brought him back to life nanny and eagle but nanny accidentally instead of getting a bottle of blood she got a bottle of ketchup and poured it in so he was the first ever vampire

duck vegetarian look at my face I don't remember any of that plot I remember Nanny because I think I look a bit like Nanny I don't remember any of that plot I'm thinking of Trapdoor but Trapdoor was not an animation

well it was an animation but it was what they're called clay clay claymation yeah okay so kind of killer i'm i'm not happy with that well that's why i re-watched it yesterday to see whether it was good and it was it was still good it still still stands up today um i just don't think cartoons were as fun back then as they are now no but you're right they did have some cracking theme tunes and if any of you out there um want to follow an instagram account we had a lady on called knee deep in 90s and she's always putting out theme tunes on her account and they're up she puts spats up the other day she she spends days trying to source this stuff. So definitely go and follow her. All that's going around in my head is... OK, so best cartoon, Count Duckula.

You get an award. And I'm handing it over to Count Duckula now. Give a speech. This is the bit where I didn't tell you, Claire, you have to pretend to be Count Duckula accepting a speech. You have won, Count Duckula. Go. Thank you.

I love vegetables. I love tomato sauce. I never knew that was the plot. Okay. We're going on to best drama. Now, what is the runner-up for best kids' TV drama? Baker, Baker, Baker, Baker Groove. Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh.

I'm shook. I feel like Grange Hill might be number one now, if Baker Grove's number two. We have had a request to discuss PJ and Duncan and when PJ went blind. Thoughts go. Let's not forget when we saw PJ and Duncan live and I shouted to PJ,

PJ, where's your stick? And he looked at me and said, yeah, I haven't heard that one before. And I thought, I'm going to die. I thought I was really funny. And Ant was like, no. He's a national hero and he scorned you.

He scorned you for making a very obvious joke. I thought it was going to be the comedy highlight of my life and he absolutely shot me down. Ant McPartlinland if you're listening you're rude but if you want to come on the podcast of course i'll immediately ditch my sister and replace her with you um i i am gonna say my favorite plot on viker grover was not

paintballing still scared to go paintballing now if the kids doing anything like that i'm like watch your eyes it was Dec joining a cult. Yeah. Is it I Am? What was the, there was like a catchphrase, I Am. I can't remember what it was. It was like a little, that was my favourite, joining a cult. And I'm a bit offended. I've never been asked to join a cult.

Anything with Spooky in was the best. She was just a legend. She was a legend and so was Jim. Jeff. Oh my God, such a legend. I forgot his name yeah and i want to say jeff banks and it's not because i think he was on the glow show jeff spuggy and and deck um donna air can't think of anybody one other single person who was in it

uh me and my best friend at school kerry actually wrote the biker gro Grove yeah asking if we could have a part in the show and the full storyline of how why two random brummies were in uh Newcastle I think we were sisters and our parents had died and we've been sent to foster care in Newcastle so we were very sad and we needed the support of the did you get a reply we did get a reply saying thank you very much that's a great storyline however our policy is to only hire children from the local area we replied back saying we're really happy to relocate good story but also me and Kerry being sisters she was like the tallest she had long dark brown hair yeah she did quite wavy hair, didn't she? Yeah.

There's no way we would be sisters. Do you know who would have been really good for you to do it with? Your actual sister. That would have been me. Your actual sister. If you'd actually gone to your actual sister and said, do you know what, me, you, by five, we'd go out with PJ and Duncan. It would be great.

Tonight I'm free or whatever. Let's get ready for more. But no, you chose a random person. Yeah. Okay, so that's number two runner-up uh what's your number one press gang press gang is an absolute is and was an absolute classic I loved it deck I wouldn't saw Dexter was I with you when I saw Dexter Fletcher it's one of my biggest regrets that we never went to the low no No, what would we have said? No, I don't. It was a good 20 years after it had been on.

Yeah, but it was quite a long time after Press Gang, but it was before he got famous again as like a direct. Yeah. So it was in that little window where he probably would have been quite pleased that someone knew who he was. Yeah, we should have just, yeah, he just, that was in London, wasn't it? No, Liverpool. Oh, Liverpool. What were we doing we doing in liverpool we just went to liverpool one day so dexter fekter um was having a frisson with julia sohalla in today was the best character of all time she was the best character yeah to be her imagine being a teenager running your own newspaper with dexter flexer trying to get up with you and colin was somebody called colin colin was the one

who used to like um he was a bit of a not a gangster but he'd wear like a trilby hat and do like he would wear a trilby hat yeah a't he? He was a niladila. Yeah, a bit of an aphidaili. And then there was the other guy, but I can't remember what his name was, who was the deputy editor. And he was nice as well. And then he was like an evil person on EastEnders. So press gang. I don't imagine there was many seasons of press gang.

No, I don't think there was. We should petition for it to come back. Well. You know, Swahala and Flexer um Flexer Fletcher that's a cross between Dexter Fletcher Flexer what I will say is I want honourable mention to Children's Ward yes definitely honourable mention to Children's Ward honourable mention uh merit badge goes to, of course, Grain Shield. When I went to university,

one of the boys in the year below us was a main character on Children's Ward and I don't think I've ever been a starstruck. What was his name? Wasn't there a handsome one? Was he handsome? No, he was a ginger lad.

You can still be handsome if you're ginger I'm just in case anyone remembers him I can't remember what his name was in it 10 past five was quacking telly 10 past five was where you want to be we weren't watching news round and sorry if you did watch news round we didn't watch news round we weren't days when blue peter were on were an absolute write-off for me. What is the point of Blue Peter? Apart from the Tracy Island bit. Been at school all day. I don't want to be educated when I get home.

No, I don't want to be educated. News round, I don't want to be educated. And then on a Friday, sometimes they'd put a film on, wouldn't they? And I didn't really like those films. Did you remember that? Ten past five on a Friday, sometimes it was a film and it was always a little bit boring so i didn't really really like those yeah do you remember i i met yvette

fielding when i was about 11 at the green show do i do said who likes blue peter and everyone went hooray and i said i don't i think it's rubbish to my friend and she heard and came over with the microphone and said oh really why do you think it's rubbish to my friend and she heard and came over with the microphone and said oh really why do you think it's rubbish she held the microphone it went in my face and I said I don't really I love it it's my favorite what a liar that was your moment you could have just gone because you know what Yvette it's boring Yvette it's boring I'll only watch it if Tate that are on it and if Tate that aren't on it i ain't watching it is a bit my kids will watch my kids will watch blue peter now and news round i love it it's a bit

jazzy and either in it we had john craven oh john craven okay so we're moving on to comedy which i think you're gonna um have a lot of inputs because you are kind of like a comedy writer runner up rent a ghost rent a ghost that's very early 80s i'm wondering if some people might not know what that is tell us please the premise it was a house filled with ghosts and if you needed someone haunted, you just rented a ghost. Did you get Mr Claypole? Is that his name? Mr Claypole. Miss Popoff. Yeah. She'd sneeze and then she'd disappear.

What? That's still on the telly. No, I think some of them may have passed on. Oh, I would have thought so, definitely. This was about 40 years ago. Yeah, that was a great programme. Rent a ghost. I really enjoyed that.

That wouldn't have been even in my brain, but that is a great programme. Bring it back. Bring it back. I'll write it. But it was a great one. So who's your, what's your winner? I can't even believe what I say. It's made Marianne.

Marianne, why don't you carry on? If you follow me on Instagram, I'm my mummy of two account. Every year since I've started, so for a decade, I have posted, it's Pancake Day, it's Pancake Day, it's Pancake Day. And I will continue to do so. And one year, what's his name? Baldrick's name, what's his name? Tony Robinson.

Tony Robinson also posted it and I felt like he was copying me and I was a bit regretful about that. That used to be our competition of who could sing it first on Pancake Day. Yeah, it's always me. It wasn't for a little bit, but then since you had kids, like I'm never awake by the time you are. The kids walk in and I scream it at them. And you bought me the DVD.

I've got the DVD of May Baron. It was a classic. They are bringing that back aren't they well it's been optioned but it hasn't been we don't know yet whether it is but if it is i've already put out to the universe i want to be on that manifest you want to be you want to be writing that show in fact you want to be you want to write it and star in it as marion well i could probably do without that sounds a lot of effort

sorry guys if you were thinking of putting her as Marion she says no she's not interested she's ditched it oh come on it's not Baldrick what was he in that programme he was the Sheriff wasn't he Sheriff of Nottingham we are now moving on to Saturday morning TV

and I think this is a really tough tough category i've got a question but that's that's gonna give away what's what's the winner basically oh gosh and live and kicking with the same show right they were just the same show okay going live and live and kicking so going live was first with the man who we shall, we're not going to talk about Pip. We'll talk about, who did he do it with? Sarah Green. And then it moved to Live and Kickin' with Zoe Ball and, was it Jamie Feakston?

No, first of all, it was Emma Forbes and Andy Peters. Oh, Emma Forbes was great. What's happened to her? It was, it was basically when they got rid of the first cast, they went to the second cast, but it was the same show. They just changed the name. They changed the name. We're just going to say that's the same.

I'd like to have them as the same show as the winner. Thank you very much. As the winner? They're not the runner-up? No, they're the winner because I needed to check that because otherwise I'd have put them first. What are you talking about? What about CD UK? What are you talking about talking about well that's not it that isn't even

my runner-up my runner-up's 73 do you remember that i think i'm gonna have to hang up this call cduk isn't even 19 it's like 2000s what oh my god was i watching that as an adult yeah this is the thing when we were younger kids tv was on the telly so on a saturday morning you woke up kids tv was on the telly what are you talking about well no you have to go on to like the website or iphone or whatever whereas it used to just be on like you turn on the tv on channel one or channel three and if you were hung over on a saturday as a university student cduk would be on and you'd watch it. So I was talking about Wonky Donkey as a grown adult.

Yes. So what was on the other channel when Going Live and Live and Kicking was on? I do remember number 73. Most of mine. With Neil Buchanan? Yeah. Again, I've looked that from the back. That was in the Dog Tanion thing at the back.

Okay, you're right. I'm going to stand with it. But I'm going to choose the Zoe Ball era. I'm going to go Andy Peters era. And do you know what? Andy Peters has not aged. Do you ever see him on the telly? Yeah.

He has not aged one single day. He's going to outlive us all. I remember the day that he left Live and Kickin'. And I think I was about 17 and I cried as if the worst thing had ever happened to me

and I was waiting I remember watching the end I remember watching the last ever it wasn't Friends what was it on CD UK Chums

Chums I remember watching the last ever Chums and being quite upset and I actually remember they did like a documentary recently and I got a bit upset about that as well because cat dealy she's a brummie yeah i once saw her

in the pub in sutton what's the pub in sutton called that we used to go to were you there in the horse and jacket cat dealy was there i remember yeah cat dealy was there on christmas eve and it was as if like the music had stopped and everybody everybody just turned. And in them days you could smoke and the smoke just, and then there was Kat Deely in a fur coat back for Christmas. Oh, it was love. It was as if I'd seen the Angel Gabriel, but it was Kat Deely. Okay, I agree now. I was annoyed, but I agree because I thought that was 90s.

It might have started very late but I don't think it did I think it started like maybe 2000 I've got my phone here I'll just google it just gonna google google what should I type in when did CDUK start I'm sure people are searching for that every day 1998 1998 I have I always at the beginning of CDUK I had slight beef with it because it was their fault that the chart show ended and i loved the chart show i really enjoyed it 1998 it must have been 25 years they were celebrating and what a great 25 years it's been okay so we've done um cartoon drama comedy saturday morning tv and now it's gonna be favourite that wouldn't be allowed on the telly today.

Runner up go. In general, just storylines. I remember storylines from some of the things we talked about earlier, like on Press Gang, there was a storyline about glue sniffing. They were acting like we were all glue sniffing. This is the thing. I'm sure the moral of the story was don't glue sniff. But all I remember is all of us the next day going, you heard about this glue sniffing? Has anyone got a prick stick?

They all thought we were glue sniffing. And lest we forget, just say no. Why are we watching heroin? I didn't know what drugs were. And then I watched this paper and I was like, oh, there's a thing called drugs. Everyone seems to be really into them. Ten past five,

you've got bloomin' Danny dying of some sort of, I don't know, illness in a car. That's traumatising. You've got Zamo on the drugs. His hairspray, was hairspray sniffing a thing as well? Or was it mainly the glue, wasn't it?

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And if you're not getting rewards like extra data and dollars off with your mobile plan, you're not with Fizz. Switch today. Conditions apply. Details at fizz.ca. I don't write on any drama shows. I only write on comedy. But we always have to be so, so careful about imitative behavior.

So if it's like if a kid can copy it, then you can't do it. Whereas I feel like that was not a thing in the 80s and 90s. It was just like, oh, let's. There was a lot of fear culture, wasn't there? Because you also had those Charlie Says adverts, which indicated you were going to be stolen by an adult at any given moment. Still can't pick up a sparkler because I feel like I'm going to burn both of my hands every time these kids get sparklers i swear to god i am traumatized i'm like i don't even really understand what because i guess if you pick up a sparkler you would burn your hands but the advert implied that you would you would die

if you finish with a sparkler put it down and pick it up again your arm would blow up and then you would die like we all know we would we would be glue sniffing in the morning a predator might get us in the afternoon and then we just die by picking up a sparkler and then you'd run away and get stuck in quicksands and you'd you'd sing gone or climb up a pylon there was one way people i invented that or was i feel like there was an ad where it was like don't climb up pylons yeah these plots it we lived in fear the children children's telly was just, don't join a cult. Don't play paintball. I can't remember any positive storylines.

I can only remember abject horror. Maybe they are now. I don't know because I don't watch them. No, we watch, Erin used to watch Tracy Beaker. And that is a little bit by Kugrowi. That is a little bit, butugrowvi that is a little bit but not not too not too bad on the plots nobody's climbing up pylons or glue sniffing or glue sniffing whilst climbing up a pylon holding a sparkler in their mouth even like i don't know whether you call this kids tv or not

but if you re-watch dawson's creek i don't want to wait like there's an actual like romantic storyline between pacey who is just turned 15 and his teacher and at no point is it like maybe this isn't appropriate it's like oh how romantic that wouldn't be allowed now and even during dawson's creep by the end series there's things that happen in series one that by like series five one of them ago when that happened five years ago that wasn't right was it and we're like good yeah yeah yeah we've learned we've moved on Dawson's Creek didn't now did we watch that when we were adults or was that a chat I can't remember that we were teenagers then like Dawson's Creek never watched the OC though yeah no the OC was good as well but a Dawson's Creek re-watch I advise anyone to re-watch from the beginning and you will be horrified by series one.

But then by the time you get to series two or three, it's just amazing. Just to reminisce. What is the winner of your wouldn't be allowed on telly name? I would say Rod Hollenameo. Because that was just essentially a man groping children with a bird to put on his hand. Just groping. I put bird to put on his hand just just groping i put that on

my stories of the day i was like look if you've never seen rod hull and this is what we had to watch sometimes a doorbell would go and a really scary witch would come in this i can't even remember what the plot was it was just rod hull going around grabbing kids grabbing adults grabbing to be fair he was grabbing everybody with his emu hand spoiler the emu wasn't real i don't mean to upset you people if you're listening it was his hand it was his hand so when it was going all mad and he'd go on he'd go on another and he maybe go on parkinson and he'd like grab parkinson's face with roddell's hand but i always had real sadness for Grok back. Why? Because you look a bit like her?

You're like twins? She just wanted to be invited to the pink windmill and they wouldn't let her in. So, of course, she was going to be mean to them. Just let her in. Just let her in. And she had two sidekicks. One was like a robot and one was a crocodile.

And they were idiots. And she'd get angry with them. And it would be like, I remember being little thinking, well, yeah, I'd be angry with them too. She asked them for a bucket of water and they threw it all over her. They're idiots. And we were all there cheering for Rod Hull. Did we ever see Rod Hull?

We have met Tony Hart, haven't we? We met Tony Hart. We wrote in to EMU and asked if we could be in Pink Wind Mill. What did they say? We got sent back signed pictures of Glock bags. Why didn't we keep them? What were we thinking? I think we have kept them. I don't know where they are, but we did keep them.

I don't know where they are. And in the background, I can just see them framed. I would. They'd stopped making the show. We'd sent it in we were a bit too late actually listeners

we actually sent that letter three weeks ago I'd be there going justice for Gropbags I think you need to let go of it now Claire I think you need to move on from poor old Gropbags yeah it was a weird programme there was lots of weird programs but you know

what hasn't done us any harm maybe potentially did i have to have therapy last year and a couple of years before yeah i did was six of those about glue sniffing and climbing up pylons yeah my therapist would be like emma don't worry about sparklers but what if'm gonna go through a quick fire round of some of the um shows that the lovely listeners sent in that they wanted to chat about now i am gonna say there's a couple of programs that that we didn't watch we did not watch the queen's nose why is that i don't know I think there is quite a small window when you're the right age for something so if you're like seven to nine that's your show but then if you're like 13 you're too old for it if that makes sense so there might be people who were like three years younger than us who were really into a show that we didn't yeah Queen's Nose. But my friend Rachel, she said maybe, like,

I think if you were a bit posh, you watched The Queen's Nose. Yeah, maybe it was on the same time as some of the others. It was like, like, Woof. I know that was a big, people loved that. But I don't think we really liked dramas. Also, Woof, famously filmed in Moseley. Yeah, we went into it. No, which is weird.

No. Simon and the Witch, we loved that we love simon and the witch um in a moment dog in a blanket what was the photo was it frogging out what was the song in the whole end i'll get yes simon which was a great program okay so we are we're not going to discuss queen's nose apologies if you want to turn off now you can also penny crayon don't know what that is i think it was a girl who was a crayon but we are going to talk about in fact i'm going to sing this have you ever ever felt like this have strange things happen are you going around the twist that is a terrifying program but get that back on our screens yes also it was very similar to do you remember eerie indiana do you know they only did one season of that popped up on my tiktok the other day that was

eerie indiana was eerie indiana and ran the twist great very spooky almost like not black mirror like what what would you compare them to like little mini horror films weren't they yeah it was like tales of the unexpected yeah tales of the unexpected but for kids that's what we all want I did like round the twist a lot yeah sometimes the episodes were like would be spread spread over two episodes and that would be annoying because she'd be like I want to know what's going on. I think also with Round the Twist, there was a real, there was a time where anything Australian was just like,

just amazing, wasn't it? You had your Home and Away, you had your Neighbours, you had your Shortland Street. I think I think you always be. It was Degrassi. Degrassi was not Australian. Degrassi was American, wasn't it? Pug War.

Nobody tell me what to say. No, not me. I always thought when you were younger, you looked like Pugwall's girlfriend. That's what everyone said. My friends are worried. Hang on, guys. I just got to tell you how modest my sister is.

Is that real? Oh, yeah. You mean I look like the really pretty girl? Yeah, actually, that's what everyone... In fact, people still say it to me now. They stop me in the street and say, did you used to go out with Pugwall? And I go, no, you're mistaken.

It's not like I said I liked Claudia Schiffer. It's not a big problem. What was her name? Jenny. What was her name, Jenny? Keyboard, Jenny and my guitar. Like me and Pugwall aren't together. Keyboard...

Yeah, Knee Deep in 90s published the whole of that theme tune the other day. And as I commented there, I'll comment now. I don't know Stephen's phone number. Know the whole of that track. And others. Heartbreak Eye. Another great show. That was Australian as well.

Was that New Zealand? Actually, Shortland Street was New Zealand. I take that back. Sorry. Australia did some crackers. Another one. Down at the bottom of the garden and that's the bird in the bees

there lives a lot of little people they're called the the pottenton peas don't know any of the plot I imagine it was just peas getting up to good times good vibes at the bottom of the garden Fraggle Rock another good one that wasn't mentioned by the followers

that was a great one if you've got apple tv watch the they've just done a new version of fraggle rock an updated modern version and it is so good it's so good does it still have the doozers so good yeah top tip top recommendation um i like the doozers okay i'm gonna do this theme tune and i want you to try i'm not sure i'm gonna be able to carry this off but i want you to try and guess the program are you ready what is it johnny briggs johnny briggs again i can't remember the plot did he was he a boy that played a trumpet all i remember is that they had like some steps down to a cellar and they used to hang out in the kitchen a lot but then it was that marmalade atkins i met marmalade atkins in her heyday didn't

mean certain park r.i.p she was in for weddings weren't she yeah um johnny briggs can't remember the plot somebody's i bet somebody's thinking all about Kez, didn't watch it. Couldn't tell you the plot of that. Kez was a film. Had a bird on it, didn't it? Maybe that was 70s. Yeah, it was a film and it wasn't kids, I don't think. Emma, you're just talking crap.

I thought it was about a secondary school boy. Yeah, but I don't think it was a kid's film film i don't know we read the book for gcsa oh anything if any old book given to me for gcsa i immediately thought boring what a load of boring rubbish they could have given me the smash it's annual 1997 and i'd be like what a load of rubbish because i can do it at school okay um i would just like you to pick any other program you want to talk about that's really laying on your heart you need to get it out i feel like there's a whole like teen kind of after school on channel four fresh prince your holly oaks i suppose holly oaks no i'm not really thinking of holly o. But that kind of tea time, kind of American, safe by the bell type.

Tough dudes with attitude, kind of groovy. Yeah, we did. I think you chose quite a lot of British programmes. So American programmes, California Dreaming, still a bop, will always be a bop, bop forever. Great theme tune. tune wanted to be in the band love the girl with the bob love the girl with the blonde hair 10 out of 10 saved by the bell 10 out of 10 i feel like that i feel like they used to be on like in the summer holidays

didn't they used to be in the summer holidays they would be like pug wall and they would and then like, because Pugwall there was only one or two series, they would run out quite quickly and they'd just start again from the beginning. So over the summer holidays, you would watch Pugwall like three times. I'd do it again, put it on tomorrow

and I'd just sit there and I'd watch Pugwall. I mean, I literally would. I'd watch the loop. California Dreaming was great and I bet there was there and I'd watch a football. I mean, I literally would. I'd watch the loop. California Dreaming was great and I bet there was only one season of that. Well, they changed cast at one point. Oh, I'm not interested in that. Yeah, I don't think we were very interested in that.

I think there was one good-looking guy in the second cast which piqued our interest. He probably had floppy hair. Also, Beverly Hills 90210. I think I love Beverly Hills 90210 I I think I love Beverly Hills 90210 more than you may because perhaps I just hit secondary school

and did I love Jason Priestley no did I love Luke Perry no but did I love David Silver aka Brian Austin Green I had posters of him he was a nerd he had a floppy hair but it was like solid, almost like a helmet. Curly, wasn't it?

And I think I thought I stood a chance with Brian Austin Green. He was the younger one, wasn't he? So he was. Yeah. I think logically I was like, well, Jason Priestley, never going to go out with me. Luke Perry, he's never going to get me. David Silver. Yeah, I could do that.

That's how I rationalized it in my head, which I think why i like gary barlow as well he was i think i was like right which one do i stand a chance here yeah i think everyone all the others were taken by other friends and then you were like i'll have gary then i knew my limitations um and look at gary now look he now We saw him a couple of weeks ago He's aged the best He is aged like a fan I just want to discuss One last thing before we go And that is the classic Smash Hits poll

Winners party It truly for me Was the best Night of the year Without a shadow of a doubt I mean all those kind of like like comic relief and children in need um yeah oh comic relief red nose day oh I've got a photo of me and you in um a photo booth with one of the first red noses I mean not like the first ever off the machine but like one of the first years don't do them now because they're saving the environment erin had one that

you had to plant in the ground and turn into a seeds and stuff so you don't get because they used to put them on your nose and they'd slightly hurt oh god yeah yeah but you'd still be rocking it you'd be going in your pajamas you'd be doing a sponsored silence 24-hour famine things I bet they wouldn't be allowed that to do that nowadays I think I did and I think I used to do six hours which was just the time I was at school I don't remember doing anything I think I just was like I'll pay my parents to wear mufti and then uh watch the tv yeah The Smashers pole runners party for me was just brilliant. I loved everything about it. I loved the award segment.

I loved best haircut. I just loved it. It was for me just the absolute peak. And it felt important, like, you know. It felt really important. I was really invested. I voted. I definitely would have sent a handwritten letter in voting i mean it much like the creators of the tv shows are listening to this podcast now and

and cursing that they didn't win we would be quite angry if all saints have won it should have been eternal or whatever that would never have happened what are you talking about well that was a stupid that was a stupid first of all they weren't even out at the same time second of all second of all sure eternal never would have won over all saints get back in your box get back up that pile on eternal i liked eternal claire but they were not out at the same time it would never be i couldn't think all saints and the spice girls maybe and then the spice girls Girls would have won capiche? if Mark Owen hadn't have won best haircut I think I'd have got on a train down to London

and said to somebody why because I love Gary but he had a crap haircut yeah I think there might have been one year that he wouldn't he had a bad haircut and we were all like was it this year yeah sorry Mark if you're listening yeah i did love it uh we actually went to smash this poll winners party didn't we

yes but we were fully grown adults and it was the last ever one i was 22 you were 24 you might have even just been 25 well it would have been because it was always in december slash his poll winners always like the 6th or 7th or 8th of december so we saw louis walsh there i can't remember one other single act could you please inform me darius oh lovely darius i went mental i didn't they love darius i didn't know that I loved Darius It came on stage And I lost my mind And I was like oh it turns out I like Darius Okay who else did we see

Well Will, Gareth Gates It was all the pop idol people So it was just pop idol I guess there must have been like Westlife or somewhere If Louis Walsh was there It would have been too old for Boys Zone, wouldn't it? We did get a Gareth

Gates mask. Yes. On the chairs, I remember that. That was quite exciting. But yeah, we were adults and that was the last one, I think, wasn't it? Because then they knocked down the London Arena. Bring it back. Bring it back, but only with 90s

stars. Kids don't care anymore do you know they care about they do like they do the capital fm concerts we watched that the other day they do do that but yeah maybe also i don't think there's so many like heartthrobby boys who do music anymore not that i know of. Do you know any? No. I'm out of the loop. I'm just still watching Count Duckula. Guys, if you are listening, if you have anything to input, definitely do. On Spotify, I am going to put a vote. I'm going to do the vote of all votes, Claire.

I'm going to pick the winner from each category, and people have to pick which is the best one. So we've got Ducula. So it's going to be Ducula versus Live and Kickin versus Press Gang versus Rod Hollenemu versus Maid Marian. Maid Marian. And who would be your overall winner?

I think Maid Marian. Yeah, Maid Marian was really good. And that would definitely still hold up today yeah I I still watch that that's on YouTube and also guys if you've noticed there's a lot of time in this podcast I've said to Claire so what happened there then because I have no memory of of our childhood I have no recollection but I can remember the whole of the Pugwool theme tune. I go to a concert.

I could not tell you who I've seen. So Claire is like the person that has to go. Well, she could be lying. She could have been like, oh, yeah, we saw. And I'd have just been like, oh, yeah, that's great. I ain't got no clue. So that is how the relationship works. Do let us know if you want me and Claire to do another episode.

Oh, hang on. People wanted to know. Oh, i'm a bit reluctant to ask you this what's your favorite memory of us i mean i won't remember it it could be a lie just following boy bands around the country but not even like actually meeting boy bands it was being 12 which was a ridiculously young age same age as my daughter getting on on a train to London or Leamington Spa and just having no idea where we were. Margate. And singing, we used to sing potato-based advert theme tunes. Butter potato waffles.

And just have a great time. Like, what are we going to do today? Let's go to London. But this is what I don't understand. How did we afford it? that london one i remember we said to mom can we go to london tomorrow and mom said if you can pay for it you can go we took that as permission we me you mel and rachel pulled all of our pocket money we made sandwiches got drinks out of the fridge and stuff went down to london had to wonder around had a lovely time came home mom was like what did you

do today and we said we went to london and she went mental we not only went to london guys we We got on the Docklands light rail tube thing and we made it all the way to Wembley, didn't we? We were knocking about. We went to London Arena. London Arena. We were just on the Vanehut that might see Taylor and we didn't see anybody.

But did we think we saw Tony from E17 on the ride to Pasadena Bay? Yeah. We saw Tony from E17. We wandered around. We had a lovely time. But mum was like, what did you do today? We went to London.

She's like, you what? And we said, well, you said if we could afford it, we could go. Another thing that we did do, because we hadn't been to London before, any of us, I don't imagine, unless we'd been with our parents. Matthew Pateman from the boy band Bad Boys Inc. had a top on MFSB top. And I got off the train in London and went to the person at the desk and i was like where can i get this top which was like what are you talking about and i was like where can i get

this top what shop would this topic look and they were just like get out the way what you're banging on about never found it it was the lip smacking there's quenching, there's quenching, motivating, good, talking high, walking fast, living, ever giving, Nesby, was that right? I think this is when we have to send you to an asylum because that was exactly what it was.

And we said that, I was like, where can we get this top? I'm going to buy it. And he was like, what are you, get out of the way, man.

There's people trying to pay for the tube. What are you playing at? So if you want to hear more tales of that, please do let us know thanks so much for listening to this week's episode claire thanks for being here thanks to you sister sister no no how much i missed her right peace out dude bye told you it was brummie i told you it was brummie we just needed to have alice and hammond on with us and it would have been

a full Brumfest I hope you enjoyed this episode with Claire I definitely think I need to get her back on for season three I am planning season three now we've still got a few

great episodes left of season two and season three will start in September so if you can think of anybody you would like to be on the podcast please do let me know

you can direct message me Brummie Brummie of two or phone do let me know you can direct message me at brummiebrummieof2 or phoneboxpodcasts instagram account you can even email hey admin at brummiebrummieof2 let me know you could write a letter there's no address to send it to just put like you do with father christmas for the kids just put brummiebrummieof2 or emma and maybe you'll get to me you never know stranger things have happened also I would love it if you left me a five-star review or just any kind of review in general that would be amazing and definitely check out the poll on Spotify where I have put all the kids tv and you can pick which

was your favorite out of the finalists my sister chose have a wonderful week definitely tag me in so I can see where you're listening. Love you lots, and I'll see you soon. Hey, you're a Canadian podcast listener, and that makes you important to us. We'd like to know more about you, what you think of this podcast, and the other podcasts you'd like to hear. So we put together a super brief survey we'd like you to fill out. Complete it, and we'll give you a chance to win one of three $100 Amazon gift cards. That way, we can say thanks for your opinion.

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