The Tooney & Russo Show - Fan Q&A: Karaoke, Chaos & Body Swaps

Episode Date: June 27, 2025

Vick Hope’s back with a fresh batch of weird and wonderful questions straight from the listeners—and Ella Toone and Alessia Russo are answering everything. From their go-to mischief when hanging out, to the bizarre things they’d do if they magically swapped bodies for a day (yes, it’s as chaotic as it sounds), no topic is off-limits.Plus, don’t miss Tooney’s show-stopping Cher impression and the unexpected karaoke anthem she belts out. Things only get more interesting when the trio deep-dive into body parts, mental resilience, and the stadiums that have their hearts.

BBC Sounds music radio podcasts. Have you ever played in goal or is it right from the beginning? You kind of knew that wasn't what you were going to do. I knew that was not for me. Yeah, me too. I have done it once. I remember I was on the bench when I was younger and the goalkeeper came off.

So all I wanted to do was play. So I was like, oh, I'll go in there. I'll go in there. Every time the ball came near me, I was like that. Like it's not for you. They've got to be a bit mad to be in that, you have to be. You've got to have a bit of a scrimmage. Because who wants to stand there when someone's smacking balls at you?

Hiya and welcome to the 2D in Refo show with Vibic Ho. I'm here with two of football's most famous friends, Alessia Arifo and Ella Tune. Now this pod is an opportunity for me to get to know you and for the fans, the viewers, the listeners to get to know you off the pitch and your friendship and what makes it tick. And as always, they promise that nothing's off the table. And last time we did an episode that was all fan questions. So they were all questions that were submitted via Instagram from people who watched the podcast from all of you. It was great. Loved it.

Yeah. Enjoy it. Yeah. We didn't manage to get through all of them. Round two? Exactly. So you know what? Let's go again.

We're basically, we're just handing the power and the control over to you. So anything you want to know, they're going to let you. So in we go. I can open the door. Oh bless. Don't leave the boot there. Oh careful. So in we go. Open the door. Oh bless. Don't leave the boot there. Oh careful. It's fine there.

Right. If you're listening on BBC sounds, Alessia got a boot shaped, a cowboy boot shaped mug for her birthday and she likes to put water in it and then balance it precariously in various places. It's currently on the sofa between her and Ella. So I think it might end up on the sofa. Only by your order and not by me. Right, yeah, I bet. You'll forget it's there and swing your leg around,

it'll be all over me and my new pumps. At least it's only water. Yes. Should we get into it? Let's go. Lulu has asked, if you could swap your life with each other for 24 hours, what would be the first thing that you'd do? Oh, try things that I don't like. Yeah, that's good actually. Do you imagine that if you were in Lessa's body and you were trying stuff that you as Toonie don't like, perhaps you'd experience what it is to like them.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think I would try that. Go and have a coffee in the morning. Coffee, glass of red wine. What is my favourite? White wine.

Olives. Olives. Yeah, all that stuff that you like and I don't. I would have like a zen moment because Toonie stresses about everything. I don't want her to stress about everything. Oh, you bring her some calm. Yeah.

Okay. That's a really kind answer. That's really sweet. Boots give me anxiety. I can't move. She just wants just calm. Okay, I'll bring it this way. Oh, God, that was the only one.

Someone asked me and Jamie, Jamie Lang, who I do the radio show with, that same question the other day, and Jamie's answer was just so unkind in comparison to yours. He said that if he could swap bodies with me for the day, he'd run down Regent Street naked, howling like a dog, screaming. Just to embarrass me, give me a bad reputation. I didn't even think of it like that. Yeah, really, did I? I thought what I would want to get out of it, but then I forgot, I'm not me, I'm you. Yeah. I think don't run down Regent it, but then I forgot I'm not me, I'm you.

I think don't run down reading free rolling like a dog. Victoria asks, other than your brain, which part of your body would you trust the most to give you advice? Oh, your heart. Oh yeah. I didn't know what another answer would be. Were you going to say heart? Yeah.

Follow your knee. I was like, my toes. Yeah, that's a bit of a mad one. Yeah, heart obviously. It would have to be heart. Yeah, because you can't think of anything else, can you? Yeah. Are you sometimes heart overhead anyway?

Yeah, I think I'm most of the time heart overhead. Probably too much. No, never too much. Never too much. Never too much. Angle. Yeah. What are you, head over heart, heart over head.

It depends on the situation and who it involves, but like a lot of the time I'm led by emotion. I do like to think I take a moment and then try and be rational. Right. More so than when I was younger. Yeah. Then were you more heart?

Yeah, hot headed. Heart on your sleeve. Totally, too much, too much, actually. Too much. Never too much. Abby has sent in a question for me. She says, Vic, how buzzing were you after Newcastle's League Cup win? Oh, yeah. Oh, my gosh.

Did you go to it? Yeah, I was there. Oh, nice. Yeah, well, I was there and my husband's a Liverpool fan. Right. Oh, you didn't chat after that. And we were in this box. And I brought two of my brothers,

who are obviously Newcastle fans. One of them had like, because you can't wear the colors in this box. The box. So he'd like worn his Newcastle underwear to like just like show a little bit of reach goal. And they were so untended. We assumed that we were gonna lose.

Like we went into Wembley that day going, you know, it's just nice to be here, but we're probably going to lose. Like Liverpool have been playing amazing. Yeah. And so that euphoria was like nothing else. And there were more Newcastle fans around us than Liverpool. The fans were amazing that day. Yeah, they're good.

They're such great fans. I've always like, I've grown up going to St. James's Park and with like my uncles. And when I came down to London and my boyfriend at the time was an Arsenal fan, I went to the Arsenal, no offence. And I was like, is this it? Because I was so used to like the roar of Newcastle. It was just an observation having grown up around like that kind of passion. Very good fans. Yeah. But it was a an observation, having grown up around that kind of passion. They're very good fans, they're awesome fans.

But it was a hard pill to swallow for Adam. And you got into the final for a while. Well, exactly. So you're all new cast right now. I'm just there. No, it was a good feeling, but it was a slightly awkward one because Adam was not... Not happy. It wasn't the happiest day of his life.

And he had all these new castle fans around him kind of. Did you brag or was you like? I thought really good. My brothers were trying but they couldn't hold it in. There was a lot of people around us who were like, who are you? Who are you? Rubbing it in. Really rubbing it in.

But you know, this is the nature of football. Exactly. You win some, you lose some. Exactly. And we don't win some that often. Oh, it felt good. It's exactly. Yeah. You win some, you lose some. Exactly. And we don't win some that often. Yeah. Oh, it felt good. You deserved it.

Yeah. And also I like it. I mean, we're a team who I feel like other teams are happy to see us do well. Yeah. I think so too. I think you're like a nice, I would always want. Well, I'd much rather you want.

Newcastle and Nottingham Forest. Yeah. I know what it is. Got a soft spot for them. Yeah. Yeah. Well, Abby's also asked, Vic, how proud are you of Ella and Les for everything they've achieved this season? Eternally. I'm genuinely like a fan girl whenever I see one of your pictures on like the posters when there's a match day coming up, if I'm near the arsenal or whenever I I see any of your adverts, or like, I'm always like, oh my God, it's my friend. They're so great, they're doing so well. I always point out to whoever I'm with. It's funny because like,

I get to see you guys in person, but it's still such a big moment when you see you on like the telly, especially on the telly representing. And you know, I know so many little girls and boys look up to you and I'll get approached by them and they're just like, we love them. And that's just somewhat like I've interviewed everyone over the years for like your One Directions and your little mixers who all had loads of fans. I feel like the reaction to you guys and the Lioness's is even bigger. I get more messages saying, can you ask them this? Can you tell?

Than I did with One Direction and that is saying something. Yeah. And I love seeing that that's the impact because I rather, well, I should, I'm, this is no like shade on anyone, but I'd rather see those little girls and boys looking up to footballers, you know, who are like, it's, it's just a brilliant thing to be inspiring. So yeah, very proud. Oh, thanks Vic.

Well, we're fan girls of you too Vic. We saw your poster. Yeah, we were like, hey, Vic, that's your poster. Yeah, we were on the way to Wembley. Yeah. We pitched to you on the side. I thought, I've not got it yet quick, do we? Yeah.

They go quite fast. Yeah, they do. We had to, we caught it on the second We caught it on the second one it went on. Digital billboards. Right, should we do a quick fire round? Go on then, we like these. We like these, just as fast as you can. First thing that comes to your head, Annika's asked, silver or gold?

Gold. Oh, easy. Lily says, go to karaoke song. Young hearts run free. Mine's gone blank. Whatever I'm feeling. I mean, we've asked... Never forget, but I take that. I just think...

Yeah, I forget where you're coming from. Yeah, I forget where you're coming from. Pretend it's all real. Depends what voice I've got on the day as well, because my voice is just all over the place. I was going to say, we have discussed this before when we were talking about initiation songs. Of course, it was a share, I believe. You did just say before that yours would be Amy Winehouse. Yeah, I'm going to that as well, yeah.

Could you do the voice? Why sometimes? Oh, that was good. Go on. Not as well as I can do share. But when I'm singing, I do like to try and do the voice that they sang in. It's true. Sometimes just imitating the singer is the best way to sound good.

Yeah, makes you sound good. Oh, my, my, my. Oh yeah, that's a good one. Elmo has the power to know. Yeah. It's actually really good. Maybe that's what our girl band will be. It's just more of just putting the voices.

Impersonation. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Tribute acts. Yeah. Maybe. Eve has asked you both, are you more of a morning person or a night owl? Night owl. Night owl. Soph says, if one of you had to play in goal, who'd be the better goalkeeper?

Less. Yeah, taller. Taller. Yeah. Have you ever played in goal or is it right from the beginning you kind of knew that wasn't what you were going to do? I knew that was not for me. Yeah, me too. I have done it once I remember I was on the bench when I was younger and the goalkeeper came off so all I wanted to do was play so I was like oh I'll go on in there I'll go in there every time the ball came near me I was like that. Like it's not for you. And for your mates who are goalkeepers have you ever asked them when they knew that's what they wanted? Like, how do you decide?

I think a lot of them were out on pitch and then they needed a goalkeeper. Yeah, and they went in goal and then they left it. They've got to be a bit mad to be in that. You do have to be in a ball. You've got to have a bit of a scrimmage. Yeah. Because who wants to stand there when someone's smacking balls at you? And diving around all on the floor like,

oh not for me. Yeah, not for me either. And on a completely different note, Steve asks, favorite condiment. I love Peronais. Peronais. But I really like pepper at the minute. I'm probably big on my pepper.

I know what yours is, that stuff that you put on salad. Balsamic vinegar. Oh, lovely with some olive oil. Yeah, that's mine for sure. Just even just dipping some bread in it. Yeah. You always have that, don't you?

Yeah, I love balsamic. Actually, speaking of pepper, I swear when I came in earlier today, before we started recording, you were doing vocal warm-ups talking about pepper. Oh yeah, Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. I used to do that in choir before we would sing Warm the Mouth Up. You were in choir? Yeah would sing warm the mouth up. You were in choir? Yeah. I loved choir in school.

I wasn't any good at it like. I actually think you are a good singer, you know. You keep saying you're not, but then like giving us little hints that maybe you're an amazing singer. I'm perfectly not. I wish I was. I would love to be able to sing. I think you're not bad.

I just shout. Confidence is half the battle. Yeah. That's exactly right. And you've warmed your vocals up. Yeah. Well, that's the quick fire round done. We will do another one before we finish.

Next here's a question from Izzy who asks, if you could play any character in a TV series, who would you pick? Oh, I want to be a gangster. Maybe I'd be I'd just be Tommy Shelby. You'd make a great Tommy Shelby. By order of the Peaky Blinders. Yeah, that's a good one. I would like to be... What's that mob show that you like? Yeah, Mobland, but I'm not a gangster. I couldn't be it. I couldn't be Tom Hardy. He's too cool

for that. I love Gossip Girl. Blair or Serena. You like that Emily in Paris too. I do love Emily in Paris. Similar vein there. Yeah. Yeah. Living in like a bit of a fantasy. Nice city. Good vibes, good job.

Nice clothes. Nice clothes, nice food. Sounds lovely. Yeah. Well I'm out shooting that. Yeah. You're overtaking everything. Get you a girl who can do both.

Do both. What's yours? Probably similarly to you, it would be like something like selling sunset. Oh yeah. I love the idea. Like I don't want to be these people, but I'd like to give it a go. Yeah. For just a bit to like wear those insane outfits

and sell some houses and be in LA and all of that. Yeah. See what their life's like. See what it's like. I do think though sometimes them outfits, wearing them every day for filming and whatever must be awful. It must be painful and impractical.

And also, often they'll be wearing like a big, like furry coat or something like that. And it's hot sunshine. I can't understand it. And really high heels and like glued into like this little something or other. No, no. It's not practical.

Yeah. But it might be fun. Yeah. Liv says, my hot take on food is that I love cream cheese on a plain digestive biscuit with a piece of cucumber on top. That's just like a cracker really. Yeah, I want to have it on a digestive. Yeah, but digestive is kind of like a cracker.

But I hate cream cheese. Yeah, I wouldn't have it on a digestive. Yeah, but digestive is kind of like a cracker. But I hate cream cheese. Yeah, you ate stuff like that, don't you? What's a weird food combo that you love? I don't really have any. I like dry food. Yeah, you love dry food. I'd choke me. As in, it doesn't need to have a sauce.

It doesn't need to have a sauce. Bear in mind, Les has been told she's got quite a small esophagus. Well, who told you that? When she choked on a piece of steak once and was in hospital. Have you never heard this story? Long story short, cause it is quite a long story.

Basically, I was in America and we went out for steak as a team, got a piece of steak stuck in my throat, could breathe and like, it was all okay, but I couldn't pass my own saliva. Every 15-20 minutes I had to go to the toilet and be sick with things that I couldn't get past this piece of steak. Anyway, ended up having to call my doctor and they sent me to the hospital and then they tried to do this trick where you get a can of Coke, quickly gargle some Coke and the fizz is supposed to bring it up. Well anyway it

didn't work. I gargled this piece of Coke and then I just threw it all up because I couldn't swallow it. Anyway had to go under anesthetic under the knife and they... under the knife is that what they call it? Yeah and they went down with a camera and got this piece of steak out my throat and pulled it out and I was fine. But he told me that I have a really small esophagus. And I had a game the next day, I had to play. And when we was on England Camp 1, she choked on a piece of spaghetti.

I don't know if that's because she was talking while she was eating or the esophagus is quite small. It can't be thinner than a piece of spaghetti. Surely. Yeah. So anyway, I remember maybe like a clamp of getting a back wax and it came out. Anyway, what I'm trying to get to is she likes dry food yet she can't swallow stuff. I think you need to start eating more slippery stuff. Not dry.

No, I like like, like I could eat plain digestive biscuit or like plain cracker. I don't need cheese on it. I'd just have the cracker. You hardly ever put butter on your toast. Yeah, I don't really like, I don't mind like Flora or something like a margarine, but actual butter. I don't like.

Really? Yeah, so I'd rather have dry bread like just plain bread. I like peanut butter like I could just have a spoonful of peanut butter. Oh no. That is cement. Everyone was doing those cinnamon challenges when they were having the... Yeah I'm not sure I could do that. Yeah that's too far. But yeah I don't like if someone's like oh it's just really dry I'd just Yeah, I don't like, if someone's like, oh, it's just really dry, I just quite, yeah. Quite like dry food. Anyway, but yeah, the week before I got that steak

stuck in my throat, I actually choked on a Brussels sprout, but luckily that passed, but the steak, the doctor said that the steak wasn't gonna pass because of, because it's steak. God, I would panic so much if you did that near me. It was actually quite scary when I think back to it. Yeah, that's scary, Les. It is what it is.

It's a story. I guess that's a good way of looking at it. Do you chew your food properly now? Well, I didn't eat steak for ages after that. I was a bit scarred, but back on it now. All okay. Just well-masticated. Yeah, just slow down a little bit and stop talking.

Still on the subject of food and drink, Paige has asked, what's the best way to make a cup of tea? I mean, I don't make them. Yeah, you don't drink the hot drinks. Yorkshire tea bag. I have one sweetener. Hot water, like perfectly hot water in the cup.

Let it brew, give it a little stir a couple minutes, green milk, couple stirs done. You might lose your tea bag in front of that shoe. Yeah, it gets stuck in the toast. It's stuck on there. Do you ever put the milk in before you've taken the bag out or the bag have to come out first? No, I always leave the bag in when I pour the milk and then I

strain the tea bag. So you like it quite strong? Yeah. Yours? Pretty much the same, but no sugar or sweetness. Okay. And almost always, if I can, a Yorkshire tea bag. Obviously this is a BBC, so other brands are available. But it is the best.

Yeah. I think we're gonna all agree. Yeah. Okay, a final quick fire round. Okay. I think we're going to all agree. Yeah. Okay. A final quick fire round. Okay. Are you ready? Ready.

Are you ready for love? Yes, I am. Nikki says, favorite breed of dog? Bordertaria. Visla. Oh, straight in there. JB's asked, well, he says, first of all, thank you so much for doing this podcast. I smile my way through every episode.

And then asks, that's very sweet. Thank you, JB. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? Is it Joe Bonnet? I don't know who it is. I said he at the beginning, I don't know. So, or she. Pistachio or hazelnut.

Bueno or a mango or a peach. Nice. Yeah, but sometimes you just want like a chocolate. Yeah. I like bubblegum sometimes. Oh, do you? I go a bit hyper.

That's just my favourite. Yeah, mum said I'm not allowed that one. No. Yeah, a little bit hyper. Yeah, mum said I'm not allowed that one. No. Yeah, a little bit mad. Lily asks, favourite stadium to play at that isn't your own? Wembley. Yeah, gotta be Wembley. Yes.

Mint. Nick has asked, when you get a pick and mix, what's the first sweet you reach for? Blue and pink fizzy bottles. Blue and pink fizzy bottles, yeah. They're the best. They fill up half the bag. We like fizzy sweets. and pink fizzy bottles, yeah. They're the best. They fill up half the bag. We like fizzy sweets.

I love fizzy sweets, yeah. I like them, but they tend to like, oh my tongue, I feel like a bit of an erosion. Yeah, I know, yeah. All the room in my mouth is slowly being eroded away. Do you put chocolate in your pick-a-mix? The only ones I would put in is mini egg, because when you get a mini egg,

I don't like it's got a bit of sherbet. Oh yeah. Gorgeous. Yeah and that hard shell. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So I remember those mice, those white chocolate mice.

Yeah. Yeah. Mingen. Oh Mingen. I used to think they were a nice addition. Add a bit of variety to your pick and mix. Although they would taste weird. What about them little circles, white things with the sprinkles on them?

I didn't add them in. No, no, not so much. Would you add fudge to it? Maybe I'd have about two pieces of fudge. I don't like fudge. I do like the Fruity Sweets best. Yeah. For sure.

These have been quite tangy. I felt like every five minutes. Yeah, yeah, them ones are sour at the bottom. Yeah. You know, whatever gets you through the day, really. Yeah, doesn't stop us, does it? No. No.

Definitely having like a bit of a sugar rush. Well, that's the quick fire round done. Nice. You passed with flying colors. Before we finish though, quite an open question from Ash, but Ash would like to know, what is something that you are grateful for right now? And I think it's always nice to practice a bit of gratitude.

I think the people. Yeah, people and health and health. Yeah, friends, family, food, food, football, football, all the F's. Yeah, all the F's, friends, family football, all free. Food, not so much. But Charlotte asks, this is a final question, what's one thing in life that you wish was free, but it isn't? Oh, hairspray. Use a lot of it. Lady period stuff.

Yeah. Should be. As it should be. Oh my gosh, I didn't think we'd get onto this subject on the podcast, but yes. End period poverty. Yeah, sure. Come on. I mean, in an ideal world, you could say like, I think like food shopping. That would be a nice one, wouldn't it?

Oh yeah, that'd be good, wouldn't it? Dishwasher tablets. Can't believe how expensive they are. When I moved out, that was the thing that really shocked me the most. Yeah. The dishwasher tablets and stuff like that. Things like that and toothpaste.

The things that you're like, well I need them. But. Handbags? Yeah, that'd be nice. Great questions. Thank you so much to everyone who sent in your questions. I'm so sorry we didn't get to answer all of them. We got through as many as possible.

We did. It's been a real range of subjects covered. Yeah. I enjoyed it. Yeah, me too. Thanks for the questions. Everything from Tangy Sweets to jewellery to favourite breeds of dogs to period poverty and everything in between. Thank you so much for watching and listening to the Toonie and Risa show with me, Vic Hope. Thank you for all your questions. Remember to follow and subscribe so you can get your new episodes as soon as they drop. We'll see you.

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