04/03/2014 The One Show

Hello and welcome to the show. The Oscars might have given us the best

selfie ever, but our guest tonight is not afraid of posting an online

selfie or two with a wide range of emotions. Very wide! Here it is the

manic selfie. Here is the bad boy banana selfie. And here is the very,

very bored-on-a-plane one. Please welcome the man him selfie, John

Barrowman! That is the Easter selfie. That goes everywhere with

me, on the plane. It has travelled all over, every place I have been.

Easter, I love you! This apparently has been retweeted about 3 million

times, this selfie from the Oscars. When are you going to get all of

those people in one picture, ever? He is really handsome in the front,

isn't he? The one in the white suit, I am talking about. Listen, that is

of course 12 people crowded into one selfie, but can anybody at home beat

that number? If you can, then send your selfie to us and we will show

them later on. Now, it is of course Pancake Day, you have probably had

yours already. John, have you had yours? Negative I haven't. I have

not had one at all today. But my favourite pancakes, I loved Scotch

pancakes, my Gran used to make them home-made, and when we went to her

is on a Sunday, we used to have done with a little bit of butter on, a

bit of strawberry jam, it is the best thing to take with T. We know

this, don't we? You have not had your pancakes tonight, but here we

are, let's bring in the Scotch pancakes! Just how you would like

them to be. They are glorious. He delivered them without a smile! Just

enjoy the pancakes. That is exactly as I would want them. Is that

cream?! He is a very talented man, our pancake maker. We have got

another little treat later as well. Yes, we are full of surprises. Thank

you very much. I am really busy, you carry on. I think we could all agree

that there is nothing lower than a conman who preys on the elderly. But

thankfully, the ones that we are about to see kindly provided the

police with all of the evidence they needed to put them behind bars. As

Anita rani has discovered, these guys were not the Wolves of Wall

Street. More like the slimy swindlers of Swansea. They do not

get much lower than this. These crooks thought it was acceptable to

scam the elderly out of hundreds of thousands of pounds by pretending to

work for Sky. A gang of 14 from Swansea bullied people into buying

bogus insurance policies for a sky TV box. And what brought them down?

They were full mission after record themselves doing it.

Rhys Harris was the lead investigator for trading standards,

and those recorded calls helped him crack the case. But you get on a

phone call is the attitude, and the way that they were speaking to the

consumer. They said on their phone calls, it was for training and

quality purposes, but how they would use those calls for training, I do

not know. 1-10, on levels of idiocy, where would you put this one? For

recording their calls, ten! Val was one of 7000 customers from across

the UK to be duped into buying one of those fake insurance policies. I

picked up the phone one morning and this gentleman said he was from Sky

and he was saying I needed to renew my insurance. One of the recordings

discovered by trading standards was hers. Hello, I am calling regarding

your Sky television. Firstly... He was so sneaky by naming three

digits and making you think that he had your bank details, when he had

nothing whatsoever. I was sick in my stomach. The fact that I was so

gullible, I just went and got it. I think my generation comes from a

different era, where we trust. Perhaps you have not got to trust

quite so much. The main men behind the cold calling companies were

these three. There are staff ruthlessly targeted old and

vulnerable customers. One elderly victim was sold four annual policies

in just two weeks. After a lengthy investigation, police and trading

standards officers raided the Swansea headquarters of the company,

seizing computers and arresting staff. The gang leader watched on in

handcuffs as his crooked business was dismantled. Our forensic expert

was able to send us a big computer hard drive with more than 100,000

calls on. It was a painstaking process but it was worth it in the

end. How important were those phone calls as evidence in this case

crucial they were crucial. Also it put in context how they were

speaking to them, how they bullied the consumers. Three weeks ago,

eight of the gang were sent to prison for a total of 22 years, and

six call centre staff, the people making the cold calls, also got

suspended prison sentences. The judge said the calls were chilling,

and he wanted to send out a message that any business conning people

over the phone could expect substantial prison sentences. They

got what they had coming to them. Really, it is good that they have,

because, why should they get away with it? Why should they have our

money under false pretences? We heard some horrendous cases there.

That is not even the worst of it. There was one old woman, her husband

had just had a heart attack, she was waiting for the ambulance to arrive,

and they were so persistent, they made her give them her bank details

over the phone. It is disgusting. It is just incredible, these people.

You cannot help but feel sorry for Val. She said she felt silly for

trusting these people, but how can you tell these people are who they

say they are? This is the advice from Action Fraud, which is that if

somebody is trying to get you to give your bank details on the spot,

do not do it, and you are perfectly within your rights just to hang up

the phone. 7000 people were affected, any chance of them getting

their money back? Well, 7000 people, Val got ?80 taken off her,

that adds up to more than half ?1 million. Swansea trading standards

are trying to get that money back, first of all to find out where it

is. They have not found it yet. Until they find out, there is no

real chance of compensation. But they say that anybody who thinks

they might have been a victim of that scam, get in touch with

citizens at the. Also, you can go to our website. -- Citizens Advice

Bureau. Is it right that you were wrapped up in some kind of scam

years ago? Yes, when I was starting out and money was like it is for

everybody at the moment, exceptionally tight, somebody took

one of my cheque-books, copied it, started forging my signature, and I

lost about ?30,000. Did you get it back? I did, but I had more

difficulty proving that I was me, and they want. That was just at the

beginning of identity theft. But the people out there who prey on

pensioners and older people, they are just disgusting. They are the

scum of the earth. It is just getting so difficult. You heard Val

saying that she was sick to the stomach, but people are so clever,

and that is what is awful. And so convincing. You have just got to be

on your guard, and do not be afraid to put the phone down. Do not ever

give your numbers out, never. For the last few weeks, John has been

putting the nation's canines to the test, to find one worthy of the

title page of it. Tomorrow, it is the last of the semifinals of. Here

is John, trying to get a word in edge ways. Here we go. Today, we

have got another persuasive technique. And what is that? To try

and exchange like for like. And here is where it went wrong before. Is he

going to get that ball back? That is the big bastion. What is he on a

hiding to nothing?! It does not look good with the clock ticking away.

Ground dog day for John. Coco has picked it up again! Dave is watching

on. Finally he has got it in! Superstar Dogs: Countdown to Crufts

is on at the moment. What makes a superstar dog? It is not really what

makes the superstar dog, but what makes the superstar team. The dog

and the owner. The dog becomes the superstar, but a lot of the time,

you find that the owners are the ones who actually fail the dog,

rather than the dog failing the owner. It shows about their bond,

how they work together, how they have fun together, and also the

trust that they have been each other. I am a dog lover, I have my

own dogs, but it was very revealing to do this programme, and to see how

they interact with each other, the dogs and the owners, together. You

are eagerly awaiting the final. Yes, we are. But I think the winner of

this evening's programme, which has already gone out, was Smurf and

Sarah, and then tomorrow, they go head to head with two other couples.

Which ones are the dogs and which ones are the owners?! You cannot

tell, sometimes, that is what I love about it! Someone will come in with

a dog, and I did One Show, and I called the owner by the dog's name

and vice versa! They do say you can become similar to your dog. Yes, our

dog, Scott and I, our dogs would not... Our Jack Russell would go in

the water. That is them. They read and everything? They do, they read

my books. Jack would jump in the water but he would not return the

ball to me. And the other one would just sit in the floor and go, I am

not doing this. One of them is like Scott, and one of them is like me.

We are quite surprised that you went to work with animals again, because

you had a really bad incident with a pantomime horse, didn't you? It was

not a pantomime, as in, guys in a costume. It was a real horse. I did

a whole number with a horse, and I had signs that I'd hate to get it to

do things. I was riding it on stage, and all of a sudden it felt a bit

jumpy, and the next thing, I was 25 feet up in the air, thinking, this

is not right, and I landed on my lower back on the stage. I jumped

up, finished the number, did the stuff with the horse, and then I

stood up and felt dizzy, and told the audience, I have got to go and

deal with this. Please do not be upset, because I do not want the

horse getting upset. I went off and collapsed on the side of the stage,

and that was it. As I collapsed, my cousin's son, who was my understudy,

was, like, right, costume! And all the kids were going, look, money, he

can fly! No wires! But I must say, it was not the fault of the horse.

Those of us who know animals, it got spooked by something which was very

different on that show. Back to the dogs, you can see that on Channel 4

at 5.30pm every day until Thursday. And since we last saw you, we have

to say congratulations, because you got married, in California. That is

the lovely ring, yes. It was the day after they passed same-sex marriage,

in July. It was, and we made a decision that we were going to do

it. We already had a civil partnership, which we did in Wales.

We decided we were going to go and get married right away, because we

should be doing it, if we love each other, and also, we should... People

say, is it any different? It is not, in the sense that we are still the

same people, but the difference is that now we have the same rights as

anybody else, and we cannot begin I'd things. If anything, God

forbid, would happen to Scott, I do not have to go through a legal issue

to deal with things, or vice versa. -- we cannot be denied things. We

have got some treats for you. Your treats always worry me, but as long

as they have got some cream on them, and some jam... It could be

connected! Anyway, last year, we gave One Show viewers the chance to

plan their very old garden. And the results were so blooming marvellous,

we are doing it all again this year. Here is Christine, with the details.

The Hampton Court Palace flower show, a riot of innovative garden

design. One of the highlights from last year was this, The One Show

garden. It was created by Vicki, who won our

competition to create a family garden. I would love to go on and do

more gardens as a professional gardener but to do that at Hampton

Court was unheard of so I was honoured to have done it. Today we

are launching a new competition. Once again the prize is the chance

to design a show garden. This year we have made it even more of a

challenge. This plot is twice the size of Vicky's, 12 metres by 12

metres, more space and more opportunities to be really creative.

We want you to design a garden that celebrate the area where you live,

the place, the people, the history. It is entirely up to you. This is

the size of the plot as you have got to play with. All you need to do is

get your thinking caps on. Send us your design and one of you will have

your garden created for real at Hampton Court. You will have a team

of professional landscapers and Andy is one of our judges. What are you

looking for? Passion, inspiration, just people to capture the essence

of what is around them. Do you need to be an expert gardener to pull

this off? No, the competition is aimed at amateurs so we just want to

see passion on a page, someone really wants to have a go. Last year

we were shocked by the quality of entries. You will need to come up

with two drawings, one being planned from above, the other from the

front. You can draw it by hand or on the computer. How do you transfer

that plot outside onto a piece of paper? You have just got to choose a

scale, I think the best one is 50-1. That means in reality that two

centimetres equals one metre on the ground. You need to create a strong

breeze and story, you want a visitor to turn up and get what you are

trying to do. Morecambe Bay, sparkling sea, rugged landscapes,

how do I get that on there? One of the biggest mistakes people make

when they first start designing is that they have 20 ideas and they try

to put them all on one piece of paper. As long as you have got a

strong story, this is a vehicle to get your garden built. Bring it to

Hampton Court and tell that story. The judges will need to know what

plants you want to use in your design and what landscaping you are

planning. We will need your entries by noon of March the 24th. After

that amateur gardeners will compete for the grand prize, the opportunity

to be at Hampton Court, showing their own garden alongside the

professionals'. You can find all of the details about how to enter on

our website. It is very exciting, and Christine

is here now with Diarmuid Gavin. We will get to your wonderful designs

shortly, but first, on a planned theme, how can you get your idea

about the sea through? You think about Sherwood Forest, you think

about what plants you could use to bring the garden to life. So going

local is better than going for something impressive? It needs to be

sparkling and house razzmatazz. Speaking of which! You are known for

your amazing gardens. Where do you start? With an idea. Define what you

want to say and bring some magic. It might be that my favourite movie is

Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, so we created a garden this

that flooded in Chelsea couple of years ago but it refines right

through the years so a good idea and really try to stay through to the

essence you do not live in Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory so

how do you create a garden where you do live? I live in the hills of

Whitlow, very to Scotland, and Wales. I think 40 shades of green, I

would have natural stone, moss coloured rocks, something really

trying to instil passion into it. Just to reiterate, the entrance

cannot go this creative, can they? There are restrictions, no higher

than two metres in height, no sound effects... What about little Gavins

who want to break the rules? We have had one entry that was created in

the green room five minutes before the programme. I like manicure odd

things. It is upside down. It is representative of things in my life

at the moment so we have Superstar Dogs, and we have pressured

parlance, then you can come over here and get some arrow in your

life. So we are looking for a top view, a front view, and how do

people get those designs here? Through the post, through the web,

and they need to be here by March the 24th. Now for some lost history.

Aircraft carriers and warships are still being built at the shipyards

in Glasgow, but most of the iconic cranes that have towered above the

Clyde for decades are coming down. To mark their passing, the One Show

commissioned a very special epitaph from Glaswegian poet Donny O'Rourke.

Here it is, brought to life by the people of Glasgow. To me, they are

like a zoo, a playground to wander through, a mechanical dream come

true. Memory Lanes, lined with cranes. He

won us two world wars. Like the bones of a dinosaur, extinct

remains, no more cranes. With each heavy load they bore, they could

make our spirits soar, but they will raise morale no more. Commerce

gains, we lose our cranes. With a panoramic view of what

skilled workers used to do, there is a museum too...

In the setting sun, the Clyde still read, ideas are dead, hope sustains

outlast the cranes. As the junkyard giants stoop and their mighty

shoulders droop, the latest loss cannot re-coop. The last time I lay

my eyes on the city's steel Horizon that the sun will never rise on, I

will miss the cranes. When there is a huge hole in the sky about 100

metres high, we will ask the silent River Wye Glasgow maintains only

memorials to cranes. Do you remember those cranes? I did

pantomime up their every year, just across from the cranes, and a member

of my family used to work in those yards. I talk about Scotland and my

accent goes again, someone will give me grief about it! Last time you

were on the show, we spoke about long lost friends and this is what

you said. There is someone I used to hang out with, his name was Scott

Donald. He was younger than I was, but I remember him having blonde

hair. Do you remember the man who brought

in the pancakes? You are joking! Have a seat. We said to him

initially, when you come in, put your head down. When is the last

time you saw each other? I was nine years old because we were just about

to move. That is in your house because I remember dancing with your

mother in the kitchen to Save Your Kisses For Me and that is my last

memory because we moved that summer. Your mum and dad still? My

dad has passed away. But your mum is still around? Send her my regards. I

remember that moment, Save Your Kisses For Me, and I also remember

on the sofa laughing like drains about that song, all of a sudden.

Laughing like drains to that. Get your camera and take a selfie. Where

were you? I live in Winchester now. Your mum still in Scotland? Yes.

Keep a little bit quiet because we are going to show these, this is

Hayley Allen with the Aqua girls. This is Gary's gang from Whitby, ten

of them all together. This is, will and the guys from Cruz 118. That is

all for tonight. Thanks to John and Scott. Tomorrow we will be joined by

the irrepressible Ruby Wax. You guys have a great catch up.