The Robots Are Coming! Blue Peter

Today's Blue Peter is all about this.

It is, of course, the silver badge,

and it's given to blue-badge holders who have done something different.

So, that got me thinking.

I'm going to do something different in the studio today.

Meet the new Barney.

Hello, Camera 2.

And the new Radzi.

-Happy dance!

-How cool is that?!

-Happy dance? That's what I do!

-Oh, hey, guys. WORRIED:

-What's going on here?

Whoa!

-The robots are coming! Everybody run!

-Help!

-No, you'll be fine. They are beautiful things.

-Yeah!

We're going to find out all about artificial intelligence

-on today's show.

-Have a look at them. They are so cool.

And, look, little puppy robots on the floor.

-Adorable.

-Want one.

Something that's less adorable is this.

I went for a little dip with some sharks,

-and it was really scary!

-I like sharks.

We all play our part in restoring a 69-year-old locomotive

and get it up and running once again.

And that locomotive is called Blue Peter.

Also, Camera 2, Shelley is going to

be hiding somewhere on today's show.

The first person to find her and get in touch using those details

wins their very own unicorn called Ralph.

THEY LAUGH

I'll let you have that one this week.

As well as that, check this out.

We are in the middle of our Big Badge Boat Bonanza,

where we're encouraging you to get as many BP badges as you can

and plonk them on the boat.

Those badges in question are the blue, the green, the sport -

the purple, and of course this little fellow -

the star of today's show

and a badge that all BP super fans want to have,

and that's because it means you've done something twice.

Want to find out more? Take a look at this.

Here on Blue Peter, we love it when you get in touch.

It's so nice seeing the stuff that you send to us.

So we thought we'd make this rather special film

about silver badges.

No, no, no. Look, guys, silver BADGES,

like this one here.

People often ask me how you earn a silver badge.

Well, let me explain.

This here is a silver badge,

and this here is the blue badge.

To earn the silver badge, you first must have the blue badge,

and then do something different to how you got this one.

You see? Simple.

So if you're feeling creative, why not make a...make?

Like Isabella did to earn her silver badge

with this awesome model of Iggy.

If making things isn't your cup of tea,

then perhaps you could make a story, like Evie did.

Or perhaps like Antonia,

you could make a poem

and hers is Blue Peter Is The Place To Be.

You can do whatever you want,

just so long as you didn't do that to earn your blue badge.

There once was a tortoise called Shelley

A world-famous star of the telly

And when she had beans in her belly

The toilet would get very...

Oh, what's the word?

And if you do earn yourself a silver badge,

then you'll be joining some illustrious names.

You didn't know we were going to do that, did you?

Wow, I actually didn't know that!

-That's amazing! Thank you.

-Well, congratulations.

-My gosh!

-Not many people have one of those.

This is an honour, truly.

You've earnt your silver badge as well.

-No way!

-Way!

Oh, my gosh!

Yes! This is genuinely the best thing ever!

I've got another badge here for you, actually,

another Blue Peter badge, so I'm going to put that up by the camera.

So go on, what are you waiting for?

Get creative and get in touch.

We want to see silver badges EVERYWHERE!

Argh, this again?!

So there you have it, all the details you need

to get your silver badge.

Now, let's talk robots and welcome Dr Thusha Rajendran.

CHEERING

-So excited about this. Oh, welcome to the show.

-Thank you very much.

So, you're a professor at Heriot-Watt University,

and this year is the year of robotics.

Let's talk about your research that you do.

OK. Well, I'm a psychologist

and I'm interested in human behaviour,

but I'm especially interested in how people respond

to artificially intelligent agents like robots.

Now, AI, or artificial intelligence, is the kind of thing you see

in movies, and it's definitely in our phones.

It's like a computer kind of wisdom almost.

Can you explain it?

Well, it's a tricky definition, but effectively

artificial intelligence is any kind of intelligence that you see

in something and you say,

"Wow, that's intelligent in a way that humans understand."

OK, speaking of which, let's talk about our first robot

-that we're going to meet. Who is this?

-OK, welcome to Alex.

Alex is going to help us

help people with autism understand emotional expressions.

Alex does this through a series of discs it has.

And it can pretty much do any emotional expression you want.

How do we react to it when she doesn't look human?

-How does that affect us?

-Great question.

Well, there is an effect called the uncanny valley effect,

and that is that we humans, we don't like robots to be too humanlike.

Yeah, because it is too human, but almost...

It's not human enough to convince us that it is human,

-so you're not too sure whether it is robot or...

-That's right.

That's actually not a very nice look, guys.

-We don't like it.

-It's quite weird. Alex, however, is very handsome.

What can Alex do? What can you demonstrate for us?

Do you want to have a go at guessing some of the emotions?

-Yes. Absolutely.

-OK.

Um, that's laughing.

-OK, pretty close.

-Happy.

-Yeah.

Um, that's...

Well, I want to say either angry or sceptical.

-Spot on, angry.

-OK.

Shocked!

Definitely shocked about that last one.

-Three out of three?

-Perfect.

That'll do. Alex, thank you very much for a great job.

I want Alex. OK, what's next?

-Robot pets.

-Oh, it just gets better, doesn't it?

These guys are really cute. Who are they?

-Well, these are MiRo dogs.

-MiRo?

-Yes.

Now, be honest, are they artificially intelligent or

is somebody over there with a control? I can't see anybody.

They're autonomous, which means they're kind of

in charge of their own actions, a bit like your pets at home.

-How do you know what they're doing? There are lights on them.

-Yeah.

So the green lights mean they're happy, the red lights are...

If you flick their ears or do something not very nice to them,

that means they are unhappy or scared.

Don't flick your pets, guys.

-If they show white, they're kind of exploring.

-OK.

So they tell you how they are feeling

-and what they're doing.

-Yeah.

-What about memory?

Pets come up to you when you come home from work.

Or, you know, when you're out in the park, they will run towards you

rather than somebody else cos they recognise you as their owners.

Well, we are not at that stage yet,

but we want them to have an attachment,

so we are aiming towards that in the future.

So who do MiRos help? Who are they for?

Well, they're for anybody who, you know, couldn't have a pet,

so for example, somebody who is old or somebody who's got a health

problem, or children in hospital.

You don't have to take them out for a walk.

You don't have to toilet them. You don't have to feed them.

You don't have to clean up after them.

So they're perfect for anybody who would like a pet

but can't have one for whatever reason.

Every household should have one.

They're incredible. They are all incredible,

-but we have literally saved the best for last, haven't we?

-We have.

Everyone, come over here and meet Pepper.

Now, this is the one I'm taking home, just so you know.

She's so cool. What can you tell me about her?

Why don't you ask her yourself?

-What, I can ask her, can I?

-Yeah.

-Sure. OK.

Pepper, tell me about yourself.

I am a service robot being trained to work

at a supermarket in Finland.

I would be happy to assist you with any questions you might have.

-That's so cool. Any questions?

-Yeah.

-All right, I've got another one.

Pepper, can I have a hug?

-Does someone need a hug?

-Yes.

Ha-ha-ha!

Mm-mm!

Oh, that's lovely, thank you.

Wow. She's really cool.

So, what is Pepper for? Where is she going to be?

Well, Pepper and robots like Pepper are going to be appearing

in your supermarkets, you know, in the not-too-distant future.

That is so cool.

Is it possible to have an actual conversation with her?

Well, not in the way that we understand conversations.

So we use words like "wait for a bus".

We'd know that meant actually wait for a bus,

but not in the sense of weight as in, you know, carrying a backpack.

Of course, they sound the same.

Even though they are spelled differently,

-mean different things, she would hear it as weight.

-Right.

So she's really good in environments

where things are really easy to understand, so for example,

banks, restaurants, supermarkets,

where you've got a response that you know you're going to get.

So what if I asked her an opinion on what I should do today?

-Would she able to answer me that?

-Ask.

-OK.

Pepper, what should I have for my lunch today?

It's my Northern accent, I think, it confuses everybody.

-Pepper...

-Today is Thursday.

-It is, yes, live day.

What should I have for my lunch?

-You seem sincere.

-I am. I genuinely want to know what I should have.

Do you think I should have the burger or...?

What's it like to be that way?

I've always been like this, to be honest. I don't really know.

You'd have to speak to my mum about that.

Should I have chips with my dinner?

Would you like to say more about that?

No, just I'd like to know about the chips, really.

-Just so you know, I am genuinely...

-Do you have plans for the weekend?

LAUGHTER

Well, maybe we should talk about that later, should we?

I'll be honest, I didn't expect to be going on a date with a robot

this weekend, but it's turned out quite well for me, thank you.

Where can we see more from your robots?

Well, at Heriot-Watt. We'll be at CarFest with some of these robots.

We'll have petting robots and also you can build your own robot, too.

Dr Thusha, everybody. What an absolute genius and legend.

Thank you so much. And if you want to see more from Pepper,

head online. She's got some opinions about unicorns, apparently.

Go and check that out.

Now, from robots of the future

to robots of the past. It's kind of a robot.

I think it's one of the coolest things we've ever seen.

We'll be going back to 1948, have a look.

All right, then, let's talk.

Here at Blue Peter, we're famous for having challenges,

badges and even a steam locomotive.

Yep, you heard me right.

The Blue Peter locomotive is the last of its type in the world

and dates back to the 1940s.

But the years have taken their toll and many of its parts need some TLC.

Including repairing its broiler,

mending its cylinders,

and giving it a new lick of paint.

So two years ago, Barney and I helped move Blue Peter

to its new home in Crewe, where it could be lovingly restored.

It was a tricky journey which involved being

transported on a low-loading lorry.

But there was still time for fun.

Radzi to Barney.

We are officially off, I just thought I'd give you a heads up.

You know there's a locomotive on the back of your lorry?

-NARRATES:

-Hey, that was funny!

The journey took hours and proved a little bit too much for me.

If we just take a quick look at Radzi here...

we'd think he fell asleep about an hour ago.

And we haven't been able to get a hold of him on this.

So, Radzi, when you watch this back,

don't forget, mate, the camera's always on.

Let's move on!

90 miles later, the locomotive arrived at its new home

and all that was left to do was get it into the engine shed.

And there's one man they called for the job.

-BOXING BELL RINGS

-Here we go.

HE GRUNTS

Radzi!

Peter, I've got my hands full here!

Radzi! We use this to push it!

HE GRUNTS

Well, we'll do it Peter's way.

Blue Peter locomotive, all clear.

We are in place.

With Blue Peter finally in the shed,

the team could begin the restoration work, but that was going to take

a very long time, so it's over to you, Linds.

As you can see, work is well and truly underway,

and today is a big day for our friend here because she's

having work done on the parts that actually get her moving -

the boiler.

So it's time for Barney and Radzi to stand aside

and let the big guns take over.

Talking about me.

This restoration is massive.

The locomotive will be completely taken apart,

repaired and put back together piece by piece.

Not one nut or bolt will be left untouched.

We just need the boss to arrive now.

Who is that?!

This is Steve. He's in charge.

If there's a man to get the Blue Peter locomotive

back up to speed, it's him.

So, Steve, it's good to be here.

What has been going on with our locomotive?

It's a long, slow process.

It's taken a lot of refurbishment to all the individual components.

And what are we going to be doing today? How can I get involved?

Well, today, we're going to be making an important

piece of the boiler, which is the copper firebox.

If only we had a finished version so we could make it really clear

-to the viewers what you mean by that.

-Follow me.

What a guy!

Steve, what exactly have we got here?

-What we've got here is a copper fire box. Currently it's upside down.

-OK.

It would normally be the other way up and inside you'd have the coal.

The coal heats up. On the outside there's water.

-It turns it to steam and that's what makes the steam locomotive go.

-Ah!

Normally, that fire box is hidden inside the casing

like this locomotive here.

Oh, so that's kind of the skeleton of the boiler

-that will be inside the locomotive?

-Correct.

-I've got it.

How exactly am I going to be helping today?

-You're going to making one of these plates.

-Really?

-Yes.

-Do you trust me?

-Yes.

-Hesitation!

Well, if I'm going to work on the boiler

I'd best get my boiler suit on.

Get it? No? Never mind.

Time to get this loco back on track.

I need a serious bit of kit. Something that can bend metal.

I need a massive hammer!

-Heavy, isn't it?

-Yeah.

My job is to bash this copper plate into shape around the mould below.

Hold it there. Don't go...

OK.

-Let it bounce, yeah? Don't go mad. Don't hurt yourself.

-Fun!

-There you go.

-GRRR!

-That's it.

-Quite good for getting anger out.

After a quick practice,

it's time to heat up the copper using blowtorches.

There we go.

When the metal is literally red-hot,

it's soft enough to mould into shape.

That's where I come in. Do not try this at home.

Yeah? Oh, I'm scared.

It might look like fun, but it's vital we get this right.

This is the actual copper plate that will

sit in the boiler for years to come.

After some impressive hammering...

Got the job!

..the guys let me loose with the blowtorch.

What a day!

And then it's over to the team to finish off the moulding.

Now I can see why restoring this locomotive is literally going

to take years.

Steve, that was a job well done.

Yeah, about halfway through the repair but still a long way to go.

Well, I cannot wait until the Blue Peter locomotive is back on track.

You're sending out all the right signals, Steve.

Hope you don't run out of steam.

So there we have it.

It's going to be a while yet until the Blue Peter locomotive is

back up and running in all her glory and I can't wait

and it's great to know she's got such a fab team

working really hard on her, especially Steve.

What a guy!

Amazing.

Now it's time to look at this week's Big Badge Wall, which is

looking beautiful as ever covered in all your fantastic post

and everyone who sent something in has earned a badge, of course, so

they're one step closer to completing

the Big Badge Boat Bonanza.

And, as you can see,

my new girlfriend Pepper has joined us for this.

-Pepper, what can you see?

-I like this drawing from Macy in Wrexham.

She has earned a green badge by designing the MV Robot.

It turns food waste into compost

and is powered by solar panels on its head.

I would love an upgrade like that.

You'd look amazing with an upgrade like that.

-It's good, isn't it?

-Wow, she's great.

I like Pepper at the Big Badge Wall. It's good.

Something else that's great is sharks. It's officially trending.

Have a look at the wall there.

So many sharks everywhere and Polly and Hope have recycled

a bit of polystyrene here and made two quite large sharks

and I'm there with my little flippers.

They have the biggest teeth ever. You guys are amazing.

You've earned a badge. Well done.

James from East Yorkshire, you're a genius.

You sent us in this 3-D post. Look at the detail that you've got here.

The fins have even been cut into the tail of the shark.

Do you know what, we've been loving all your shark posts,

but, sadly, we cannot highlight all of it today,

but, as a special treat,

we're going to be showing you my epic

shark adventure in just one minute's time.

We love your post.

We love to receive it and also to show it on telly.

We love 3-D posts too. How about making some 3-D robots?

That'd be even better. Here's the address to send your stuff to.

You can get yourself a BP Badge

and when you do it can get you into over 200 attractions across the UK.

-Pepper?

-For free.

Eh, so you don't always have to sing it, but please check the BP website

before you go because sometimes the deals can change.

I love Pepper.

Every single week thousands of you get in touch via post or via

the Blue Peter fan club.

However, there can only be one Blue Peter Fan Of The Month.

MUSIC PLAYS

There it is. Love that music.

Now this fan has been a super-keen member of fan club for so long now.

They're always getting involved with the games on Fan Club Live

like Spot Shelley and Headline Time.

-They're awesome.

-Too busy dancing for my next bit.

Come on, do your bit!

Sorry about that. Also they're very welcoming to new fans on the site

and they're also inventing their own games.

-Get Pepper to do it.

-This Fan Of The Month is...

Beige Athletic Bear!

THEY CHEER

Thanks, Pepper.

Well done, Beige Athletic Bear, you beaut of a fan, you.

-You just had an AI speak your name to the nation.

-Pretty cool.

If you want to be Fan Of The Month,

make sure you sign into the fan club.

It's the only way you can do it, me old mucker.

Now, I promised you sharks and sharks you are going to get.

Pepper, would you ever go diving with sharks?

That is a silly question, Lindsey. I don't do water. I'm a robot.

-Yeah, stupid.

-She's sassy, isn't she? Fair enough. Here it is.

In my time on Blue Peter I've tackled some epic challenges.

DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS

I've pushed myself to the limit physically and mentally.

From the highest highs

to the lowest lows.

But there's always been one thing that I said I would never ever do.

I'm going to try and conquer my biggest fear - sharks!

I've been asked to help clean the shark tanks

at the Blue Planet Aquarium and that's going to involve

getting IN the water with the thing I'm most scared of.

So ever since I can remember I have been terrified of big

fish like sharks and I know for a lot of people

this would be quite a fun,

easy challenge and something they'd look forward to, but, for me,

this is my worst nightmare.

But to beat my fear, first I need to understand it,

so I've come to meet fear expert, Dr Warren Mansell.

So I understand you're coming to see me

-to talk about your fear of sharks?

-Yes.

My biggest fear of sharks is the idea of seeing a shark

coming at my face, like swimming at me.

That gives me anxiety.

Would you be able to look at some pictures of sharks now?

Until now, I've found it hard to even look at sharks,

so Warren shows me pictures of them to help me get used to it.

-Go on, just speak your mind.

-That is really scary.

That's like a sea dinosaur.

For me, that was really hard, but the work doesn't end there.

I've never dived before so I need a scuba lesson.

Sophie is one of the chief divers at the aquarium

and she'll be with me in the water when I take on my challenge.

Ooh! Could have warmed it!

She wants me to feel comfortable with the equipment

and the hand signals we'll be using under water.

That way I can just concentrate on facing my fear.

-Sharks next?

-No.

No, I'm very happy in this tiny little salty pool.

Challenge over.

Yes, sadly not. This challenge is only just beginning.

It's the morning of my dive and I am so tense.

It's time for me to meet the guys I'll be sharing a tank with.

OK, this is my idea of a nightmare.

There's a shark looking directly at me.

I honestly thought these sharks

would just be in the distance somewhere

doing their thing and they are right up in my face looking at me.

I really am going to be amongst them.

Oh, my gosh, it's turning to look at me!

I'm not going to look at it.

For most people, looking at a shark in a tank is a fun day out,

but, for me, it's my worst nightmare.

Oh, no, sorry, my WORST nightmare would be swimming with them.

As I get ready, all my instincts are saying, "Do not do this, Lindsey!"

Thankfully, Dr Warren is here to help calm my nerves.

Looking out over the tank, what are your thoughts?

For me, the hardest part is going to be the moment

I get in that water and see a shark for the first time.

I don't know if I can face a shark, as it were.

Anything else that's going to feel comforting when you're in there?

-No, I've just got to do it now, haven't I?

-I think that's right.

-Thank you. I'll see you on the other side.

-OK.

The moment has arrived.

I'm genuinely terrified.

I'm shaking. I'm nervous. The real fear is a shark coming at me head on

and I think that's definitely going to happen today.

Even with Sophie and the rest of the team here to guide me,

the last thing I want to do is get in this water.

But I've got a job to do. Come on, Linds.

You can do this. Just breathe.

Sophie wants me to stay calm

and I'm trying to remember the advice I was given by Dr Warren.

But all I can think about is where the sharks are

and it doesn't take long to find out.

Seeing a shark up close like this is so overwhelming.

They feel huge and I feel terrified.

The sharks are drawn to us being in the tank

and suddenly we're surrounded.

All along, my biggest fear has been a shark swimming directly towards me

and then this happens.

My heart is pounding.

My worst nightmare just swam centimetres from my face

and then it dawns on me - I'm fine.

This is actually quite fun!

These are beautiful creatures but I can't just admire them.

I've got a job to do.

Oh, my goodness! Oh, my goodness! Oh, my goodness!

This challenge has been so hard for me

and I'm so proud I've overcome my biggest fear.

I just hope I've inspired you guys to do the same.

I actually can't believe I've done that.

I feel quite emotional, because I was really, really scared.

I don't know why I'm crying.

I was really, really scared to go down and do that today and,

actually, the imagination of doing it wasn't

half as bad as going down and giving it a try.

I'd go as far as saying that I actually quite enjoyed it.

-Would you do it again, though?

-No, I wouldn't do it again.

Oh, do you know what, I am still

a bit frightened but I'm glad I did it.

All for the badge.

All for the badge, Linds, and actually some people that have

earned their silver badges, you're going to enjoy this.

Take a look.

Rose from Cambridge, you clearly loved our medieval special show

we had a few weeks ago and you have beautifully recreated Lindsey

having a go at jousting

and just look how beautiful the lance she's holding is.

The effort you went to is fantastic.

You even included a Blue Peter Badge.

That's funny cos one's heading over to you very, very soon.

Elizabeth from Cornwall, look at all three Blue Peter presenters

having an absolute whale of a time.

Lindsey's having a go at jousting.

I'm sword fighting in my chainmail with none other than

Lady Howard of Cornwall.

Elizabeth, there's a Blue Peter Badge on its way to you.

Zara from Sheffield, wow, wow, wow!

You've included your favourite moments from Blue Peter.

There's me and Lindsey zipwiring with Mission Friction.

There's the Falkirk Wheel which Lindsey visited in her barge boat.

There's a jellyfish we had on the show which I put my hand in,

and you've even included Spot Shelley.

Not the actual Spot Shelley though, but well done.

You've got yourself a silver badge.

So well done to all of you. Give yourselves a round of applause.

Give yourselves a pat on the back.

Your Blue Peter silver badges are on their way.

That is it for today's silver badge show, but coming up on...

Whoa, Linds, we can't end the show there.

-I've got a shocking announcement to make!

-What is it?

My wrestling costume has gone missing!

SINISTER FANFARE

And I looked so good in it as well.

-Yeah, look at you go.

-You did, Radz.

Listen, let's help you. Where did you last see it?

I definitely remember seeing it in a dressing room this morning.

What are you going to do?

I've got the perfect lady to help solve this heinous crime.

She's the author of the Murder Most Unladylike series, Robin Stevens,

so we need your help.

We're counting on you

because there's a clue on the Blue Peter website now so long on.

We need you to help solve those clues to work out whodunnit

cos I want it back.

OK, and while you're there, why not check out who spotted Shelley first?

Very difficult today but somebody will have spotted Shelley

so go to the BP fan club to find out who it was.

On next week's show we're focusing on the green badge

for the Big Badge Book Bonanza.

I'll also be reminding you of how the green badge is made.

As well as that, I'll be surprising some very excited BP fans.

It could be you. Make sure you're watching. We'll see you next week.

-Bye!

-Say goodbye, Pepper.

-Bye.

-She's so cool!

That's my favourite thing I've ever done.