Eamonn Holmes

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0:00:02 > 0:00:04Telly. That magic box in the corner.

0:00:04 > 0:00:07It gives us access to a million different worlds,

0:00:07 > 0:00:10all from the comfort of our sofa.

0:00:10 > 0:00:14'In this series, I'm going to journey through the fantastic world of TV,

0:00:14 > 0:00:16'with some of our favourite celebrities.

0:00:16 > 0:00:20'They've chosen the precious TV moments that shed light...'

0:00:20 > 0:00:21Proper.

0:00:21 > 0:00:22She seems like a nice girl!

0:00:22 > 0:00:25- Look at that! - '..on the stories of their lives.'

0:00:25 > 0:00:28Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew...

0:00:28 > 0:00:29..Cuthbert, Dibble, Grubb!

0:00:29 > 0:00:31'Some are funny...'

0:00:31 > 0:00:32Could you do the chanting?

0:00:32 > 0:00:34I could do "Nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh"...

0:00:34 > 0:00:38- '..some...' - Amazing!- '..are surprising.'

0:00:38 > 0:00:39I was mortified.

0:00:39 > 0:00:42'Some are inspiring...'

0:00:42 > 0:00:45"I am not a number. I am a free man!"

0:00:45 > 0:00:48- 'And many...'- Did George Orwell get his predictions right?

0:00:48 > 0:00:51- It's all so dramatic! - '..are deeply moving.'

0:00:51 > 0:00:52Oh, no.

0:00:52 > 0:00:54..heads down the beach to almost certain death.

0:00:54 > 0:00:56All of us, weeping...

0:00:56 > 0:00:58'So, come watch with us,

0:00:58 > 0:01:00'as we hand-pick the vintage telly

0:01:00 > 0:01:03'that helped turn our much-loved stars

0:01:03 > 0:01:05into the people they are today.'

0:01:05 > 0:01:07Welcome to The TV That Made Me.

0:01:15 > 0:01:19My guest today has been a household name for over 20 years.

0:01:19 > 0:01:24This Belfast boy shot to fame in 1993, as the first host of GMTV.

0:01:24 > 0:01:29Good morning. A new day, a new year, a new television station.

0:01:29 > 0:01:31Welcome to GMTV.

0:01:31 > 0:01:36Eamonn Holmes is one of Britain's favourite morning TV news anchors,

0:01:36 > 0:01:40bringing us some Irish charm and a smile with our breakfast.

0:01:40 > 0:01:44The TV that shaped him includes

0:01:44 > 0:01:46a world of talking animals...

0:01:46 > 0:01:49"And I don't want you to make fun of my nose."

0:01:49 > 0:01:52..a legendary comic impersonator...

0:01:52 > 0:01:55Ronnie Corbett, small comedian,

0:01:55 > 0:01:57part-time garden gnome...

0:01:57 > 0:02:00I am in awe of the king of hosting,

0:02:00 > 0:02:02- Eamonn Holmes!- Thank you.

0:02:02 > 0:02:04- Thank you, Brian. Good to see you. - I want to get mod.

0:02:04 > 0:02:07Let's get mod, let's get mod.

0:02:07 > 0:02:10- So, are you excited about this today?- What's not to like?

0:02:10 > 0:02:13You, me, we're going to have a chat and we're going to watch TV. Brilliant.

0:02:13 > 0:02:16Well, today we've got a selection of TV highlights

0:02:16 > 0:02:17that you have chosen

0:02:17 > 0:02:20- that has possibly made you the man you are today.- Uh-huh.

0:02:20 > 0:02:22But before we go any further,

0:02:22 > 0:02:25you've interviewed many people over the years -

0:02:25 > 0:02:29what are the tips to doing a good interview?

0:02:29 > 0:02:31EAMONN LAUGHS

0:02:31 > 0:02:35- Go on, mate.- Well, the best interview's if the guest talks.

0:02:35 > 0:02:39- Guest...- Let them just... You know, let them speak, because...

0:02:39 > 0:02:42Shut up, I'm writing this down. Next bit?

0:02:42 > 0:02:43Be warm, be friendly.

0:02:43 > 0:02:46Be interested. Be YOU!

0:02:46 > 0:02:48Be you.

0:02:48 > 0:02:51- Would it be good if I'd done some research? Would that help? - That would help.

0:02:51 > 0:02:53Well, we HAVE done some research.

0:02:53 > 0:02:59- We've done some research on what it was like to be a young Eamonn Holmes.- Oh...

0:03:00 > 0:03:05Eamonn was born on the 3rd of December 1959 in Belfast,

0:03:05 > 0:03:09the second of five sons to housewife mum Josie

0:03:09 > 0:03:12and carpet-fitter dad Leonard.

0:03:12 > 0:03:16He started life in a red brick house with an outside toilet,

0:03:16 > 0:03:19sharing a bed with his younger brother Brian.

0:03:20 > 0:03:24For Eamonn, the family telly wasn't just a source of entertainment.

0:03:24 > 0:03:27As he sat glued to his favourite children's shows,

0:03:27 > 0:03:31it also set him very firmly on the path towards his future career.

0:03:33 > 0:03:35Do you think you were destined to be a television host?

0:03:35 > 0:03:38Yes, well, you know...

0:03:38 > 0:03:42A lot of people know early in life what they want to be

0:03:42 > 0:03:47and I knew, from 11, that I wanted to be a TV reporter.

0:03:47 > 0:03:50And I wanted to report, because I was influenced so much

0:03:50 > 0:03:52by the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

0:03:52 > 0:03:55The Troubles, I suppose, formed me in many ways.

0:03:55 > 0:03:57They robbed me of my teenage years,

0:03:57 > 0:04:01but they led to me sitting in front of a television

0:04:01 > 0:04:02and learning about the world

0:04:02 > 0:04:05and about the conflict that was going on in Northern Ireland.

0:04:05 > 0:04:07And I just, sort of, felt that, from 11,

0:04:07 > 0:04:08this is what I wanted to do.

0:04:14 > 0:04:16Eamonn, your first choice is a presenter

0:04:16 > 0:04:18- that your mum loved very much.- Yeah.

0:04:18 > 0:04:22- So much so... - That she named me after him,

0:04:22 > 0:04:25complete with one M and two Ns in Eamonn. Eamonn Andrews.

0:04:25 > 0:04:28- Eamonn Andrews. - Yeah.- And here he is.

0:04:28 > 0:04:33THEY SING THIS IS YOUR LIFE THEME MUSIC

0:04:34 > 0:04:36This Is Your Life.

0:04:36 > 0:04:38Tonight, I've joined the BEA ground staff

0:04:38 > 0:04:42here at London's international airport. I'm here to meet a plane

0:04:42 > 0:04:46that's carrying our globetrotting guest from her home in Switzerland.

0:04:47 > 0:04:49Hold it one second, I have a very special message...

0:04:49 > 0:04:53Oh! No! Eamonn, don't do this to me.

0:04:53 > 0:04:55- Come here.- Oh!

0:04:55 > 0:04:56My God!

0:04:56 > 0:04:59An invitation to Thames Television,

0:04:59 > 0:05:05- because international singing star Shirley Bassey...- Oh, no!

0:05:05 > 0:05:09..this is your life! And what fun it's going to be.

0:05:09 > 0:05:11Oh, you did this to me...

0:05:11 > 0:05:13For This Is Your Life to really work

0:05:13 > 0:05:16people had to recognise the host, and in Eamonn Andrews

0:05:16 > 0:05:20they could do that, because he was sort of multifaceted -

0:05:20 > 0:05:24he was an entertainment host. He did kids' programmes, like Crackerjack.

0:05:24 > 0:05:28- Well-known as a sports person... - What's My Line?- What's My Line? Yeah, panel host.

0:05:28 > 0:05:31He knew his boxing inside out.

0:05:31 > 0:05:37And he was... Mum named me after him and, I suppose, it's quite

0:05:37 > 0:05:43prophetic that I ended up being a sort of general host, the way he is.

0:05:44 > 0:05:46Born in the docklands of Tiger Bay, Cardiff,

0:05:46 > 0:05:48you were raised here

0:05:48 > 0:05:51at 132 Portmanmoor Road.

0:05:51 > 0:05:54Your father died when you were only a baby of two.

0:05:54 > 0:05:59This is in the days before Hello! magazine and OK! magazine

0:05:59 > 0:06:02and this is the only chance you're going to get to see Shirley's family

0:06:02 > 0:06:03and you're going to think,

0:06:03 > 0:06:06"Oh, the people who brought her up, what did THEY look like,

0:06:06 > 0:06:08"what was her house like, where's she from?

0:06:08 > 0:06:11- "She's a big international star, but it wasn't always like that."- Mm.

0:06:11 > 0:06:15I think YOU would have been a perfect host. Did they ever get you on a This Is Your Life?

0:06:15 > 0:06:17I have to say, I really did think...

0:06:17 > 0:06:19Sometimes, cos you live and breathe television,

0:06:19 > 0:06:21you think executives live and breathe it as well.

0:06:21 > 0:06:26And when Michael Aspel stood down, I thought, "It's going to be me.

0:06:26 > 0:06:30"It has to be me, everybody must know the story that I'm named after him. It has to be me."

0:06:30 > 0:06:32- Mm-hm.- And they gave it to Trevor McDonald.

0:06:32 > 0:06:35And it was like losing the FA Cup Final to me.

0:06:35 > 0:06:38I kept thinking, "Why has HE got it? Why did they give it to him?"

0:06:38 > 0:06:42So did you used to watch this show with your mum?

0:06:42 > 0:06:46This Is Your Life was one of the ones that would bring the family together.

0:06:46 > 0:06:49My dad would have just finished work, he'd have come in,

0:06:49 > 0:06:52we'd have had our dinner, or tea, whatever you want to call it,

0:06:52 > 0:06:55and that would have featured at seven o'clock or so in the evening.

0:06:55 > 0:06:58It would have given Mum a chance to sit down,

0:06:58 > 0:07:00maybe for the first time in the day,

0:07:00 > 0:07:02and suddenly, you found yourself gathered round there.

0:07:02 > 0:07:05Maybe for me and my brothers, it was an excuse

0:07:05 > 0:07:08to just delay your homework a little bit longer.

0:07:08 > 0:07:10Then, it was often followed by something like Benny Hill.

0:07:10 > 0:07:15And my mother could NOT have Benny Hill on in the house.

0:07:15 > 0:07:16She banned it?

0:07:16 > 0:07:18She, basically, banned it.

0:07:18 > 0:07:20"Naked women!"

0:07:20 > 0:07:22Cos there was lots of girls in bikinis running about

0:07:22 > 0:07:27and you've got to remember this was Catholic Ireland, very religious,

0:07:27 > 0:07:30and we just couldn't understand - well, SHE couldn't understand -

0:07:30 > 0:07:36why these half-naked women were running about at eight o'clock in the evening on ITV.

0:07:36 > 0:07:39So, how would she get rid of you?

0:07:39 > 0:07:41She had this peculiar way of threatening us.

0:07:41 > 0:07:44She said, "I wish I had a curtain in front of that television,

0:07:44 > 0:07:47"I could just pull it across like that." And she would say, "Oh..." -

0:07:47 > 0:07:49and remember I've four other brothers...

0:07:49 > 0:07:51So, suddenly the girls are all jiggling about and whatever

0:07:51 > 0:07:55and Mum would come in and say, "Have you done your homework?!"

0:07:55 > 0:07:57"Oh... Naked woman, is that what you want?

0:07:57 > 0:07:58"Do you want to see a naked woman,

0:07:58 > 0:08:02"is that what yous want to see?" "No, no...!"

0:08:02 > 0:08:05That would clear the room. That would do it.

0:08:10 > 0:08:14- Do you remember your first telly? - Yeah.- Was it a huge event...?

0:08:14 > 0:08:17The first one would have looked a bit like that

0:08:17 > 0:08:21but much, much smaller, and what I can remember watching on it was

0:08:21 > 0:08:23Tales Of The Riverbank very well.

0:08:23 > 0:08:25Which was like Hammy Hamster

0:08:25 > 0:08:27and there was something else...

0:08:27 > 0:08:30- There was a rat - Roly Rat or something.- Uh-huh.

0:08:30 > 0:08:34But I was fascinated with Tales Of The Riverbank.

0:08:34 > 0:08:36Johnny Morris... And he did all the voices.

0:08:36 > 0:08:40And you would just escape and think, "Gosh, these animals really talk."

0:08:40 > 0:08:43- They were the meerkats... - Yeah.- ..of their day.

0:08:43 > 0:08:45Did you enjoy Animal Magic? You just spoke about Johnny Morris.

0:08:45 > 0:08:49# Buh-buh-buh... # Funny how we remember the theme music to all these programmes.

0:08:49 > 0:08:52Johnny Morris, I think, was an amazing man.

0:08:52 > 0:08:59- I just assumed he was a zookeeper. - Yeah.- I don't think he was!

0:08:59 > 0:09:03- I'm sure he wasn't.- I did. - I just assumed he was a zookeeper.

0:09:03 > 0:09:06Because he got so up close and personal with those animals,

0:09:06 > 0:09:08and he then did the voices that we expected.

0:09:08 > 0:09:13And he gave, I think, people who would have lived

0:09:13 > 0:09:15in an inner city like myself,

0:09:15 > 0:09:19an understanding as to animals,

0:09:19 > 0:09:23how they behaved, how it was important to treat them well...

0:09:23 > 0:09:25- Shall we have a little look?- Yeah.

0:09:25 > 0:09:29- There we are, Eamonn.- Come here. You do all of this.- All right, then.

0:09:29 > 0:09:31ANIMAL MAGIC THEME MUSIC

0:09:37 > 0:09:42THEY SING ALONG

0:09:42 > 0:09:45# Buh-buh buh-buh... #

0:09:47 > 0:09:49Hey!

0:09:50 > 0:09:52There it is, it's a hippopotamus.

0:09:52 > 0:09:55No, it's a rhinoceros, aren't you?

0:09:55 > 0:09:57"Yeah. And I don't want you

0:09:57 > 0:10:00"to make fun of my nose."

0:10:00 > 0:10:03I wouldn't dream of it. "Well, I'm very glad to hear it."

0:10:04 > 0:10:07But I thought you were thick-skinned? "No. I'm not.

0:10:07 > 0:10:09"I'm very sensitive, really."

0:10:09 > 0:10:11Oh. Are you?

0:10:11 > 0:10:12"Yes, I am."

0:10:12 > 0:10:14Well, look, I've brought you some evergreen oak.

0:10:14 > 0:10:19"Ohhh... Evergreen oak. Oh..."

0:10:19 > 0:10:22RHINO HUMS TO HIMSELF

0:10:22 > 0:10:26He got the voices so right. I mean, when you look at that rhino,

0:10:26 > 0:10:28you're saying, "Yeah - a rhino sounds like that."

0:10:28 > 0:10:30- It would speak like that. - Yeah, yeah, yeah.

0:10:30 > 0:10:31Bit nasally.

0:10:33 > 0:10:37But you see, as a presenter... You and me wouldn't go and do that.

0:10:37 > 0:10:40- And that's why I thought he was a zookeeper.- Yeah.

0:10:40 > 0:10:44Now, stand still - and I'll give you a nice wash down.

0:10:44 > 0:10:49No, I'VE got to have the hose, Christina, you mustn't...

0:10:49 > 0:10:53Let me have the hose, the boss said I'VE got to have the hose!

0:10:53 > 0:10:54The boss said I've got to have the hose.

0:10:54 > 0:10:57Christina, let it go. You're not supposed to have it!

0:10:57 > 0:11:01Do you know, somehow I think they wouldn't allow that today.

0:11:01 > 0:11:05- Health and safety... - Yeah. Cruelty to animals?

0:11:05 > 0:11:08- I mean, he's soaked, bless him, look at him. - EAMONN LAUGHS

0:11:08 > 0:11:10But they're loving it.

0:11:10 > 0:11:15That sort of thing obviously went out of fashion at some stage,

0:11:15 > 0:11:17it wasn't regarded as PC.

0:11:17 > 0:11:19But then you get all these adverts today

0:11:19 > 0:11:22which have got animals featured in.

0:11:22 > 0:11:25But this was the innovator, this was the man that created it all.

0:11:25 > 0:11:29The incomparable Johnny Morris provided the animals' voices

0:11:29 > 0:11:32and was the show's main presenter.

0:11:32 > 0:11:34His first television break

0:11:34 > 0:11:38came after he was discovered by a BBC producer in the pub -

0:11:38 > 0:11:44telling tales to an eager and, most likely, inebriated audience.

0:11:45 > 0:11:48In 1953, he was given a short slot on the BBC

0:11:48 > 0:11:50playing the Hot Chestnut Man,

0:11:50 > 0:11:54roasting chestnuts and telling yarns to the viewers

0:11:54 > 0:11:56in a West Country accent.

0:11:57 > 0:11:59Johnny's best-known series, Animal Magic,

0:11:59 > 0:12:04ran for an amazing 440 30-minute episodes.

0:12:10 > 0:12:13When you had one television, five boys,

0:12:13 > 0:12:17and everybody with a different opinion about what they wanted to see - no remote control...

0:12:17 > 0:12:21So, there was a lot of hostilities over what to see on television.

0:12:21 > 0:12:27When you eventually got your choice to watch TV, what did you choose?

0:12:27 > 0:12:30Well, this worked out quite well because I would have watched this

0:12:30 > 0:12:32and my older brother Leonard would have watched...

0:12:32 > 0:12:35And he was four years older, so, therefore, basically,

0:12:35 > 0:12:37if you got him onside, you were all right,

0:12:37 > 0:12:40there was going to be no argument. Eight o'clock on Monday night...

0:12:40 > 0:12:44HE SINGS A THEME TUNE

0:12:44 > 0:12:45"Space...

0:12:45 > 0:12:47BOTH: "..the final frontier."

0:12:49 > 0:12:52What is it, Mr Spock? Is it, er...

0:12:52 > 0:12:58- a hand?- Negative, Captain. Not living tissue.

0:12:58 > 0:12:59A trick, then, a projection?

0:12:59 > 0:13:02Not a projection, sir. A field of energy.

0:13:03 > 0:13:05When I see this...

0:13:05 > 0:13:08it's not just the picture, it's not just that colour.

0:13:08 > 0:13:12It is the sound. The sound effects - the beeps, the pings,

0:13:12 > 0:13:14- the depth, the music...- Mm-hm.

0:13:14 > 0:13:16The whole drama -

0:13:16 > 0:13:21the idea of the bridge and strategy and colour. Look at the colour.

0:13:21 > 0:13:25Star Trek first beamed onto our UK screens

0:13:25 > 0:13:29on 21 June, 1969.

0:13:29 > 0:13:31Even though it was popular over here,

0:13:31 > 0:13:33poor audience figures in the States

0:13:33 > 0:13:36meant it was cancelled after two series.

0:13:36 > 0:13:39After a concerted campaign by loyal fans,

0:13:39 > 0:13:42the show was picked up again and the rest is history.

0:13:42 > 0:13:46It's earned Paramount close to 5 billion

0:13:46 > 0:13:48over the last half-century.

0:13:48 > 0:13:51This scene is typical of the intricate storylines

0:13:51 > 0:13:56the series offered, with the crew battling to escape an alien planet.

0:13:56 > 0:13:59There's dramatic acting, a rather flimsy set,

0:13:59 > 0:14:02and there's always impressive special effects.

0:14:02 > 0:14:05Well, impressive for 1967.

0:14:05 > 0:14:08This was just the most amazing thing, indeed.

0:14:08 > 0:14:12When we eventually got a video recorder,

0:14:12 > 0:14:15the first programme I taped was Star Trek.

0:14:15 > 0:14:17Even now, you're an avid fan?

0:14:17 > 0:14:21Oh, even now, that man is my hero. That man, Kirk, is my hero in life.

0:14:21 > 0:14:25You know, people may laugh and say, "Oh, he's a Trekkie," or whatever.

0:14:25 > 0:14:30I'm not a Trekkie, but I hugely admire the character of Kirk.

0:14:30 > 0:14:33The way he could think, the way he could think out of the box,

0:14:33 > 0:14:35and the way that, if you actually watched what he did -

0:14:35 > 0:14:39great leader, great defender of those around him,

0:14:39 > 0:14:43great strategist, tactician. There was a very human side to him.

0:14:43 > 0:14:46And for me, the ultimate hero.

0:14:46 > 0:14:48Mr Spock, fire those phasers.

0:14:48 > 0:14:51- Captain, you're too close. - Fire those phasers!

0:14:51 > 0:14:53That's an order, Mr Spock.

0:14:53 > 0:14:55I ask myself - I stop when I'm in a difficult situation,

0:14:55 > 0:14:57and I think, "What would Kirk do?"

0:14:57 > 0:15:00Kirk would have thought out of the box. There is a solution.

0:15:00 > 0:15:02- I'm very pleased you've said that.- Mm?

0:15:02 > 0:15:06Because we've got a little game that we like to call What Would Kirk Do?

0:15:06 > 0:15:08EAMONN LAUGHS Go on. Go on.

0:15:08 > 0:15:11- Are you happy to play? - Very happy.- OK.

0:15:11 > 0:15:15You have been invited to yet another awards ceremony,

0:15:15 > 0:15:19but Man United is playing just when the awards are about to start.

0:15:19 > 0:15:22What would Captain James Kirk do?

0:15:24 > 0:15:26Kirk would realise he had a dilemma here.

0:15:26 > 0:15:29- He should be seen at one, but he wants to do the other.- Mm-hm.

0:15:29 > 0:15:32Mm. He would have the advantage of a transporter,

0:15:32 > 0:15:35which he could have got very quickly between one thing and the other.

0:15:35 > 0:15:39- So, he could do both.- He probably could do both, yeah.- Well done.

0:15:39 > 0:15:42Unlike me - I would just lie and watch the football.

0:15:42 > 0:15:46Gino D'Acampo has made a lovely home-cooked lasagne on This Morning,

0:15:46 > 0:15:49but you have seen your favourite dish of bangers and mash

0:15:49 > 0:15:52being cooked in the staff canteen.

0:15:52 > 0:15:55- What would Captain Kirk do? - Mmm.- Mm-hm.

0:15:55 > 0:15:57He... EAMONN LAUGHS

0:15:57 > 0:16:00He would... He would save himself for his sausage and mash.

0:16:00 > 0:16:02- Yeah?- He would. He would definitely.

0:16:02 > 0:16:05So maybe a bit of, "Gino, it smells delicious,

0:16:05 > 0:16:06"but we've got to take a break,

0:16:06 > 0:16:10"and we're going to be right back after this." So maybe that. BRIAN LAUGHS

0:16:10 > 0:16:14The Starship Enterprise is listing dangerously on the starboard bow.

0:16:14 > 0:16:18The Klingons are about to attack and the ship's force-field is down.

0:16:18 > 0:16:21- Oh.- What would Captain Eamonn Holmes do?

0:16:21 > 0:16:23He'd have to think out of the box. He would sort of undo something,

0:16:23 > 0:16:26do something no-one had ever thought about before.

0:16:26 > 0:16:29Can we actually link up the transporter

0:16:29 > 0:16:32with the negative energy field, bank, whatever,

0:16:32 > 0:16:34and Scotty'll say...

0:16:34 > 0:16:37- SCOTTISH ACCENT: "In theory, Captain. It's never been done before."- Aye.

0:16:37 > 0:16:40"But Scott, could it? Could it?" And Spock will say,

0:16:40 > 0:16:43"Hm, Captain, yes, in theory." "Do it!"

0:16:43 > 0:16:46And that's what he'd do. He'd just do it. He was brave.

0:16:46 > 0:16:47Brave, brave, brave, brave.

0:16:47 > 0:16:50- Always took the brave decision, never accepted defeat.- Mm.

0:16:50 > 0:16:52Like a good presenter.

0:16:52 > 0:16:55EAMONN LAUGHS I've been defeated many times!

0:16:55 > 0:16:58- When in doubt, lie.- Lie, that's it.

0:16:58 > 0:17:00We found a little bit out there, didn't we?

0:17:04 > 0:17:07I want to ask, who was your comedy hero?

0:17:07 > 0:17:09Well, Dave Allen would have been in there,

0:17:09 > 0:17:12but Mum didn't allow us to watch him too often.

0:17:12 > 0:17:14There was a man called Mike Yarwood,

0:17:14 > 0:17:18who was a great impersonator in the '70s and early '80s.

0:17:18 > 0:17:22And if you liked Mike Yarwood, then you liked Tommy Cooper,

0:17:22 > 0:17:25you liked Eric Morecambe, you liked Larry Grayson - he did everything.

0:17:25 > 0:17:30So I think if I chose Mike Yarwood as a top-notch impersonator,

0:17:30 > 0:17:32I'm getting all that rolled into one.

0:17:32 > 0:17:35And I want to remind everyone that he was, without a doubt -

0:17:35 > 0:17:38no-one had ever seen anyone with this amount of talent.

0:17:38 > 0:17:42I mean, he really was a truly magnificent impersonator, wasn't he?

0:17:44 > 0:17:47Good evening and welcome to another edition of Celebrity Challenge,

0:17:47 > 0:17:49the clever dicks version of Mastermind.

0:17:49 > 0:17:50Tonight we're going to be meeting

0:17:50 > 0:17:52some of the finest brains in Britain,

0:17:52 > 0:17:54but that's enough about me.

0:17:54 > 0:17:57But first, let's meet the first of our two teams.

0:17:57 > 0:17:59First, representing the Funny Men, we have...

0:17:59 > 0:18:01Ronnie Corbett, small comedian,

0:18:01 > 0:18:03part-time garden gnome...

0:18:05 > 0:18:07..and lover of tall women.

0:18:07 > 0:18:09Will bring own trampoline.

0:18:11 > 0:18:14You see, you look at this and you think...

0:18:14 > 0:18:16we take that for granted in 2015,

0:18:16 > 0:18:21but technically, that would have been so hard to do,

0:18:21 > 0:18:24whenever that was recorded, which is probably late '70s.

0:18:24 > 0:18:26Oh, it's going to take days.

0:18:26 > 0:18:29But the other nice thing about that is that all of these people

0:18:29 > 0:18:32are household names, and what they do...

0:18:32 > 0:18:33Things have changed today.

0:18:33 > 0:18:38There's a nastiness in humour today that just isn't there.

0:18:38 > 0:18:41So it must be a difficult profession. A very, very difficult profession.

0:18:41 > 0:18:43You good at impressions?

0:18:43 > 0:18:45Ho-ho-ho-ho.

0:18:45 > 0:18:47- Alfie. - EAMONN LAUGHS

0:18:47 > 0:18:51- That's funny. Go on, do it again. - Nice to see you, to see you, nice!

0:18:51 > 0:18:53It's very... Eamonn, I've got to be honest!

0:18:53 > 0:18:55- Frank Spencer?- Yeah.

0:18:55 > 0:18:57Got a bit of trouble, yes.

0:18:57 > 0:19:00- Norman Wisdom?- Mr Grimsdale!

0:19:00 > 0:19:02That sounds like Frankie Howerd.

0:19:02 > 0:19:03Oh, titter ye not!

0:19:03 > 0:19:07- No, don't!- No!- Oh, missus, please! - EAMONN LAUGHS

0:19:07 > 0:19:09Yeah. But do you know what?

0:19:09 > 0:19:10Anybody I can probably do

0:19:10 > 0:19:13probably emanates from watching Mike Yarwood.

0:19:13 > 0:19:15Yeah, so you're not actually doing them,

0:19:15 > 0:19:19- you're actually doing Mike Yarwood's impression of them.- That's exactly what you're doing, yeah.

0:19:19 > 0:19:21That'll do for me. Well done.

0:19:21 > 0:19:23We haven't even been drinking.

0:19:23 > 0:19:26If only we had Mike here to complete the threesome.

0:19:32 > 0:19:34Eamonn, for your next choice, I know it was something

0:19:34 > 0:19:37you would never watch without a treat, so...

0:19:37 > 0:19:39- this is a special moment for me. - Oh, thought you'd never ask.

0:19:39 > 0:19:42Well, I am hoping, Eamonn - I'm just going into the kitchen -

0:19:42 > 0:19:45- I'm hoping this will appeal... - Is anything cooking? No?

0:19:45 > 0:19:49- No.- Oooh! Oh, lovely.- This will appeal to your sweet tooth.

0:19:49 > 0:19:51- Aw!- We've got the oysters.

0:19:51 > 0:19:53Oh, look at... Oh!

0:19:53 > 0:19:55- Oh! Wafers!- Mm-hm.

0:19:55 > 0:19:58Oh, yes, yes, yes. Sliders, we used to call those.

0:19:58 > 0:20:01So we've got an array of... A bit of a pick and mix going on here.

0:20:01 > 0:20:04- Well, this is bringing me back. - Yeah?- Now, this is brilliant.

0:20:04 > 0:20:08So here you have an oyster shell with marshmallow.

0:20:08 > 0:20:11Ladies and gentlemen, Eamonn Holmes showing us how to...

0:20:11 > 0:20:14- Have you got a name for this particular snack?- Well, it's just...

0:20:14 > 0:20:19When I watched the telly on a Sunday, and Thunderbirds would be on,

0:20:19 > 0:20:21or the movie would be on, or the big match,

0:20:21 > 0:20:24then the ice cream man would come down the street,

0:20:24 > 0:20:28and one of the delicacies that he would tempt you with is this -

0:20:28 > 0:20:32an oyster, which is wafer shell, marshmallow,

0:20:32 > 0:20:34chocolate and coconut on top.

0:20:34 > 0:20:37So I believe there used to be a programme that you used to watch

0:20:37 > 0:20:41- when you had a treat, which was Jack Hargreaves.- Yes, yes!

0:20:41 > 0:20:44- Out Of Town.- He had this programme on a Sunday

0:20:44 > 0:20:48where... Don't ask me why it was so hypnotic or so addictive,

0:20:48 > 0:20:50but it was called Out Of Town,

0:20:50 > 0:20:54and he would just talk about lovely, lovely things.

0:20:54 > 0:20:57How to make bows and arrows,

0:20:57 > 0:20:59how to make a plough,

0:20:59 > 0:21:01how ferrets were caught,

0:21:01 > 0:21:04how he kept rabbits, whatever, whatever.

0:21:04 > 0:21:09- And it had the most lovely, relaxed music introducing it.- Yeah.

0:21:09 > 0:21:13Well, have a little look at this while you have a munch.

0:21:16 > 0:21:19Every year as it comes up to about 15 March,

0:21:19 > 0:21:21the coarse fisherman of England

0:21:21 > 0:21:25realise that their sport is going to close down for three months.

0:21:25 > 0:21:27There are some people who argue against the coarse season

0:21:27 > 0:21:30and say that it could be abolished,

0:21:30 > 0:21:32but don't take any notice of them.

0:21:32 > 0:21:35This is the commercial interests that are involved in fishing

0:21:35 > 0:21:39would argue for it, but it's not just a question of fish spawning.

0:21:39 > 0:21:42It's also a question of the fact that the otters have to breed

0:21:42 > 0:21:45and the riverside birds want to nest, and the riverside flowers

0:21:45 > 0:21:47want a chance to put up their young growth...

0:21:47 > 0:21:50Does this feel like Sunday afternoon in the Holmes household,

0:21:50 > 0:21:52with a bit of ice cream, Jack?

0:21:52 > 0:21:55But what a little bore I must have been.

0:21:55 > 0:21:56Listen to this.

0:21:56 > 0:21:58I didn't fish!

0:21:58 > 0:22:02But I would listen to him talking about fishing.

0:22:02 > 0:22:04We would all sit and lick ice cream

0:22:04 > 0:22:07and listen to old Jack give his tales.

0:22:07 > 0:22:11- Otters.- I'll tell you what, mate, this is lovely.

0:22:11 > 0:22:13And it looked as if...

0:22:13 > 0:22:14He would sit in the set

0:22:14 > 0:22:18that looked like his garden shed, and you know,

0:22:18 > 0:22:23there he is, out observing salmon fishermen.

0:22:24 > 0:22:27I've packed up the float and I've gone over to a swim feeder.

0:22:27 > 0:22:30A little weighted, perforated canister

0:22:30 > 0:22:32that lies on the bottom and feeds the bait out.

0:22:34 > 0:22:38Now, I lived in a city. I didn't know anything about the countryside.

0:22:38 > 0:22:40But look, listen to him.

0:22:41 > 0:22:43How's that for a fishing fly, then?

0:22:43 > 0:22:46Monstrous great thing, even bigger than a salmon fly.

0:22:46 > 0:22:50And yet beautifully tied and professionally tied with marabou,

0:22:50 > 0:22:53and when that goes in the water and the current pulls it,

0:22:53 > 0:22:57it'll go out and wobble, and look absolutely as if it's alive.

0:22:57 > 0:23:02The best TV transports you. It takes you places.

0:23:02 > 0:23:04Whether it's Star Trek in space,

0:23:04 > 0:23:08- whether it's Jack Hargreaves' Out Of Town...- Colditz.- Colditz.

0:23:08 > 0:23:11You sit in your armchair, you sit on your sofa,

0:23:11 > 0:23:13and it brings you somewhere.

0:23:19 > 0:23:22In the early '90s, Eamonn's big break was handed to him

0:23:22 > 0:23:27by TV's illustrious sporting personality Des Lynam.

0:23:27 > 0:23:29Des was offered a presenting job

0:23:29 > 0:23:32on GMTV alongside Anne Davis.

0:23:32 > 0:23:34He wasn't interested,

0:23:34 > 0:23:37but he had a fair idea of who might be.

0:23:38 > 0:23:40Des reached a stage in his career

0:23:40 > 0:23:44where he didn't have to do everything that came along.

0:23:44 > 0:23:46I mean, he was Mr BBC Sport.

0:23:46 > 0:23:51And any jobs that he didn't want, he often recommended me for.

0:23:51 > 0:23:54He recommended me for the Holiday programme, for instance,

0:23:54 > 0:23:56when he stepped down from that, and I got that.

0:23:56 > 0:23:59He recommended me for GMTV - they offered him that,

0:23:59 > 0:24:01and they said to him,

0:24:01 > 0:24:05"Des, we want you to host this new breakfast station on ITV,"

0:24:05 > 0:24:08and he said, "Believe me, you don't have enough money to offer me

0:24:08 > 0:24:11"to make me get up at three o'clock in the morning."

0:24:11 > 0:24:14And they said, "No, no, we will," and he said, "No, believe me, you don't."

0:24:14 > 0:24:18The whole GMTV - that was a career-defining moment...

0:24:18 > 0:24:22In my career, and in my life, the rest is history,

0:24:22 > 0:24:25because that was the big break for me

0:24:25 > 0:24:28on 1 January 1993.

0:24:28 > 0:24:31Good morning. A new day, a new year,

0:24:31 > 0:24:34a new television station. Welcome to GMTV,

0:24:34 > 0:24:38Britain's brightest start. It's Friday, 1 January 1993.

0:24:38 > 0:24:41It's just after six o'clock, and I'm Eamonn Holmes.

0:24:41 > 0:24:43How nervous were you?

0:24:43 > 0:24:45Yeah, looking at that, it makes me nervous.

0:24:45 > 0:24:49This was a new station. This wasn't a programme, this was a station.

0:24:49 > 0:24:51They took the franchise from TV-am.

0:24:51 > 0:24:54First two, with the latest from the world of entertainment,

0:24:54 > 0:24:56we'll be talking to your favourite stars...

0:24:56 > 0:25:00..and dealing with the issues which matter to you and your family.

0:25:00 > 0:25:02So welcome to Good Morning Television...

0:25:02 > 0:25:04Look at the hair!

0:25:04 > 0:25:07- Not just Anne's, mine, too!- Yeah. - EAMONN LAUGHS

0:25:07 > 0:25:09So that was a real fire?

0:25:09 > 0:25:13That was a real fire in the background there.

0:25:13 > 0:25:16And there was so much... I mean, at least there was attention -

0:25:16 > 0:25:20- there was so much debate over what we should wear and all that.- Really?

0:25:20 > 0:25:24Yeah. And again, if Des was ever an influence on me...

0:25:24 > 0:25:27I remember for both Anne and myself there, that was really nervous,

0:25:27 > 0:25:30that day. And despite rehearsals and things,

0:25:30 > 0:25:32- it was all last-minute.- Yeah.

0:25:32 > 0:25:35And the whole idea is that you look calm.

0:25:35 > 0:25:39So no matter what's going on in your ear, no matter what they have got, what they haven't got,

0:25:39 > 0:25:42- whatever, that's what you do.- So when has Eamonn Holmes been stretched?

0:25:42 > 0:25:45When has Eamonn Holmes not been calm?

0:25:45 > 0:25:47- Oh, every day. Every day.- Really?

0:25:47 > 0:25:51Live TV's what I do, right? So that's how I'm employed.

0:25:51 > 0:25:54People don't really employ me to do anything else but live TV.

0:25:54 > 0:25:57So every day on Sky News, every day on This Morning,

0:25:57 > 0:25:59or anything else that I would do.

0:25:59 > 0:26:02Ever since I've been 20 years of age,

0:26:02 > 0:26:04I have done live television.

0:26:04 > 0:26:06So it's live, live, live, live.

0:26:06 > 0:26:07I'm only 27 years of age,

0:26:07 > 0:26:10it's just the stress of the liveness that's done all that.

0:26:10 > 0:26:13But you see, you watch the best, you forget the rest.

0:26:13 > 0:26:15You watch the Lynams of this world and you say,

0:26:15 > 0:26:18"How does he remain calm? What's the trick to doing that sort of thing?"

0:26:18 > 0:26:22And what you have said today is preparation.

0:26:22 > 0:26:24Yeah. And it was Gloria Hunniford who taught me that.

0:26:24 > 0:26:28I remember I took over from Gloria Hunniford at Ulster television

0:26:28 > 0:26:31in 1982 on the tea-time programme,

0:26:31 > 0:26:35and I said, "Gloria, what's your advice?"

0:26:35 > 0:26:37And she used to walk around like a barrister.

0:26:37 > 0:26:38She just had notes everywhere she went.

0:26:38 > 0:26:42And she just said, "Be prepared. Always have something to say.

0:26:42 > 0:26:43"Always have something to go to.

0:26:43 > 0:26:46"Don't expect everything is going to go right."

0:26:46 > 0:26:47And she's absolutely right -

0:26:47 > 0:26:50I am not paid, when I'm on television,

0:26:50 > 0:26:51for things when they go right.

0:26:51 > 0:26:53They pay me my money when it goes wrong,

0:26:53 > 0:26:55cos that's what I'm there for,

0:26:55 > 0:26:58and hopefully nobody knows the difference when it goes wrong.

0:27:03 > 0:27:06Is there anything you get excited about now when you watch TV?

0:27:06 > 0:27:09I love House Of Cards, but a lot of people won't see that,

0:27:09 > 0:27:11and they'll say, "What channel's that on?

0:27:11 > 0:27:13"It's not one of the big terrestrial ones."

0:27:13 > 0:27:15I love one called The Following,

0:27:15 > 0:27:17with Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy in it,

0:27:17 > 0:27:20and that's about a weird cult.

0:27:20 > 0:27:26So I tend to like a lot of those big American serials that go on there.

0:27:26 > 0:27:29And then I like - I honestly will sit and watch

0:27:29 > 0:27:32a show called Wheeler Dealers on Discovery.

0:27:32 > 0:27:36- Oh, I love Wheeler Dealers.- And it's about restoring old cars.- Yeah.

0:27:36 > 0:27:39- Well, you have been a pleasure to talk to today.- Thank you very much.

0:27:39 > 0:27:41And I want you to know you are an inspiration.

0:27:41 > 0:27:45Now, we let our guests choose a theme tune to go out with,

0:27:45 > 0:27:47- so what's it going to be? - Do you know what?

0:27:47 > 0:27:51After what you said there, and just sitting talking to you -

0:27:51 > 0:27:55and it's been a great privilege, just talking about TV -

0:27:55 > 0:27:56it's been magic.

0:27:56 > 0:28:00So I think Johnny Morris, Animal Magic.

0:28:00 > 0:28:02- What about that?- Animal Magic. My thanks to Eamonn,

0:28:02 > 0:28:06and my thanks to you for watching The TV That Made Me. Bye-bye.

0:28:06 > 0:28:10MUSIC: Animal Magic Theme