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 > 0:00:13'In this series, I'm going to journey through
0:00:13 > 0:00:17'the fantastic world of TV with some of our favourite celebrities.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20'They've chosen the precious TV moments that shed light...'
0:00:20 > 0:00:23The wind almost blew my BLANK off!
0:00:23 > 0:00:24You're nearly in the telly, here!
0:00:24 > 0:00:26'..on the stories of the lives.'
0:00:26 > 0:00:28If you're so blinking clever, you look after him.
0:00:28 > 0:00:29This takes me back completely.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31'Some are funny...'
0:00:31 > 0:00:34# And when they were down they were down! #
0:00:34 > 0:00:37- 'Some...'- Oh, thank you! - '..are surprising.'
0:00:37 > 0:00:38Aw, a lamb!
0:00:38 > 0:00:40- It terrifies the life out of me.- Yeah?
0:00:40 > 0:00:42'Some are inspiring...'
0:00:42 > 0:00:43I wanted to be on telly...
0:00:43 > 0:00:45That's it from me, back to you two.
0:00:45 > 0:00:46'..and many...'
0:00:46 > 0:00:49...though this rather futuristic TV..
0:00:49 > 0:00:51'..are deeply moving.'
0:00:51 > 0:00:53- And it was heartbreaking, I wept. - Yeah?
0:00:53 > 0:00:55- It was heartbreaking.- It's not real.
0:00:55 > 0:00:59'So come watch with us, as we hand-pick the vintage telly that
0:00:59 > 0:01:02'helped turn our much-loved stars into the people they are today.'
0:01:03 > 0:01:06Welcome to The TV That Made Me.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17Now, my guest today is a fashion consultant,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20author and star of stage and screen...
0:01:20 > 0:01:23the irrepressible Gok Wan,
0:01:23 > 0:01:26the man who has almost single-handedly taught us
0:01:26 > 0:01:29how to feel good about the way we look.
0:01:29 > 0:01:33The TV that made him includes a blot on the comedy landscape...
0:01:33 > 0:01:36- He is bagged.- Oh, yes, Blott!
0:01:36 > 0:01:38..the most unpredictable pop show ever...
0:01:38 > 0:01:41# Talk to me
0:01:41 > 0:01:44# Like lovers do. #
0:01:44 > 0:01:49..and the Europe-wide quiz for eggheads, Going For Gold.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52But you probably know this golden-hearted man best
0:01:52 > 0:01:55from the Channel 4 show, How To Look Good Naked.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58I mean, you look gorgeous. Our cameraman's shaking right now.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02He's easy to spot, he's the one with his clothes on.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05It can only be the one and only, international superstar,
0:02:05 > 0:02:07babe magnet, Gok Wan!
0:02:07 > 0:02:09- Are you happy with that? - "Babe magnet"?
0:02:09 > 0:02:12I don't know... You're a babe magnet, I'm a fridge magnet.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15- It's lovely to be here. How are you? - Oh, thank you.
0:02:15 > 0:02:16Do you like my apartment?
0:02:16 > 0:02:18I love your apartment, it's very nice.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21It's definitely more stylish than I thought it would have been,
0:02:21 > 0:02:23judging from the clothes you wear, Brian.
0:02:23 > 0:02:25Ain't that lovely(?) Thank you.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27Now, as you know, today is a celebration of you,
0:02:27 > 0:02:29- of your television. Television that made you.- Yeah.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32- But first, we're going to go back to the beginning...- OK.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34..and see the young Gok Wan.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38- Oh, does it go back that far? - Yeah.- Wow.
0:02:39 > 0:02:45Gok Wan started life in a caravan in Leicester in 1974.
0:02:45 > 0:02:50His family did eventually move into their own council house,
0:02:50 > 0:02:53but he spent most of his time in The Bamboo House,
0:02:53 > 0:02:58a Chinese restaurant run by his mum, Myra, and dad, John.
0:02:58 > 0:03:03Now, not wanting to be left behind by his elder brother, Kwoklyn,
0:03:03 > 0:03:05or elder sister, Oilen,
0:03:05 > 0:03:10Gok began working tables at a very, very early age.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14Mum and dad are massive grafters.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17You know, seven days a week in the restaurant, they were there all day,
0:03:17 > 0:03:20prepping for the evening but working lunches as well.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22We were at school.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25So all of our time was literally spent in the restaurant,
0:03:25 > 0:03:26all our social time.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28As soon as we finished school, we'd get picked up,
0:03:28 > 0:03:30go to the restaurant, so we were always working.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33So from the age of three-and-a-half months, I was in the kitchen.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35Slave labour, don't tell the NSPCC now!
0:03:35 > 0:03:38So our friends were the chefs and the waiters and the customers
0:03:38 > 0:03:41that came in, and it was the most incredible place to be.
0:03:41 > 0:03:47And it wasn't until I got slightly older, like six, seven, eight,
0:03:47 > 0:03:49did TV start making an appearance in my life.
0:03:54 > 0:03:58Probably the earliest memory was a show called Monkey - Monkey Magic.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00There's no denying how popular it was.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02- Yeah, huge!- It was one of the number-one programmes.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06Especially of... Well, I'm a little bit older than you,
0:04:06 > 0:04:08but I mean, for all of us, it was THE programme to watch.
0:04:08 > 0:04:10Absolutely, yeah.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12And all the catchphrases as well.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14When he used to take the stick out of his ear and he did this with it
0:04:14 > 0:04:16and throw it in the air and then all of a sudden,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18a cloud would appear and he could fly.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21And then when Tripitaka used to do the chanting, do you remember that?
0:04:21 > 0:04:24And the gold band around his head would get tighter.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26Could you do the chanting?
0:04:26 > 0:04:28HE MAKES CHANTING SOUND
0:04:28 > 0:04:30I wish we had one of those on your head, right now.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34Anyway, I remember that, and I remember the lion coming into it.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37Me and my brother and sister would all...
0:04:37 > 0:04:40We knew the word, word-for-word at the beginning, which was,
0:04:40 > 0:04:42"Through evolution came stone Monkey!"
0:04:42 > 0:04:45THEY LAUGH
0:04:45 > 0:04:47- You do that so well. - It's quite funny, that.- Go on.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51- Do you remember it?- Well, I remember it, I know it.- Have you got it?
0:04:51 > 0:04:52Of course we have. Here you are.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58'Elemental forces caused the egg to hatch.'
0:04:58 > 0:05:00From it then came a stone monkey...
0:05:00 > 0:05:04It's amazing. Look at those production values. Amazing.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07Do you know, I'm getting really excited watching this.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10It's incredible. What great telly!
0:05:10 > 0:05:12Yaah! Hi-yah!
0:05:14 > 0:05:20'The truly revolutionary Monkey was made in Japan in 1978
0:05:20 > 0:05:24'and flew onto BBC Two in 1979.
0:05:24 > 0:05:29'Each week, it blended martial arts with magic, as Monkey battled
0:05:29 > 0:05:33'against an array of evil foes in his quest for enlightenment.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37'No British children's show had ever featured such expensive
0:05:37 > 0:05:41'special effects and fight choreography.'
0:05:47 > 0:05:50- Oh, the music as well, listen. - Does it take you back?
0:05:50 > 0:05:52No wonder I'm camp.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57I mean, look at the costume! It is amazing.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00- I mean, it's the closest you would get a panto on TV, really.- Yeah.
0:06:00 > 0:06:04- Terrible acting... Not that we do terrible acting.- No, God, no.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07But, you know, kind of all the moves are set up
0:06:07 > 0:06:10and the choreography, the set's all shaking around.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12I mean, what is there not to love about this?
0:06:12 > 0:06:15But as a child, did it ever make you laugh, the way it was dubbed?
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Yeah, a little bit.
0:06:18 > 0:06:21You would take that on... "Want a cup of tea?"
0:06:22 > 0:06:23BRIAN LAUGHS
0:06:23 > 0:06:26- And it would literally be like that. - And why was it great for you?
0:06:26 > 0:06:28It was great because, you know...
0:06:28 > 0:06:31I was brought up on a council estate in the Midlands
0:06:31 > 0:06:32in the '70s and '80s,
0:06:32 > 0:06:35and we were the only Asian family around.
0:06:35 > 0:06:38And the only Asian references that we had were either food
0:06:38 > 0:06:42or Chinese New Year, when the school would celebrate Chinese New Year.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45And so when there was this programme on television with Asian people
0:06:45 > 0:06:48on television doing Asian things like kung fu and using chopsticks,
0:06:48 > 0:06:52all of a sudden, it felt like we were accepted.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55The spectacular Monkey really did make
0:06:55 > 0:06:58our home-grown fantasy programmes for kids
0:06:58 > 0:07:00look a bit tame in the '70s.
0:07:02 > 0:07:04Apparently, there WERE monsters on Blake's 7,
0:07:04 > 0:07:09but the special effects budget was so low, we hardly ever saw them.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12And there was no way Tom Baker's Doctor Who was going to
0:07:12 > 0:07:16unwind his scarf and pull any neat karate moves
0:07:16 > 0:07:19on lumbering monsters like the Mandrels.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Actually, the closest we got to sorcery
0:07:22 > 0:07:26and fantasy animals was the great Molly Weir playing McWitch
0:07:26 > 0:07:30next to the ghost of a pantomime horse on Rentaghost.
0:07:30 > 0:07:34Mind you, the lovely Sue Nicholls played Miss Popov in the
0:07:34 > 0:07:37same show and she was always magic.
0:07:39 > 0:07:43Do you think this will surprise people, how good you are at magic?
0:07:43 > 0:07:46- We've got a pack of cards. - Right, OK.
0:07:46 > 0:07:49And I know you are great.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52Well, the thing is, I do love magic.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55When I was growing up, Paul Daniels was obviously
0:07:55 > 0:07:57the hottest thing on television when it came to magic.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00I always wanted to be Debbie McGee, though, I have to be very honest.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03I always wanted to be the glamorous assistant, never the magician.
0:08:03 > 0:08:09So, what I'll ask you to do now is choose a card, just choose one card.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13- You got one, two, three, four, five, six cards, sticking up.- OK.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17No, don't tell me what the actual card is.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19What you need to do is tell me which number is it.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23One, two, three, four, five, or six?
0:08:23 > 0:08:25It is number five.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27Number five, right, OK.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31You ready? Watch this. One, two, three, four, five.
0:08:31 > 0:08:35Your card is on top there, it is going into the pack.
0:08:35 > 0:08:37- Right into the middle. - Just there, yeah. Absolutely.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40Right, so what I'm going to do now is ask you to look at that one card.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43- Was it that one? - I'm afraid it wasn't.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45- Oh, it wasn't that one?- No. - OK, so look at that card.
0:08:45 > 0:08:48- Is there anything wrong with that card?- No, no.- Does it look magical?
0:08:48 > 0:08:50- Does it look like it could do a trick?- No.- No, OK.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53So I'm going to put that back there. And what we're going to do...
0:08:53 > 0:08:55Just watch with your eyes, very carefully.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58- Just think about that card. - Yeah.- Think about it.- Yeah.
0:08:58 > 0:09:01- OK, what card was it? - It was a five of diamonds.
0:09:01 > 0:09:03Five of diamonds?
0:09:04 > 0:09:06That was brilliant.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14- Well, I'm going to go now to Must-See TV.- Yep.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17This is just something you just had to watch,
0:09:17 > 0:09:19it was of course Must-See TV.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21And I want to take you to 1983.
0:09:21 > 0:09:231983, I was nine.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25GOK GASPS
0:09:25 > 0:09:27This week's show's going to be completely out of proportion
0:09:27 > 0:09:30to anything that we've ever had before in our lives.
0:09:30 > 0:09:32The Tube! Look at Jools, he's a child!
0:09:32 > 0:09:34Could you do that for us, do you think?
0:09:34 > 0:09:36We've got live music from Sade,
0:09:36 > 0:09:38spelt "Say-day", pronounced "Shard-a"...
0:09:38 > 0:09:41- They've got matching hair!- Oh, wow.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44If you look on these monitors here, you will see two films that we shot,
0:09:44 > 0:09:46one of Swans Way, one of Colourfield...
0:09:46 > 0:09:49When I was nine, watching this with my sister,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51I would watch this programme with her, to try and be my sister.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54So I'd be emulating her to watch this programme.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56I didn't really understand it, because I was nine.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59But it was a way of me being closer to my sister,
0:09:59 > 0:10:02it was a way of me fitting into her world.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05# Talk to me
0:10:05 > 0:10:07# Like lovers do. #
0:10:07 > 0:10:10- Oh, my God! Annie! Incredible. What a voice.- Yeah.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15'From the time it hit our screens in 1982,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19'The Tube revolutionised the way we watched music TV.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23'All the acts played completely live, and after The Tube,
0:10:23 > 0:10:27'miming to records on other pop shows just looked like cheating.'
0:10:27 > 0:10:29MUSIC: Here Comes The Rain Again by Eurythmics
0:10:29 > 0:10:33Amazing fashion. She was the '80s personified.
0:10:33 > 0:10:37'80s bands like Culture Club, Tears For Fears, Depeche Mode
0:10:37 > 0:10:41'and Frankie Goes To Hollywood's TV appearances were sending out
0:10:41 > 0:10:47'messages about style and sexuality that influenced us all.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50'But the fashion icon that really made her mark on Gok
0:10:50 > 0:10:52'was a lot closer to home.'
0:10:52 > 0:10:55Did your sister influence you in what you do now?
0:10:55 > 0:10:58- Oh, my God, everything. - Really?- The first makeover...
0:10:58 > 0:11:00Is it because you're into...
0:11:00 > 0:11:03you are attracted to dominant women?
0:11:03 > 0:11:04Probably. I...
0:11:04 > 0:11:06I've always loved women
0:11:06 > 0:11:09and my sister is a strong, clever, brilliant woman.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12When we were going through quite a lot of social abuse
0:11:12 > 0:11:15- on the estate for being Chinese and fat and camp...- Really?
0:11:15 > 0:11:17..and all that kind of thing, it never affected my sister.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20She was strong and she would stand up for the family.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23I mean, I wasn't as strong then as a person,
0:11:23 > 0:11:25so I looked up to her for that reason.
0:11:25 > 0:11:26So, women have always...
0:11:26 > 0:11:30And she probably was the catalyst of my appreciation for women.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32The first makeover I ever saw was my sister's makeover,
0:11:32 > 0:11:35and she would get home from school and she'd wear a navy blue
0:11:35 > 0:11:39and a white uniform, and then she would go upstairs to her room
0:11:39 > 0:11:42and then come downstairs. Within moments she was transformed
0:11:42 > 0:11:47and she'd be semi-goth with a tube skirt and brogues,
0:11:47 > 0:11:48an oversized boyfriend blazer.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51And I remember watching my sister, thinking it's the most
0:11:51 > 0:11:54incredible thing that you can go from looking this way
0:11:54 > 0:11:56to that way in a second.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59- What it does is it just boosts your confidence.- Yeah.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01And it turns you into a different person.
0:12:01 > 0:12:02It was the way that my sister
0:12:02 > 0:12:04started to develop into the person that she is.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07So, if you think about it, I've probably done, I don't know,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10thousands and thousands and thousands of makeovers
0:12:10 > 0:12:13- over my career.- Yeah.- But, in fact, the most important makeover
0:12:13 > 0:12:15stemmed from that programme.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19It was The Tube and that era and my sister's makeover.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22- My taste...- But you spoke about being picked on
0:12:22 > 0:12:24- and you spoke about being large. - Yeah.
0:12:24 > 0:12:25And I think people will be
0:12:25 > 0:12:28quite surprised and unaware that you were very large.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30Really large, yeah, yeah.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33Probably wouldn't have fitted on this set, actually! THEY LAUGH
0:12:33 > 0:12:35- OK, at the age of 15...- I was 15st.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38I gained a stone for every year I lived.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40That was kind of how I measured my weight.
0:12:40 > 0:12:42I got bigger and bigger and bigger.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45So how old were you... What was the catalystic moment that
0:12:45 > 0:12:48made you go, "Hang on, I need to sort myself out?"
0:12:48 > 0:12:49I was 21.
0:12:49 > 0:12:55I had reached 21st, approximately 21st, so I had a 48-inch waist.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58I remember the 48-inch waist, but do you know what? I was really happy.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01I'd gone to college and I had decided by then
0:13:01 > 0:13:03what my career path would be.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05It was to be a performer.
0:13:05 > 0:13:06I wanted to be an actor
0:13:06 > 0:13:09and I auditioned at a really tough school to get into,
0:13:09 > 0:13:11the Central School of Speech and Drama,
0:13:11 > 0:13:17and I walked in and I stood there and I was this 21st, gay, tall,
0:13:17 > 0:13:21Chinese, a little bit like Hagrid.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24The door threw open and I remember the smell, first of all, was damp,
0:13:24 > 0:13:27and the second thing I remember was looking round thinking,
0:13:27 > 0:13:31"I do not look like any single person here, not a single person."
0:13:31 > 0:13:35Everyone had blonde hair and blue eyes and they were beautiful
0:13:35 > 0:13:38and they were thin and they were chiselled.
0:13:38 > 0:13:39I suddenly thought to myself,
0:13:39 > 0:13:42"Oh, no. You've done something wrong here.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44"This is not good news for you at all.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47I thought to myself, "Right, that's it, you're going to change
0:13:47 > 0:13:51"the way that you look", and this is the biggest mistake of my life.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54"And if you look like everybody else,
0:13:54 > 0:13:56"then you'll be just as good as them."
0:13:56 > 0:13:57And I remember that.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00Why was it a mistake?
0:14:00 > 0:14:01Well, it was a mistake because...
0:14:01 > 0:14:04And look how much it affects you even now, because you are...
0:14:04 > 0:14:07It was a big story because it's like part of your heritage, isn't it?
0:14:07 > 0:14:09Because you...
0:14:09 > 0:14:12I suppose I've made a career teaching people
0:14:12 > 0:14:15the bad mistake that I made, believing in the hype,
0:14:15 > 0:14:18the press hype that you have to look a certain way,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22that, you know, if you're different at all, then difference is wrong,
0:14:22 > 0:14:26that you need to be like everybody else and I did truly believe it.
0:14:26 > 0:14:30Really, really believed it and, you know, it was a big mistake.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34So, what would you say to that 21-year-old now?
0:14:34 > 0:14:36"Do you know what? Don't worry.
0:14:36 > 0:14:39"Don't worry because you're going to find stuff later on in your life,
0:14:39 > 0:14:43"which will feel bigger and more emotional and harder
0:14:43 > 0:14:47"and this is a small moment in your life.
0:14:47 > 0:14:48"It feels like everything right now,
0:14:48 > 0:14:50"but it's a small moment in your life."
0:14:50 > 0:14:57And I do genuinely believe that we do love each other for who we are.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59It's not just the way we look.
0:15:05 > 0:15:08- Your next choice is Guilty Pleasure. - Guilty Pleasure.
0:15:08 > 0:15:12I'm not going to say anything except I'm taking you back to 1983.
0:15:12 > 0:15:13I'm so excited.
0:15:16 > 0:15:17GOK GASPS
0:15:22 > 0:15:24- Lynda La Plante.- Oh, my God.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27This is everything that I love about television.
0:15:27 > 0:15:28What about explosives?
0:15:28 > 0:15:32- Do me a favour.- Sorry. Sorry, Dolly.
0:15:32 > 0:15:36I've got a meeting with the security contact.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39All of their fellas have all been banged up for a job
0:15:39 > 0:15:42and they are the wives that are going to do the job now,
0:15:42 > 0:15:43and it's basically a bank robbery.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46- The big one's in four months' time. - Is that the one we're going for?
0:15:46 > 0:15:49We'll need every minute.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51Sorry, love.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55This is what old-school serial writing was.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58It was not terribly acted, but not brilliantly.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01It was just a really honest series that you got hooked into.
0:16:01 > 0:16:05You two better get yourself wheels, good ones.
0:16:05 > 0:16:10'First screened in 1983, Widows was a huge hit and was
0:16:10 > 0:16:15'BAFTA nominated for its moody, realistic and innovative direction.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18'It was writer Lynda La Plante's first-ever screenplay,
0:16:18 > 0:16:20'which she wrote because she believed
0:16:20 > 0:16:23'there weren't enough realistic roles for women.'
0:16:23 > 0:16:26Now's your chance, love. In or out?
0:16:33 > 0:16:39Do you remember years ago, before we had www.anything.com?
0:16:39 > 0:16:41You know, you can get catch up this now and you can watch it
0:16:41 > 0:16:44on your phone, you can watch it on your watch, you can
0:16:44 > 0:16:47watch it on your mirror - do you see what I mean?
0:16:47 > 0:16:50In a weird way, it's lost exactly what this programme was about.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52It was about looking forward to something,
0:16:52 > 0:16:56days before it was on and it was just also great writing.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59- Did you love the characters? - I loved the characters.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02They were just strong and they were go-getting,
0:17:02 > 0:17:04but also vulnerable at the same time.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07I think everything that I love about women is that strength
0:17:07 > 0:17:09and vulnerability mixed together.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11- There's a real theme. - Yeah, there is.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13- When we talk about your sister... - Yeah.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16..the way you sort of reacted to Annie Lennox
0:17:16 > 0:17:20- and now these strong women. - I've always, always, always...
0:17:20 > 0:17:24I mean, far, way before I knew I was gay, I always loved women.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26Women fascinate me.
0:17:26 > 0:17:30And also when you are doing How To Do Good Naked,
0:17:30 > 0:17:33you are making women into strong women.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35Yeah, hopefully. A little bit.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39I don't think I can be solely responsible for them being really
0:17:39 > 0:17:42confident and strong, but hopefully,
0:17:42 > 0:17:44I like to think I've had a hand in that.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48I've given them a place that they can come to, that they can discuss
0:17:48 > 0:17:51their fears and they can discuss how they really feel about themselves.
0:17:57 > 0:18:03- I want to move on now to your Comedy Hero.- Yep.- This...
0:18:03 > 0:18:05- I don't want to say any more.- Go on.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10Blott On The Landscape. Oh, my goodness.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12What on earth's this, Mrs Purity?
0:18:12 > 0:18:14That's your breakfast, Giles.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16Breakfast? It's uncooked oysters.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20'Blott On The Landscape featured a stellar cast.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24'Not only Hercule Poirot - of course, I mean David Suchet...'
0:18:24 > 0:18:25He is bagged.
0:18:25 > 0:18:29'..but also Geraldine James and the great Arthur Daley, aka...'
0:18:29 > 0:18:31- I don't like him.- '..George Cole.'
0:18:31 > 0:18:33He's foreign, his teeth aren't nice
0:18:33 > 0:18:34and he doesn't behave like a servant.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37- This is British TV at its best, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:18:37 > 0:18:43Brilliantly made, the sets, the costume, the script is incredible.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45This is great British telly.
0:18:45 > 0:18:49I suppose he's not obsequious enough for you.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51Bloody man thinks he owns the place.
0:18:51 > 0:18:55- How old was you when you was watching this?- I don't even know.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59- What year was this made? - This is 1985.- 1985.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04So I would've been nine years old. Nine years old. Do you know what?
0:19:04 > 0:19:07I tell you why I loved Blott On The Landscape.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10It was because it was a bit rude.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12This fodder is supposed to make me randy.
0:19:12 > 0:19:17It was a bit naughty, the humour was a bit saucy, the language was
0:19:17 > 0:19:22a bit saucy, there was a tiny little bit of nudity in there and...
0:19:22 > 0:19:25as you know, there's a side of my personality which is quite naughty.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28No! I don't think we've seen that today(!)
0:19:28 > 0:19:30I like being really cheeky
0:19:30 > 0:19:34and this is where probably my humour started to develop.
0:19:34 > 0:19:37Pushing people a little bit further than they've been before to laugh.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41You mention nudity. Did you question your sexuality
0:19:41 > 0:19:45- when you watched something like that at that tender age?- Yes, absolutely.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47I was about nine years old
0:19:47 > 0:19:51and I think I was coming of age, physically as well, and it wasn't
0:19:51 > 0:19:57until this age that I started... I knew that I was attracted to guys.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01It's very weird because the feeling was there way before words were.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04- Really?- I could never have articulated that. I just knew
0:20:04 > 0:20:07it was there and it was programmes like Blott On The Landscape -
0:20:07 > 0:20:10and Tom Sharpe is a very provocative novelist -
0:20:10 > 0:20:14that allowed me to come out. It was a huge part of my coming out.
0:20:14 > 0:20:18And how difficult was it for you to tell your parents?
0:20:18 > 0:20:20It was quite tough. I didn't want my dad to know.
0:20:20 > 0:20:24Eventually, my mum told me that she'd told my dad and I was seeing
0:20:24 > 0:20:27a guy at the time and so I knew exactly what I was doing.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30I'd created this device in my head and I said to this guy that
0:20:30 > 0:20:33I was seeing, "Right, we're going to go back and meet my parents."
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Went home, drove up, went into the restaurant, went up the stairs,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39went through the door, took a right into the kitchen and like I thought,
0:20:39 > 0:20:44my entire family was sat around the table eating and they all
0:20:44 > 0:20:46spun around and then there was silence,
0:20:46 > 0:20:48because I was standing there with this guy.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50And they kind of looked away
0:20:50 > 0:20:52and Mum said, "Get a bowl, sit down,"
0:20:52 > 0:20:54so we sat down and we ate in silence
0:20:54 > 0:20:56for the first meal of my entire life,
0:20:56 > 0:20:59and then halfway through the meal, my dad leaves
0:20:59 > 0:21:02and goes into the sitting room and my father never does that.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04The head of the table never leaves halfway through a meal,
0:21:04 > 0:21:07he's always the last person eating, and he'd left, so we knew
0:21:07 > 0:21:11there was something devastating, it was awful, it was terrible.
0:21:11 > 0:21:12And at the end of the meal,
0:21:12 > 0:21:14I walked out and I walked through the hallway,
0:21:14 > 0:21:17got to the living room door and I could hear my dad in there,
0:21:17 > 0:21:19and it was a rustling sound of things being moved around,
0:21:19 > 0:21:21and I opened the door and I looked through,
0:21:21 > 0:21:25and my dad had taken all of the cushions off of the sofas and chairs
0:21:25 > 0:21:28and laid them out and lit a fire, and it was his way of saying,
0:21:28 > 0:21:31- "It's fine. You can sleep here with your boyfriend." - Aww! Ain't that lovely?
0:21:31 > 0:21:34- Ain't that a wonderful story?- Aww!
0:21:39 > 0:21:41This is your Family Favourite now.
0:21:41 > 0:21:45This is something you'd all sit down and have a look at if you could.
0:21:45 > 0:21:49- It is, of course, Going For Gold. - Going For Gold!
0:21:49 > 0:21:52# Going, going for gold! #
0:21:52 > 0:21:56Hosted by the legendary Henry Kelly.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58Henry Kelly, who is now my neighbour.
0:21:58 > 0:22:00Welcome again to Going For Gold.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03Oh, look at him. You know what, he's not changed really.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07- So, you would play this as a family? - We'd kind of play this as a family.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10Look at those stars. Look at Wales! Oh, Finland!
0:22:10 > 0:22:12"Look, it's me. I'm from Finland."
0:22:12 > 0:22:15- This was a great game show, wasn't it?- Yeah.
0:22:15 > 0:22:16Ready?
0:22:16 > 0:22:17'You could say Going For Gold
0:22:17 > 0:22:20'was the most unequalled quiz show ever created.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22'The contestants were from all over Europe,
0:22:22 > 0:22:24'but it was all in English and surprise, surprise,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27'England won the most times.'
0:22:27 > 0:22:29So, we're going to play.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32First one to get three questions right wins a biscuit. Here we go.
0:22:32 > 0:22:33What am I?
0:22:33 > 0:22:36I am a European city famous as the birthplace of the Renaissance...
0:22:36 > 0:22:38- France.- ..some of the greatest... - BUZZER
0:22:38 > 0:22:41- Norway.- Florence. - Is the correct answer.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44- Florence. - Shut up! I got it wrong.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Hands on the buzzers. Who am I? My name is the title of an opera.
0:22:46 > 0:22:49The action is set in Spain, where I work in a factory...
0:22:49 > 0:22:51BUZZER Carmen.
0:22:51 > 0:22:52- Finland.- Carmen.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55- Carmen is correct.- Yes! Got it.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57- I'm so competitive, I can't bear it.- Calm down.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59- We're only having a laugh. - GOK LAUGHS
0:23:03 > 0:23:05What am I? I am a book that was made into a Broadway musical
0:23:05 > 0:23:06and then into a film...
0:23:06 > 0:23:0842nd Street.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11..my story is about a French planter played in the film...
0:23:11 > 0:23:13- BUZZER - Wales.
0:23:13 > 0:23:14- South Pacific.- Is correct.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17I didn't know it was Rogers and Hammerstein, did you?
0:23:17 > 0:23:22- Judy knew it.- Judy knew it. From Wales.- We're really bad at this!
0:23:22 > 0:23:24- You got one right.- I got one right.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26- Do I get a biscuit? - You get a biscuit.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28- I wish they were spring rolls. - Sorry.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30Chocolate or a digestive?
0:23:30 > 0:23:35That is the worst gift I've ever been given in my entire life!
0:23:41 > 0:23:45Gok, your big break had to be How To Look Good Naked.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48- Would you say that or am I wrong? - Yeah. Kind of.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52It's weird, because I kind of had two jobs doing the same job.
0:23:52 > 0:23:56- So you started as a pop star stylist?- I did, yeah.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58I originally was a make-up artist
0:23:58 > 0:24:01and then discovered a rail of clothes on a shoot one day
0:24:01 > 0:24:03and suddenly thought, "Oh, my God. This is incredible."
0:24:03 > 0:24:06It was like I'd found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow
0:24:06 > 0:24:07and I looked through this rail,
0:24:07 > 0:24:10I remember pulling out all these pieces for a photo shoot
0:24:10 > 0:24:14for a supplement, a Sunday supplement, I was on assisting.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18I remember seeing all the clothes and it was, every single piece that
0:24:18 > 0:24:22I pulled out, I just, in a weird way, just understood the clothing.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24I knew what it was about and why it was there
0:24:24 > 0:24:26and what it was going to do and how it should be shot,
0:24:26 > 0:24:30and that was my first entrance as a fashion stylist.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34Working as a fashion stylist and working on music videos,
0:24:34 > 0:24:36commercials, editorial, doesn't matter,
0:24:36 > 0:24:39and then, all of a sudden, television came around.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41And I loved being on camera.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44My show reel had ended up on daytime at Channel 4
0:24:44 > 0:24:47- and that's where Naked came from. - Shall we have a little look?
0:24:47 > 0:24:51Oh, my God. This is the hardest thing, for me to watch myself now.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54'Because of this area that we know that you're not happy with,'
0:24:54 > 0:24:56we want that to carry on down and
0:24:56 > 0:24:58almost skim where your leg might be.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01- That was ten, over ten years ago. - Really?
0:25:01 > 0:25:04What these trousers do is they have this great waistband here.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07- You see how it stops just where your waist needs to be?- Yeah.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10- Tell me what you see? - It comes in here.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14'Naked brought Gok's personal philosophy about loving ourselves
0:25:14 > 0:25:18- 'into our living rooms in 2006.' - I mean, you look gorgeous.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21Our cameraman is shaking right now. That's how gorgeous you look.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25- I think it's making me look a lot thinner. Definitely.- Hoorah!
0:25:25 > 0:25:28- How do you feel when you watch yourself?- I am so critical.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32I'm finding it really, really difficult. That was ten years ago.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34I'm so critical. I mean, it's amazing.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37How To Look Good Naked was an incredible show.
0:25:37 > 0:25:42It showed in so many countries around the world and was brilliant,
0:25:42 > 0:25:45but, do you know what? It was never about my performance, I don't think.
0:25:45 > 0:25:47I think I just did my job on TV.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49It was the generosity of those amazing women
0:25:49 > 0:25:51that gave their stories.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54- How many episodes did you do? - I think we made about 78 of them.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57Tell me what do you think, all right?
0:25:57 > 0:26:00'Unlike similar lifestyle shows, Gok never
0:26:00 > 0:26:04'encouraged his girlfriends to have cosmetic surgery or even diet.'
0:26:05 > 0:26:08When you get so close to a woman and she's letting you in,
0:26:08 > 0:26:11there's a respect that I've got to give her.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15- Projected onto a building, bangers out for everyone to see.- No!
0:26:15 > 0:26:18But they were incredible, incredible women.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21They were so generous with their stories because without them,
0:26:21 > 0:26:24we didn't have a show to make, really.
0:26:24 > 0:26:27It wasn't about that top with the gorgeous chevrons. It wasn't about the jeans with
0:26:27 > 0:26:29the panelling, it wasn't anything about that.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32You'll forget those jeans and that top, but you'll never forget her.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35How To Look Good Naked, we didn't think it was going to be like this
0:26:35 > 0:26:37at all when we started filming it.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40We didn't know the bond I was going to have with the women at all.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44It was something that came much further on, and then at the end,
0:26:44 > 0:26:47we were still filming, we'd run over the filming schedule
0:26:47 > 0:26:51of the first series and we were filming on a boat on the Thames,
0:26:51 > 0:26:54and it was the night that the first show went out and my director
0:26:54 > 0:26:57said to me, "Your life is about to change for ever, Gok."
0:26:57 > 0:27:00And I said, "Don't be silly. Don't be silly."
0:27:00 > 0:27:01She said, "No, it will.
0:27:01 > 0:27:04"Overnight, your life is about to change forever."
0:27:04 > 0:27:07And she was absolutely right. 100%.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10I want to ask you, what do you enjoy watching now?
0:27:10 > 0:27:15- What do I enjoy watching now?- Are you a box set man?- Kind of. Yes.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19The last box set I watched was Silk,
0:27:19 > 0:27:22which was a great series. I loved it, I got really into it.
0:27:22 > 0:27:25It's all about lawyers and barristers. My sister's a lawyer.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28There's a connection there again somewhere. I love Sex And The City.
0:27:28 > 0:27:32I can watch those over and over and over again. I love Frasier.
0:27:32 > 0:27:36It really makes me laugh, absolutely brilliant television.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39And, you know what, I'm a bit of a sucker for The X Factor.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41I have to say, I do love The X Factor.
0:27:41 > 0:27:45And Britain's Got Talent as well, I really like. So, varied now.
0:27:45 > 0:27:46When I'm not working, that is.
0:27:46 > 0:27:51- I ask my guests to pick a theme tune for us to go out on.- Yep.
0:27:51 > 0:27:55- Is there one that springs to mind? - It's got to be Monkey Magic.
0:27:55 > 0:27:56It has got to be that,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00because that is just everything about what I think TV should be -
0:28:00 > 0:28:03- total escapism. - Well, from the bottom of my heart,
0:28:03 > 0:28:04I want to thank you for coming on the show.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06Ladies and gentlemen - Gok Wan.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08And thank you for watching TV That Made Me.
0:28:08 > 0:28:10We'll see you next time. Give them a wave.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13# Born from an egg on a mountain top
0:28:13 > 0:28:18# The funkiest monkey that ever popped
0:28:18 > 0:28:22# He knew every magic trick under the sun
0:28:22 > 0:28:26# To tease the Gods And everyone and have some fun
0:28:26 > 0:28:29# Monkey magic
0:28:32 > 0:28:34# Monkey magic. #