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 > 0:00:14In this series, I'm going to journey through the fantastic world of TV
0:00:14 > 0:00:17with some of our favourite celebrities.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21'They've chosen the precious TV moments that shed light...'
0:00:21 > 0:00:22Think that one out!
0:00:22 > 0:00:23It's called scone pizza.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25'..on the stories of their lives.'
0:00:25 > 0:00:29I used to go mental if a swimmer was on and it'd just, like, make my life!
0:00:29 > 0:00:31'Some are funny...'
0:00:31 > 0:00:33- Ooh! - HE MUMBLES
0:00:33 > 0:00:35Oh, my word!
0:00:35 > 0:00:38- '..some...- There's been a mur-der! - ..are surprising...'
0:00:38 > 0:00:41- My mother didn't laugh that much. It was hard going.- Uh-huh.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43But God, she laughed at that.
0:00:43 > 0:00:44'..some are inspiring...'
0:00:44 > 0:00:47In all of those programmes, in different ways,
0:00:47 > 0:00:49there's something special going on.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52'..and many are deeply moving.'
0:00:52 > 0:00:54The death of John F Kennedy.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57Now, we can't imagine what it was like to receive
0:00:57 > 0:01:00such devastating news then.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03'So, come watch with us as we hand-pick the vintage telly that
0:01:03 > 0:01:07'helped turn our much-loved stars into the people they are today.'
0:01:07 > 0:01:10Welcome to The TV That Made Me.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21My guest today is a household name
0:01:21 > 0:01:24and an actress who has been in our lives for most of her life.
0:01:25 > 0:01:29Natalie Cassidy has been on our screens for over 20 years.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32She's shocked Albert Square...
0:01:32 > 0:01:34You're having a baby!
0:01:34 > 0:01:37..and shone brightly on Strictly.
0:01:37 > 0:01:40The TV that made her was a world of Fools...
0:01:41 > 0:01:44of furry faces...
0:01:44 > 0:01:48and no Saturday was complete without a House Party.
0:01:50 > 0:01:52To her daughter, she's Mum.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54To her friends and family, she's Natalie.
0:01:54 > 0:01:56But to me and you,
0:01:56 > 0:02:00she is best known as Sonia Jackson from EastEnders.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04- Hello!- How are you?- I'm good!- Good! - Are you excited about this?- I am.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07- Do you watch a lot of telly? - Er, I don't watch much now.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09But when I was younger, I watched a lot of telly.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12Now, Natalie, today we're going to watch a handful of TV shows,
0:02:12 > 0:02:15- TV classics that you have chosen. - Yeah.
0:02:15 > 0:02:19- That have moulded you into the woman you are today.- Lovely.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22So what was it like, your living room? What was it like growing up?
0:02:22 > 0:02:25- Well, we were always in the same house.- Yeah.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27- From when I was very little. - Yeah.- Like one-ish.
0:02:27 > 0:02:32And we lived in Islington and, er, it was a big townhouse and, er...
0:02:32 > 0:02:35I just remember we had a very, very deep red carpet
0:02:35 > 0:02:37and lovely coffee table.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Um, actually, all the furniture that was in the living room,
0:02:40 > 0:02:42my dad's still got to this day.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44- So it's very lovely, very comforting for me...- Yeah.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48When I go round to see my dad, and I sit on that sofa,
0:02:48 > 0:02:50I'm always asleep, I always have a curl up,
0:02:50 > 0:02:52he goes, "You always kip when you come round 'ere!"
0:02:52 > 0:02:54I say, "It's just cos I feel like I'm little again."
0:02:54 > 0:02:58- Yeah.- My mum was immaculate. She was a housewife.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02She didn't, you know, never go to work, her work was her house and us.
0:03:02 > 0:03:03- Mm-hm. - So it was an immaculate house.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06And when you used to curl up on the sofa...
0:03:06 > 0:03:08Well, I remember having days off, you know, from school,
0:03:08 > 0:03:10- cos I didn't feel very well, you know.- Uh-huh.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13And my mum was very, er, easily led and she'd say,
0:03:13 > 0:03:15"All right, you can stay home."
0:03:15 > 0:03:18I just remember, you know, tea and biscuits and sitting on the sofa.
0:03:18 > 0:03:20- Did you have pillows?- Yeah. - We'll get some pillows.- Lovely.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23I want you to feel at home today, Natalie, I want this to be
0:03:23 > 0:03:26- a joyous experience for you. - Oh, that's lovely.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29- What do we think?- They're perfect. I might take those to work with me.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32- Yeah? Are they the sort of pillows you would've had?- Yeah.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34What else would you have, just to feel at home?
0:03:34 > 0:03:37- You know, Mum, Dad, you?- Yeah.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40- Brothers popping in and out. - Yeah?- They were older.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43- Any little snacks?- Yeah. I'd always have a few snacks.- We've got snacks.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46- Sandwich.- I want you to feel at home. I want you to feel at home.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49- A few crisps?- Crisps.- Perfect.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52- That's exactly what I'd have. - Yeah?- Yeah, honestly.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55- Want to have a crisp?- I will have a crisp.- Yeah, let's have a crisp.
0:03:55 > 0:03:56Let's have a crisp.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59'At seven years old, Natalie and her two big brothers
0:03:59 > 0:04:03'could've been watching Sylvester McCoy play the Doctor...
0:04:04 > 0:04:07'..Baldrick having his final cunning plan
0:04:07 > 0:04:09'in Blackadder Goes Forth,
0:04:09 > 0:04:12'or joining 24 million viewers
0:04:12 > 0:04:16'who tuned in to see Den Watts fall into a canal
0:04:16 > 0:04:18'after being shot in EastEnders.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23'But young Natalie had her eye on a gentler type of telly.'
0:04:30 > 0:04:34- You had your pillows.- Mm-hm. - You had your crisps.- Mm-hm.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38- You had your ham sandwich.- Perfect. - And you would be watching
0:04:38 > 0:04:39- something like this.- Oh.
0:04:39 > 0:04:41Hello?
0:04:41 > 0:04:43Hello, Pop.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45Is anything the matter, Why?
0:04:45 > 0:04:48- What?- Well, you look as if you might have overslept.- Why?
0:04:48 > 0:04:50Well, you were asleep when I got here...
0:04:50 > 0:04:54'Playdays started out as Playbus in 1988
0:04:54 > 0:04:56'and was designed to be a TV teacher
0:04:56 > 0:04:59'helping preschool children learn through play.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02'Each weekday episode had its own regular theme
0:05:02 > 0:05:05'and, if that sounds familiar, it's because it built upon
0:05:05 > 0:05:08'the sturdy foundations laid by Play School,
0:05:08 > 0:05:11'which ran from 1964 to '88.'
0:05:14 > 0:05:16- CHILD'S VOICE: - It's the Why Bird Stop.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19I used to like the Why Bird Stop, so I'd be happy with that.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22But there were some stops which would change the programme
0:05:22 > 0:05:25- that were a bit boring. - Yeah?- That was a good one.
0:05:25 > 0:05:30'The show ended in 1997, but its learn through play ethos
0:05:30 > 0:05:33'spawned a whole channel of fun yet educational shows
0:05:33 > 0:05:37'in the shape of CBeebies in 2002.'
0:05:37 > 0:05:40Should they bring those things back? Do you think it was a simpler time?
0:05:40 > 0:05:42Do you think your daughter would enjoy it?
0:05:42 > 0:05:44They've still got really good...
0:05:44 > 0:05:47They've got some really good programmes, actually, that are still
0:05:47 > 0:05:51simple and nice and what they should be like, so, actually, I don't...
0:05:51 > 0:05:55I think that now, to my daughter, would probably be a little bit dated.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58- She watches telly.- Yeah. - She's a telly addict.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00The first thing she says when she wakes up is, "Mummy, can I watch
0:06:00 > 0:06:04- "the telly?" And I'm like, "Well, calm down a minute."- But is it...?
0:06:04 > 0:06:07- Well, I don't know now, it's not Teletubbies any more, is it?- No.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11It's all... Well, it's quite funny, because I try and make her watch
0:06:11 > 0:06:14- the ones I used to watch, there's still a few on, you know, so...- Yeah.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17- Postman Pat I try and make her watch, cos I used to love that.- Aw!
0:06:17 > 0:06:20I loved Postman Pat and she's like, "I don't really like that."
0:06:20 > 0:06:22Well, unfortunately, we've got a lot more work to do.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25Look at all this filing that needs to be done.
0:06:25 > 0:06:26SHE YAWNS
0:06:26 > 0:06:30- Oh, no!- What you need, Why, is a nice cup of tea...
0:06:30 > 0:06:33What sort of memories are conjured up? You sitting on the sofa?
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Yeah, it's just lovely, cos I haven't got my mum any more.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41I lost my mum when I was 19, so, any of this, you know,
0:06:41 > 0:06:43it's just lovely, cos you've got all the memories
0:06:43 > 0:06:46- of, like, being with your mum and being at home.- Yeah.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48- And they're nice memories, do you know what I mean?- Yeah.- It's lovely.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52If I hear, you know, The Darling Buds Of May theme tune
0:06:52 > 0:06:55or, you know, those Sunday night programmes, you remember?
0:06:55 > 0:06:57- Like the House of Eliott... - Yeah.- ..or like Campion.- Yeah.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01- You know, all those things, like theme tunes...- Just bring it all up?
0:07:01 > 0:07:03- Yeah, bring it all back. - You cosying up.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07- And life was easy, wasn't it? Because you didn't have to earn money.- No.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10- You got, like, chauffeured about everywhere.- Yeah.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13You got fed, watered, the only, like, worry was
0:07:13 > 0:07:15if, like, your pen had run out.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19- Yeah.- For colouring in, that would be the highlight of the day.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22But Natalie was earning money from a very young age.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25Born in Islington in 1982, she attended
0:07:25 > 0:07:28the Anna Scher Children's Theatre, whose alumni included
0:07:28 > 0:07:31Birds of a Feather's Linda Robson and Pauline Quirke.
0:07:33 > 0:07:37EastEnders' Gillian Taylforth, Patsy Palmer and Joe Swash
0:07:37 > 0:07:38also attended the school
0:07:38 > 0:07:42and Natalie got her big break at an audition here in 1993.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53I started off in EastEnders when I was ten.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56- So...- Shall we have a look? - Yeah, go on, then.- Go on.- Go on.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59Let's talk about it afterwards. So, this is you.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02- Take a swig!- I don't want a swig! - Are you scared or something?'
0:08:02 > 0:08:06'Natalie burst onto our screen as Sonia Jackson, the third child
0:08:06 > 0:08:08'of a very dysfunctional family.'
0:08:08 > 0:08:11I remember that polo neck.
0:08:11 > 0:08:13- Don't you ever give up?! - Just have a bit!
0:08:16 > 0:08:19- Eugh, that's awful! - You'll get used to it.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23When we started, Robbie, Sonia and the family,
0:08:23 > 0:08:25- that we were rebels in the show...- Uh-huh.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27..and, actually, Sonia turned into quite a...
0:08:27 > 0:08:32and then, she was comedic, because she played the trumpet and played...
0:08:32 > 0:08:34- She wasn't very good? - Yeah, really badly.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38And then, as you grow up, you get more miserable and downtrodden.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40- But I actually started off quite light...- Yeah.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42- ..and a bit funny.- Of course you're happy - you're drunk!
0:08:42 > 0:08:44- Yeah, absolutely!- You know?- Yeah.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47And when you went in, was it a major role?
0:08:47 > 0:08:49You knew you were going to be there for some time?
0:08:49 > 0:08:50Or it was just throw away?
0:08:50 > 0:08:53No, I knew it was a family, so I knew I was going in for a while,
0:08:53 > 0:08:56but you never know how long and, because I was ten, my family...
0:08:56 > 0:08:58My mum and dad didn't watch EastEnders at the time.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02- No?- No, we watched Corrie in our house.- Oh, really?- Yeah.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05- So how did they feel about you being...?- They were...
0:09:05 > 0:09:10I went to a local drama club, in Islington, and it was after school
0:09:10 > 0:09:13and I went along and I got picked for it, so they were very much...
0:09:13 > 0:09:17They were not a pushy family, very grounded.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19And I got the part and they said, "All right, if you want to do it,
0:09:19 > 0:09:23"you can do it," you know, and that was it, and I just started it.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25So what was your dad's reaction to you...?
0:09:25 > 0:09:29- Dad was, like, "Oh, blimey! Not that programme!"- Really?!
0:09:29 > 0:09:33- SHE LAUGHS: Yeah! - Or words to that effect?- Yeah.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37And my brother, because I've got older brothers, Tony sat in a...
0:09:37 > 0:09:38I think he sat in McDonalds
0:09:38 > 0:09:41and just stared for about an hour over a Big Mac, saying,
0:09:41 > 0:09:44"I can't believe my sister's going to be in EastEnders."
0:09:44 > 0:09:49EastEnders was created by producer Julia Smith and writer Tony Holland,
0:09:49 > 0:09:53both of whom had earlier success on Z Cars.
0:09:53 > 0:09:57The soap has never shied away from tackling important issues,
0:09:57 > 0:09:59like domestic abuse and HIV.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03Explosive storylines attracted record audiences.
0:10:03 > 0:10:08On Christmas Day in 1986, over 30 million people
0:10:08 > 0:10:12tuned in to see Den Watts serve Angie her divorce papers.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18What was your first meaty sort of storyline?
0:10:18 > 0:10:21- Um... I suppose really... - Did you get anything at that age?
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Not at that age. It was all bits and pieces.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28But I suppose my first massive thing was giving birth, when I was 15.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30It hurts so much!
0:10:30 > 0:10:33- I'm dying! - You're not dying, sweetheart.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35You're having a baby.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38I can't be! SHE SOBS: You're wrong!
0:10:38 > 0:10:41Look, I've seen a few births in my time,
0:10:41 > 0:10:43I helped my Viv deliver Lynne on the changing room floor
0:10:43 > 0:10:45at the Clacton Lido and, believe me, girl,
0:10:45 > 0:10:48you're giving birth and, by the looks of it,
0:10:48 > 0:10:50- it ain't going to wait for no ambulance!- But I can't!
0:10:50 > 0:10:53That was a big thing to do, and obviously, not ever done that...
0:10:53 > 0:10:56- I hope not!- ..you want to get it right and I remember sat with...
0:10:56 > 0:10:59- being sat with June Brown...- Aw!
0:10:59 > 0:11:02and June Brown turning round, who plays Dot Cotton...
0:11:02 > 0:11:05- Course.- Turning round and saying, you know, "How do I do that, June?"
0:11:05 > 0:11:10you know and she said, "Darling," she said, "it's like pooing a melon."
0:11:10 > 0:11:13That was her advice to me!
0:11:13 > 0:11:16- The ambulance is on its way! - And so is this little one!- No! No!
0:11:16 > 0:11:19I can't have it! I can't have it!
0:11:19 > 0:11:22I'm so frightened! This can't be happening to me!
0:11:22 > 0:11:24Look, there's only one woman that could say that
0:11:24 > 0:11:27and she gave birth in a stable and it IS happening
0:11:27 > 0:11:30- and you've got to deal with it! - I don't know how!
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Now one knows how the first time round!
0:11:32 > 0:11:34But, believe you me, you'll be fine, I'm with you!
0:11:34 > 0:11:36It's coming back!
0:11:36 > 0:11:38- SHE SCREAMS - Go on! Go on, girl!
0:11:38 > 0:11:41- Top of your lungs! - PIERCING SCREAM
0:11:41 > 0:11:43Good girl! Good girl!
0:11:43 > 0:11:45And I'll never forget that.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54'Natalie's next clip takes us to a very different place.'
0:11:54 > 0:11:56'It may be hard to believe,
0:11:56 > 0:11:59'but a man in a pink-and-yellow spotted costume was once
0:11:59 > 0:12:03'the star attraction on prime-time Saturday night telly.'
0:12:03 > 0:12:06- It's Mr Blobby! - SHE LAUGHS
0:12:06 > 0:12:07Oh, it was great, wasn't it?
0:12:07 > 0:12:12Throughout the '90s, up to 15 million people tuned in each week
0:12:12 > 0:12:17for the latest goings-on in Crinkley Bottom at Noel's House Party.
0:12:17 > 0:12:19Regularly knocking on Noel's door
0:12:19 > 0:12:21were some notable Crinkley Bottom residents,
0:12:21 > 0:12:26including Men Behaving Badly's Neil Morrissey as Sammy the Shammy,
0:12:26 > 0:12:29Ronnie Corbett as the butler,
0:12:29 > 0:12:33and even Albert Square's own Leslie Grantham as - who else? -
0:12:33 > 0:12:36but the tough local barman.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38But it was Blobby that stole the show!
0:12:38 > 0:12:41- AUDIENCE CHANTS: - Blobby! Blobby! Blobby!
0:12:41 > 0:12:44- Oh, it was so clever.- Yeah.- You know.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46And I know he was annoying, Mr Blobby,
0:12:46 > 0:12:49but at the time, when I was younger, it was just a perfect viewing
0:12:49 > 0:12:53for that Saturday night. Absolutely brilliant.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55CHANTING CONTINUES
0:12:57 > 0:13:00MR BLOBBY GASPS AND SHOUTS
0:13:00 > 0:13:03- My dad hated it!- Really? - Oh, he hated it!
0:13:05 > 0:13:06LAUGHTER
0:13:06 > 0:13:11In 1993, Mr Blobby's single was Christmas Number 1,
0:13:11 > 0:13:15proving you don't have to be good-looking to be a pop star.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18Well, it's just nice, isn't it? You'd have your dinner and sit down...
0:13:18 > 0:13:21- Yeah.- ..and it was something you could share with all the family,
0:13:21 > 0:13:23which I think this country lost for a little while
0:13:23 > 0:13:27and we didn't have that, the relaxing feel-good Saturday night telly,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30- which, obviously now, I think we've got back.- Mm-hm.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33- I liked it when they used to come to people's houses.- That was brilliant.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35Did you ever think they were going to come to your house?
0:13:35 > 0:13:39- I did used to think how cool it would be.- Yeah.- You know?
0:13:39 > 0:13:42- And also, the Grab a Grand I used to love.- Yeah.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45- Cos, you know, people really did want to grab that grand.- Yeah.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48As people would today, but, you know, it was very, very good.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52And also, you know, it was optimism, wasn't it?
0:13:52 > 0:13:54- Yeah.- It was feel-good. It was great.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57- You can't beat it. A bit like this, really.- Yeah!
0:14:03 > 0:14:06So, our next little item is comedy.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09- Yes.- Are you a big fan of comedy, aren't you?- Massive fan.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12Given the opportunity, people go out, don't they, at the moment and say,
0:14:12 > 0:14:14- "Have you watched that box set?"- Yeah.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16- American box sets and all of that.- Yeah.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18Me and my partner sit and watch sitcoms.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21- Do you watch a lot of the American stuff?- Not overly.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24- No?- I was a big Friends fan when I was younger....
0:14:24 > 0:14:26You know, it was like looking at
0:14:26 > 0:14:28One Foot in the Grave
0:14:28 > 0:14:30and, like, 'Allo 'Allo! and...
0:14:30 > 0:14:32Hi-de-hi! and all those, you know.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36- Really?- Yeah, really. Again, it's the nostalgia of it, isn't it?
0:14:36 > 0:14:39- And I remember sitting watching it with my mum and dad.- Yeah.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41So I like watching it now. I mean, Only Fools,
0:14:41 > 0:14:43we've just done the whole box set.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46- Before Christmas, every night.- This is you and your partner?- I love it.
0:14:46 > 0:14:51- Yeah, me and Marc.- Shall we have a little look now?- Mm-hm.- All right.
0:14:51 > 0:14:52AUDIENCE LAUGHTER
0:14:54 > 0:14:56What is that funny noise?!
0:14:56 > 0:14:58- No, ssh.- Eh?
0:14:58 > 0:15:00AIR HISSES AND SQUEAKS
0:15:03 > 0:15:04NATALIE: 'This was my mum's favourite.'
0:15:04 > 0:15:07- I remember watching it with her for the first own.- Yeah.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09And she absolutely rolled around laughing.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12- Aw, ain't it lovely to have those memories?- Fantastic.
0:15:12 > 0:15:13Absolutely brilliant.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15LOUD HISSING
0:15:15 > 0:15:16POP!
0:15:16 > 0:15:19THEY GASP, AUDIENCE ROARS WITH LAUGHTER
0:15:20 > 0:15:23When Only Fools and Horses launched in 1981,
0:15:23 > 0:15:28it had a relatively slow start, but quickly built a huge following.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31In 1996, the show was attracting
0:15:31 > 0:15:34a whopping 24.3 million viewers -
0:15:34 > 0:15:37that's over a third of the population.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40THEY LAUGH
0:15:40 > 0:15:43- It's just fantastic.- Aw! - Absolutely brilliant.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47That was his big break, but he'd done so much before that, David Jason.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50- Yeah, yeah.- And, obviously, he did so much after.- And since!
0:15:50 > 0:15:51But, you know, it was...
0:15:51 > 0:15:54- I mean, Open All Hours was fantastic, wasn't it?- Yeah.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57- And he was in Porridge as well. - Yeah!- And then, you know,
0:15:57 > 0:16:00- he did this and this just absolutely made him.- Yeah.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02- I mean...- Do you remember it finishing? Were you upset?- Yeah.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04- I was broken-hearted.- Really?- Yeah.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08When you saw them walk off into the sunset, I remember sobbing,
0:16:08 > 0:16:10absolutely sobbing, cos, like, you know
0:16:10 > 0:16:13- and love those characters, don't you?- Yeah.
0:16:13 > 0:16:15- And it is like a soap each week. - Yeah.- And then, it ends.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18It's like Corrie ending, isn't it? Or EastEnders ending.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20- Let's hope that don't happen for a little while.- Yeah.
0:16:20 > 0:16:21I quite like my job.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24You think it all went wrong when they actually got...?
0:16:24 > 0:16:27- They made it!- It was all to do with the clock, didn't they?
0:16:27 > 0:16:29- They became millionaires. - Time On Our Hands,
0:16:29 > 0:16:30- it was called, that one.- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:16:30 > 0:16:33But, you know, you wanted them to make it and they never did,
0:16:33 > 0:16:36which is why it worked, because that, you know,
0:16:36 > 0:16:38it was about the struggle of life and wanting it
0:16:38 > 0:16:40and, once they got it, where do you go?
0:16:40 > 0:16:43And it just shows you - money doesn't always make you happy, does it?
0:16:45 > 0:16:49The sitcoms like Fools and Horses don't just write themselves.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51There would be no Del Boy and Rodney
0:16:51 > 0:16:54without writer extraordinaire John Sullivan.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57He scored his first sitcom bull's-eye with Citizen Smith.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59Robert Lindsay played an unemployed dreamer
0:16:59 > 0:17:02who thought he was Che Guevara.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05He went on to write the "will they or won't they?" classic
0:17:05 > 0:17:09Just Good Friends, starring Paul Nicholas and Jan Francis.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13And, in 1986, he wrote the bittersweet classic Dear John,
0:17:13 > 0:17:17about a divorced teacher, played by Poldark's Ralph Bates.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21After taxi-based comedy Roger Roger,
0:17:21 > 0:17:26he returned to his Nags Head favourite Boycie and Marlene
0:17:26 > 0:17:31for a Fools and Horses spin-off series, with The Green Green Grass.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35And, finally, the Trotters of Peckham were resurrected
0:17:35 > 0:17:37in 2010, when Sullivan created
0:17:37 > 0:17:39an Only Fools prequel
0:17:39 > 0:17:41called Rock and Chips.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43Lovely jubbly!
0:17:44 > 0:17:48- If we could sort of wave a magic wand and you be in a sitcom...- Aw!
0:17:48 > 0:17:51..that the legendary late, great John Sullivan wrote,
0:17:51 > 0:17:55er, what would it be? How could you see yourself?
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Oh, I don't know, really. This would be amazing, wouldn't it?
0:17:58 > 0:18:01Or even just popping in and out of, like, Open All Hours
0:18:01 > 0:18:02- or, you know....- Yeah.
0:18:02 > 0:18:06- Any of the old classics.- Yeah.- And, you know, it would just be great.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10- I just don't think they make 'em now like they used to.- No.- But...
0:18:16 > 0:18:18- Er, Natalie, I've got your next choice now.- Go on.
0:18:18 > 0:18:24- And I'm not going to say anything else, but it's 1993.- OK.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27And also they fight amongst themselves, the cubs as well.
0:18:27 > 0:18:28For 20 years,
0:18:28 > 0:18:32the Really Wild Show brought TV with a bite into our homes.
0:18:32 > 0:18:36Let's see some of those teeth. You can see them in there, look.
0:18:36 > 0:18:38He's giving me a little nibble, still very friendly.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40It just did the most enormous yawn
0:18:40 > 0:18:44and you can see how big their jaws are. Oops!
0:18:44 > 0:18:48- I used to absolutely love this.- Yeah?
0:18:48 > 0:18:52Yeah, because I always felt that everyone on the show
0:18:52 > 0:18:55really loved animals and they really wanted to be there.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57She's absolutely gorgeous.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00She's been hand reared and that's why we're able to handle her.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04- What do you think?- It's still a lion, it's not a little kitten.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07In fact, they're not that soft. Their fur's quite coarse.
0:19:07 > 0:19:12- Every boy fancied her and every girl wanted to be like her.- Yeah, yeah.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16- So she did very well there. She caught both audiences.- Yeah.
0:19:16 > 0:19:21Michaela Strachan was best known for presenting TV-am's Wide Awake Club,
0:19:21 > 0:19:25but The Really Wild Show reinvented her as a wildlife presenter.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31She went on to become a regular face on BBC One's Countryfile and,
0:19:31 > 0:19:36in 2011, she was reunited with her Really Wild co-host Chris Packham
0:19:36 > 0:19:37on Autumnwatch.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43She's going to have one of those earrings, isn't she?
0:19:43 > 0:19:45She handled it all, she did well.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48- Got her hands dirty, didn't she? - Got stuck in, yeah.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52So, what did you learn?
0:19:52 > 0:19:53I used to find it really interesting
0:19:53 > 0:19:56and came away with facts about the animals.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59I think it's very important in the world we live in today
0:19:59 > 0:20:02that we know about that stuff, you know, it's important.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06- Have you got animals?- No, I haven't.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09I had a cat when I was younger, my little cat,
0:20:09 > 0:20:13but I haven't got animals now just cos of my work, really.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15It's not fair cos I'm out all the time,
0:20:15 > 0:20:18but I'd love a little dog at some point or a big dog.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29- Natalie, we're moving on now to the kind of show you never miss.- Yep.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32- This is your wild card. - I never miss?- Never miss this.
0:20:32 > 0:20:36Never missed it. Right, and you're not going to miss it now.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39Hello, welcome to University Challenge.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41Two more student teams are ready to do battle
0:20:41 > 0:20:43for a place in the second round and perhaps beyond.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47- I hope you don't take this the wrong way.- Go on.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49- I just...- Listen...
0:20:49 > 0:20:52- Go on, you know what I'm going to say.- I'm extremely intelligent.
0:20:52 > 0:20:58- I know you are.- No, I'm not. What it is, I love the intelligence of it.
0:20:58 > 0:21:03Because I started on the telly very young, my life went that way
0:21:03 > 0:21:05and that's what I chose to do.
0:21:05 > 0:21:11But when I look back, I would have loved to have gone to uni
0:21:11 > 0:21:13and I love learning so when I watch this,
0:21:13 > 0:21:17I just love watching all those very clever people.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19- Oh, they are.- And I just love it.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22It's like I love going to Oxford or I love visiting Cambridge
0:21:22 > 0:21:26and seeing them ride around on bikes with their books.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28I just love intelligence, I think it's just brilliant.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31- You could still go back to college. - Absolutely!
0:21:31 > 0:21:33Open University, something like that.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35I will do that, I definitely will at some point.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37And what would you hope to study?
0:21:37 > 0:21:40Probably the arts in some way or history or that sort of thing.
0:21:40 > 0:21:41I hope you do.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44I love all of that. But, yeah, this is something
0:21:44 > 0:21:47that again reminds me of growing up, it being on,
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Dad maybe getting a couple of questions right -
0:21:49 > 0:21:53my dad's a clever man - but me never getting any questions right
0:21:53 > 0:21:56- and also looking at people's fashion sense.- Yeah.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58I know it's stereotypical, but if you're very, very clever,
0:21:58 > 0:22:05usually, you wear some terrible jumpers. And Paxman is so rude!
0:22:05 > 0:22:07- He's a legend.- So rude!
0:22:07 > 0:22:10So, who can get the first question right here, Natalie?
0:22:10 > 0:22:14The best of luck to both teams. Here's your first starter for ten.
0:22:14 > 0:22:16I used to think they were above each other.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19I know, it was only my partner - Marc's a cameraman -
0:22:19 > 0:22:23and he told me that, but not long ago. Really not long ago!
0:22:23 > 0:22:26And he was like, "They're not on top of each other.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30- "It's the shot." I was like, "You've ruined that for me."- I know!
0:22:30 > 0:22:35Of which character did Chaucer write "husbands at church door,
0:22:35 > 0:22:36"she had five"?
0:22:36 > 0:22:40- Oh, I've got this in the bag. - I haven't, you see.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42- Mary Poppins...- I want to know all of these.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44- It was the Wife of Bath.- Correct.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47For a possible five points, what sort of wife was Lady Brute
0:22:47 > 0:22:49in the title of a play by Vanburgh?
0:22:49 > 0:22:53That's why I watch it cos I really want to be clever.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56- I normally get, like, one in the whole of an episode.- Sometimes.
0:22:56 > 0:23:01- I do a lap of honour round the sofa. - I'll have to hurry you.
0:23:01 > 0:23:05- Lady of the manor, I don't know... - Come on.- Come on!- Come on!- Come on!
0:23:05 > 0:23:08- Get a move on!- A Wife of Christ...
0:23:08 > 0:23:09No, she was provoked,
0:23:09 > 0:23:11she was the Provoked Wife in the play of that name.
0:23:11 > 0:23:12It's brilliant. "Come on!
0:23:12 > 0:23:16- "Are you stupid?" - Then he goes, "No!"
0:23:16 > 0:23:18"No, you stupid individual!"
0:23:18 > 0:23:21He's cocky cos he's got the questions in front of him.
0:23:21 > 0:23:22I know, absolutely.
0:23:22 > 0:23:27The last King of Lydia who reigned from 560-546 BC
0:23:27 > 0:23:30is now usually remembered for his fabulous wealth. Who was he?
0:23:30 > 0:23:34- We're not going to get one, are we? - No, we're not. We're not.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36Over the years,
0:23:36 > 0:23:40University Challenge contestants have featured some familiar faces,
0:23:40 > 0:23:45including Harry Potter star Miriam Margolyes,
0:23:45 > 0:23:47journalist John Simpson,
0:23:47 > 0:23:50QI's Stephen Fry
0:23:50 > 0:23:53and Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57Jeremy Paxman took the inquisitor's chair from Bamber Gascoigne
0:23:57 > 0:24:01in the mid-'90s and has kept students on their toes ever since.
0:24:01 > 0:24:02No, it's Incitatus.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12I want to come up-to-date now. I mean, what do you watch these days?
0:24:12 > 0:24:15Do you have much time? Because you're so busy.
0:24:15 > 0:24:20Like I say, with work, it's very much, each week's different.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24We can work numerous amounts... Different hours, you know.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27Even in the evenings, if I'm not at work, I've got a four-year-old...
0:24:27 > 0:24:30That sort of soap time especially is...
0:24:30 > 0:24:34You know, bath-time, dinner time, bedtime. I love MasterChef.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38I absolutely love it. That's something I'd love to do.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42- What about the live...- The live eps?
0:24:42 > 0:24:46- Yeah, of EastEnders.- They were great, they were really good fun.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48Petrifying or not?
0:24:48 > 0:24:54It was scary but we were well rehearsed and my problem is,
0:24:54 > 0:24:56when I get nervous, I do this.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01I lose all the saliva in my mouth.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03I said to the director of EastEnders, what if, on the night,
0:25:03 > 0:25:07I've got my lines to do and I'm going...
0:25:07 > 0:25:09"Well, I don't know, I've just got to go over to The Vic"?
0:25:09 > 0:25:10What would happen then?
0:25:10 > 0:25:13They said, "Don't worry, we'll just deal with it at the time."
0:25:13 > 0:25:16I want to talk about Strictly and that experience.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20Was it a huge decision to be made when they said...?
0:25:20 > 0:25:22No, no, straight away I thought, "Absolutely,"
0:25:22 > 0:25:27and then I realised what I'd got myself into. It was very nerve...
0:25:27 > 0:25:31You'd work really hard all week and it is, your whole life goes into it.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33The more hours you do, the more you know the steps
0:25:33 > 0:25:37and the more you're going to get on and not look like a complete pillock.
0:25:37 > 0:25:41MUSIC: Bang Bang by Joe Cuba
0:25:42 > 0:25:43So I really worked hard
0:25:43 > 0:25:47and did 10, 12 hours a day and then you'd get behind there on
0:25:47 > 0:25:49a Saturday night with lovely Brucey and Tess
0:25:49 > 0:25:52and your mind would go blank.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55A lot of people take it for granted but it is live
0:25:55 > 0:25:58and there's something about knowing that you're going out to
0:25:58 > 0:26:02- 8 million, 9 million, 10 million people live...- I know.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04- With the chance of looking terrible...- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06..and forgetting it all.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09But that's Saturday night entertainment and I love it,
0:26:09 > 0:26:13I love watching it now. Dancing's great, music's great, it's lovely.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16I think that's what we've touched on with all of your stuff,
0:26:16 > 0:26:20- like Noel's House Party, Fools And Horses...- I know, it's all very...
0:26:20 > 0:26:25- It is all escapism and it's all... - ..light and fluffy.- Yeah.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28It's what I like. I like comedy and...
0:26:28 > 0:26:30I think we've got enough in the real world to worry about.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32- There's enough doom and gloom out there.- Isn't there?
0:26:32 > 0:26:36And, like you say, my work, I'm always miserable as sin.
0:26:36 > 0:26:41Sonia's always crying or doing something which is frowned upon
0:26:41 > 0:26:43on the Square which makes her miserable.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46But that's Natalie, what's Sonia like in EastEnders?
0:26:47 > 0:26:51I mean, let's be honest, from the age of ten till now...
0:26:51 > 0:26:55- 22 years with a gap, it's an honour. - And long may it run.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59I think you should come work with me. Come and do EastEnders.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02Just come in, "All right, sweetheart?" But who would I be?
0:27:02 > 0:27:07I don't know. Sonia... We haven't found Sonia's dad yet.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10- Terry Kant, his name is.- Really? - Yeah, you could come in as Terry.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12"All right? Name's Terry.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15- "All right, sweetheart?" - I think that'd be great.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19- I think you'd be really good.- "All right, darling, I'll sort it out."
0:27:21 > 0:27:23- It would, wouldn't it? - You'd be great.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26I want to thank you so much because I think we've had a good day...
0:27:26 > 0:27:29It's been a really lovely time, I've really enjoyed myself,
0:27:29 > 0:27:31thank you for having me, really good.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35At this point, you get to choose a theme tune to go out on.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38What's it going to be, something cutting edge?
0:27:38 > 0:27:41We've just had University Challenge, it must be Panorama...
0:27:41 > 0:27:43It could be Panorama, it could be Newsnight
0:27:43 > 0:27:47- but I'm afraid I'm going to go for "'Allo 'Allo!".- Well, why not?
0:27:47 > 0:27:51Because it's soft, again, it's funny, it's soft, it's cheeky and it
0:27:51 > 0:27:54just reminds me of my childhood, so that's what I'd like, please.
0:27:54 > 0:27:59My thanks to Natalie Cassidy and we're going out with "'Allo 'Allo!".
0:27:59 > 0:28:03"'ALLO 'ALLO!" THEME PLAYS