0:00:02 > 0:00:04TV, the magic box of delights.
0:00:04 > 0:00:07As kids, it showed us a million different worlds
0:00:07 > 0:00:08all from our living room.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12- This takes me right back. - That's so embarrassing!
0:00:12 > 0:00:14I am genuinely shocked.
0:00:14 > 0:00:18'Each day, I'm going to journey through the wonderful world of telly
0:00:18 > 0:00:20'with one of our favourite celebrities.'
0:00:21 > 0:00:22It's just so silly!
0:00:22 > 0:00:24Ah! I love it.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26Is it Mr Benn?
0:00:26 > 0:00:28- SHE SINGS - Shut it!
0:00:28 > 0:00:31'As they select the iconic TV moments...'
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Oh, hello!
0:00:33 > 0:00:36'..that tell us the stories of their lives.'
0:00:37 > 0:00:39- Oh, my gosh!- Cheers.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41'Some will make you laugh.'
0:00:41 > 0:00:42Agh!
0:00:43 > 0:00:46- Oh, no!- 'Some will surprise.'
0:00:46 > 0:00:48- TOY SQUEAKS - Oh!
0:00:48 > 0:00:50- 'Many will inspire.'- Ooh!
0:00:50 > 0:00:53Look at this. Why wouldn't you want to watch this?
0:00:53 > 0:00:55'And others will move us.'
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Seeing that there made a huge impact on me.
0:00:57 > 0:00:59You're not having my kid!
0:00:59 > 0:01:00Got a handkerchief?
0:01:01 > 0:01:07So, come watch with us as we rewind to the classic telly that shaped
0:01:07 > 0:01:11those wide-eyed youngsters into the much-loved stars they are today.
0:01:20 > 0:01:21Welcome to The TV That Made Me.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25My guest today is one of Britain's most gifted actors.
0:01:25 > 0:01:26Ladies and gentlemen,
0:01:26 > 0:01:30please welcome the hugely talented Amanda Abbington.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33- Hello! Hello.- Hi.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36- How are you?- Very well.- Good.
0:01:36 > 0:01:38- All the better for seeing you. - And you.
0:01:38 > 0:01:39- Welcome to my humble abode. - It's lovely.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43Star of stage, screen and Sherlock,
0:01:43 > 0:01:46Amanda has starred in some of the most iconic shows
0:01:46 > 0:01:51over the last few years, including Mr Selfridge and crime drama Cuffs.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56The TV that made her includes an old-school classic comedy.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00- Better than that... - ..a sun-drenched guilty pleasure.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03Yeah, you imagine things. Why do you accuse me all the time?
0:02:03 > 0:02:06And a terrifying post-apocalyptic series.
0:02:07 > 0:02:11- So, are you excited about today? - Yeah.- Looking back?- Yes, I am!
0:02:11 > 0:02:12- Yeah?- Yes, I'm really excited.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14- Was telly a big thing in your life growing up?- Huge.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17- Because I'm an only child so I didn't have anyone to play with.- Aw!
0:02:17 > 0:02:18- AUDIENCE:- Ah!
0:02:18 > 0:02:20So they just stuck you in front of the telly, did they?
0:02:20 > 0:02:22Yeah, my mum did! She kind of did a bit.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25But that's because she had to get on and do her work.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27But that was then, that was '70s and '80s.
0:02:27 > 0:02:29That was sort of the thing you did.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31You either went out and played in the summer holidays
0:02:31 > 0:02:33with your friends but you were mainly kind of...
0:02:33 > 0:02:34You just sort of stayed at home
0:02:34 > 0:02:37and you didn't have the internet or anything, so the telly was...
0:02:37 > 0:02:40- And there was four channels.- I know, blimey. Do you remember that?
0:02:40 > 0:02:44My children don't understand that. They can't fathom that at all.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47- Yeah, and that we had to get up and change channels.- Yeah!
0:02:47 > 0:02:50- Yeah.- Yeah, it was a big thing in those days.
0:02:50 > 0:02:51Yeah, you just didn't bother in the end.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54- You'd end up World Of Sport for four hours.- Yeah, yeah.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58So today is a celebration of some of your favourite TV classic moments.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01We're going to look back on that but first up, let's rewind the clock
0:03:01 > 0:03:03and have a look at a very young Amanda.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09Born in 1974, Amanda was raised by her parents
0:03:09 > 0:03:12Patsy and John in Hertfordshire.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17Her love for performing was evident from an early age
0:03:17 > 0:03:19when Amanda was a promising dancer.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23But she decided to pursue a career in acting.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25Which has seen her start in shows like After You've Gone
0:03:25 > 0:03:27with Nicholas Lyndhurst...
0:03:28 > 0:03:31..and of course, as Mary Watson in Sherlock,
0:03:31 > 0:03:34where she starred with her real-life partner Martin Freeman.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39- So, was it a happy childhood? - Yes, it was.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41My mum and dad were brilliant.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44We lived with my nanny and grandad as well when I was growing up
0:03:44 > 0:03:47- so there was five of us in the house.- Oh, really?- So, it was...
0:03:47 > 0:03:49And I was very close to all of them.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52Because I was the only one, I was really not spoilt
0:03:52 > 0:03:55- but there was a lot of love and it was nice.- Yeah.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58And then they got a little cottage, my mum and dad and so we moved out.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02- But I remember being very close to my grandparents growing up.- Yes.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05Which was lovely, it was lovely having them around.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08I mean, I don't know whether my dad was too enamoured about living
0:04:08 > 0:04:11with his in-laws, I don't know. But, yeah, it was...
0:04:11 > 0:04:12I loved it, it was great.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20It is great to have you here.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23Let's start with your very first TV memory. Here it is.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27The Flumps. SHE GASPS
0:04:31 > 0:04:33They were the best, I used to watch this all the time.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39'The 1970s stop motion series The Flumps
0:04:39 > 0:04:42'told the adventures of a family of lovable furry creatures.'
0:04:44 > 0:04:46Look at Grandpa! Look at him garden!
0:04:50 > 0:04:53- Look at Pootle and Posie.- Ah.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55- IN A NASAL VOICE:- Pootle used to talk like Pootle,
0:04:55 > 0:04:57because she used to have a cold in her nose.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59She used to talk like that, that's why I loved her.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02"What is she talking about?" asked Perkin.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05"She's got secrets under her hat," said Pootle.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07- IN A NASAL VOICE:- See? She's got
0:05:07 > 0:05:08secrets under her hat.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12I remember one where she had a cloud or a balloon or something.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16- IN A NASAL VOICE:- And she used to carry it and she got really sad.
0:05:16 > 0:05:17I loved it, I loved it.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20It was so much fun. Oh, my gosh, this is taking...
0:05:20 > 0:05:22That's a really good impression there.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24- I can tell what you've done as a kid.- Yes, all I did.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27- I told you, only child. - Yeah, with your Pootle impressions.
0:05:27 > 0:05:29- There was just 13 episodes ever made.- Is that all? Really?
0:05:29 > 0:05:31So they must have kept repeating them, yeah.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34Mother Flump knew that Pootle and Perkin
0:05:34 > 0:05:35were up to something.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38"What are you two arguing about?"
0:05:38 > 0:05:41- Look at Mum.- I love Mum's headscarf.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44Isn't it brilliant, though? And look, they've got apples.
0:05:44 > 0:05:48- Little apples.- A lot of attention to detail.- Yeah, there really was.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50They're doing a little jigsaw puzzle there, aren't they?
0:05:52 > 0:05:55You see, I always thought Pootle was a girl.
0:05:55 > 0:05:57But maybe I was wrong, maybe he's just a very young boy.
0:05:57 > 0:05:58Bulgelling.
0:05:58 > 0:06:03'Pootle was indeed a boy and also the youngest of the Flump family.
0:06:03 > 0:06:07'The focus was often on him as he got up to all kinds of mischief.'
0:06:07 > 0:06:11"Oh, Pootle. You're always guessing words mixed up.
0:06:11 > 0:06:15"You mean bulging and full up."
0:06:15 > 0:06:17"That's what I said."
0:06:17 > 0:06:20- Bit like me, I was always getting it wrong.- Really? What, as a child?
0:06:20 > 0:06:22Yeah, I always used to get things wrong.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24Can't think of anything off...
0:06:24 > 0:06:27But you do a great Pootle impression. Any other impressions?
0:06:27 > 0:06:30They may well come out during the course of the show.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32They may well come out during...? HE CHUCKLES
0:06:32 > 0:06:35I used to, I think I used to really annoy my mum and dad
0:06:35 > 0:06:37because I used to do lots of different voices
0:06:37 > 0:06:39and accents and people.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42But you were just learning your craft, wasn't you, really?
0:06:42 > 0:06:44- Yeah, looking back, that's probably what it was.- Yeah.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47I did used to do a lot of performing in front of them as well.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50I'd make a makeshift stage and sort of tell jokes.
0:06:50 > 0:06:55It must have driven them nuts. They probably hated it now, looking back.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58- So, it was always in you to perform? - I think so, I think so.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01- I loved it from the word go, I think.- Yeah.
0:07:01 > 0:07:03And it was always something I enjoyed doing.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05I was never frightened of it, you know?
0:07:05 > 0:07:08I think because I was bullied as well as a kid, I think that
0:07:08 > 0:07:11that kind of, the humour became like a defence
0:07:11 > 0:07:14and I wanted to make people like me.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17So, I'd make people laugh and that's maybe what I...
0:07:17 > 0:07:19- That fuelled it as well, I guess. - Yes.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23- So, who would you watch this with? Your grandad?- Um...
0:07:23 > 0:07:25No, I probably watched it with my mum.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27She'd come and watch it with me.
0:07:27 > 0:07:28Because it was all...
0:07:28 > 0:07:30We didn't have kids programmes throughout the whole day,
0:07:30 > 0:07:33so it would be on, I think there'd be some in the morning.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35Maybe, possibly in the summer holidays.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37But kids programmes would start about three
0:07:37 > 0:07:40and finish about half five with Blue Peter.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42- Or Grange Hill or something like that.- Yeah.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46So, and again, when I tell my kids that, they go, "That's ridiculous."
0:07:46 > 0:07:49And you say, "No, because there was only a finite
0:07:49 > 0:07:51"amount of time for kids programmes."
0:07:51 > 0:07:55So, tell me about your sitting room growing up. What was that like?
0:07:55 > 0:07:57Well, when we moved out of my grandparents house,
0:07:57 > 0:07:59we got a little terraced cottage
0:07:59 > 0:08:02and so, you'd walk in the front door and you'd come into the front room
0:08:02 > 0:08:06and there'd be like a sofa here and a sofa here and then an open fire.
0:08:06 > 0:08:10And then a big sash window and then the telly was in the corner.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12And then at Christmas, we'd have the Christmas tree
0:08:12 > 0:08:14right in front of the window. But...
0:08:14 > 0:08:17- Yeah, it was a really cosy little cottage. It was lovely.- Yeah.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19And I used to sit, my dad bought this Chesterfield.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21They were the big thing then and I used to sit on it
0:08:21 > 0:08:26and just get buried in it and watch all my programmes and it was lovely.
0:08:26 > 0:08:27Under a blanket. It was really nice.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34Now, we've seen the shows that you love
0:08:34 > 0:08:37- but this next one is your grandparents' choice.- OK.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41- SHE CHUCKLES - Ah!
0:08:41 > 0:08:42Last Of The Summer Wine.
0:08:45 > 0:08:46This was the world's
0:08:46 > 0:08:47longest-running sitcom.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50It ran for 37 years.
0:08:50 > 0:08:5337 years!
0:08:53 > 0:08:56'This gentle comedy followed the adventures of three elderly friends
0:08:56 > 0:08:59'as they caused havoc in the Yorkshire countryside.'
0:09:01 > 0:09:03- These three were fantastic.- Yeah.
0:09:06 > 0:09:11- Look at Compo. He looks a bit like Pootle from The Flumps.- Yeah!
0:09:11 > 0:09:14- You see, there's a link.- There's a little theme going through.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16There's a little link with his woolly hat on.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22- Oh!- Peril. There's peril now.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26She used to really upset me, the way she spoke to those three.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29Oh, look at that!
0:09:31 > 0:09:34She liked it all, really. She loved the attention, really.
0:09:34 > 0:09:36She pretended she didn't, but she did.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43SHE LAUGHS No!
0:09:44 > 0:09:46It's brilliant. It's brilliant.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49Serves you right, you daft lot!
0:09:49 > 0:09:53- I love it, I love it. Gorgeous. - Yeah. It brings back happy memories.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56- It really does. - And who would you watch this with?
0:09:56 > 0:10:00- My nanny and grandad.- Oh, right. - And I'd be on the sofa again.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03- And my nanny used to eat pomegranates a lot.- Right.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07So, she cut me half a pomegranate and she picked them out with a pin
0:10:07 > 0:10:09- for me and I'd sit and watch...- Ah.
0:10:09 > 0:10:14Yeah, it was a real, that's a real kind of memory I have with her.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16You know, because she was quite a big lady as well.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19You know, she was cuddly, she was a cuddly woman. She was...
0:10:19 > 0:10:23I just loved her and the smell of her and that really reminds me
0:10:23 > 0:10:27of her and I was very, very close to my nanna, really close to her.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29How old would you have been?
0:10:29 > 0:10:32- I can't, I must have been about six or seven.- Oh, really young?
0:10:32 > 0:10:33I mean, you know, and I just...
0:10:33 > 0:10:37Yeah, she was just, she was a real role model for me as well.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39- Oh, really? - Because she went through...
0:10:39 > 0:10:40She had a lot of tough times, my nanna.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43She went terrible, like a tough upbringing. And...
0:10:44 > 0:10:48And she was so strong, she was such a strong woman and loyal
0:10:48 > 0:10:53and loving and her and my grandad had this fantastic relationship.
0:10:53 > 0:10:54She used to make me laugh.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57Like, my mum and dad bought her once a bottle of Pimm's.
0:10:57 > 0:10:58Big bottle of Pimm's.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02And she was in the kitchen cooking Sunday dinner and we hadn't
0:11:02 > 0:11:05heard from her in a bit and she was getting louder and louder singing.
0:11:05 > 0:11:06And then the next thing I know,
0:11:06 > 0:11:09we've walked out into the kitchen and the Pimm's bottle is empty.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12And she's at the top of the garden with my grandad doing a waltz,
0:11:12 > 0:11:14and she's absolutely hammered.
0:11:14 > 0:11:18Because she didn't think you needed to dilute Pimm's.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21So she's been drinking it neat, cooking...
0:11:21 > 0:11:23And she still made the best roast dinner.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25She was a wonderful woman and I do miss her, she's great.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27- She was wonderful.- Ah.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30And so, that really does remind me of both my nanny and my grandad.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34- Ah.- It was great. Lovely, yeah. - Lovely?- Hmm. Just really...
0:11:34 > 0:11:36- You're filling up, aren't you? - I am a bit, yeah, because she's...
0:11:36 > 0:11:39- Shall we move on?- Yeah, because she's just...- Yeah.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42She was amazing. And my mum takes after her, so...
0:11:42 > 0:11:45There's this line of very strong women in my family
0:11:45 > 0:11:48that are so stoic and...
0:11:48 > 0:11:49brilliant.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53Last Of The Summer Wine is the longest-running sitcom in the world.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55But there are a few other shows that give it
0:11:55 > 0:11:58a run for its money in the longevity stakes. Oh, yes.
0:11:58 > 0:12:00Including medical drama Casualty,
0:12:00 > 0:12:03which is still going strong today.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05When it first started in 1986,
0:12:05 > 0:12:07all medical scenes were filmed on a
0:12:07 > 0:12:09Wednesday at BBC television Centre,
0:12:09 > 0:12:11which was also the same day that
0:12:11 > 0:12:13the Top Of The Pops was recorded,
0:12:13 > 0:12:16our longest-running music show.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18The very first episode was transmitted live
0:12:18 > 0:12:23from a converted church in Manchester in 1964.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27And it continued to broadcast as a weekly chart show until 2006.
0:12:28 > 0:12:29Although impressive,
0:12:29 > 0:12:31that doesn't match up to the
0:12:31 > 0:12:34huge 62-year run of Panorama,
0:12:34 > 0:12:36which takes the crown for the longest-running
0:12:36 > 0:12:37current affairs show.
0:12:37 > 0:12:43First broadcast in November 1953, reporters have included
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Robin Day, Richard Dimbleby
0:12:45 > 0:12:47and his son David,
0:12:47 > 0:12:49who presented his first Panorama
0:12:49 > 0:12:5321 years to the day after the show began.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03- And then we're going to move on now to comfort telly.- Right.
0:13:03 > 0:13:04This is something you would watch
0:13:04 > 0:13:07- when you weren't feeling at your best.- Yeah, OK.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12From the heights of Mount Animalympus.
0:13:12 > 0:13:13The flame begins its journey
0:13:13 > 0:13:16through the four corners of the animal kingdom.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19- This is called Animalympics. - Animalympics.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21Made in 1980, this, it was.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23This is brilliant, this is, by the way.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26This is one of the best films ever made.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29'This feature length animation filled with catchy music
0:13:29 > 0:13:32'told the tale of animals from all over the world
0:13:32 > 0:13:35'taking part in an Olympic contest.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37'It was created by Steven Lisberger,
0:13:37 > 0:13:40'who would go on to direct the movie Tron two years later.'
0:13:40 > 0:13:42Faster, furrier, the model of the competing...
0:13:42 > 0:13:44- He sounds like Harry Shearer. - It was, correct.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46- It was Harry Shearer.- Was it really?
0:13:46 > 0:13:48'Comedian Harry Shearer is probably best known
0:13:48 > 0:13:52'as the voice of Mr Burns and Ned Flanders in The Simpsons.'
0:13:52 > 0:13:58- Other voice actors was Billy Crystal and Gilda Radner.- Yeah! Wow.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01# With you, I can run forever... #
0:14:02 > 0:14:06This, it doesn't look much at the moment but it's really good.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09This is a really good film!
0:14:09 > 0:14:11You're very defensive of it.
0:14:11 > 0:14:14I know, because... I don't know why!
0:14:14 > 0:14:17I don't know why I'm very defensive of it.
0:14:17 > 0:14:20Maybe because, you know, because of what Pixar do now
0:14:20 > 0:14:23and everything, you know, there's that... It's so good now.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25But actually, it's standing up.
0:14:25 > 0:14:29# Together we can run forever... #
0:14:29 > 0:14:30It was a really good soundtrack as well.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33It was really quite a cool soundtrack.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36# Through the wind and rain and morning dew... #
0:14:36 > 0:14:38You got the whole film? Because we can all watch it now.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42- Yeah.- I'll order pizza in and we'll just, we'll watch this now.
0:14:42 > 0:14:43As a group.
0:14:46 > 0:14:50They're running the marathon, basically. They fall in love.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52They hate each other at the beginning, these two.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56'One of the films animator's was Brad Bird, who has gone on
0:14:56 > 0:14:59'to direct Hollywood blockbusters like The Incredibles,
0:14:59 > 0:15:01'Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
0:15:01 > 0:15:03'and Tomorrowland.'
0:15:05 > 0:15:09- Why did he hate her?- Because they were in competition to be first.
0:15:09 > 0:15:14- Oh, right. Oh, I see.- Yeah. But they win because they fall in love.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16SHE LAUGHS
0:15:16 > 0:15:20They're re crossing the finish line together!
0:15:20 > 0:15:23'This rather strange but entertaining mock news broadcast
0:15:23 > 0:15:26'parodied TV sport coverage.'
0:15:26 > 0:15:29- Is there an explanation for Kit's behaviour?- I had a good plan.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33Keep Mambo track shoes, keep Mambo doll, keep Mambo vitamins.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35So, what was comforting about this?
0:15:35 > 0:15:37I don't... Actually, I don't...
0:15:37 > 0:15:41I loved the music and I loved that love story.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43And I just loved all the little,
0:15:43 > 0:15:46because there were little kind of vignettes in it.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48There were little stories within it.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51And it was, it was just fun. It was just lovely.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54I used to remember laying on the sofa if I was poorly
0:15:54 > 0:15:57and my mum would put it on and I'd have had my vegetable soup.
0:15:57 > 0:15:58And I'd lay there and watch it.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01It was just knowing that my mum was in the kitchen
0:16:01 > 0:16:04and the fire was on and this was on.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06- It was just something very comforting about...- Yeah.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09And it was, you know, you're poorly but you feel...
0:16:09 > 0:16:11- Comforted.- Yeah, comforted.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13- Yeah, it's comfort viewing. - Yeah, it really is.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17- Yeah, like a little arm around your shoulder.- It is. Yeah.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20Little kiss on my forehead. That's what it is.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23- I'm filling up. AUDIENCE:- Ah!
0:16:23 > 0:16:25That's still one of my favourite films.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28- Really?- Yeah.- Do you think it's stood the test of time?
0:16:28 > 0:16:32- Looks like, well, looks like it has, hasn't it?- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35- See, I want to watch that again now. - So what about your kids?
0:16:35 > 0:16:38Would you introduce them to this? Do you think they'd enjoy?
0:16:38 > 0:16:40Yeah, I don't think they'd be particularly interested in that.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43Em, no. Joe probably wouldn't because he's...
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Martin's introducing him to Bond at the moment, James Bond.
0:16:46 > 0:16:47But they might like that.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50They might do. I'm going to have to get hold of a copy of that now.
0:16:55 > 0:16:59- Well, now it is time for your next choice.- Ooh!
0:16:59 > 0:17:02Let's see what your must-see TV was back in the day.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11SHE GASPS
0:17:11 > 0:17:13- Oh, my God!- S.W.A.L.K.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15- Sealed With A Loving Kiss.- Yes.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19'Broadcast on Channel 4 in the early
0:17:19 > 0:17:21'80s, S.W.A.L.K told of the trials
0:17:21 > 0:17:25'and tribulations of teenager Amanda.'
0:17:25 > 0:17:26I loved this.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28And it was just all about growing up.
0:17:28 > 0:17:31- But there was only ever six episodes.- Really?- Yeah.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35- This is 1982.- This was brilliant.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37And she liked him.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39I had a crush on her, she was my first crush.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45- I think he turned out to be a bit of a wrong 'un.- Oh, really?- I think so.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55This iconic show stood out from other programmes of its time,
0:17:55 > 0:17:59thanks to its unusual use of on-screen photo stories
0:17:59 > 0:18:02and an agony aunt played perfectly by Prunella Scales.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06They're not all creeps, are they?
0:18:06 > 0:18:08You've cracked it there, love.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12He's made the first move. It's up to you to make the next one, right?
0:18:14 > 0:18:18But she had an older sister. And her older sister was quite glamorous.
0:18:18 > 0:18:19And got all the boys and she didn't
0:18:19 > 0:18:22and they kind of have this real love/hate relationship.
0:18:22 > 0:18:26But I don't ever remember it being only six episodes, that's insane.
0:18:26 > 0:18:28Because it just seemed to go on and on for me.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30Oh, mate, that's so brilliant.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33- She pulls off the role of embarrassed teenager?- Absolutely.
0:18:33 > 0:18:37She was amazing. I used to, I loved, I loved her.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39I loved her, I'd just be like that.
0:18:39 > 0:18:41And I'd wait every week for the next episode.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44That's brilliant because I haven't seen that since I was younger.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48- Really? '82.- God! Yes, so I was...
0:18:48 > 0:18:52- I wasn't that old, I wasn't that old.- You was a baby.- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:18:53 > 0:18:57- But just, I wanted to be her. - What made that so exciting for you?
0:18:57 > 0:19:00- To want to be her. - I just thought she was really cool.
0:19:00 > 0:19:01And I just thought...
0:19:02 > 0:19:05I just, I just liked her and I wanted to be like that.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08And I was hoping that when I got to her age, that's what I'd be like.
0:19:08 > 0:19:10I'd be this kind of...
0:19:10 > 0:19:12You know, everything is kind of, "Oh, it's all terrible
0:19:12 > 0:19:15"but I'm getting through it," kind of thing. Yeah, that's so weird.
0:19:15 > 0:19:17And I'd forgot that Prunella Scales was in it.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20Yes, she played, like, the thoughts in her head, her agony aunt.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23Yeah. That's fantastic, I'm so pleased I've seen that.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25Did you used to read Girl magazine?
0:19:25 > 0:19:29- You know, with those photo stories in.- I did. I used to read Girl.- Hmm.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33- Which was amazing. And Jackie.- Ah, Jackie.- But I...
0:19:33 > 0:19:35I think I probably wasn't allowed to read that
0:19:35 > 0:19:38when I started reading because it was a little bit grown-up.
0:19:38 > 0:19:39- Bit racy?- Yeah.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42- Which one would be racy out of that? What, Jackie or both?- Jackie.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44Girl wasn't so much.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48Girl, there was a cartoon strip in Girl magazine
0:19:48 > 0:19:52that I followed every week and it was about these two ballerinas.
0:19:52 > 0:19:54And one was good and one was evil
0:19:54 > 0:19:57and it was about their fight to get this leading role.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00And again, I'd be waiting until it came out,
0:20:00 > 0:20:02I think it came out every Tuesday.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05And I'd be down the newsagents with my mum and reading it
0:20:05 > 0:20:06and stuff, it was great. Yeah.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09So, when you was watching S.W.A.L.K, was you...?
0:20:09 > 0:20:12Did you have your acting ambition then?
0:20:12 > 0:20:14No, I wanted to be a dancer then.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17So, I trained, I started doing ballet when I was about five
0:20:17 > 0:20:20and that's what I wanted to be. And then it...
0:20:20 > 0:20:23It became clear very quickly that I was not going to be a ballet dancer.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26Because I just couldn't do it and I didn't have the discipline
0:20:26 > 0:20:30and I just, I wasn't, I wasn't very good, you know?
0:20:30 > 0:20:32And then a drama teacher, when I went to drama...
0:20:32 > 0:20:36Because I did go to dance school for a year and then the drama teacher
0:20:36 > 0:20:38said, "You know, I don't think you're going to
0:20:38 > 0:20:39"pull it off as a dancer.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43"But you show promise as an actress and I think you should pursue that."
0:20:43 > 0:20:45And that's what made me become an actress.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49- So, at what age would that have been?- When I was about 16, 17.
0:20:49 > 0:20:51I knew then, that it was never going to happen.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54And I was quite pleased because it's hard work.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57- Acting is a lot easier than dancing. - Really?
0:20:57 > 0:21:00Yeah, because you don't have to keep training, you know.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02You don't have to train every day to be an actor.
0:21:02 > 0:21:06That's kind of in there usually, it's a natural thing.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09You know, but dancing, you have to work your muscles and you
0:21:09 > 0:21:13have to keep supple and you have to keep it all in there.
0:21:13 > 0:21:14It's different.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17- So, are you pleased it went off? - Very, very.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19- Because my career would be over now. - Hmm.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22You know, as a dancer, I probably wouldn't be...
0:21:22 > 0:21:24Unless you're somebody like Darcey Bussell
0:21:24 > 0:21:26who's an incredible ballerina,
0:21:26 > 0:21:29- your time is limited as a dancer. - Hmm.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31Whereas acting, you know, you can do it till you're 100.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35- Well, I'm very pleased that you moved into acting.- Thank you.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43Now it's time to move onto your TV fear.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45SHE LAUGHS NERVOUSLY
0:21:45 > 0:21:47- Let's take a look.- All right.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Would you like the paper?
0:21:49 > 0:21:51'The Day Of The Triffids was an adaptation
0:21:51 > 0:21:53'of John Wyndham's cult novel.
0:21:53 > 0:21:57'Telling the terrifying tale of the world's battle to survive
0:21:57 > 0:21:58'the petrifying man-eating
0:21:58 > 0:22:00'Triffid plants.'
0:22:00 > 0:22:02Any idea of what it is?
0:22:02 > 0:22:06No, no, not really. It's blown in from somewhere, I suppose.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10Either that or a foreign import of some sort I know not what of.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13No, it's none of that. You wait.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16Come on, Bill. Have a look inside. Come on.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20- Don't look inside it.- Don't look inside.- Don't look inside it.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24- Eugh!- Come on now, Bill. That's nature.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27- It's good, isn't it? That, for the time.- Yeah.
0:22:29 > 0:22:30I shall take care of you, old chap.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34- It starts shaking. - SHE GASPS
0:22:36 > 0:22:39'Mysterious, intelligent and utterly terrifying triffids
0:22:39 > 0:22:41'could kill a grown man with their sting.'
0:22:45 > 0:22:48'We were beginning to learn about the tri-feds,
0:22:48 > 0:22:51'or triffids as they came to be called.'
0:22:51 > 0:22:53- Terrified me.- Really?
0:22:53 > 0:22:55It terrified the bejesus out of me, that did.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58- Did it?- Yeah, because I thought it could happen. I always thought
0:22:58 > 0:23:02- things like that would actually happen, so I thought...- A vivid sort of imagination.- Terrible,
0:23:02 > 0:23:04my imagination. Yeah, incredibly vivid imagination. Yeah, yeah.
0:23:04 > 0:23:09I remember reading something once about a black hole and thinking, "Well, that's how I'm going to die.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11- "I'm going to be hit." - Fall into a black hole?- Yeah.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13Or a meteorite will hit me or...you know?
0:23:13 > 0:23:16And so I thought, well, it's perfectly possible
0:23:16 > 0:23:20- that triffids could come and destroy the planet.- Hmm.- And...
0:23:20 > 0:23:22Yeah, that used to frighten the life out of me
0:23:22 > 0:23:24and I remember having dreams about it.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28About sort of it bearing down on me, over me.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31And then I'd wake up screaming.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35But then I think I read the book when I was about 12 or 13
0:23:35 > 0:23:38and then that frightened me as well because of just the imagery in that.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41I remember there was a chapter of the streets deserted
0:23:41 > 0:23:44and there was this triffid walking up the road.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46And that stayed in my head for a long time.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49But I'm terrible, I am terrible. I can't...
0:23:49 > 0:23:53When Martin's away, I can't think about or watch anything to do
0:23:53 > 0:23:56with any kind of horror or thriller or Crimewatch or anything.
0:23:56 > 0:24:01I just have to watch Friends or The Office, the American Office.
0:24:01 > 0:24:03That's all I can do. Because anything else, I'm like,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06"well, no, that's going to happen to me. La, la!"
0:24:06 > 0:24:10- I'm awful.- So...really? - Yeah, that's horrible.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12But you don't see it, "Oh, that's a prop,
0:24:12 > 0:24:15- "there's a man crouched underneath." - No, and I'm an actor!
0:24:15 > 0:24:16So I know how it works.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20But it's the idea that, you know, "You know, it could work.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23"Somebody could splice. You could splice two plants together."
0:24:23 > 0:24:25I see it, yeah.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29- Sounds feasible.- Stranger things have happened.- Yeah.
0:24:29 > 0:24:30- I'm just humouring you now.- I know.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33I know, I realise as I'm saying it, I sound insane.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36But, yeah, that's childhood fear right there.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44And well, it's time to move onto something else now.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47- This is your guilty pleasure. - Oh, God.
0:24:50 > 0:24:52It's Eldorado! AUDIENCE LAUGHS
0:24:52 > 0:24:56'Brought to life by EastEnders co-creators Tony Holland
0:24:56 > 0:25:00'and Julia Smith, Eldorado focused on a group of expats
0:25:00 > 0:25:01'living in Spain.'
0:25:02 > 0:25:08- I loved it. I loved it.- Yeah.- I just used to watch it all the time.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11- You were probably the only one. - I think I may well have been.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14- It lasted a year.- Was it that long? - Yeah, it got one year.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17And they had 156 episodes.
0:25:17 > 0:25:21God, that's... That's 156 episodes too many, isn't it?
0:25:21 > 0:25:23- Well, not for you, though. - Not for me.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26No, I could watch that again and again.
0:25:26 > 0:25:27Ah, you're back?
0:25:29 > 0:25:31Oh, don't tell me you're angry
0:25:31 > 0:25:33because I wasn't here when you got back.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35They're having a competition to see who can wear
0:25:35 > 0:25:37the brightest, most hideous shirt.
0:25:37 > 0:25:38Pretty, was she...?
0:25:38 > 0:25:40'The show was filmed on location
0:25:40 > 0:25:43'at a £2 million purpose-built set near Malaga.'
0:25:43 > 0:25:44I bought you something.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50- What's this?- My purse. - I don't understand.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53- When I left this morning, there was 20 mil in there.- So?
0:25:53 > 0:25:54So, it's not there now.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57And we all know who's done it, don't we?
0:25:57 > 0:25:58And you think I took it?
0:25:58 > 0:26:01Well, unless it sprouted wings and flew out the window.
0:26:01 > 0:26:03Look, why don't you just ask?
0:26:03 > 0:26:05Go on, act like the wind. Act!
0:26:05 > 0:26:07- It's no good a man should have to ask a woman for money.- Oh!
0:26:07 > 0:26:09But it's all right if you just take it, is that it?
0:26:09 > 0:26:12- It's good, isn't it?- It's good. - You see, you're watching.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15- I know, I enjoyed it. - I loved it, I absolutely loved it.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18I think my mum sort of hated me for loving it.
0:26:18 > 0:26:20Because she couldn't stand it.
0:26:20 > 0:26:22Who were your favourite characters, then?
0:26:22 > 0:26:25I liked Bunny, Bunny because he talked like Bunny.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27And then there was a girl called Pilar in it
0:26:27 > 0:26:29who was this Spanish girl and who was very beautiful.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32Who was the guy who was the real kind of playboy?
0:26:32 > 0:26:33Who used to drive the sports car?
0:26:33 > 0:26:36- That was Marcus Tandy.- Him!
0:26:36 > 0:26:38I liked him because he was ruthless.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41Yeah. I wish it was still on.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46- I really wish it was still on. - Because it was so bad?- Hmm, yeah.
0:26:46 > 0:26:50- Interesting.- I do, I love it. But you know, you kind of...
0:26:50 > 0:26:51It's like, you know.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53So you think it was unfair that it was axed after a year?
0:26:53 > 0:26:55I can understand why it was axed.
0:26:55 > 0:26:57I can completely understand why they got rid of it.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00But you know, I didn't want them to because I could sit
0:27:00 > 0:27:03- and watch that all day.- Oh.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06As viewers, we lap up shows about Brits abroad.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09Like the comedy drama Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.
0:27:09 > 0:27:11From Dusseldorf to Thailand,
0:27:11 > 0:27:13we watched a bunch of builders
0:27:13 > 0:27:15embark on new adventures in the sun.
0:27:17 > 0:27:19Back in the '80s, it was
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Tenko that had us hooked.
0:27:21 > 0:27:22This drama followed
0:27:22 > 0:27:23the harrowing ordeal
0:27:23 > 0:27:25experienced by a group of expats
0:27:25 > 0:27:27living in Singapore.
0:27:27 > 0:27:29As Japanese prisoners of war
0:27:29 > 0:27:31in the 1940s.
0:27:31 > 0:27:33The series took its name
0:27:33 > 0:27:34from the Japanese word tenko,
0:27:34 > 0:27:36which means roll call.
0:27:38 > 0:27:40A lighter-hearted look at Brits
0:27:40 > 0:27:42abroad was One Foot In The Algarve.
0:27:43 > 0:27:44We watched Victor
0:27:44 > 0:27:46and Margaret Meldrew
0:27:46 > 0:27:48leave the chaos of home life behind
0:27:48 > 0:27:50and jet off to Portugal
0:27:50 > 0:27:51for a relaxing holiday,
0:27:51 > 0:27:53which of course turned out
0:27:53 > 0:27:54to be anything but.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57"I don't believe it!"
0:28:04 > 0:28:07OK, it's time to look at someone that gave you belly laughs
0:28:07 > 0:28:08when you were a teenager.
0:28:08 > 0:28:10Here is your comedy hero.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15'The brilliant Carry On Doctor
0:28:15 > 0:28:17'was the 15th in the series
0:28:17 > 0:28:19'of 31 hilarious Carry On films.'
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Hello, Kenneth.
0:28:21 > 0:28:23- It's Hattie Jacques. - Oh, look at her!
0:28:25 > 0:28:27- I thought you'd be surprised. - Matron!
0:28:27 > 0:28:30'In this movie, the glorious Hattie Jacques,
0:28:30 > 0:28:32'skilfully played the battle-axe matron
0:28:32 > 0:28:36'who harboured unrequited love for Dr Tinkle,
0:28:36 > 0:28:38'played by Kenneth Williams.'
0:28:38 > 0:28:40She is just brilliant.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43What is so brilliant about Hattie Jacques, then?
0:28:44 > 0:28:46Well, her and Joan Sims
0:28:46 > 0:28:48for me were just...
0:28:48 > 0:28:50They were naturally very funny
0:28:50 > 0:28:52and they were good actresses.
0:28:52 > 0:28:53And they kind of held their own
0:28:53 > 0:28:55in these Carry On films, they really did.
0:28:55 > 0:28:56Because they were, you know,
0:28:56 > 0:28:59up against Kenneth Williams and Sid James.
0:28:59 > 0:29:01And I'd like to have a drink with you some time.
0:29:01 > 0:29:03No, now, Kenneth. I'm in the mood.
0:29:03 > 0:29:06And don't keep calling me matron,
0:29:06 > 0:29:10naughty boy. It's Livinia.
0:29:10 > 0:29:13- I think she's misread the situation here.- Yes!
0:29:13 > 0:29:17Yes, it's weird that, isn't it? I wonder why that...
0:29:17 > 0:29:21But they were just brilliant actresses. Just funny and...
0:29:22 > 0:29:25But also, because it's all rooted in vulnerability
0:29:25 > 0:29:26and it's all rooted in truth
0:29:26 > 0:29:29and that's why they're both so good because...
0:29:30 > 0:29:33- You know, they're very natural actresses and that's...- Yeah.
0:29:33 > 0:29:35But they managed to still be heightened and big.
0:29:35 > 0:29:36You know, it's great.
0:29:36 > 0:29:39We've wasted so many years. This is our moment.
0:29:39 > 0:29:43'Hattie pulled off playing strict straight characters magnificently.'
0:29:43 > 0:29:44You don't understand.
0:29:44 > 0:29:46'So it was no surprise she was
0:29:46 > 0:29:48'cast as a no-nonsense matron
0:29:48 > 0:29:50'in five Carry On movies.'
0:29:50 > 0:29:52Just keep myself fit and strong.
0:29:52 > 0:29:55You may not realise it but I was once a weak man.
0:29:55 > 0:29:58Once a week's enough for any man.
0:29:58 > 0:29:59SHE LAUGHS
0:30:01 > 0:30:05- Brilliant. I love her.- Lovely. - I loved her in those films.
0:30:05 > 0:30:08- I really like the Carry On films. - Do you?- Yeah, I do, I do.
0:30:08 > 0:30:10Because they were a part of my growing up as well.
0:30:10 > 0:30:12And I love them and we've been watching them
0:30:12 > 0:30:14recently with the kids, actually.
0:30:14 > 0:30:16- We've been showing the kids them. - Oh, really?- They love them.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18They do, yeah. There's one of...
0:30:18 > 0:30:21There's one with Hattie Jacques, I can't remember the name of it
0:30:21 > 0:30:24but when they go to the Hotel that's not been finished...
0:30:24 > 0:30:26- IN AN ITALIAN ACCENT:- She's all like this.
0:30:26 > 0:30:29And she's like, she's hitting and doing all this.
0:30:29 > 0:30:32- And it's, she's just brilliant. - Carry On Abroad, that was.- Yeah.
0:30:32 > 0:30:36And she comes out of the kitchen with a big ladle and she's...
0:30:36 > 0:30:39Oh, I love her, I love her. And Joan Sims as well, again.
0:30:39 > 0:30:42She's, she's somebody that I remember from a very early age
0:30:42 > 0:30:44watching them both and going,
0:30:44 > 0:30:47"I'd like to do something like what they are doing."
0:30:47 > 0:30:48Hmm. Oh, really?
0:30:48 > 0:30:51Yeah, and then as I got older, it was
0:30:51 > 0:30:53Julie Walters and Victoria Wood.
0:30:53 > 0:30:54And then French and Saunders.
0:30:54 > 0:30:58You know, they were my four kind of benchmark women of who I...
0:30:58 > 0:31:01- And all really strong women, really.- Yeah.
0:31:01 > 0:31:04- Would you like to do more comedy?- Yes.
0:31:04 > 0:31:06Yeah, I'd like to try again and do some comedy.
0:31:06 > 0:31:07I haven't done any for a couple of years
0:31:07 > 0:31:09- and I'd like to maybe do some more soon.- Hmm.
0:31:09 > 0:31:12I love it. I think it's much harder to make people laugh
0:31:12 > 0:31:14than it is to make people cry, I think.
0:31:14 > 0:31:17Do you think that's why comedians or comediennes don't get
0:31:17 > 0:31:19- the praise that they deserve? - Absolutely.
0:31:19 > 0:31:21Because they make it look easy.
0:31:21 > 0:31:23But that's like with actors as well, you know.
0:31:23 > 0:31:25Brilliant actors make it look so easy.
0:31:25 > 0:31:27You know, when you see somebody, when you see an actor
0:31:27 > 0:31:31and they're really working it, it's like, well...
0:31:31 > 0:31:32"OK, calm down."
0:31:32 > 0:31:36But when somebody is being naturally effortless,
0:31:36 > 0:31:38you take that for granted a little bit.
0:31:38 > 0:31:40You just think, "Oh, they can do it, that's fine."
0:31:40 > 0:31:42And it's the same with comedians, I think.
0:31:42 > 0:31:45When you watch people doing stand-up and they're just,
0:31:45 > 0:31:48they're just knocking it out the park and just making you howl.
0:31:48 > 0:31:50Yeah.
0:31:50 > 0:31:54- It's just beautiful. But it's a...- It's an art.
0:31:54 > 0:31:55It is an art, it is an art.
0:31:55 > 0:31:59I could never do stand-up comedy because I'd, A, be terrified
0:31:59 > 0:32:02and B, I wouldn't be very good at it. I need a script.
0:32:02 > 0:32:04Um, it's terrifying, it terrifies me.
0:32:04 > 0:32:07- So I have so much respect for stand-up comedians.- Mm-hm.
0:32:07 > 0:32:11It's, I think it's an incredibly difficult thing to do.
0:32:11 > 0:32:13- Thank you.- But it is, it's fine.
0:32:13 > 0:32:15AUDIENCE LAUGHS
0:32:21 > 0:32:23Your next choice is your biggest influence
0:32:23 > 0:32:27and you couldn't have picked a more well-liked and respected actor.
0:32:30 > 0:32:34# A Fine Romance with no kisses... #
0:32:34 > 0:32:38'Dame Judi Dench is a mega-famous film star.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41'But back in the '80s, she spent more time on the small screen,
0:32:41 > 0:32:45'not just acting but singing beautifully too.'
0:32:45 > 0:32:48# ..yesterday's mashed potatoes. #
0:32:48 > 0:32:50Such a good cast.
0:32:50 > 0:32:52It didn't even have a happy ending.
0:32:52 > 0:32:54It wasn't meant to have a happy ending,
0:32:54 > 0:32:55that's why it was so romantic.
0:32:55 > 0:32:57'Across four series,
0:32:57 > 0:33:01'viewers were glued to their screens watching the awkward romance
0:33:01 > 0:33:06'and insecurities unfold between Laura, played by Judi Dench,
0:33:06 > 0:33:09'and Mike, portrayed by her real-life husband Michael Williams.'
0:33:10 > 0:33:12Erm, Barbarella.
0:33:15 > 0:33:19- Jane Fonda stepping out of that spacesuit.- Pfft!
0:33:20 > 0:33:22Well, what do you mean "Pfft"?
0:33:22 > 0:33:25That's not romance, there wasn't even anybody else there.
0:33:25 > 0:33:26There was, when I think about it.
0:33:28 > 0:33:31Do you think the fact they were married in real life
0:33:31 > 0:33:34- helped them play so well together? - Yes, yeah, I do. I think it does.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37What I loved about it was that it kind of had a little pathos
0:33:37 > 0:33:41to it and I think that's what makes television great.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43If you have comedy and sadness.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46Because, you know, you need your ups and downs in anything,
0:33:46 > 0:33:47in drama and comedy.
0:33:47 > 0:33:49So it's nice when you have those moments of real...
0:33:51 > 0:33:54..sort of sadness or just poignant within a comedy.
0:33:54 > 0:33:57I think, because it's just nice to watch
0:33:57 > 0:33:58because not everything is hilarious.
0:33:58 > 0:34:01- I mean, she's moved gracefully into film, hasn't she?- Yeah.
0:34:01 > 0:34:03Judi, and that's a big step, isn't it?
0:34:03 > 0:34:05It's such a different way of working.
0:34:05 > 0:34:09Yeah, and she just does it with such ease and grace and I love it.
0:34:12 > 0:34:15Dame Judi Dench has delighted audiences of the stage,
0:34:15 > 0:34:20small screen and big screen for over 50 years.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23After making her stage debut in 1957,
0:34:23 > 0:34:25she went on to join the Royal Shakespeare Company
0:34:25 > 0:34:30and has gone on to play every leading female Shakespeare role.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33But her talents weren't just reserved for the stage.
0:34:33 > 0:34:36She's acted on television throughout her career,
0:34:36 > 0:34:41starring in hit series such as As Time Goes By and Cranford.
0:34:41 > 0:34:44And of course, Dame Judi is a huge hit in Hollywood too,
0:34:44 > 0:34:47starring in many critically acclaimed films
0:34:47 > 0:34:50including M in James Bond.
0:34:50 > 0:34:53Her amazing talent has seen her bag herself an Oscar,
0:34:53 > 0:34:56two Golden Globes, seven Olivier Awards,
0:34:56 > 0:35:00ten BAFTAs and, let's not forget, a damehood.
0:35:00 > 0:35:04Dame Judi Dench, we salute you.
0:35:04 > 0:35:06I managed to, I got to meet her and not work with her
0:35:06 > 0:35:08but I was on the same stage as her at the Donmar.
0:35:08 > 0:35:09They did a thing called The Vote
0:35:09 > 0:35:13when the general election was going and she was in it with her daughter.
0:35:13 > 0:35:14And...
0:35:14 > 0:35:16And I was in the same dressing room as her
0:35:16 > 0:35:19and I just managed to talk to her for an hour and she was so...
0:35:19 > 0:35:23Oh, God, she was just lovely. She's a wonderful, wonderful woman.
0:35:23 > 0:35:25And not only is she a brilliant actress
0:35:25 > 0:35:27and one of our very, very best.
0:35:27 > 0:35:29But she's a decent, lovely woman as well.
0:35:29 > 0:35:33That makes me so happy because I always like it
0:35:33 > 0:35:35- when people who are brilliant are nice.- Yes.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38It just makes you go, "Oh, thank God for that. I can still like them."
0:35:38 > 0:35:42It makes such a difference. She's very...normal.
0:35:42 > 0:35:46She's a normal actress. And it's just lovely. There's...
0:35:46 > 0:35:49Because there are some actors that are quite fussy
0:35:49 > 0:35:51and quite hysterical and quite chaotic.
0:35:52 > 0:35:55- But she's none of those things and she's one of our best.- Yes.
0:35:55 > 0:35:57And the fact that she's one of our best
0:35:57 > 0:36:01- and she's still very down-to-earth just makes me very happy.- Yeah.
0:36:01 > 0:36:04And I'm glad she's around and I'm glad she's British
0:36:04 > 0:36:06and one of ours, I really am.
0:36:06 > 0:36:07She's a joy.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16I wanted to bring it now to your career. How did it all come about?
0:36:16 > 0:36:20You know, those early days and then sort of going to university.
0:36:20 > 0:36:22- Well, no, I went to drama school. - You went to drama school?
0:36:22 > 0:36:25And it was a little one up in Hitchin that nobody knew about
0:36:25 > 0:36:28and it was called the Hertfordshire Theatre School.
0:36:28 > 0:36:29So you were the only one there?
0:36:29 > 0:36:32- Pretty much, there were eight people in my year.- No? Really?
0:36:32 > 0:36:33Eight or nine people in my year, yeah.
0:36:33 > 0:36:36There was one boy, one boy and the rest were girls.
0:36:36 > 0:36:39I'd left Laine Theatre Arts where I trained as a dancer
0:36:39 > 0:36:43and I'd left there in June.
0:36:43 > 0:36:44So, over the summer holidays,
0:36:44 > 0:36:47I didn't get a chance to audition for other drama schools.
0:36:47 > 0:36:50So this was the only one that was accepting people.
0:36:50 > 0:36:52So, I got in and went there.
0:36:52 > 0:36:56Erm, and I met this wonderful man called John Gardiner who was
0:36:56 > 0:37:00the artistic director of the school. And he was...
0:37:00 > 0:37:02He was an amazing mentor and teacher.
0:37:02 > 0:37:06He was just this fantastic man, he passed away a few years ago.
0:37:06 > 0:37:08But he just taught me so much about acting
0:37:08 > 0:37:15and how important it is to be a nice person with it, you know.
0:37:15 > 0:37:17Don't start believing your own hype
0:37:17 > 0:37:19and don't sort of get too big for your boots
0:37:19 > 0:37:22and just stay grounded as well as, you know, honing your craft.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25And so, he taught me a lot about
0:37:25 > 0:37:29not only the technical side of acting but just also
0:37:29 > 0:37:32just being a decent person because that's part of being a good actor.
0:37:32 > 0:37:35And a performer, you know? You want to be nice.
0:37:35 > 0:37:37And...
0:37:37 > 0:37:40he taught me that. And so, I'm glad I went there.
0:37:40 > 0:37:44It's shut down now, it's completely gone, it's not there any more.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47So, while I was there, I got an audition for The Bill.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50One of my many, many appearances in The Bill.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53And I got the job and then I got an agent from there
0:37:53 > 0:37:55and it just sort of went from there, really.
0:37:55 > 0:37:57- So, you like comedy?- I do.
0:37:57 > 0:38:00- Sitcom, could you imagine you and your husband Martin?- Yeah.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02- Together in something? Really?- Yeah.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06I mean, we never rule out not doing anything,
0:38:06 > 0:38:08we'd do something else together.
0:38:08 > 0:38:10- But I think because we're doing Sherlock at the moment...- Yes.
0:38:10 > 0:38:12We don't want to be in everybody's
0:38:12 > 0:38:13front rooms all the time, the two of us.
0:38:13 > 0:38:16People will go, "Oh, it's them again. That's all we need."
0:38:16 > 0:38:17Of your future?
0:38:17 > 0:38:19Since Amanda and Martin's
0:38:19 > 0:38:21characters first met in 2014,
0:38:21 > 0:38:23their story has been central to the
0:38:23 > 0:38:25BBC's smart, sassy Sherlock reboot.
0:38:25 > 0:38:27Together, they provided one of
0:38:27 > 0:38:29the third series' most memorable
0:38:29 > 0:38:31and emotional scenes as Dr Watson
0:38:31 > 0:38:33is reconciled with his wife
0:38:33 > 0:38:35after learning about her secret past.
0:38:35 > 0:38:37SHE SOBS
0:38:37 > 0:38:39You don't even know my name.
0:38:40 > 0:38:44- Is Mary Watson good enough for you? - Yes.
0:38:44 > 0:38:46- Oh, my God, yes. - Well, it's good enough for me too.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52- It is nice working with your other half.- Yeah.
0:38:52 > 0:38:56Because also, you do your job and then you go home
0:38:56 > 0:38:59and you kind of dissect the day and it's nice.
0:38:59 > 0:39:01Because you've both been at work together
0:39:01 > 0:39:02and you both experienced it.
0:39:02 > 0:39:04Because Sherlock's not the only time
0:39:04 > 0:39:06- you've worked with each other. - I've done quite a lot
0:39:06 > 0:39:07of stuff with Martin.
0:39:07 > 0:39:09I've played his wife a few times
0:39:09 > 0:39:11and we met on a job.
0:39:11 > 0:39:13Um, yeah, we've done...
0:39:13 > 0:39:16But Sherlock is the biggest thing we've done together.
0:39:16 > 0:39:18So, it's the longest thing we've done together.
0:39:18 > 0:39:20And what job did you meet on?
0:39:20 > 0:39:24It was a Channel 4 drama called Men Only,
0:39:24 > 0:39:27which was quite a controversial two-part drama.
0:39:27 > 0:39:32Erm, and I met him on that and I met him on a make-up bus
0:39:32 > 0:39:35and I'd been moaning to the make-up artist,
0:39:35 > 0:39:37saying, "I'm never going to have a boyfriend.
0:39:37 > 0:39:40"I'm going to end up single for the rest of my life."
0:39:40 > 0:39:42And she was saying, "Well, there's an actor on here
0:39:42 > 0:39:43"that's saying the same thing.
0:39:43 > 0:39:46"He said he just wants to meet a decent woman."
0:39:46 > 0:39:48And she said, "Oh, he's coming onto the make-up bus now."
0:39:48 > 0:39:51He came on and I looked at him and he looked at me and we kind of
0:39:51 > 0:39:54had this thunderbolt and I'd never experienced that before.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56And he was like, "Hello." And I was like, "Hello."
0:39:56 > 0:39:59And then the next day, we were still flirting with each other.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01And then we went out for a drink that night
0:40:01 > 0:40:03and about two months later, I moved in with him.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05And we've been together for 16 years this year.
0:40:05 > 0:40:07- That's good going.- Yeah.
0:40:07 > 0:40:09- AUDIENCE APPLAUDS - Ah! So, yeah.
0:40:10 > 0:40:12But it was one of those things where I thought,
0:40:12 > 0:40:16- "Oh, you're the one that I'm going to spend the rest of my life with. Excellent."- Really?
0:40:16 > 0:40:19It really did feel like that and he said the same. He said, "Oh, well I've known..."
0:40:19 > 0:40:22His words were, "I've stopped looking."
0:40:22 > 0:40:24And it was really, it was lovely.
0:40:24 > 0:40:27But you know, he still makes me laugh more than anyone else
0:40:27 > 0:40:30in the world and he's still my best friend.
0:40:30 > 0:40:33- Ah.- Yeah. It's hard, relationships are hard.- You've got two children?
0:40:33 > 0:40:34Two children.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36But you know, being a mum and being an actor,
0:40:36 > 0:40:39I want to do both and I want to do both well and sometimes
0:40:39 > 0:40:43you have to sacrifice one for a bit and the other for a bit.
0:40:43 > 0:40:45How difficult is...?
0:40:45 > 0:40:48It's all right, it's worked out, touch wood.
0:40:48 > 0:40:49It's worked out OK, you know?
0:40:49 > 0:40:52It takes me away sometimes, which I don't like but...
0:40:53 > 0:40:56When I'm not there, Martin's there and vice versa.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59Is that by sheer fluke, though? I mean...
0:40:59 > 0:41:03We kind of engineer it, like, so we can do that.
0:41:03 > 0:41:08- But, yeah, generally it's quite fluky.- Mm-hm.- Yeah.
0:41:08 > 0:41:12So now I'm being a full-time mummy until I start Sherlock again. So...
0:41:13 > 0:41:15I wouldn't want it any other way.
0:41:15 > 0:41:19- I love it, I love my job and I love being a mum.- Yeah.- It's great.
0:41:24 > 0:41:28So, what about the TV that you enjoy watching now?
0:41:28 > 0:41:31I love The Apprentice. We're big fans of The Apprentice in our house.
0:41:31 > 0:41:32We watch that a lot.
0:41:32 > 0:41:36- And...good dramas.- Yeah. - I love good comedies.
0:41:36 > 0:41:37Erm...
0:41:38 > 0:41:40Yeah, I just like...
0:41:40 > 0:41:44I like quality stuff with really good actors in
0:41:44 > 0:41:45and really good comedians.
0:41:45 > 0:41:47Well, we make some good stuff.
0:41:47 > 0:41:49Oh, we do, we do. We have some good drama and good comedy.
0:41:49 > 0:41:50And some great drama.
0:41:50 > 0:41:52We should be very proud of what we push out here,
0:41:52 > 0:41:55- especially on the Beeb.- I think we're really good. Yet, I think so.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58The Beeb's doing some fantastic stuff at the moment. It's great.
0:41:58 > 0:42:01Well, we look forward to all the fantastic stuff
0:42:01 > 0:42:03you have ahead of you.
0:42:03 > 0:42:05In the future, you've been a wonderful guest.
0:42:05 > 0:42:07- Thank you so much for being here. - Thanks for having me.
0:42:07 > 0:42:10So, at this point, my guest gets to choose a theme tune for us
0:42:10 > 0:42:12- to play out on.- Yay!
0:42:12 > 0:42:14- Have you had a little think about this?- Yeah. Yeah.
0:42:14 > 0:42:16- Oh, go on.- Can I say?- Yeah.
0:42:16 > 0:42:18- Do you want a drumroll?- Go on, then.
0:42:20 > 0:42:24- The Wombles. - AUDIENCE CHEERS
0:42:24 > 0:42:26We're going out on The Wombles?
0:42:26 > 0:42:29Just the... THEY HUM THE WOMBLES THEME TUNE
0:42:29 > 0:42:30# Wombling free! #
0:42:30 > 0:42:33- Brilliant, it's a brilliant tune. - It just takes you back?
0:42:33 > 0:42:35Yeah, and also at the end, I remember the credits,
0:42:35 > 0:42:38- he'd just be picking stuff up.- Hmm. - And I loved him, we loved him.
0:42:38 > 0:42:41- We loved you.- Oh.- Thank you so much for being on the show.- Thank you.
0:42:41 > 0:42:43Thank you, Amanda.
0:42:43 > 0:42:46- Oh, go on, two.- Yeah! - Oh! Make it three. Mwah!
0:42:46 > 0:42:48SHE LAUGHS So, my thanks to Amanda
0:42:48 > 0:42:50and my thanks to you for watching The TV That Made Me.
0:42:50 > 0:42:52We'll see you next time. Bye-bye.
0:42:53 > 0:42:55THE WOMBLES THEME TUNE PLAYS
0:42:55 > 0:42:59- BOTH:- # Underground, overground wombling free
0:42:59 > 0:43:02# The Wombles of Wimbledon Common are we
0:43:02 > 0:43:06# Making good use of the things that we find
0:43:06 > 0:43:10# Things that the everyday folks leave behind
0:43:10 > 0:43:13# Uncle Bulgaria...
0:43:13 > 0:43:16- SONG CONTINUES:- # He can remember the days
0:43:16 > 0:43:19# When he wasn't behind the times
0:43:19 > 0:43:21# With his map of the world
0:43:21 > 0:43:28# Pick up the papers and take 'em to Tobermory. #