SMTV Live
Encyclopedia
SMTV Live also written SM:TV Live and in early promotional material SMTV://live, was a British
Saturday morning children's television programme, first broadcast on ITV
on 29 August 1998 and last broadcast on 27 December 2003.
On the surface, the programme did not seem to stray away from the format of other Saturday morning output, featuring an audience of children, competitions and cartoons, though it constantly won in ratings battles with the BBC
's Live & Kicking
and became ITV's most successful children's programme since Tiswas
. SMTV's success has been attributed in equal parts to Ant and Dec's original presenting partnership with Cat Deeley
, its use of thinly veiled comedic innuendo
aimed at older viewers, and its broadcast of the Japanese cartoon series Pokémon
. At the height of its popularity, SMTV Live regularly attracted 2.5 million viewers. Ant & Dec's company Gallowgate currently owns the rights to the show.
Duck was done by having Dec sitting on a stool in a duck costume, with fake duck legs on a haystack so it would look like Duck was short and sitting on the haystack.
, Cat the Dog was dressed as a goofy Brummie teenager with huge false teeth & big wild hair and spoke with a Birmingham accent (it's ever so different from Bir-ming-ham!).
A recurring joke involved Cat mentioning that she had measured herself again and nothing was growing (implying that she was measuring her breasts). Towards the end of the series, she said that they were growing and she would soon be able to fit into a larger shoe size.
of the American sitcom Friends
. Many recurring themes and plot lines appeared in Chums, such as the romance between Dec and Cat and their attempts at kissing being continuously interrupted. Ant and Dec's final episode saw Dec pulling out of marrying Cat, but leaving her with an uninterrupted kiss before leaving with Ant to travel the world. The series ended shortly afterwards with a final farewell episode airing during the final show, seeing the trio returning to a deserted flat.
Episodes nearly always ended with the "freeze-frame", where everyone would freeze exactly where they were (a homage to the closing sequences of Police Squad). The celebrity guests present always took part in Chums, usually appearing as new flatmates or visitors. Amongst the best remembered episodes were their parodies of Big Brother
(Big Idiot and Big Bother) and Band Aid
(Ant Aid).
Episodes usually opened with either a joke based on the line ... is filmed in front of a live studio audience such as Chums is filmed in front of a bribed/jive/hive studio audience or a spoof sponsor plug. Chums later spawned a VHS compilation and weekday repeats as part of CITV
.
, presented by 'Neil Pumpcannon' (Ant). Similar to Fartbeat above, the gags were all based around passing wind. The real Neil Buchanan
appeared in the final sketch.
, and of science fiction as a whole, featuirng Dec as a Captain Kirk-type captain of a spaceship, Cat as an Uhura
-esque communications officer (in a silvery wig), and Ant as a bizarre character that, upon pressing his badge, could transform from 'Interior Designer Mode' to 'Warrior Mode' and back (the only difference being in 'Warrior Mode', he wore a Geordi La Forge
-type visor, though on many occasions he would actually forget to put the visor on when in Warrior Mode, and had to be reminded by someone else to do so).
An infamous gag repeated every week involved one of the characters (usually a female celebrity guest on the show) claiming to draw "a pair of orbits around twin planets" (or something similar) upon a transparent gridscreen, although it was obvious they were drawing breasts aligned to their body. Brian Dowling and Tess Daly later took part in a revised series of sketches entitled SMTV 2099: The Next Generation.
, with the humour based on dribbling water over the characters.
programming, a studio audience of the day's guests with children sitting by them were given the chance to ask questions to Captain Justice (Ant in a superhero
costume), but Dec would rephrase the question before the children had a chance to speak. The Captain would, in a booming echoing voice, give an explanation of how he'd do a superhero-esque revenge in answer to the problems, such as dealing with a store by unleashing the Horsemen of the Apocalypse to lay waste to it and leaving horse manure everywhere. Then, presenter Dec would say "or..." and, in a small voice, Captain Justice would give a more realistic answer, such as simply asking for their money back.
The sketch often had homoerotic
overtones, playing up to the Captain's attempts to strike up a romance with Dec by trying to impress him or asking him out on date between the two male presenters. When Dec gave a confused reply, the Captain would exit through dry ice after saying "Sorry, misread the signs!". Dec would sometimes add to the joke by saying "There goes Captain Justice, always disappears with a puff!".
, wearing long black wigs while affecting Irish accents. There was little story in each sketch with the trio just asserting how beautiful they were. Often, there was a man with a brown paper bag over his head, labeled 'Jim'. He was not considered beautiful enough by the three "female" members of the group to show his face - a reference to the fact that the real Corrs' brother, Jim, is usually pushed to the background in the videos, and very rarely sings.
The last sketch received mention as being 13th in Channel 4
's Best TV Moments of 2001. While the presenters were performing, the real Corrs appeared, reprimanding them for being so shallow and saying that they were not all about beauty. When Ant, Dec and Cat left the stage, deflated, the three girls turned to camera, and bragged about how beautiful they were. "Jim" then took the paper bag off his head to reveal the real Jim Corr, only to be told to put it back on because he wasn't beautiful enough.
was one of a number of featured cartoons regularly broadcast during SMTV Live.
This gave inspiration to the show's writers, who dressed Ant and Dec up as Pokémon characters and had them 'battle' each other (in the traditional sense of the word rather than Pokémon's connotations) in a weekly segment called "Pokéfights".
Dec frequently appeared as either Ash
or Misty
and Ant usually played 'G-G-G-Gary' (and one time 'J-J-J-Jessie') with Cat once making a guest appearance as Jessie from Team Rocket. As opposed to being separate beings, the cast's 'pokémon' were more like a 'move' they would do upon another. For example, 'Embarrassmon' involved one dueller telling a secret about the other, who would turn red and their health would diminish; or Ant unleashing HeWhoSmeltItDealtIt - "HeWhoSmeltItDealtIt is an Air Pokémon, and the first person to smell its pungent aroma shall be blamed for its origins!".
The show once had Ant attack as Britney Spears
(dressing up in a schoolgirl outfit over his Gary costume) and Dec retaliating as Christina Aguilera
, ending the sketch by making up "thus showing how far removed from reality Pokémon is". As a recurring gag, whenever Gary hit Misty with a particularly 'bruising' attack, Misty would shout "I'll never have kids now!".
Another common Pokémon-based sketch was the PokéRap.Ant and Dec would dress up as rappers and perform a rap featuring the names of various Pokémon. They did this in knitted Pokémon jumpers, with Pikachu and their name on. This developed into a weekly letters' segment whereby viewers would send in their own pokeraps (and later, home videos) followed by the rap itself (with seemingly little rehearsal).
This led on to later sketches featuring a Pokémon-themed activity, which featured that week's guests in their own Pokémon wear, such as "Miss Poké-World". Later in the series, the sketches began with Dec refusing to do any more PokéRaps, because Ant and Cat were fed up with them and always teased him about them, and instead concentrate on another task, such as working in a mock fast food restaurant. It wasn't long before the urge to perform the rap got the better of him, egged on by further taunts from Ant and Cat, and he eventually let himself go, trashing the set, before launching into the rap.
The last sketch featured Ant ranting to Dec and begging him to stop. Dec brushed it off, and prepared to start but was hit by a large "10-ton weight", leading to celebrations in the studio.
Later sketches revolved around a badly-selling book by Dec called "The Secret of My Success". The last sketch on the last ever SMTV 'explained' how Ant & Dec came to be a double-act, and showed Dec and Cat auditioning for Pop Idol
, hosted by Ant and Dick (Richard Whiteley
), who Dec replaced after an unfortunate 'accident' during the sketch.
Ant also occasionally appeared as a schoolboy in these sketches, where he was an overweight boy who ate huge amounts of food and was referred to as Gi-Ant. This section also introduced the character of 'Cat the Dog' which was Cat as a schoolgirl with very messy hair, huge teeth and a strong Birmingham accent. Cat the Dog later appeared in her own run of sketches, The Further Adventures of Cat the Dog.
and American soap operas, which mainly parodied melodrama
. James Redmond was in this sketch during his brief tenure as a presenter. Ironically, in 2003, he landed the role of "Abs" Denham on the real Casualty.
The series ended on Cat Deeley's last show as presenter with the death of Deeley's character.
and Emmerdale
revolving around the Dingleberry family and their American cousin Eminem. A Christmas special was advertised for the final episode but never aired.
with Ant and Dec as Anty and Decky respectively. Cat played 'Prozac the Giggle-Fairy', and a pre-recorded narrator. This recurring sketch, as with many in the series, incorporated a degree of more adult humour - in this case, Anty and Decky's love of the 'Dizzy Water' (alcohol) found at 'The Grown-Ups Shed' was often referenced.
with the long-running BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses
.
and using the power of their guitars to wipe out ghosts and ghouls in the style of Ghostbusters
.
quiz where the winner won a holiday to Japan
to go to the Pokémon Center shop and receive a Mew for his Pokémon game.
" by the Carpenters. While not strictly a sketch, there were several moments of humour and sketch-type gags in its run based around the mail they received, and sometimes the absence of it (which often was revealed to be a hoax).
One segment (during an April 1 edition) ended earlier than usual when Dec (appearing slightly ill) collapsed onto the floor unconscious during the Postman dance; after a few seconds, the programme immediately went into the second half of a Pokémon episode. The incident was later revealed to be an April Fool's joke.
Another famous incident occurred when Ant was asked to read out a rather crude anecdote, and started laughing uncontrollably, causing Dec to fall into hysterics as well. This clip has since been replayed numerous times since, due to it being considered an 'outtake'.
Yet another Postbag incident occurred during the run of the first few Pokemon episodes, when a letter was received from a viewer telling the presenters it was pronounced 'Po-KAY-mon' and asking them to pronounce it right. However when the second half of Pokemon was played (the episode being "Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village") and one of the show's characters pronounced it in the same way the presenters had been for the past few weeks the cartoon cut back to the studio where Dec demanded to see the cartoon clip again, and upon seeing and hearing it being pronounced 'Po-ke-mon' proceeded to have a small (mock) rant to camera about the letter and the pronouncement while ripping the letter up. After this the second half of the episode was played. It is unknown whether this incident had been planned beforehand to make a point or not.
Later Postbag segments ended with studio performances of viewers' songs about the show.
On one of the occasions when she was sawed in half, she became the first British celebrity to take part in an illusion called Clearly Impossible
, where she was sawed in half inside a completely clear-sided box. On another occasion, after she had been sawed in half and her halves separated, they were both "stolen" by Ant and Dec, and wheeled off stage in opposite directions.
. The example the presenters always gave to explain the game was 'Wonkey Donkey' (a small toy donkey
with one leg missing). Every week, something similar was shown to the viewers who rang in to guess what it was - the golden rule was it had to rhyme. If none of the callers answered correctly, the competition would roll over to next week. After three weeks, it would be abandoned for a new one. This only happened once in the show's history, when after three weeks fifteen callers had failed to get "Twee Bee".
Dec found it very frustrating when the callers could not get the answer right, and would sometimes throw the toy and the stand it was placed on in (mock) anger, or ranting into the camera, which became a staple occurrence and sparked his catchphrase for the game, "It's Gotta Rhyme!". The hosts' continued frustration led to them filming a pre-recorded round of the game, with an answer of "Pat Cat" (the clue being host Cat Deeley rubbing her arms over her back). The fictional contestant made a number of unrelated guesses, including constantly repeating "Feely Deeley" even when informed it was incorrect numerous times.
The game was revived during the final months of the programme's run.
Another version of the game - "Partners in Rhyme" - was aired as part of "Britain's Got More Talent" where Ant and Dec would play against each other to guess as many picture clues as they could in one minute. The game was again revived as "Rotten Cotten", named after Fearne Cotton
on Celebrity Juice
, where host Keith Lemon
had Ant and Dec as contestants mocking the failures of the children callers from SMTV. The game dealt with rhyming celebrity names rather than animals.
film Platoon
, the aim of the game was for a caller to direct a blindfolded celebrity to use a gun to 'splat' small model hot air balloon
s, filled with paint. For this game, Ant and Dec always dressed up as WWI
fighter plane pilots, complete with fake moustaches and pipes and spoke with old-fashioned accents.
A running gag involved Ant and Dec not realising that Cat's character ('Private Deeley') was a woman in drag. After SM:TV started to air episodes of Men in Black: The Series
, the game was given a cosmetic makeover, replacing the hot air balloons with aliens and renaming it "Men in Splat".
Another recurring theme in the game was that the answer to the multiple-choice question for entry to the game was always B. Answers to the questions often matched this theme too, by starting with the letter B.
or video game.
At the end of the ten questions, the child would have the chance to gamble the prizes they had won for the 'star prize', which was usually a DVD player or games console. They then asked Ant a further question, called the "Killer Question", with an accompanying dramatic sound effect. If Ant answered incorrectly, the child and audience would chant, "you're thick, you're thick, you're thick, you're thick you are, you're thick, you're thick!" (to the tune of the opening lines of "Ole!" by The Bouncing Souls
) and so on, and put a dunce cap
on Ant's head. If, however, Ant answered the question correctly, the child would lose all their prizes, and Ant would be crowned "King of Common Knowledge", to the tune of Rockin' All Over The World, revelling in taunting the child, as he was crowned.
In later episodes, the child would get a 'consolation prize' of a handkerchief reading "I lost on Challenge Ant". Although most went forward with the Killer Question, only three challengers decided to go home with the prizes they had already won. Celebrity games were also played, and on Ant's birthday, Ant and Dec played together against their then girlfriends, Lisa Armstrong
(who Ant married in 2006) and Clare Buckfield
. The game was featured in the short-lived primetime show Slap Bang with Ant & Dec
, (the forerunner to Saturday Night Takeaway
) only this time played by elderly contestants.
A version involving Brian Dowling entitled Brian's Brain was introduced following Ant and Dec's departure.
In a memorable episode on Cat's last day, Cilla Black entered the studio at the part where Brian was supposed to enter, and announced that today they would be testing Cat's brain. Another memorable episode featured Brian's sisters as the contenders, while a third featured the late Jade Goody
.
Possibly the most famous question was, "What do baby cows drink?" to which Brian answered "Milk", although the official answer was water. This question was repeated on the one-off edition of 15 to Fun.
episodes aired regularly during SMTV Live. As a recurring joke, Dec had often proclaimed his love for Sabrina and would regularly read a dreadful poem he'd written just for her, often to the dismay of everyone in the studio. In the early days, Ant would attempt to block this by claiming that Sabrina's lawyers had banned Dec from reading out the poem on the air.
Later sketches saw Dec write a story in which he would be the hero that saved Sabrina (played by a female guest from that week's show) from impending doom, but the 'cast' would always ruin it for him, for example, Cat and Ant would mishear words in his story (e.g. When he said the word eastward, a cowboy would come out, with Cat claiming she thought he said Eastwood). Dec also appeared to not be aware that Sabrina was a fictional show, which was demonstrated when Jenna Leigh Green
was a guest when Dec treated her with contempt and continually called her 'Libby' despite her protestations that she was simply an actress.
When interviewing Sabrina actress Melissa Joan Hart
for the programme, the gag was again employed. Dec asked Hart to be his 'lass'. Apparently not understanding him, she said yes. After this, Dec expressed his intention to share his knowledge and experience, giving rise to the Dec Says sketches.
The segment was later replaced by Dirrty Tricks, where Stephen would try to catch children out with his card tricks to possibly win a prize or get covered in beans or mushy peas.
(an abbreviation of CountDown United Kingdom) was broadcast, with the same presenters as SMTV Live. This was also presented live, and featured bands in the UK Singles Chart
, music videos, and interview
s with famous music stars. Ant & Dec originally presented the show with Cat from 1998 to 2001 and Cat continued to present until 2005. CD:UK was axed in April 2006 due to budget cuts and financial difficulties.
At one point, the Gold episodes were broadcast on Saturday afternoons because of morning coverage of the 2003 Rugby World Cup
.
A second release from Universal Pictures, The Best of SMTV Live So Far, went on sale in 2001, featuring specially-produced links recorded shortly before Ant & Dec's departure and an extended compilation of sketches and segments.
producer. He was replaced later in the year by Steve Pinhay and Phil Mount, and then shortly afterwards by David Staite.
In September 1999, Ben Ward and Gez Foster, two writers from Men In Trousers were brought in from rival BBC
show, Live and Kicking
, and turned round SMTV Live in the ratings with the introduction of features like 'Chums'. Coupled with the introduction of new presenters on Live & Kicking, SMTV soon overtook them in the ratings. These two writers were also members of The Cheese Shop
comedy group.
Multi award-winning writer Dean Wilkinson was with the show throughout most of its run with Blaze Television's director of programmes Conor McAnally as its executive producer.
Ant & Dec
won the Royal Television Society
award for best presenter in 2001 for their work on the programme while Cat Deeley
won the BAFTA for best children's presenter in the same year.
In 2001, it finished 27th place in a Channel 4
poll for the 100 Greatest Kids' TV Shows.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Saturday morning children's television programme, first broadcast on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
on 29 August 1998 and last broadcast on 27 December 2003.
On the surface, the programme did not seem to stray away from the format of other Saturday morning output, featuring an audience of children, competitions and cartoons, though it constantly won in ratings battles with the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking was a BBC Saturday morning children's magazine programme, running from 1993 to 2001. The fourth in a succession of Saturday morning shows, it was the replacement for Going Live!, and took many of its features from it, such as phone-ins, games, comedy, competitions and the showing of...
and became ITV's most successful children's programme since Tiswas
Tiswas
Tiswas was a Saturday morning children's British television series which ran from 5 January 1974 to 3 April 1982 and was produced for the ITV network by ATV Network Limited....
. SMTV's success has been attributed in equal parts to Ant and Dec's original presenting partnership with Cat Deeley
Cat Deeley
Catherine Elizabeth "Cat" Deeley is an English television presenter and model. Since 2006, Deeley has also been the host of So You Think You Can Dance in the United States, for which she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition...
, its use of thinly veiled comedic innuendo
Innuendo
An innuendo is a baseless invention of thoughts or ideas. It can also be a remark or question, typically disparaging , that works obliquely by allusion...
aimed at older viewers, and its broadcast of the Japanese cartoon series Pokémon
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
. At the height of its popularity, SMTV Live regularly attracted 2.5 million viewers. Ant & Dec's company Gallowgate currently owns the rights to the show.
Sketches
SMTV Live featured many sketches, many of which parodying popular TV shows of the time, some of which became staple to SMTV itself.Ant and Duck
A short-lived sketch with "Farmer Ant" presenting a pseudo-preschool show teaching children about the countryside and Dec as the aggressively misanthropic Duck. The sketch would feature a song where Dec would twist the lyrics to lambast the countryside and eventually, be forced by Ant into line with singing threats of calling the Chinese takeaway. Much of the humour came from Dec's attempts to twist the lessons about the countryside; for example, when Ant was talking about (in examples of people living in the country) the aristocrat who owned an estate, Dec replied Big Tony runs the estate! (meaning a council estate).Duck was done by having Dec sitting on a stool in a duck costume, with fake duck legs on a haystack so it would look like Duck was short and sitting on the haystack.
The Further Adventures of Cat the Dog
Cat the Dog first appeared in the Dec Says/The Secret of My Success run of sketches (see below) before starring in her own series of skits upon Ant and Dec's departure. Each episode would begin & end with Cat writing in her diary. Joined by her bestest ever ever friend pop star Louise RedknappLouise Redknapp
Louise Elizabeth Redknapp is an English singer and media personality. She was a member of the girl group Eternal from 1992 to 1995, before becoming a solo singer . She has presented several television shows and served as a judge on the UK version of So You Think You Can Dance...
, Cat the Dog was dressed as a goofy Brummie teenager with huge false teeth & big wild hair and spoke with a Birmingham accent (it's ever so different from Bir-ming-ham!).
A recurring joke involved Cat mentioning that she had measured herself again and nothing was growing (implying that she was measuring her breasts). Towards the end of the series, she said that they were growing and she would soon be able to fit into a larger shoe size.
Chums
A parodyParody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of the American sitcom Friends
Friends
Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
. Many recurring themes and plot lines appeared in Chums, such as the romance between Dec and Cat and their attempts at kissing being continuously interrupted. Ant and Dec's final episode saw Dec pulling out of marrying Cat, but leaving her with an uninterrupted kiss before leaving with Ant to travel the world. The series ended shortly afterwards with a final farewell episode airing during the final show, seeing the trio returning to a deserted flat.
Episodes nearly always ended with the "freeze-frame", where everyone would freeze exactly where they were (a homage to the closing sequences of Police Squad). The celebrity guests present always took part in Chums, usually appearing as new flatmates or visitors. Amongst the best remembered episodes were their parodies of Big Brother
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
(Big Idiot and Big Bother) and Band Aid
Band Aid (band)
Band Aid was a charity supergroup featuring British and Irish musicians and recording artists. It was founded in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia by releasing the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" for the Christmas market that year. The single...
(Ant Aid).
Episodes usually opened with either a joke based on the line ... is filmed in front of a live studio audience such as Chums is filmed in front of a bribed/jive/hive studio audience or a spoof sponsor plug. Chums later spawned a VHS compilation and weekday repeats as part of CITV
CITV
CITV is a British television channel from ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive, as well as commissions and acquisitions. CITV itself is the programming block on the main ITV Network .The CITV channel broadcasts from 06:00 to 18:00...
.
Fartbeat
A parody of Heartbeat, featuring very little plot and mostly revolving around breaking wind.F'art Attack
A parody of Art AttackArt Attack
Art Attack is a British children's television series revolving around art. The original series was one of ITV's longest running programmes, running from 1990 to 2007, and was presented throughout by Neil Buchanan. The brand new series launched on Disney Junior on June 6 2011 and is presented by...
, presented by 'Neil Pumpcannon' (Ant). Similar to Fartbeat above, the gags were all based around passing wind. The real Neil Buchanan
Neil Buchanan
Neil Buchanan is an English television presenter best known for his work on the CITV programme Art Attack, a television programme that he presented during its run from 1990 to 2007...
appeared in the final sketch.
SMTV 2099
A parody of Star TrekStar Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
, and of science fiction as a whole, featuirng Dec as a Captain Kirk-type captain of a spaceship, Cat as an Uhura
Uhura
Nyota Uhura is a character in Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series, the first six Star Trek films, and the 2009 film Star Trek...
-esque communications officer (in a silvery wig), and Ant as a bizarre character that, upon pressing his badge, could transform from 'Interior Designer Mode' to 'Warrior Mode' and back (the only difference being in 'Warrior Mode', he wore a Geordi La Forge
Geordi La Forge
Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge is a regular character in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and its feature films, played by LeVar Burton...
-type visor, though on many occasions he would actually forget to put the visor on when in Warrior Mode, and had to be reminded by someone else to do so).
An infamous gag repeated every week involved one of the characters (usually a female celebrity guest on the show) claiming to draw "a pair of orbits around twin planets" (or something similar) upon a transparent gridscreen, although it was obvious they were drawing breasts aligned to their body. Brian Dowling and Tess Daly later took part in a revised series of sketches entitled SMTV 2099: The Next Generation.
The Vicar of Dribbley
A parody of The Vicar of DibleyThe Vicar of Dibley
The Vicar of Dibley is a British sitcom created by Richard Curtis and written for its lead actress, Dawn French, by Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer, with contributions from Kit Hesketh-Harvey. It aired from 1994 to 2007...
, with the humour based on dribbling water over the characters.
Captain Justice
Based on consumer affairsConsumer protection
Consumer protection laws designed to ensure fair trade competition and the free flow of truthful information in the marketplace. The laws are designed to prevent businesses that engage in fraud or specified unfair practices from gaining an advantage over competitors and may provide additional...
programming, a studio audience of the day's guests with children sitting by them were given the chance to ask questions to Captain Justice (Ant in a superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
costume), but Dec would rephrase the question before the children had a chance to speak. The Captain would, in a booming echoing voice, give an explanation of how he'd do a superhero-esque revenge in answer to the problems, such as dealing with a store by unleashing the Horsemen of the Apocalypse to lay waste to it and leaving horse manure everywhere. Then, presenter Dec would say "or..." and, in a small voice, Captain Justice would give a more realistic answer, such as simply asking for their money back.
The sketch often had homoerotic
Homoeroticism
Homoeroticism refers to the erotic attraction between members of the same sex, either male–male or female–female , most especially as it is depicted or manifested in the visual arts and literature. It can also be found in performative forms; from theatre to the theatricality of uniformed movements...
overtones, playing up to the Captain's attempts to strike up a romance with Dec by trying to impress him or asking him out on date between the two male presenters. When Dec gave a confused reply, the Captain would exit through dry ice after saying "Sorry, misread the signs!". Dec would sometimes add to the joke by saying "There goes Captain Justice, always disappears with a puff!".
The Beautiful Corrs
Ant, Dec and Cat were dressed up as the female members of the band The CorrsThe Corrs
The Corrs are an Irish band which combine pop rock with traditional Celtic folk music. The brother and sisters are from Dundalk, Ireland. The group consists of the Corr siblings: Andrea ; Sharon ; Caroline ; and Jim .The Corrs came to international prominence with their performance at the...
, wearing long black wigs while affecting Irish accents. There was little story in each sketch with the trio just asserting how beautiful they were. Often, there was a man with a brown paper bag over his head, labeled 'Jim'. He was not considered beautiful enough by the three "female" members of the group to show his face - a reference to the fact that the real Corrs' brother, Jim, is usually pushed to the background in the videos, and very rarely sings.
The last sketch received mention as being 13th in Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
's Best TV Moments of 2001. While the presenters were performing, the real Corrs appeared, reprimanding them for being so shallow and saying that they were not all about beauty. When Ant, Dec and Cat left the stage, deflated, the three girls turned to camera, and bragged about how beautiful they were. "Jim" then took the paper bag off his head to reveal the real Jim Corr, only to be told to put it back on because he wasn't beautiful enough.
PokéRap and Pokéfight sketches
PokémonPokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
was one of a number of featured cartoons regularly broadcast during SMTV Live.
This gave inspiration to the show's writers, who dressed Ant and Dec up as Pokémon characters and had them 'battle' each other (in the traditional sense of the word rather than Pokémon's connotations) in a weekly segment called "Pokéfights".
Dec frequently appeared as either Ash
Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum, known as for all appearances in Japan, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise owned by Nintendo. He was created by, and named after, Satoshi Tajiri as the protagonist of the anime and manga series, as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise...
or Misty
Misty (Pokémon)
Misty, known as in Japanese versions, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise. She has appeared as a Gym Leader in the Pokémon video games, several seasons of the Pokémon anime, The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga, the Ash & Pikachu manga, toys, books, and other media.-Design:Misty's...
and Ant usually played 'G-G-G-Gary' (and one time 'J-J-J-Jessie') with Cat once making a guest appearance as Jessie from Team Rocket. As opposed to being separate beings, the cast's 'pokémon' were more like a 'move' they would do upon another. For example, 'Embarrassmon' involved one dueller telling a secret about the other, who would turn red and their health would diminish; or Ant unleashing HeWhoSmeltItDealtIt - "HeWhoSmeltItDealtIt is an Air Pokémon, and the first person to smell its pungent aroma shall be blamed for its origins!".
The show once had Ant attack as Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
(dressing up in a schoolgirl outfit over his Gary costume) and Dec retaliating as Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
, ending the sketch by making up "thus showing how far removed from reality Pokémon is". As a recurring gag, whenever Gary hit Misty with a particularly 'bruising' attack, Misty would shout "I'll never have kids now!".
Another common Pokémon-based sketch was the PokéRap.Ant and Dec would dress up as rappers and perform a rap featuring the names of various Pokémon. They did this in knitted Pokémon jumpers, with Pikachu and their name on. This developed into a weekly letters' segment whereby viewers would send in their own pokeraps (and later, home videos) followed by the rap itself (with seemingly little rehearsal).
This led on to later sketches featuring a Pokémon-themed activity, which featured that week's guests in their own Pokémon wear, such as "Miss Poké-World". Later in the series, the sketches began with Dec refusing to do any more PokéRaps, because Ant and Cat were fed up with them and always teased him about them, and instead concentrate on another task, such as working in a mock fast food restaurant. It wasn't long before the urge to perform the rap got the better of him, egged on by further taunts from Ant and Cat, and he eventually let himself go, trashing the set, before launching into the rap.
The last sketch featured Ant ranting to Dec and begging him to stop. Dec brushed it off, and prepared to start but was hit by a large "10-ton weight", leading to celebrations in the studio.
Dec Says/The Secret of My Success
Dec Says involved Dec would present reading a supposed viewer's letter about a personal problem from a viewer before launching into how he was once in a similar situation but was able to get out of his because of his excellence. However, Ant, who was always standing nearby at the phone desk, would remember things differently, leading into a flashback sketch set during Dec's childhood. The flashback would always show Dec as an inconsiderate, cheeky schoolboy who would always get himself into trouble, usually involving the show's guests playing various characters.Later sketches revolved around a badly-selling book by Dec called "The Secret of My Success". The last sketch on the last ever SMTV 'explained' how Ant & Dec came to be a double-act, and showed Dec and Cat auditioning for Pop Idol
Pop Idol
Pop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...
, hosted by Ant and Dick (Richard Whiteley
Richard Whiteley
John Richard Whiteley, OBE DL , usually known as Richard Whiteley, was an English broadcaster and journalist. He was famous for his twenty-three years as host of Countdown, a letters and numbers arrangement game show broadcast most weekdays on Channel 4...
), who Dec replaced after an unfortunate 'accident' during the sketch.
Ant also occasionally appeared as a schoolboy in these sketches, where he was an overweight boy who ate huge amounts of food and was referred to as Gi-Ant. This section also introduced the character of 'Cat the Dog' which was Cat as a schoolgirl with very messy hair, huge teeth and a strong Birmingham accent. Cat the Dog later appeared in her own run of sketches, The Further Adventures of Cat the Dog.
Casually
This sketch was a mix of popular BBC medical drama series CasualtyCasualty (TV series)
Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
and American soap operas, which mainly parodied melodrama
Melodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
. James Redmond was in this sketch during his brief tenure as a presenter. Ironically, in 2003, he landed the role of "Abs" Denham on the real Casualty.
The series ended on Cat Deeley's last show as presenter with the death of Deeley's character.
Eminemmerdale
As the name suggests, a parody of EminemEminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
and Emmerdale
Emmerdale
Emmerdale, is a long-running British soap opera set in Emmerdale , a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, Emmerdale was first broadcast on 16 October 1972...
revolving around the Dingleberry family and their American cousin Eminem. A Christmas special was advertised for the final episode but never aired.
Anty and Decky the Garden Goblins
Parody of Bill & Ben: The Flowerpot MenFlower Pot Men
The Flower Pot Men were a British pop group created in 1967 as a result of the single "Let's Go to San Francisco", recorded by session musicians, becoming a major UK Top 20 and Continental Europe hit) in the autumn of 1967...
with Ant and Dec as Anty and Decky respectively. Cat played 'Prozac the Giggle-Fairy', and a pre-recorded narrator. This recurring sketch, as with many in the series, incorporated a degree of more adult humour - in this case, Anty and Decky's love of the 'Dizzy Water' (alcohol) found at 'The Grown-Ups Shed' was often referenced.
Only Fools and Hogwash
A short-lived parody combining Harry PotterHarry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
with the long-running BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses
Only Fools and Horses
Only Fools and Horses is a British sitcom, created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom between 1981 and 1991, with sporadic Christmas specials until 2003...
.
Ghost Busted
Another short-lived parody featuring Tess Daly, Des Clarke and Stephen Mulhurn as boy band BustedBusted
Busted were an English pop band consisting of members James Bourne and Matt Willis and previously Charlie Simpson who left the band in 2005. Busted split up in January 2005 after Simpson decided to leave to join his own band Fightstar. During their run, they released two studio albums, a...
and using the power of their guitars to wipe out ghosts and ghouls in the style of Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters is a 1984 American science fiction comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, and Rick Moranis and follows three eccentric parapsychologists in New York City, who start a...
.
Other features and competitions
There were many competitions on SMTV. Unlike many other Saturday morning children's programmes, SMTV did give away impressive prizes, such as holidays to America for the family, as well as the usual televisions, games consoles and CDs. (Ant famously gave away his own car in one of the earliest episodes.) Some of the competitions were phone-ins, though a few were more notable, and had a slot on the show every week. One competition, after four weeks of a Pokémon-themed Wonkey Donkey, had a live Who Wants to Be a Mew-TrainerWho Wants to Be a Millionaire? (UK game show)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is a British television quiz show which offers a maximum cash prize of one million pounds for correctly answering successive multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty...
quiz where the winner won a holiday to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
to go to the Pokémon Center shop and receive a Mew for his Pokémon game.
Postbag
The weekly reading of viewer mail began with the presenters and audience dancing to the song "Please Mr. PostmanPlease Mr. Postman
"Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr...
" by the Carpenters. While not strictly a sketch, there were several moments of humour and sketch-type gags in its run based around the mail they received, and sometimes the absence of it (which often was revealed to be a hoax).
One segment (during an April 1 edition) ended earlier than usual when Dec (appearing slightly ill) collapsed onto the floor unconscious during the Postman dance; after a few seconds, the programme immediately went into the second half of a Pokémon episode. The incident was later revealed to be an April Fool's joke.
Another famous incident occurred when Ant was asked to read out a rather crude anecdote, and started laughing uncontrollably, causing Dec to fall into hysterics as well. This clip has since been replayed numerous times since, due to it being considered an 'outtake'.
Yet another Postbag incident occurred during the run of the first few Pokemon episodes, when a letter was received from a viewer telling the presenters it was pronounced 'Po-KAY-mon' and asking them to pronounce it right. However when the second half of Pokemon was played (the episode being "Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village") and one of the show's characters pronounced it in the same way the presenters had been for the past few weeks the cartoon cut back to the studio where Dec demanded to see the cartoon clip again, and upon seeing and hearing it being pronounced 'Po-ke-mon' proceeded to have a small (mock) rant to camera about the letter and the pronouncement while ripping the letter up. After this the second half of the episode was played. It is unknown whether this incident had been planned beforehand to make a point or not.
Later Postbag segments ended with studio performances of viewers' songs about the show.
Magic
Many episodes featured guest appearances by various magicians, performing both small tricks and larger illusions. Cat often acted as their assistant in the larger illusions, which included being made to vanish and reappear, impaled by spikes, divided into several pieces, or apparently beheaded by a guillotine. However, by far the most common illusion was for her to be sawed in half, an illusion she took part in many times during her time on the show.On one of the occasions when she was sawed in half, she became the first British celebrity to take part in an illusion called Clearly Impossible
Clearly Impossible
Clearly Impossible is a variation of the illusion sawing a woman in half devised by Jonathan Pendragon.-Description:The illusion is very similar in principle and performance to the older "Thin Model" versions of sawing a woman in half, with the exception that the boxes used to cover the assistant...
, where she was sawed in half inside a completely clear-sided box. On another occasion, after she had been sawed in half and her halves separated, they were both "stolen" by Ant and Dec, and wheeled off stage in opposite directions.
Wonkey Donkey
The premise of the game was very similar to that of CatchphraseCatchphrase (game show)
Catchphrase is a British game show based on a short-lived US game show of the same name. It ran on ITV in the United Kingdom between 12 January 1986 and 19 December 2002, originally hosted by Northern Irish comedian Roy Walker....
. The example the presenters always gave to explain the game was 'Wonkey Donkey' (a small toy donkey
Donkey
The donkey or ass, Equus africanus asinus, is a domesticated member of the Equidae or horse family. The wild ancestor of the donkey is the African Wild Ass, E...
with one leg missing). Every week, something similar was shown to the viewers who rang in to guess what it was - the golden rule was it had to rhyme. If none of the callers answered correctly, the competition would roll over to next week. After three weeks, it would be abandoned for a new one. This only happened once in the show's history, when after three weeks fifteen callers had failed to get "Twee Bee".
Dec found it very frustrating when the callers could not get the answer right, and would sometimes throw the toy and the stand it was placed on in (mock) anger, or ranting into the camera, which became a staple occurrence and sparked his catchphrase for the game, "It's Gotta Rhyme!". The hosts' continued frustration led to them filming a pre-recorded round of the game, with an answer of "Pat Cat" (the clue being host Cat Deeley rubbing her arms over her back). The fictional contestant made a number of unrelated guesses, including constantly repeating "Feely Deeley" even when informed it was incorrect numerous times.
The game was revived during the final months of the programme's run.
Another version of the game - "Partners in Rhyme" - was aired as part of "Britain's Got More Talent" where Ant and Dec would play against each other to guess as many picture clues as they could in one minute. The game was again revived as "Rotten Cotten", named after Fearne Cotton
Fearne Cotton
Fearne Cotton is an English television and radio presenter who is known for presenting a number of popular TV programmes such as Top of the Pops and the Red Nose Day telethon. In 2007, she became the first regular female presenter of BBC Radio 1's Chart Show...
on Celebrity Juice
Celebrity Juice
Celebrity Juice is a British television comedy panel game show on ITV2 that has been airing since 24 September, 2008. The show is presented by Keith Lemon, with regular captains Holly Willoughby and Fearne Cotton, alongside regular panellist Rufus Hound...
, where host Keith Lemon
Keith Lemon
-Background:In an interview, Francis claimed that Lemon is loosely based on his best friend. The character is easily distinguished by hiscamp demeanour, exaggerated Yorkshire accent, bleached mullet, ginger moustache and fake tan...
had Ant and Dec as contestants mocking the failures of the children callers from SMTV. The game dealt with rhyming celebrity names rather than animals.
What's Ant Whistling?
This competition involved Ant whistling a popular tune from a TV series that the phoning-in contestants had to guess.Splattoon/Men in Splat
Based on the title of Oliver Stone'sOliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
film Platoon
Platoon (film)
Platoon is a 1986 American war film written and directed by Oliver Stone and stars Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. It is the first of Stone's Vietnam War trilogy, followed by 1989's Born on the Fourth of July and 1993's Heaven & Earth....
, the aim of the game was for a caller to direct a blindfolded celebrity to use a gun to 'splat' small model hot air balloon
Hot air balloon
The hot air balloon is the oldest successful human-carrying flight technology. It is in a class of aircraft known as balloon aircraft. On November 21, 1783, in Paris, France, the first untethered manned flight was made by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d'Arlandes in a hot air...
s, filled with paint. For this game, Ant and Dec always dressed up as WWI
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
fighter plane pilots, complete with fake moustaches and pipes and spoke with old-fashioned accents.
A running gag involved Ant and Dec not realising that Cat's character ('Private Deeley') was a woman in drag. After SM:TV started to air episodes of Men in Black: The Series
Men in Black: The Series
Men in Black: The Series also known as Men in Black: The Animated Series is an American animated television series that aired during The WB's Kids' WB programming block for four seasons from 1997 through 2001.The show features characters from 1997's science fiction film Men in Black, which was...
, the game was given a cosmetic makeover, replacing the hot air balloons with aliens and renaming it "Men in Splat".
Another recurring theme in the game was that the answer to the multiple-choice question for entry to the game was always B. Answers to the questions often matched this theme too, by starting with the letter B.
Challenge Ant/Brian's Brain
Each week, a child would challenge Ant by asking him ten questions they had prepared (usually based on the week's showbiz news). For every one Ant did not answer correctly, the child won a prize, such as a DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
or video game.
At the end of the ten questions, the child would have the chance to gamble the prizes they had won for the 'star prize', which was usually a DVD player or games console. They then asked Ant a further question, called the "Killer Question", with an accompanying dramatic sound effect. If Ant answered incorrectly, the child and audience would chant, "you're thick, you're thick, you're thick, you're thick you are, you're thick, you're thick!" (to the tune of the opening lines of "Ole!" by The Bouncing Souls
The Bouncing Souls
The Bouncing Souls are a punk rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 1987. By the time of their acknowledgment by the national punk rock scene, they had reignited a "pogo" element to New Jersey punk rock by playing fast light-hearted songs, a model followed by various other local...
) and so on, and put a dunce cap
Dunce cap
A dunce cap, also variously known as a dunce hat, dunce's cap, or dunce's hat, is a pointed hat. In popular culture, it is typically made of paper and often marked with a D or the word "dunce", and given to schoolchildren to wear as punishment by public humiliation for misbehavior and, as the name...
on Ant's head. If, however, Ant answered the question correctly, the child would lose all their prizes, and Ant would be crowned "King of Common Knowledge", to the tune of Rockin' All Over The World, revelling in taunting the child, as he was crowned.
In later episodes, the child would get a 'consolation prize' of a handkerchief reading "I lost on Challenge Ant". Although most went forward with the Killer Question, only three challengers decided to go home with the prizes they had already won. Celebrity games were also played, and on Ant's birthday, Ant and Dec played together against their then girlfriends, Lisa Armstrong
Lisa Armstrong
Lisa Marie Armstrong is a former member of pop band Deuce and now make-up expert for ITV1's programme This Morning.-Personal life:...
(who Ant married in 2006) and Clare Buckfield
Clare Buckfield
Clare Buckfield is an English actress, best known for playing the role of Jenny Porter in the BBC sitcom 2point4 children for most of the nineties and Natasha Stevens in the CBBC series Grange Hill.-Biography:...
. The game was featured in the short-lived primetime show Slap Bang with Ant & Dec
Slap Bang with Ant & Dec
Slap Bang with Ant & Dec, was a television programme that was shown in the UK on ITV in 2001. It was presented by Ant & Dec. The show ran for 6 episodes . Each episode featured, among other things, a brief sketch of a show called Beers, a parody of Cheers, centred around a pub...
, (the forerunner to Saturday Night Takeaway
Saturday Night Takeaway
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, is a variety show created by LWT and shown in the UK on Saturday evenings on ITV, presented and executively produced by Ant & Dec. It is broadcast live from The London Studios on the South Bank...
) only this time played by elderly contestants.
A version involving Brian Dowling entitled Brian's Brain was introduced following Ant and Dec's departure.
In a memorable episode on Cat's last day, Cilla Black entered the studio at the part where Brian was supposed to enter, and announced that today they would be testing Cat's brain. Another memorable episode featured Brian's sisters as the contenders, while a third featured the late Jade Goody
Jade Goody
Jade Cerisa Lorraine Goody was an English celebrity. She came into the public spotlight while appearing on the third series of the Channel 4 reality TV programme Big Brother in 2002, an appearance which led to her own television programmes and the launch of her own products after her eviction from...
.
Possibly the most famous question was, "What do baby cows drink?" to which Brian answered "Milk", although the official answer was water. This question was repeated on the one-off edition of 15 to Fun.
Eat My Goal
Celebrity guests would take it in turns to take penalties, with Ant in goal. Callers would choose the celebrities they thought would win against Ant. After Ant & Dec left in 2001, Brian became the new goal keeper with Tess and later Stephen, replacing Cat as referee. In 2003, a different celebrity each week represented two teams taking it in turns to be goalkeeper.Sabrina's Poem
Sabrina, the Teenage WitchSabrina, the Teenage Witch
Sabrina the Teenage Witch is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a teenage fictional character named Sabrina Spellman. The character was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo. The comic's characters have also appeared in various other media...
episodes aired regularly during SMTV Live. As a recurring joke, Dec had often proclaimed his love for Sabrina and would regularly read a dreadful poem he'd written just for her, often to the dismay of everyone in the studio. In the early days, Ant would attempt to block this by claiming that Sabrina's lawyers had banned Dec from reading out the poem on the air.
Later sketches saw Dec write a story in which he would be the hero that saved Sabrina (played by a female guest from that week's show) from impending doom, but the 'cast' would always ruin it for him, for example, Cat and Ant would mishear words in his story (e.g. When he said the word eastward, a cowboy would come out, with Cat claiming she thought he said Eastwood). Dec also appeared to not be aware that Sabrina was a fictional show, which was demonstrated when Jenna Leigh Green
Jenna Leigh Green
Jenna Leigh Green is an American actress and singer best known for her performances as Libby Chessler on the television show Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and on Broadway and on tour in the musical Wicked.-Early life and career:...
was a guest when Dec treated her with contempt and continually called her 'Libby' despite her protestations that she was simply an actress.
When interviewing Sabrina actress Melissa Joan Hart
Melissa Joan Hart
Melissa Joan Catherine Hart is an American actress, writer, television director, television producer, singer and businesswoman...
for the programme, the gag was again employed. Dec asked Hart to be his 'lass'. Apparently not understanding him, she said yes. After this, Dec expressed his intention to share his knowledge and experience, giving rise to the Dec Says sketches.
Pick Your Knows
Each week, a child would come into the studio and pick a question category. The child was then asked to choose a celebrity to answer the question. If the celebrity got the answer wrong, the child won a point but if they got it right, the celebrities got a point and whoever had the most points would win.15 to Fun
This was a one-off episode based on the Channel 4 gameshow 15 to 1 with a holiday for the winner.The Sick Trick Show/Dirrty Tricks
A spin-off to CITV's The Quick Trick Show. Hosted by Stephen Mulhurn, it featured him performing a series of vile and disgusting tricks on the audience members, celebrity guests and even, his co-presenters. This feature was originally a one-off from around late-2002 and then it returned as a regular slot in the summer of 2003.The segment was later replaced by Dirrty Tricks, where Stephen would try to catch children out with his card tricks to possibly win a prize or get covered in beans or mushy peas.
CD:UK
After each programme, CD:UKCD:UK
CD:UK was a British music television programme. Originally run in conjunction with SMTV Live, the programme was first aired on ITV on 29 August 1998 to rival the BBC's Live & Kicking and was the replacement for The Chart Show, which had been airing on the network for nine and a half years.In...
(an abbreviation of CountDown United Kingdom) was broadcast, with the same presenters as SMTV Live. This was also presented live, and featured bands in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
, music videos, and interview
Interview
An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
s with famous music stars. Ant & Dec originally presented the show with Cat from 1998 to 2001 and Cat continued to present until 2005. CD:UK was axed in April 2006 due to budget cuts and financial difficulties.
SMTV Gold
Falling viewing figures during 2003 led to the programme's axing at the end of the year. The programme marked the end of its five-year run with a series of SMTV Gold specials featuring highlights from the show and cartoons, presented by Stephen Mulhern and Des Clarke with different celebrity co-hosts each week. The Gold series ended on 20 December 2003 with the very last SMTV Live programme airing on Saturday 27 December 2003.At one point, the Gold episodes were broadcast on Saturday afternoons because of morning coverage of the 2003 Rugby World Cup
2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World...
.
Video releases
The series spawned two video releases - the first, Chums, was released in 2000 by Contender Home Entertainment and featured six full Chums episodes and a selection of other SMTV comedy segments. The VHS was released on DVD four years later.A second release from Universal Pictures, The Best of SMTV Live So Far, went on sale in 2001, featuring specially-produced links recorded shortly before Ant & Dec's departure and an extended compilation of sketches and segments.
Writers and producers
The first few months of the show were produced by Ric Blaxhill, a former Top of the PopsTop of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
producer. He was replaced later in the year by Steve Pinhay and Phil Mount, and then shortly afterwards by David Staite.
In September 1999, Ben Ward and Gez Foster, two writers from Men In Trousers were brought in from rival BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
show, Live and Kicking
Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking was a BBC Saturday morning children's magazine programme, running from 1993 to 2001. The fourth in a succession of Saturday morning shows, it was the replacement for Going Live!, and took many of its features from it, such as phone-ins, games, comedy, competitions and the showing of...
, and turned round SMTV Live in the ratings with the introduction of features like 'Chums'. Coupled with the introduction of new presenters on Live & Kicking, SMTV soon overtook them in the ratings. These two writers were also members of The Cheese Shop
The Cheese Shop
The Cheese Shop were a troupe of six comedy writer-performers from the revue circuit of University of Warwick.Between 1997 and 1999, Gerard Foster, Dave Lamb, Gordon Southern, Tim Verrinder, Ben Ward and Richie Webb appeared in three series of their comedy sketch show The Cheese Shop Presents: The...
comedy group.
Multi award-winning writer Dean Wilkinson was with the show throughout most of its run with Blaze Television's director of programmes Conor McAnally as its executive producer.
Awards
SMTV Live was twice voted Best Entertainment Programme at the BAFTA Children's Film and Television Awards (2000 & 2002) and won BAFTA & British Comedy awards voted for by the public.Ant & Dec
Ant & Dec
Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly , known collectively as Ant & Dec, are an English comedy and TV presenting duo from Newcastle upon Tyne, England...
won the Royal Television Society
Royal Television Society
The Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
award for best presenter in 2001 for their work on the programme while Cat Deeley
Cat Deeley
Catherine Elizabeth "Cat" Deeley is an English television presenter and model. Since 2006, Deeley has also been the host of So You Think You Can Dance in the United States, for which she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition...
won the BAFTA for best children's presenter in the same year.
In 2001, it finished 27th place in a Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
poll for the 100 Greatest Kids' TV Shows.
External links
- SM:TV Live at TV.comTV.comTV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...
- SM:TV Live at SAT Kids
- SM:TV Live at Webs.com