The Saturday Show (BBC TV series)
Encyclopedia
The Saturday Show was a BBC
children's Saturday morning show that first aired in 2001, replacing the popular Live & Kicking
. It had a mix of audience participation, cartoons, games and gunge
. Initially it was presented by Dani Behr
and Joe Mace
. They left in 2002 and were replaced by Fearne Cotton
and Simon Grant
. In 2004, Cotton left and Grant was joined by Angellica Bell
and Jake Humphrey
, who made up the final team of presenters until the programme finished in September 2005.
and Joe Mace
would air. It would be a radical departure from standard and conventional Saturday Morning TV. The new show was billed to be tough competition for SMTV
. The show was confined to the studio. The studio wasn't a traditional studio, it was based on tiered seating and 3 stages at the bottom, one with a presenters couch, one for performances and one for The Saturday Show house band, Stamford Amp. The show included a series of different karaokes. Including Sugababes
week. This allowed the children to sing along to the official instrumentals. The show also featured a puppet duo, "Tiny and Mr Duk
" performed by Dave Chapman
and Damian Farrell. Stamford Amp also had a top 40 hit single in the UK when "Anything For You" charted at #33.
In July 2002, Joe Mace didn't want his contract renewing so Dani Behr also quit the show. The Saturday Show was about to be axed but the much younger and child friendly pairing of Fearne Cotton and Simon Grant agreed to take the slot.
Tiny and Mr Duk remained on the show with the new presenters, until Dave Chapman and Damian Farrell left the show in December 2002.
was to premier on BBC1. Overall, the new show was a ratings hit taking over SMTV Live for many weeks. Extra was moved to 12pm on the CBBC Channel and was dropped. Then it lived up to its name of "Extra" instead of simulcasting.
introduced, with Sophie filling in for Angellica on occasion. The show also featured a sketch called Dr Loo, a parody of Doctor Who
. The series as a whole was not a success and was axed in 2005. Realising that they would not be on the air at Christmas
, the last episode, aired on 3 September, was a "Christmas special".
, Bell
or Humphrey
), during which a child got the chance to gunge
a presenter. It was a segment of the 2005 summer run of The Saturday Show. It started the previous year as just "Gunge Grant" when presenter Simon Grant
went head to head with a child in a quiz. Both contestants sat in adjacent gunge
tanks and were asked questions sent in by viewers. Question master Jake Humphrey
asked each player a question in turn (before which they were given the option to play or pass the question to the other player). Each player had five lives and for each life lost their tank was "topped up" with gunge
by Angellica Bell
. The first contestant to lose all five of their lives was gunge
d. If the child won they would also take home prizes but if they lost would instead take home an "I've Been Gunged On The Saturday Show" certificate.
The format was changed the following year allowing all three presenters to rotate turns in the tank. The input of gunge
was now controlled by "The God of Gunge Metal." Initially the rules were that if a presenter lost they would remain in the tank the following week, but this was eventually changed to the child choosing which presenter they wished to play against, and subsequently changed again to the drawing of straws. Another change to the game occurred towards the end of the series when the previous five lives became three. Jake Humphrey
particularly disliked going in the tank and usually tried to find an excuse not to be gunge
d, but of course it never made any difference.
came on at one point of the show and talked to Noel Edmonds
how Saturday morning shows on the BBC inspired her to be a presenter.
There were a few clips of The Saturday Show from the first series to the fourth series on the 'Travel Back In Time' section at the beginning and the 'Up To Date' section at the end.
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...
children's Saturday morning show that first aired in 2001, replacing the popular 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...
. It had a mix of audience participation, cartoons, games and gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
. Initially it was presented by Dani Behr
Dani Behr
Dani Behr is an English singer, actress and television presenter.-Early life:Behr was born in Mill Hill London, of South African Jewish descent. Her father is a partner in London estate agents Behr & Butchoff...
and Joe Mace
Joe Mace
Joe Mace is a British radio and television presenter. Former host of the programme The Album Chart Show on the UK's Channel 4 and the Dream Ticket on BBC 6 Music....
. They left in 2002 and were replaced by 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...
and Simon Grant
Simon Grant
Simon Grant in Falmouth, Cornwall is a British television presenter and actor.-Biography:Before becoming a CBBC presenter, he studied acting at Middlesex University....
. In 2004, Cotton left and Grant was joined by Angellica Bell
Angellica Bell
Angellica Bell is a British television and radio presenter.-Early life:Born in 1976 of St. Lucian heritage, Bell was educated in Ealing, West London at Notting Hill & Ealing High School. She later earned her BA Honours degree in Politics.-Television career:2000–2006Bell joined CBBC in May 2000...
and Jake Humphrey
Jake Humphrey
Jacob John "Jake" Humphrey is an English television presenter, currently best known for his work with BBC Sport, being the youngest ever presenter to host Football Focus, Match of the Day and Final Score. He currently presents the BBC's Formula One coverage and BBC Sports Personality of the Year...
, who made up the final team of presenters until the programme finished in September 2005.
The new show
In 2001, it was announced Live & Kicking would be axed after eight series. Instead, a brand new show fronted by Dani BehrDani Behr
Dani Behr is an English singer, actress and television presenter.-Early life:Behr was born in Mill Hill London, of South African Jewish descent. Her father is a partner in London estate agents Behr & Butchoff...
and Joe Mace
Joe Mace
Joe Mace is a British radio and television presenter. Former host of the programme The Album Chart Show on the UK's Channel 4 and the Dream Ticket on BBC 6 Music....
would air. It would be a radical departure from standard and conventional Saturday Morning TV. The new show was billed to be tough competition for SMTV
SMTV Live
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...
. The show was confined to the studio. The studio wasn't a traditional studio, it was based on tiered seating and 3 stages at the bottom, one with a presenters couch, one for performances and one for The Saturday Show house band, Stamford Amp. The show included a series of different karaokes. Including Sugababes
Sugababes
The Sugababes are an English pop girl group based in London, consisting of members Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Jade Ewen. The Sugababes were formed in 1998 with founding members Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan. Their debut album, One Touch, was released in 2000 under London...
week. This allowed the children to sing along to the official instrumentals. The show also featured a puppet duo, "Tiny and Mr Duk
Tiny and Mr Duk
Tiny and Mr Duk were two puppet characters created for The Saturday Show by Dave Chapman and Damian Farrell.-Story:Tiny is a giant hamster, created in an accident in a laboratory...
" performed by Dave Chapman
Dave Chapman
Dave Chapman is an English actor, television presenter, puppeteer and voice artist.-Career:Dave Chapman trained at The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and The Jim Henson Company...
and Damian Farrell. Stamford Amp also had a top 40 hit single in the UK when "Anything For You" charted at #33.
The return to L&K
In February 2002, with the CBBC Channel having just launched, Nihal and Sarra Elgan were on the CBBC Channel presenting The Saturday Show Extra which ran parallel to the main programme. It saw a new studio and new graphics take place. The new set consisted of a couch underneath a balcony. Obviously there was a stage on the other side of the studio, once again an SM:TV style convention. The relaunch also saw more audience participation at home. The show wasn't proving to be a success so far but despite this, it was given the benefit of the doubt.In July 2002, Joe Mace didn't want his contract renewing so Dani Behr also quit the show. The Saturday Show was about to be axed but the much younger and child friendly pairing of Fearne Cotton and Simon Grant agreed to take the slot.
Tiny and Mr Duk remained on the show with the new presenters, until Dave Chapman and Damian Farrell left the show in December 2002.
The All New Saturday Show & TOTP Saturday
This was how it was branded for a short while from September 2002. Throughout the morning, the presenters would start off acting childish eventually becoming more aimed at teens. With the new show, the TOTP spin off series TOTP Saturday was born. The original concept was a 45 minute version of The Friday Night Show with the number one single played half way through with the words. Also a new feature called Singles Nihalout dominated part of the show and became part of the format for the 2003 series. But in May 2003, the show began celebrity fastermind which began to dominate the first hour of the show. Since then, the show began to drop its opening titles and got stuck in a format of games, gunge and celebrities. Finally in September 2003, Dick and Dom in da BungalowDick and Dom in da Bungalow
Dick and Dom in da Bungalow was a CBBC children's entertainment television series presented by the duo Dick and Dom...
was to premier on BBC1. Overall, the new show was a ratings hit taking over SMTV Live for many weeks. Extra was moved to 12pm on the CBBC Channel and was dropped. Then it lived up to its name of "Extra" instead of simulcasting.
The beginning of the end
After a successful run, the show returned in April 2004 with a new look yet again. Angellica Bell and Jake Humphrey joined Simon Grant to attempt to save the show. The show was once again not set in a traditional studio. The audience sat on couches whereas the presenters had no place to sit down and read letters. With only 90 minutes to air, the show went out at 8:30am and stopped at 10 followed by The Mysti Show. Many features were aired in this series - the finale to the show was Gunge GBH.The final revamp
Now a celeb-free zone, the BBC revamped the show again to make it more interactive. Throughout the morning, it would be the audience taking part in games such as Scary Buckets, Stick and Twist featuring , Blushing Roulette etc. This series saw a string of out of studio reporters such as Ortis and Sophie McDonnellSophie McDonnell
Sophie McDonnell was a presenter for CBBC until 2006. She was in Precious, the UK entry for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1999.-Biography:...
introduced, with Sophie filling in for Angellica on occasion. The show also featured a sketch called Dr Loo, a parody of Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. The series as a whole was not a success and was axed in 2005. Realising that they would not be on the air at Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
, the last episode, aired on 3 September, was a "Christmas special".
Gunge GBH
One newer feature of the show was Gunge GBH (GBH standing for GrantSimon Grant
Simon Grant in Falmouth, Cornwall is a British television presenter and actor.-Biography:Before becoming a CBBC presenter, he studied acting at Middlesex University....
, Bell
Angellica Bell
Angellica Bell is a British television and radio presenter.-Early life:Born in 1976 of St. Lucian heritage, Bell was educated in Ealing, West London at Notting Hill & Ealing High School. She later earned her BA Honours degree in Politics.-Television career:2000–2006Bell joined CBBC in May 2000...
or Humphrey
Jake Humphrey
Jacob John "Jake" Humphrey is an English television presenter, currently best known for his work with BBC Sport, being the youngest ever presenter to host Football Focus, Match of the Day and Final Score. He currently presents the BBC's Formula One coverage and BBC Sports Personality of the Year...
), during which a child got the chance to gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
a presenter. It was a segment of the 2005 summer run of The Saturday Show. It started the previous year as just "Gunge Grant" when presenter Simon Grant
Simon Grant
Simon Grant in Falmouth, Cornwall is a British television presenter and actor.-Biography:Before becoming a CBBC presenter, he studied acting at Middlesex University....
went head to head with a child in a quiz. Both contestants sat in adjacent gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
tanks and were asked questions sent in by viewers. Question master Jake Humphrey
Jake Humphrey
Jacob John "Jake" Humphrey is an English television presenter, currently best known for his work with BBC Sport, being the youngest ever presenter to host Football Focus, Match of the Day and Final Score. He currently presents the BBC's Formula One coverage and BBC Sports Personality of the Year...
asked each player a question in turn (before which they were given the option to play or pass the question to the other player). Each player had five lives and for each life lost their tank was "topped up" with gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
by Angellica Bell
Angellica Bell
Angellica Bell is a British television and radio presenter.-Early life:Born in 1976 of St. Lucian heritage, Bell was educated in Ealing, West London at Notting Hill & Ealing High School. She later earned her BA Honours degree in Politics.-Television career:2000–2006Bell joined CBBC in May 2000...
. The first contestant to lose all five of their lives was gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
d. If the child won they would also take home prizes but if they lost would instead take home an "I've Been Gunged On The Saturday Show" certificate.
The format was changed the following year allowing all three presenters to rotate turns in the tank. The input of gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
was now controlled by "The God of Gunge Metal." Initially the rules were that if a presenter lost they would remain in the tank the following week, but this was eventually changed to the child choosing which presenter they wished to play against, and subsequently changed again to the drawing of straws. Another change to the game occurred towards the end of the series when the previous five lives became three. Jake Humphrey
Jake Humphrey
Jacob John "Jake" Humphrey is an English television presenter, currently best known for his work with BBC Sport, being the youngest ever presenter to host Football Focus, Match of the Day and Final Score. He currently presents the BBC's Formula One coverage and BBC Sports Personality of the Year...
particularly disliked going in the tank and usually tried to find an excuse not to be gunge
Gunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
d, but of course it never made any difference.
It Started With Swap Shop
The Saturday Show was hardly mentioned at all on the BBC's It Started With Swap Shop programme as the programme was concentrating on the first four incarnations of the BBC's Saturday mornings programmes. However, Fearne CottonFearne 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...
came on at one point of the show and talked to Noel Edmonds
Noel Edmonds
Noel Ernest Edmonds, is an English broadcaster and executive, who made his name as a DJ on BBC Radio 1 in the UK. He has presented many light entertainment television programmes, including Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, Top of the Pops, The Late, Late Breakfast Show, Telly Addicts, Noel's Saturday...
how Saturday morning shows on the BBC inspired her to be a presenter.
There were a few clips of The Saturday Show from the first series to the fourth series on the 'Travel Back In Time' section at the beginning and the 'Up To Date' section at the end.
External links
- CBBC at bbc.co.ukBbc.co.ukBBC Online is the brand name and home for the BBC's UK online service. It is a large network of websites including such high profile sites as BBC News and Sport, the on-demand video and radio services co-branded BBC iPlayer, the pre-school site Cbeebies, and learning services such as Bitesize...
- Saturday Mornings - includes The Saturday Show