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00:00Last time on the Harry Hill Show.
00:02Pronounced quinoa.
00:10Harry Hill Show!
00:13Hello there, I'm Harry Hill and this is my show.
00:16It's the Harry Hill Show!
00:20Oh hi, I just about to have a nacho.
00:25I opened a bag.
00:25I was a bit nervous about it actually because I know that the ghost that lives here, the
00:29poltergeist likes nachos, so that was a bit...
00:37The haunted bag of nachos there.
00:40The guest is here, Daddy.
00:41Oh, okay, Gary.
00:42Well, let's welcome our guest.
00:47Welcome to...
00:49Amanda Lamb.
00:52Amanda Lamb.
00:54Amanda Lamb.
00:55Welcome, Amanda.
00:56Long time no see.
00:57It's a very long time.
00:59I've never seen anything quite like this before.
01:01You know when you've eaten a lot of cheese before bed and you have one of those dreams?
01:05Particularly the hard cheeses.
01:06I feel like I've eaten a whole block of cheddar.
01:08Of cheddar or manchego.
01:11Manchego.
01:12Lovely manchego.
01:13Now, last time I saw you was...
01:15How long ago, do you think?
01:16It was 12 years ago.
01:17I was pregnant.
01:18Yes, you had a baby growing inside your tummy.
01:20I was very heavily pregnant.
01:23So that baby...
01:24How old was that baby?
01:26Lottie is now 12.
01:27She's a 12-year-old baby.
01:29And that was fun, wasn't it?
01:30You came on at the Hammersmith...
01:31Yeah.
01:32I came on a bit too soon, though, didn't I?
01:34I can't remember.
01:35I remember you saying to me, don't come on until I've said a certain word.
01:39And then you were running amok in the audience.
01:42And I remember whoever it was was there and went, go.
01:46And I went, please not said the word.
01:47Just go.
01:48And then I sort of stood there in the spotlights and you were nowhere to be seen.
01:51So I think I peaked too soon.
01:54Okay.
01:54But that goes back to a sort of thing we had going on.
01:58Yes.
01:58On an old show I used to do called TV Burp.
02:01Yes.
02:01And I can't quite remember why we did it.
02:05Do you remember why?
02:06Well, I was doing a program at the time called You Deserve This House, which you seem to find quite
02:13delightful,
02:14where we took somebody that was well-meaning and deserved a break.
02:19And we basically sent them off for 48 hours and then destroyed their house.
02:24Do you remember?
02:25I can always remember one of my favorite bits was you did a clip where I was arguing with the...
02:31with the interior designer.
02:33And this woman had had a house that was full of knick-knacks, collectibles, you know, thimbles, mugs.
02:39We stripped them all out and then he left her with one single solitary bookcase.
02:44And I remember saying to him, but you can't put knick-knacks on a curtain.
02:48Cut to you sticking knick-knacks on a curtain.
02:50Oh, really?
02:51Yeah.
02:51That's that sort of thing I do.
02:53Yeah.
02:53I never really got the idea of that show because they were like people who couldn't afford to...
02:58It was sort of like a poor man's DIY SOS, I think.
03:02Yeah, yeah.
03:02They couldn't afford Nick Knoll, so they got me in.
03:04They were...
03:05Who, as far as I know, has no particular aptitude for DIY.
03:09Are you a big DIY person?
03:09I've never seen him with any sort of power at all, have you?
03:13But what I liked about it, you'd knock on the door and you'd say, hello, I'm Amanda Lamb.
03:18That was always your thing, wasn't it?
03:21And then you would...
03:23But I thought it was the name of the show felt like a threat.
03:27You deserve this house.
03:31But in fact, what you meant was you deserve this house, which is the alternative house.
03:34Yeah, you are so amazing that you deserve to have an amazing house.
03:38Yeah, which is basically heavy on painted MDF.
03:40Yeah, there was a lot of MDF and a lot of white gloss paint being thrown around.
03:45It was a...
03:46Yeah, it was...
03:47What side was it on?
03:48It was Channel 4.
03:50It was a Channel 4 show.
03:51And I remember at the time, the reason that I used to say I'm Amanda Lamb was because I didn't
03:57think anyone knew who I was.
03:59We didn't know who you were.
04:00I know.
04:01And the worst bit was that people always used to think I was Kirstie Olsopp.
04:05So I always felt that I need...
04:07Don't start.
04:08Do not start.
04:09You look like Kirstie Olsopp.
04:10I get it.
04:11Where was the...
04:11So I was doing a Place in the Sun live a long time ago now.
04:15And there was a magazine signing that we had to do.
04:17A Place in the Sun live.
04:18So that's, what, over sort of six weeks or something while you take people around?
04:21No, no, no.
04:22It was in Olympia.
04:23It wasn't very exciting.
04:24But people would go.
04:25It was like a sort of...
04:26It was the live...
04:27Oh, I see.
04:27They're all doing it now, aren't they?
04:28Grand Designs live.
04:29And I remember being...
04:31Hang on, just a second.
04:32So what is that?
04:33What is that then?
04:35So it is...
04:35Place in the Sun live.
04:36So you buy your ticket, you go along to Olympia Exhibition Hall.
04:40You would have loved it.
04:40It used to be an XL.
04:41So in the good old days, when everyone was buying abroad, we'd have...
04:46Before Brexit.
04:47Before Brexit ruined it.
04:48We would have 35,000 people through the door over the period of, I think, a weekend.
04:53We had can-can dancers.
04:55You'd have loved it.
04:56We had a French section, a Spanish section.
04:59But why?
05:01What was it?
05:01We would...
05:02And what was that about?
05:04You can come.
05:05So was it Spanish estate agents?
05:06Spanish estate agents, French estate agents.
05:08There were lawyers.
05:09There were, you know, legal advice.
05:11Anyone thinking of buying it was your one-stop shop.
05:14Oh, I see.
05:14Anyway, there I was signing magazines.
05:18And for some reason, there was a queue of about...
05:2020-minute queue.
05:21And this woman at the end got to me and I said, oh, who am I making it out to?
05:26And I started signing it.
05:27And then she looked at the magazine and went, that's not how you spell Kirstie.
05:31And walked off.
05:34That's excellent.
05:35Yeah.
05:35Yeah, all you need is a Phil lookalike.
05:38I get that a lot.
05:38Where's Phil?
05:39Yeah.
05:40You could do Kirstie also, Grahams.
05:44Would you like to meet our mascot?
05:46I say yes with slight trepidation.
05:49Why would that be?
05:51Let's welcome Licky, the Harry Hill Show mascot.
05:53Come on out, Licky.
05:54Licky, Licky, Licky, the Harry Hill Show mascot.
05:58Licky, Licky.
05:59Say hello to Amanda, Licky.
06:01Hi, Licky.
06:02Oh!
06:02Oh!
06:04Stop it.
06:04That's a really big tongue.
06:06Sorry, I do apologise.
06:07Gosh!
06:08It's a very big tongue.
06:09Yes, it's...
06:13All right, off you go, Licky.
06:15That, I do apologise about that.
06:17That's OK.
06:17I mean, it happens every time we bring him on.
06:19There's no variation in it, really.
06:21Is that the licky stick?
06:21That is the...
06:22You could call it a licky stick.
06:24You can see it's a nine-volt battery on a stick.
06:26It's the Swiss Army.
06:27It's very impressive.
06:29I've never seen a tongue quite like that.
06:31Oh, come, come.
06:34Not even at A Place in the Sun live.
06:36Not even at A Place in the Sun live.
06:37There must have been one in that 20-minute queue.
06:42So, listen, we've...
06:43How do you feel about AI?
06:47I feel very old when I think about it, because I look at things...
06:51It's worrying, isn't it?
06:51It's really worrying.
06:53Some of the things that you see nowadays, you sort of think, that can't be real, and then it is.
06:58Or maybe not.
06:59Yeah.
06:59Well, let me introduce you to our version of AI, Sarah, the AI bot, who's going to tell us a
07:05bit of...
07:05Come on out, Sarah, who's going to tell us a little bit about you.
07:11Sarah.
07:12She's a synthetic, aromatic rice and...
07:16She's so advanced.
07:17Help her.
07:18She is advanced.
07:19Isn't she?
07:19I've never seen anything quite like it.
07:21Yeah, she moves her hands as well.
07:23Just wave.
07:24That's it.
07:25Say hello to Amanda Lamb, Sarah.
07:28Hello, Amanda.
07:29Heard so much about you.
07:31I used to love that show where you knock on a stranger's door and say hello, I'm Amanda Lamb.
07:35Do want to buy a duster or car sponge?
07:38I don't think that's what she used to do, was it?
07:40It wasn't a better wear thing.
07:41Not quite.
07:41No, it was tea towels.
07:44We had a better wear bloke come around the other day, actually.
07:47Did you?
07:47Yeah, I haven't seen him for a long time.
07:49They're just so expensive, that stuff that they sell.
07:52What was the old catalogs it used to get?
07:53Do you remember like an Avon catalogue?
07:55I miss an Avon catalogue.
07:57We could have a little, clean, easy.
07:58That was of less interest to me, the Avon catalogue.
08:01I used to like the Freemans one.
08:03I was in the Freemans one.
08:05Oh, were you?
08:05Not in the section that I used to?
08:07No, not in the shower section.
08:09Or the underwear section.
08:11That was before the days of the internet for young boys.
08:16So, it was that and the big deep peanut board.
08:19Yeah.
08:19Tell us a little bit about Amanda Lamb, Sarah.
08:22Here goes.
08:24Amanda Lamb is an English television presenter, property expert and former model.
08:30Early life.
08:30Amanda Lamb was born in Portsmouth and was brought up in Haven.
08:34She worked as an estate agent and part-time as a barmaid before becoming a model.
08:39Career.
08:39In 1994, she took over the role of the Scottish widow.
08:44David Bailey asked Lamb to glide across the screen wearing roller skates.
08:48This contract lasted ten years.
08:52What?
08:53I forgot that about you.
08:54It's all true.
08:55All of that was true.
08:56Well, I forgot that about you, that you were the Scottish widow.
08:59Well, you see, yeah, that was, yeah.
09:00It was your big break, right?
09:02It really, yeah.
09:02And I very nearly didn't go to the casting.
09:04It was on my birthday and they said,
09:07can you go and do this casting for a commercial?
09:10And I said, I've never heard of it.
09:11And I didn't want to go.
09:12I thought Scottish Widows was an escort agency.
09:16Now there's a thought.
09:18Now the telework's dried up.
09:21Yeah, but you can't phone up Scottish Widows and ask for a Scottish widow.
09:24Oh, that is true.
09:25And I did the casting.
09:29For the weekend.
09:36And if someone has it, Scottish Widows didn't want me.
09:39The director wanted me.
09:40You mean the director of Scottish Widows?
09:42Or do you mean all the Scottish Widows in Scotland didn't want you?
09:46The company didn't want me.
09:47The actual widows.
09:47And all of the, no, the actual company wanted the other girl.
09:51But the person that they'd booked to direct the commercial wanted me.
09:55And who was the other girl?
09:56Wasn't Kirsty Allsop.
09:57No.
09:58No, it was Beanie.
10:00But you would come on, I'm thinking of that advert.
10:02But all you would do basically is, as I remember it,
10:07you would walk on in a sort of hooded and then you'd sort of look over your shoulder.
10:11I'd look all enigmatic.
10:13That's what I was supposed to do.
10:14Yes.
10:15But it was set up, apparently, here's a little bit of history.
10:18Scottish Widows were set up to help the widows of the Napoleonic War.
10:22That's where the whole company came from, apparently.
10:25Right.
10:26And then, yes, I was the second widow.
10:29Do you know who the first widow was?
10:30They must be quite old, though.
10:33Widows from the Napoleonic War by now.
10:35I mean, that is a good pension.
10:37It's a good pension.
10:38If you could still be drawing a pension since the Napoleonic War.
10:42That's the pension I want.
10:45Can you imagine?
10:46So what was the audition then?
10:47I had to put on the cloak and walk around and kind of look all sort of mournful.
10:52On your birthday as well.
10:54On your birthday, I know.
10:55And then this David Bailey thing, that was, he didn't direct them, though, did he?
10:59He directed, well, he shot all the stills, all the images.
11:03Oh, very fancy.
11:05Yeah.
11:05But he, when I, and again, true story, I turned, everyone told me that David Bailey was really
11:10scary and that he was like a dog and he'd sense fear in you.
11:14And if you turned up a bit nervous, bearing in mind I was 21, 22, you know, just, so I'd
11:20gone in trying to be all brave.
11:22And I turned up outside of the studio and the hairdresser was there and I said, do you
11:27want me to give you a hand with your bags?
11:29So I helped carry all the bags up and Bailey was sat on the sofa with all the minions everywhere.
11:36Not literal minions, but you know what I mean.
11:38And I went in and said, hi, everyone.
11:41I'm Amanda.
11:41Anyone want a cup of tea?
11:42So I thought, show no fear.
11:44So we're all sat there, about 20 minutes, making polite conversation.
11:48And, um, he said, well, we're just waiting for the model now.
11:52And I was like, oh no, ouch, because you'd been so helpful.
11:57He basically, when we were all sat there and he said, we're just waiting for the model.
12:00And I, and I said, um, I'm here.
12:02And he went, blow me.
12:03I thought you were the hairdresser's assistant.
12:06I thought you were too good looking for hairdresser's assistant or something like that.
12:09Anyway, after that, we became firm friends and all was well in the world, but yeah.
12:13Oh, well, so.
12:14At least he didn't say, blow me.
12:15I thought you were a Custy Olsop.
12:20Um, good.
12:22Now, Sarah, have you got anything further to add about, uh, anything else you'd like to
12:25say about Amanda Lamb?
12:27Television.
12:27In 2001, Lamb became the main presenter of the Channel 4 programme A Place in the Sun.
12:33Lamb filmed the first of three series of My Flat Pack Home for the Home Channel.
12:37In 2012, she began presenting You Deserve This House, a new Channel 4 daytime show in which
12:44the homes of community heroes are secretly refurbished.
12:47Lamb appeared in Flocksters, a series that ran on ITV in 2015, hosted by Gabby Logan.
12:53The show followed celebrities as they tried to master the art of sheep herding.
12:57The show was cancelled after just one series.
13:00I mean, that's just such a weird pitch.
13:03But what a name, Flockstars.
13:06Flockstars, a series that ran on ITV, hosted by Gabby Logan.
13:09I mean, you wouldn't necessarily...
13:10Why would you cast Gabby Logan in that role?
13:12I have absolutely no idea.
13:15She's got any expertise in shearing sheep.
13:17Balding, yes.
13:17Balding, yes.
13:19Balding, 100%.
13:20Yeah.
13:20But maybe Balding wasn't around...
13:22Available?
13:23You know, she wasn't available or wasn't quite in the same league as she is now.
13:28Maybe not.
13:28Who else could you have?
13:30Craven.
13:31Can we just do them all by their surnames as well?
13:33Yeah.
13:33John Craven would be good.
13:34Baker.
13:35Yes.
13:36Not Cheryl, Matt.
13:37Yes.
13:38Cheryl would be good though as well.
13:40Trained to be...
13:41I mean, to herd sheep, not shear sheep.
13:46Herd them.
13:46I did try and shear them, but they're quite strong.
13:49Have you ever tried to shear a sheep?
13:50Well, no.
13:51Why would I have tried that?
13:52I don't know.
13:54I live in South London.
13:55You know when you get that call and they say, would you like to learn to be a shepherd?
14:01And it's like, why not?
14:04I've got nothing else to do for the next three months.
14:06And there I was.
14:07Three months of it.
14:08It took three months.
14:11Those strictly lot, I mean, it's easy for them.
14:14Yeah.
14:14They're not standing in a muddy field watching a dog go in one direction and a herd of sheep
14:18go in another.
14:19So you had to build up a relationship with a sheep dog.
14:21Yeah.
14:21I had a dog.
14:23I can't remember her name.
14:25And you had to do all the whistles and stuff?
14:28The trouble is, no, you have to just learn it's come by or way.
14:32And I can't remember which.
14:33Seems quite easy.
14:34Come by, way.
14:35But one's one way and one's the other.
14:37And you know when you're, oh, I was going to say, you know when you're trying to brush
14:40your hair in the mirror.
14:41Well, I do have a vague memory of that.
14:44Or patting your head and rubbing your stomach.
14:45Because what happens is, is you'll shout one command and the dog will go that way.
14:50But you want it to go that.
14:50Anyway, it was absolute carnage.
14:52Who were the other flock stars?
14:54Oh, my gosh.
14:55Tony Blackburn.
14:57Tony Blackburn.
14:59Leslie Joseph.
15:00Wow.
15:02Brendan Cole, strictly.
15:04Yeah.
15:04Is it Brendan Cole?
15:05Yeah, that's a very odd mix.
15:07Kelly from Eternal and someone from Coronation Street.
15:11Oh, okay.
15:11Yeah.
15:11So across the, it was all the, you know.
15:13Someone from the ITV family.
15:15Yeah.
15:15What, and who was the flock star?
15:17Do you remember?
15:18Was it you?
15:18I was very close.
15:19I was robbed.
15:20I came second.
15:22Brendan Cole.
15:22Brendan Cole, yeah.
15:23He's very competitive.
15:24But we had to, we had to herd Indian runner ducks as well.
15:28Now, yes.
15:29Now, you can train them.
15:31You can.
15:32Ducks.
15:33And the reason I know that is that Zippo, you know, Zippo the clown, real name, Martin.
15:40He, he told me this because he had an act where he trained all these ducks.
15:45And you, apparently you can train a duck to do one thing.
15:49Right?
15:49So if you have like 12 different things you want, you have to do a duck for each thing.
15:53Okay.
15:54And as a joke, he used to train, he trained this duck to, so basically he'd have someone
16:00around to his, he lived in a caravan, you know, like a circus caravan.
16:03And he trained this duck.
16:05So if he had a friend around, the duck would walk in and get in the oven.
16:10It's a joke.
16:11It's a joke.
16:12It's brilliant, isn't it?
16:13That is.
16:15Yeah.
16:16Well, I managed to train mine to go over a bridge and jump into a pond.
16:19Fantastic.
16:20Yeah.
16:20Yeah.
16:21I know, right?
16:21Yeah.
16:22Well, it would, it probably would jump into the pond anyway.
16:24Well, even if I was just around the back watching TV.
16:26And to be honest, it probably would go over the bridge as well, if it knew there was a
16:30pond on the other side.
16:31Oh, I thought I was doing so well.
16:34Now, the place in the sun.
16:35So you, you were the original presenter of the place.
16:38It was, yeah.
16:40It was, um, they were looking for somebody that could walk and talk in front of a camera
16:46and had property background.
16:50I was an estate agent for many years.
16:53So I left school at 15 and went straight into work.
16:56So I worked as an estate agent for five years before the bright lights of London lured me
17:01up.
17:02Yeah.
17:02So, um, now the place in the sun, I have a sort of thing about a place in the sun
17:07that
17:07it is basically about two people who have no intention of buying a place in the sun.
17:12Would that be fair?
17:13I would say in the early years, yes.
17:17I think at the very beginning we had people that I think they, they would watch the program
17:21and think, oh, it's an hour long.
17:23So they're flying us out for a week.
17:25We'll work for an hour and then we'll have the rest of the time off.
17:28Um, and I think they were in for quite a rude awakening when they realized.
17:32What does happen then?
17:33So it was, it was, we would start filming from eight in the morning and finish at about
17:37six at night for five days.
17:38And we had to wear the same clothes because in the magic of TV.
17:42Yes.
17:42It's going to look like, yeah.
17:44Yeah.
17:44It's all happening in one day.
17:45So you would go around.
17:46We were quite ripe by day three.
17:49Well, you, yeah, you'd be washing him in the sink, but, um, not the underwear as well.
17:53That could be changed, I suppose.
17:54Well, inside out, just reverse it.
17:57Just reverse it.
17:58And, um, and what, in your experience, how, what was the sort of percentage of people?
18:03We got better towards the end of my run.
18:06Um, we would do about eight out of 10, which was quite good.
18:10Yeah.
18:10I mean, basically what happened towards the end is that we'd take their passports away
18:14and tell them that they weren't allowed home unless they bought one.
18:17It's still on, isn't it?
18:18It is still on.
18:20It's still going.
18:21But presumably with Brexit, you can't even buy a place in the sun.
18:24You can buy them, but you can't stay in them forever now.
18:27And you have to come back quite a lot.
18:30You have to travel backwards and forwards, but it's still, I think when Brexit happened,
18:34I thought, well, that'll be the end of that then.
18:36No more, no more magazine signings, but it is still going.
18:40It's still.
18:41And it's a bit like the Doctor Who's, isn't it?
18:43You, you know, you pass it on to.
18:45Yeah.
18:46I disappear into a Spanish thinker and somebody else comes out.
18:49Walks out.
18:49The other side.
18:50Yeah.
18:50Yeah.
18:50It's a very popular show.
18:52My wife loves it.
18:52Does she?
18:53Even though, you know, watching the reruns, I think they're just doing a lot of repeats.
18:58Yeah.
18:58You know, the prices are ridiculous.
18:59Oh, my gosh.
19:00Yeah.
19:00Half of France for £4.50.
19:02£10,000.
19:02Yeah.
19:03Very good.
19:04Sarah, do you have any final words on Amanda Lamb?
19:08Lamb bought a flat in a medieval town.
19:11Lamb lives in London.
19:12That's it.
19:12You're up to date with Amanda Lamb.
19:14Amanda Lamb.
19:16Everybody loves Amanda Lamb.
19:19Amanda Lamb.
19:21Amanda Lamb.
19:24Everybody loves Amanda Lamb.
19:25Nice to hear it again, isn't it?
19:26Yeah.
19:27Honestly, I have such fond memories.
19:31Thank you, Sarah.
19:32Oh, that's it.
19:33Thank you, Sarah.
19:34Oh, she's dropped you a twix, Amanda.
19:36Oh, that's really kind of her.
19:37Thank you very much.
19:38I'm worried about the chafing.
19:41Well, those trousers do need a little bit.
19:44The truth is the outfit was made for a shorter person.
19:49Harry Hill Show.
19:54Feel your house ain't all that.
19:56People look at your house and pull a face.
19:58Your house a bit of a...
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20:48This episode is sponsored by Shopify.
20:51So difficult starting a business, isn't it, Gary?
20:54Yes, remember that business you tried to start?
20:57Yes.
20:57I mean, you're full of doubts, aren't you?
20:59Will it work?
21:00No, it didn't.
21:01Will people buy it?
21:02No, they didn't.
21:03Can I do it?
21:04No, you can't.
21:05Well, there's no need to worry, because Shopify can help.
21:08Shopify is the commerce platform behind millions of businesses worldwide.
21:12Big brands like Heinz, but also for people just like you.
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21:21from building your online store with ready-made templates to match your style.
21:27To Shopify is built-in AI tools to help you write product descriptions,
21:32enhance images and take care of all the fiddly bits.
21:36It's even got email and social media tools to spread the word about your brand.
21:40So that's a big part of the marketing taken care of.
21:43And if you ever get stuck, Shopify's award-winning support is there to help whenever you need it.
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21:51Turn your big business idea into...
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21:55Sign up for your £1 per month trial and start selling today at shopify.co.uk.
22:01Go to shopify.co.uk.
22:03But not right now.
22:06Later, maybe?
22:08Shopify.co.uk.
22:10Shopify.
22:11Shopify.
22:12Shopify.
22:13Shopify.
22:14.co.uk.
22:16It's time for our theme of the week.
22:24The Mexican Day of the Dead.
22:28The Mexican Day of the Dead.
22:29Do you know much about that, Amanda?
22:30I don't know an awful...
22:32Is it at the same time as Halloween or is it at a different time?
22:35Is it...
22:35So as you can tell by my stuttering, I have no clue about it.
22:39I don't...
22:39I'm intrigued.
22:40I don't know the answer to that.
22:41So we'll ask our expert, Paola Ferregrino.
22:45Am I saying it right?
22:46Hi.
22:47Hi.
22:47Hi, Paola.
22:48Yes, that's right.
22:49And you are the...
22:49You were the director of the Day of the Dead Festival at the Horniman Museum recently.
22:55And you work with Mexi-Brit.
22:57Tell us about Mexi-Brit.
22:58Yeah, sure.
22:59Well, Mexi-Brit is a community of Mexicans in the UK and Mexico lovers.
23:05So we all come together and we create wonderful events and we share all sorts of things related to Mexico.
23:13Okay, great.
23:14Now, tell us about...
23:15I'm going to ask some very basic questions to start because there is a big gap.
23:19You've probably felt that, a huge gap in our knowledge.
23:22What is the Mexican Day of the Dead, Paola?
23:25Well, the Day of the Dead is a celebration of those who have passed or it's originally coming from the
23:34Aztecs.
23:35So they used to celebrate it on a different date of the year.
23:39But when the Spanish came, they just, you know, they just put it into their All Saints Day.
23:47So they put it on the 1st and 2nd of November.
23:51So that's why it's very close to Halloween.
23:54But now we celebrate it on those days.
23:58And we basically welcome those who have passed into our homes, creating a shrine at home.
24:07And we remember those people that we loved and who are gone.
24:12And we offer them food, drink, music, candles, flowers.
24:18And we welcome them back into this world just for those few days in our hearts.
24:24I see.
24:24But you don't dig them up.
24:26No, of course not.
24:27It's just the...
24:29Because you see the imagery and it's sort of skeletons and...
24:34Yes, that's right.
24:35I mean, for us, it's really normal to see that.
24:38And it's a joyful thing.
24:41So I think this is why lately in the UK, in the past few years,
24:45it's gaining more popularity because it's just a very happy way of remembering those loved ones who are gone.
24:53And explaining that to children in that way, I think it's...
24:56For families, it's very attractive.
24:58I think it's a lovely idea.
25:00Because they do say, don't they, that Halloween is the night where the veil between the living and the dead
25:05is at its thinnest.
25:07Is that right? I didn't know that.
25:09So it's easy to sort of jump over.
25:10Would you haunt someone if you could?
25:12I will.
25:13Yeah, it's a long list, actually.
25:16Yeah, yeah, quite a long list.
25:18I'm going to come back and sing my song in your ear if I go before you.
25:22But it's not a haunting thing.
25:24Is it about ghosts or...?
25:27Not at all.
25:28So thanks to Coco, now a lot of families know what's behind Day of the Dead.
25:37And it's a happy celebration.
25:39And so it goes back to the Aztecs.
25:41Now tell me about the Aztecs.
25:43Is that the original sort of...?
25:46Yes, now it's a very regional celebration.
25:51So Mexico is so big.
25:52It has people from all sorts of backgrounds throughout Mexico who adapted in the way their traditions, you know, come
26:03alive.
26:04So mixing that with a Catholicism just has really kind of taken lots of different ways of celebrating the dead
26:14across Mexico.
26:16But in Mexico, if you go to Mexico on Day of the Dead and you go to a graveyard, it's
26:21going to be a party at the graveyard.
26:23So you're going to encounter a live mariachi, people eating food, drinking tequila, you know, just remembering their loved ones
26:33and connecting with them somehow in a joyful way.
26:40So, yeah, it may sound a bit strange.
26:43Well, you can find, yeah, I mean, you can find people drinking tequila in graveyards over here, but not in
26:49quite the same way.
26:49Not in the same way.
26:50But I think it's a really...
26:52Do you know what?
26:53And this is why every day is a school day.
26:54I had no idea that's what the Day of the Dead was all about.
26:57No, me neither.
26:59Well, a bit maybe.
27:00I thought that...
27:01But surely if you've, you know, if you're, for instance, you know, like a close relative had died.
27:07If, God forbid, my original agent had died.
27:14No, if, like, a loved one and you got the funeral and you got the funeral and you're all...
27:19I mean, actually, you're obviously very, very upset and you're sort of crying and you go to the graveyard to
27:24bury them and there's everyone sort of...
27:28Isn't that going to be a little bit upsetting or...
27:32Well, I guess you'd have to, like, time it, wouldn't you?
27:34Just do it the day before or the day after.
27:35Well, I was asking Paola more, really.
27:36Oh, sorry.
27:37I managed to say...
27:37Sorry.
27:38I'm sorry.
27:38Yes.
27:39What would you suggest?
27:40She's the expert.
27:41It's really interesting you say that because in Mexico, we wait a year to celebrate those who have passed.
27:50Oh, really?
27:51So we feel that it's still very painful to talk about them, to celebrate their lives for one year.
27:57So then the following year, you can take part in the Day of the Dead celebrations with that loved one.
28:04And I think maybe it's because of what you say.
28:07Yeah.
28:07It's still too deep.
28:08Too raw.
28:09Yeah.
28:09You're not ready yet.
28:10Yeah.
28:10I didn't know that either.
28:12So when someone dies in Mexico, is it sort of direct to cremation type of thing?
28:19Just off?
28:20Or do you store the body for a year or...?
28:22No, no, no way.
28:23No way.
28:24Yeah.
28:24Cremation or a graveyard.
28:26Yes.
28:27And then...
28:27Straight away.
28:28But you don't have like a big sort of wake or funeral.
28:31You wait a year.
28:32It really depends on the family.
28:35They have a funeral.
28:37But then, as I say, you don't celebrate their life in the offering for Day of the Dead until the
28:43year after.
28:44I see.
28:44I see.
28:45Right.
28:45Yeah.
28:46It's a bit like...
28:47I mean, I think I've had a...
28:49You know, there's a kind of tradition in showbiz where, you know, you have a funeral and then maybe six
28:55months, a year later, you have a memorial.
28:58And I think there is a huge difference between a funeral, which is obviously a very sad thing, and a
29:04memorial, which is, you know, basically celebrating in a way that you, you know, what a year gives you, basically,
29:10to sort of come to terms with it.
29:12Yeah, gives you time to just...
29:13Yeah.
29:13Similar sort of thing.
29:14So, you do this...
29:16Am I...
29:17This is kind of a...
29:18Have I got this wrong?
29:19But in my mind's eye, there's sort of a procession.
29:23Is there a procession going on in this Day of the Dead thing, or...
29:26You're thinking of James Bond.
29:28Am I thinking of James Bond?
29:29So, in the last few years, since 007 movie had a very cool Mexican Day of the Dead parade on
29:40it, it's just become very popular across Mexico,
29:43especially in Mexico City.
29:44There's a huge parade that you can go see.
29:47So, at the festivals, we decided, here in the UK, we decided to join in and create a procession so
29:55people can just, you know, join in behind it with the children.
30:01We have live music and just beautiful people with their face painted and Mexican dresses.
30:09So, at the Horniman, we did a procession across the gardens, dancing and singing, and then we got to the
30:17stage, the bandstand, and, you know, there was more music.
30:20And you say you do these offerings, the food and drink sort of offerings to the dead.
30:25What happens to that food?
30:27Yeah, that's right.
30:28Well, it doesn't get eaten because it stays there for a few days, so then it gets thrown away.
30:35And, funnily enough, at the Horniman, we couldn't put any real food out because of the...
30:40Local people.
30:41...strange creatures.
30:42Other creatures, yeah.
30:43All the local people.
30:46So, we had to put fake food.
30:48Fake food, yeah.
30:48Yeah.
30:49If we wanted to go and see the Mexican Day of the Dead, you say there's this procession in...
30:55Is that worth...
30:56That's worth the trip, I guess.
30:58Oh, definitely.
30:59Yeah.
30:59It's huge now.
31:00So, when would we go?
31:02We'd go on the...
31:03It's fantastic.
31:03You'd go on the sort of end of October and was sort of kind of a couple of days.
31:09Yep, end of October.
31:11And you can actually also throw yourself into places like Oaxaca or Chiapas that you can still feel what indigenous
31:21people celebrate with their loved ones.
31:25And it's really powerful.
31:26And it's, you know, very, very touching.
31:29I've thrown myself out of a couple of Oaxacas before.
31:32What is a Oaxaca?
31:33Oaxaca's a Mexican restaurant.
31:34Their tequila's really good.
31:37I was going to ask a question.
31:38Yes, I used to work there.
31:39I don't know why I'm putting my hands up like I'm in school.
31:42But if, when you die, can you ask for a certain meal to be left out?
31:49I'd have pasta.
31:50Yeah.
31:50I'd probably have...
31:51I'd like some pasta and a Chianti.
31:53Can you arrange that?
31:54What would you have?
31:54Can you arrange that, please, for Amanda?
31:57I'd have pasta.
31:58What would you have?
31:58I'd probably just have Nando's.
32:00Yeah.
32:01Easy.
32:02Everyone likes it.
32:04It's Mexican, isn't it?
32:06Nando's?
32:07Sounds Mexican.
32:09Peri-peri chicken.
32:10I think it...
32:11I don't know.
32:11But, yeah.
32:12Foxes would have a field day.
32:14You know what, Paola?
32:15The first gig I ever did...
32:17Was in Nando's?
32:18No, it was in a Mexican restaurant in Streatham.
32:21Do you know that one?
32:22The Aztec.
32:23Really?
32:23Yeah, it doesn't...
32:24Not a huge imagination.
32:25Yes, I do.
32:25Oh, my God.
32:26The Aztec.
32:26Yeah.
32:27Yeah, that was me up there.
32:28Got a free meal.
32:30Good.
32:31Well...
32:32And the rest is history.
32:35Is there anything further we need to know, Paola, do you think?
32:38If we wanted to learn more about this, is there a website we can go to?
32:42Yes, we have a website, mexerbrit.co.uk.
32:45We organise a festival every year that you can join in.
32:51And we have an Instagram account and we share our traditions on there.
32:56And I think a lot of British people have joined into the celebrations and they always send us photos of
33:03their offerings at home and things.
33:05And that makes me really happy to see that, you know, people find a good way to connect with their
33:13loved ones who are gone.
33:15So, that's really nice.
33:16Thank you, Paola.
33:25It's time to play Name the Seed.
33:27Name the Seed.
33:34Amanda.
33:35Amanda, what?
33:37You get a bit creepy.
33:39Now, Amanda, what do you like with gardening and seeds and stuff?
33:44I'm all right with them.
33:45Horticulture.
33:46I'm quite...
33:46I am quite green-fingered.
33:49Good.
33:49Okay.
33:50But that's...
33:51But if you're going to ask...
33:52Obviously, I think the clue's in the title, isn't it?
33:55When was the last time you planted a seed?
33:57I tried a sunflower seed this year.
34:00Didn't really have much success.
34:01Okay.
34:02That's fairly basic.
34:03Okay.
34:03Well, now I would have thought...
34:05Please, could I have a sunflower seed placed on there?
34:08It's completely random.
34:09Okay.
34:10I've got a sealed bag here.
34:11I'm going to open that up.
34:13And inside there, sealed within that bag is a box and it contains how many seeds?
34:18Can you see that?
34:18Well, there's one less because one's just dropped down.
34:20You're all over the place.
34:22Name the seed.
34:23Okay.
34:24Now, how many seeds can you...
34:25Oh, 8,000.
34:278,000 seeds.
34:28Okay.
34:29I'm going to take one randomly and I'm going to place the seed on the seed display unit.
34:36And it's your job to...
34:37Is this the seed display unit?
34:39It is, yeah.
34:40Wow.
34:40There's no expense spared with this, is there?
34:43Really?
34:43Yeah.
34:44I did make it.
34:45It's basically a car aerial and a battery.
34:47X.
34:49If you want to make one at home.
34:51Now, I'm going to place that on there.
34:54All right.
34:55Now, you...
34:56The platform will rise up.
34:59And you have the time it takes to come to the top and back down to name the seed.
35:03Or, if you're not happy with that seed, you have the option to change the seed.
35:07Oh, gosh.
35:08It's like...
35:08What was that thing that Bruce used to do?
35:10Higher or lower?
35:12It's not like that.
35:13Isn't it?
35:14It's not like that.
35:15I can't even see that seed.
35:17It's so small.
35:19This is why it has to rise up.
35:20Okay.
35:21Okay.
35:21Are you ready to play Name the Seed?
35:24Yes.
35:25Okay.
35:31What are you...
35:34I think...
35:35What are you seeing?
35:36I think it's...
35:36Hang on.
35:37What are you seeing?
35:39Describe what you're seeing to the ladies and gentlemen at home.
35:41Oh, yes.
35:42It's a podcast, isn't it?
35:43It's a small, tiny, black seed that is about...
35:47Is it a black seed?
35:48Is it black?
35:49Well, I might...
35:50Can I test soon?
35:51It looks like a flea that's died.
35:56It's about the same size as a flea.
35:59Is it brown or is it...
36:01Can you poke it back up?
36:02I can't really see.
36:03Well, exactly.
36:03Why have we gone for such a...
36:05Don't touch the control unit, please.
36:08Because that's how things get broken.
36:09Yes, it's a very dark brown.
36:11It's dark brown.
36:12It looks like a dead flea.
36:13Are you happy with that?
36:14See, do you want to change this?
36:14No, I think I need to stick with that.
36:16Okay.
36:18My gut instinct is it's either a Nigella seed...
36:21I don't know what that is...
36:22Or a poppy seed.
36:25You're saying...
36:26You get that a lot, poppy seed.
36:27Do you?
36:28Yeah, I think...
36:31It's not either of those.
36:33Is it a dead flea?
36:34For those people watching at home
36:35who don't want to know what the seed is,
36:37turn away now.
36:39You'll be flashing that up there.
36:41Okay.
36:43I'm going to give you the seed.
36:44I want you to plant that seed.
36:46When it comes up, you'll find out
36:47what the name of that seed is.
36:49That was Name the Seed.
36:50Wow.
36:52Name the seed...
36:56Sure, it's not a flea?
36:58It's not a flea, it's a seed.
37:02Gary's Joke Corner.
37:04It's time for Gary's Joke Corner.
37:06As you know, Amanda,
37:07I'm handing the business over to my son, Gary.
37:10Hello, Amanda.
37:11It's lovely to see you.
37:11It's very lovely to meet you, Gary.
37:13A big fan of...
37:15You deserve this house.
37:17You deserve it.
37:19Big fan of that.
37:21And Gary's going to take over the business,
37:23but he does need some jokes.
37:25Okay.
37:25Do you have a joke that Gary might be able to...
37:27I do.
37:27Gary, would you like to hear my joke?
37:29I'd love to, yes.
37:30What do you call a blind stag?
37:33I don't know.
37:34What do you call a blind stag?
37:36No idea.
37:38It's not...
37:39It's a two-part one, though, Gary.
37:40I don't think that's the correct set-up for that.
37:42But if I say what you call a deer...
37:44With no eyes, it is.
37:46Yeah, but it's the same thing.
37:47Not blind.
37:48Well, you can be blind,
37:49but you can have eyes
37:50so you can't see out of them.
37:52Sorry, it's Gary taking this
37:54or are you taking it?
37:55Sorry, this is...
37:56Sorry, Gary.
37:57Gary.
37:58Yeah, I know.
37:59I just said that about the eyes.
38:00But if I...
38:01Okay.
38:01One idea.
38:02No, what's that one?
38:03Anyway.
38:04Okay, let's try again.
38:05Let's rewind and try again.
38:06Gary, I have a joke for you.
38:09Oh, yes.
38:09Do you like my joke?
38:10I'd love to hear it.
38:11What's it about?
38:12It's about an animal
38:13that you find in the park
38:15or a forest
38:18or a zoo.
38:19Oh, what do you mean?
38:21Like a sort of...
38:22Perhaps a stag
38:23or something like that.
38:24What do you call a stag
38:25with no eyes?
38:25No idea.
38:26It doesn't work.
38:27What do you call a deer...
38:30What do you call a stag?
38:31It doesn't work
38:32if you say it like this.
38:33What do you call a deer
38:35with no eyes?
38:37No idea.
38:38Exactly.
38:38What do you call a deer
38:40with no eyes
38:41and no legs?
38:43No idea.
38:44No idea.
38:45Still no idea.
38:49She's on fire, Daddy.
38:51She's on fire.
38:53That's all I've got, I'm afraid.
38:54That's very good.
38:55That's great.
38:56It was terrible.
38:57It was absolutely...
38:57The fact that you had to tell me
38:58how to say the...
38:59It's a way I tell him.
39:00It's a way I tell him.
39:01It's not the best.
39:03Now, Gary,
39:03have you got a joke for us?
39:04Yes, Daddy, I have.
39:07Don't make that noise, Gary.
39:08It limits your appeal,
39:09I've told you.
39:10I should not have eaten
39:10that cheese before I went to bed.
39:12Go on, Gary,
39:13give me a joke.
39:13Daddy, Daddy, Daddy.
39:14I was playing the game
39:16where you build a tower
39:17of wooden batons.
39:19Yes, I know that game.
39:20And you take it in turns
39:22to remove one of the wooden batons
39:24and place it on top of the tower.
39:26I think we know
39:27what you're talking about.
39:28Yes, I came up
39:29with a special blend of oils
39:31that enabled
39:31the smooth removal
39:33of the wooden batons
39:34without toppling the tower.
39:37Jenga fluid.
39:38Now I always walk like this.
39:42Not sure about that one.
39:43That's the sound that tells me
39:45we've come to the end
39:46of the pod scarf.
39:48There are lots of ways
39:49to get in touch.
39:50You can send an email
39:51to podcast
39:52at harryhill.co.uk.
39:54You could write a letter
39:55or you could simply bang
39:56on the pipes in your cell.
39:58So, oh,
39:59have you got one coming through?
40:01Yes, hello.
40:02OK, this is from
40:03A-Wing in Wandsworth Prison.
40:05Yes.
40:06No, TV Burp isn't coming back,
40:07I'm afraid.
40:08No.
40:10That's as maybe,
40:11but I'm doing this now.
40:14So all the remains
40:15is to thank our expert,
40:16Paola Ferregrino
40:18from MexiBrit
40:19and, of course,
40:20our special guest,
40:21Amanda Lamb.
40:25Butterfly in blue jeans
40:28Hamster in a ship on top
40:31Puppy in a poncho
40:35Fluffy duckling with a bob
40:37Oh, that's a voice, isn't it?
40:39Butterfly in blue jeans
40:42These are the things
40:44Of our dreams
40:46Of our dreams
40:46Oh, night mares
40:47Our dreams
40:47All night mares
40:49These are the things
40:50Good night, everyone.
40:52Thanks for watching.
40:53See you next time.
40:55Of our dreams
40:58Oh, you can't cut
41:04Fancy in a hamster costume
41:11Mmm, lovely juicy nachos
41:19It's a happy
41:22Harry Hill show
41:24Harry Hill show
41:25It's a happy
41:28Harry Hill show
41:30Harry Hill show
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