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When you think of Australian cultural icons – your head might jump to Kylie, or AC/DC, or even Crocodile Dundee.

But it’s Aussie children’s group The Wiggles that continues to take the world by storm, with their colourful uniforms, catchy songs and unique understanding of early childhood education.

The hearts of parents and children alike broke last week, when the phenomenally popular Yellow Wiggle (aka Emma Watkins), announced she was stepping back after more than a decade, to spend more time on her PhD and with her family.

Emma Watkins has been the Yellow Wiggle for almost a decade
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Emma Watkins has been the Yellow Wiggle for almost a decade

Watkins, who was the first female member of The Wiggles, will be replaced in the yellow skivvy by 15-year-old Tsehay Hawkins – who will not only be the youngest ever Wiggle, but also the first black member of the group.

It comes as The Wiggles attempts to diversify its ranks to make it more representative not only of Australia, but of the world.

“I feel quite bittersweet about everything,” Watkins told Sky News on a Zoom call from Sydney. “I really will miss everybody – all the fans particularly because when we’re on the road, and we’re travelling, we get to see children and families when we perform.

“I feel a little bit more relaxed now that people will still be able to connect with whatever incarnation of The Wiggles that they used to watch or are currently watching. And now with this introduction of Tsehay, we’re so lucky to have her be part of our cast – and so to have her continue this musical adventure on in the yellow skivvy is a real treat.”

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Hawkins, a teenage dance champion who told Sky News that producers reached out on social media to see if she would audition for the group, said she was initially nervous about backlash for stepping into the yellow jersey.

Tsehay Hawkins will join the main cast of The Wiggles
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Tsehay Hawkins will join the main cast of The Wiggles

“I expected some negative comments,” she said.

“But I really didn’t get that much, and it was really all supportive. People from different communities were messaging me, like the adoptive community, the African community, the Latino community – they were all writing to me and letting me know how they’re happy that they have representation on the screen.

“I got such a good reaction from people saying they’re excited to see the new hip-hop side, and it’s really exciting to see how they’re embracing it.”

Before being announced as a main cast member, Hawkins was a Wiggly Dancer, and would tour with the group and take part in show recordings.

She says looking out on to an audience would mean seeing a sea of Watkins’ signature yellow bows, which made her aware of her predecessor’s popularity.

“She did so well, and she inspired so many people. So the pressure has somehow lifted because if Emma could do it, I felt like I can do what Emma did.

“But yeah, it definitely is a bit of pressure with being the first person of colour. But I feel like I can bring my own version and that people will embrace it.”

Tsehay Hawkins says she grew up watching The Wiggles
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Tsehay Hawkins says she grew up watching The Wiggles

Amid an ever-changing world, cultural institutions are finding themselves discussing ways of diversifying and becoming more progressive to reflect the wider populations – and The Wiggles are no different.

What started in the early 90s with four men, has now developed into a gender and racially diverse project.

“I think [the group] has moved on,” Watkins explained. “I think Australia still has time to be more aware of our community, even though we are a very multicultural and a very new country, but I think there’s still a long way to go.

“Everyone’s got room for improvement. So, here and upwards – I hope that we can continue to make sure that our content is really inclusive and progressive and accessible.”

Hawkins added: “Everyone’s become very open to identifying the need for more inclusivity and diversity. There’s always room for improvement.

“I think it’s just a stepping stone, and I’m very excited to be a part of that stepping stone.”

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So what’s the secret to running the world’s most popular group of children’s performers for three decades?

Watkins says it’s a mixture of the understanding of early childhood development and the group’s laid-back Aussie attitude.

“We’re able to connect with the children where it’s not so overexcited, but it is obviously a very exciting and positive environment,” she said.

“We make sure that we are respecting our audience and talking to them in the way that they would like to interact with us as like fellow play friends.

“When I joined, I think some children thought that I was mum, or they related to me as mum – but we don’t really carry that role, obviously, as we don’t work as hard as mums.

“But it’s about creating a really positive and fun moment of escape, and with that comes music and dance.”

For 15-year-old Hawkins, who wasn’t even born when the group first formed, she says as a child she was drawn to the bright colours, infectious energy and repetitive music.

I just loved The Wiggles,” she said, adding: “I think every little kid will.

“There’s always aspects of music that every kid loves. So when everyone grew up to it, all my friends did, my parents, friends, would listen to them on repeat with their kids, and everyone just knows The Wiggles is the iconic children’s group that’s been there for years.”

The Wiggles can be found on Netflix, and will be heading out on tour next year, beginning in North America.

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Man arrested after death of Gogglebox star George Gilbey is released under investigation

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Man arrested after death of Gogglebox star George Gilbey is released under investigation

A man arrested in connection with the death of Gogglebox star George Gilbey has been released under investigation.

The man, who is in his 40s, was arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with Gilbey’s death on Thursday.

The 40-year-old star reportedly died following an accident at work on Wednesday.

Essex Police said: “As part of our ongoing investigation into the death of a man in Campfield Road, Shoebury, on Wednesday 27 March, a man aged in his 40s from the Witham area was arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.

“He has now been released under investigation.

“This is a joint investigation with the Health and Safety Executive and our enquiries are ongoing.”

Police previously said they were called to an incident in Shoebury at around 10am on Wednesday after “a man who was working at height had fallen and sustained an injury”.

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Gilbey was best known for appearing on the Channel 4 show alongside his mother Linda McGarry and stepfather Pete McGarry, who died in 2021 aged 71.

George Gilbey. Pic: Shutterstock
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Reality star Gilbey. Pic: Shutterstock

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The family first appeared on the second series of Gogglebox in 2013 but were dropped the following year when the reality star signed up for the 14th series of Celebrity Big Brother in 2014, reaching the final.

Gilbey appeared on the Channel 5 version of the show alongside other famous faces including The Hills star Stephanie Pratt and American actor Gary Busey, who won the series.

The family later returned to Gogglebox and a spokesperson for the award-winning programme said: “George was part of the Gogglebox family for eight series alongside his mum Linda and stepdad Pete.

“Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with Linda and George’s family and friends at this very sad time. The family has asked for privacy.”

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Bill Nighy on style, social media and holy socks: ‘I can’t operate in the wrong kind of trousers’

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Bill Nighy on style, social media and holy socks: 'I can't operate in the wrong kind of trousers'

Bill Nighy is a man of many talents – but he knows his limitations – most specifically in the trouser department.

The 74-year-old actor tells Sky News he has very clear sartorial demands when it comes to his acting rider.

“It’s odd, people used to say: ‘There’s a significant lack of classical work on your CV’. And I would say something like: ‘The reason is, I can’t operate in those kind of trousers,’ which is a joke, but it’s also kind of true.

“If you want me at my best, put me in a decent lounge suit. It’s a stupid thing for an actor to say, but art does reflect life.”

And he’s not afraid to bring his own life quite literally into his films, adding: “If it’s a contemporary film and it’s an independent film and they haven’t got a lot of money, I just say, ‘Come to my flat,’ and I open the wardrobe and they can take out whatever they want for that movie. So, the two things do blend.”

He’s currently starring in underdog sports drama The Beautiful Game, playing a retired football talent scout coaching England’s team in the Homeless World Cup.

Founded in 2001, the real-life international tournament that inspired the movie now involves over 70 countries and has transformed the lives of more than one million homeless people.

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Former Homeless World Cup players – who are no longer homeless – feature in the film, playing team members from other countries, which Nighy calls “a wonderful piece of symmetry”.

He of course wore a suit and tie for the majority of the film, despite it being shot in Rome during a heatwave. Scorching weather aside, he says: “It was quite fun to stand on the touchline and scream.”

Pic: Netflix
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Nighy as football talent scout Mal in The Beautiful Game. Pic: Netflix

While Nighy may not necessarily look the part of a stereotypical football coach, he does work on his fitness, training three times a week. It’s something he insists he won’t be “winning any prizes for”, and he certainly won’t be sharing snaps of his workouts on Instagram.

‘My iPhone doesn’t see a lot of action’

He explains: “I’ve never been on social media. I’m lucky in that regard because I’m of an age where I can just about get away with it.

“I nearly went on it. I got very close to, I think it was Instagram, but I didn’t in the end make that jump.

“I don’t have a laptop. I mean, I’m carrying a computer in my pocket, obviously, like everybody else, but I’ve never had a computer. I’ve never owned one, again because I’m fortunate. I don’t need one for anything. I’ve got an iPhone, but there’s not a lot of action on it apart from, you know, the obvious.”

I can only guess ‘the obvious’ is phoning his nearest and dearest, including his daughter and friends. Nighy keeps his romantic dealings close to his chest, and since splitting with his partner of 26 years, he hasn’t been publicly linked to anyone new – either in the public eye or out.

Nighy and Anna Wintour at the Met Gala last year. Pic: Reuters
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Nighy with friend Anna Wintour at the Met Gala last year. Pic: Reuters

As one of Britain’s most recognisable actors, he’s humble in his appraisal of his five decade career spanning theatre, TV and film – reaching to Hollywood and back.

‘I didn’t expect acting to last’

“I don’t know what I’m cut out to be, but it probably isn’t an actor, although I don’t know if anybody is. I think we all have to bend ourselves out of shape to do whatever it is we do.

“I didn’t expect to be an actor. I didn’t expect when I became an actor that it would last very long. I didn’t have a Plan B, it was all basically out of necessity.

“I flunked school, so I didn’t have any qualifications for anything, and I didn’t have a Plan B, so I had no safety net. But, you know, it gradually worked out.”

With two BAFTAs, a Golden Globe and Teen Choice Award (yes really) to name but a few of his accolades, he’s being modest.

And his acting career is about to take a step into the unknown, with his first big horror role in First Omen coming to the screen next month.

Nighy as Cardinal Lawrence in The First Omen. Pic: 20th Century Studios
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Nighy as Cardinal Lawrence in The First Omen. Pic: Disney/20th Century Studios

A prequel to the 1976 original, it returns to the very beginning of the story, with Nighy warning it’s not a film for the feint hearted: “The early signs suggest that it is truly horrible.”

Red satin and holy socks

He does have a wide experience of otherworldly roles, if not out and out horror. Nighy lists a few. “In Shaun Of The Dead I was a werewolf. Yeah, I was a werewolf.”

(Nighy was actually a zombie, but the movie was filmed 20 years ago, and who’s splitting hairs?)

He goes on: “And I’ve been a vampire several times. And I’ve been a squid. If you count animations, I’ve been a rattle snake with a machine gun in its tail. But they’re not straight horror. [First Omen] is really my first horror movie, like what you’d call straight horror. So, it is a departure.”

It goes without saying he was well suited and booted for the role.

“I was dressed by the Vatican tailor. So, you can see I look my best if you’re going to be a priest. And I’m drenched in red satin”.

Rumour has it he was given holy socks from the Vatican shop as part of his costume. Blessed beyond doubt.

Nighy ‘can’t stand’ his own films

He says it “will frighten the life” out of its viewers, adding “a few people I’ve met who’ve seen it and who are horror freaks were stunned. One journalist actually said [they were] traumatised.”

But he doesn’t have to worry about nightmares himself. “I’ve never seen it and I’m never going to see it because I don’t watch films I’m in because I can’t stand it.”

Pic: Netflix
Image:
Pic: Netflix

Meanwhile, his latest offering, The Beautiful Game, is a very different prospect, crafted to leave the viewer uplifted rather than in pieces.

Nighy says it’s a feelgood nostalgia that takes him right back to his childhood. “The deal was when I was a kid, you went, you paid some money, you went to the cinema, and you came out feeling a bit better than you did when you went in. This is what [The Beautiful Game] is.”

The Beautiful Game is streaming now on Netflix, and The First Omen will be in cinemas from 5 April.

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Song lyrics have become angrier and more repetitive since the 80s, study finds

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Song lyrics have become angrier and more repetitive since the 80s, study finds

Song lyrics have become angrier and more repetitive over the past four decades, a study has found.

Lyrics in rock, rap, country, pop, and R&B songs have also become simpler and more personal, according to research published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Rap songs showed the strongest increase in anger and negative emotions, while country songs had the lowest, the researchers said.

Eva Zangerle, an assistant professor at the University of Innsbruck’s department of computer science in Austria, said anger-related words may have become more common because music “reflects more general changes in society and culture”.

Prof Zangerle and her colleagues analysed the lyrics of 12,000 English-language songs released between 1980 and 2020, as well as the page views of the lyrics on online platform Genius.

They found lyrics have become simpler and easier to understand over time, while also becoming more emotional and personal.

Analysis also showed the number of different words used within songs has decreased, particularly among rap and rock songs.

The team speculated this may be because of changes in how music is enjoyed, such as increases in songs being used as background music.

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Prof Zangerle said: “In the last 40 years, we have witnessed a change from buying records in the store to being able to choose from hundreds of millions of songs on streaming platforms on the phone.

“This has also changed the way music is consumed.”

By analysing the page views on Genius, the team found older rock songs were viewed more than newer ones, but the reverse was true for country songs. They said it could indicate rock listeners prefer lyrics from older songs, while country listeners may prefer those from newer songs.

Prof Zangerle gave Bruce Springsteen’s 1973 song Spirit In The Night as a good example of complex songwriting, while she said Miley Cyrus’s 2019 hit Slide Away has simpler and repetitive lyrics.

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