Oh dear The Wiggles have got themselves into a pickle. They are not playing nice with their friend and need to take some time out in the naughty corner for a while.
My relationship with The Wiggles was a long one beginning at Selina’s, Coogee Bay Hotel in the late 80’s – they were the Cockroaches back then and it wasn’t the pre-school set bopping out.
Fast forward a decade and it’s another late night with the boys – this time it’s a non-sleeping child that will only stop screaming when I put the Wiggles video on. This was a behaviour that continued for months – waking up at 2 am screaming for The Wiggles. (Do not lecture me on reinforcing bad behaviour and making a rod for my own back – I was a sleep deprived, first time mum with an absent husband – nothing I did was rational). Even now, all these years later the opening bars of Fruit Salad can bring me out in a nervous rash.
I comforted myself with the fact at least Anthony was still cute, although perhaps not as sexy now his moves revolved around that whole fast finger shaking thing.
I shelled out for tickets to a concert in Brisbane once, Hippie Child proceeded to the mosh pit and fell asleep in front of a gigantic speaker. Obviously the conditioning from all those mid-dawn video sessions had kicked in.
Now what have the boys done to get themselves into trouble? Well five years ago original Yellow Wiggle, Greg Page, had to leave the group due to illness. Back-up singer, Sam Moran, got the gig of his life when he was handed the yellow skivvy (see there was the first mistake – they should have given him his own colour – but that would have really screwed up the marketing stuff that was already printed). Now Greg’s better and is reclaiming the skivvy. Trouble is nobody warned Sam about this, he apparently only found out when he was called to a meeting and handed his redundancy cheque (rumoured to be $60,000).
Obviously The Wiggles are used to very happy, clappy interviews, come on, a few jokes, a wave to all the kiddies at home, sing a song and off they go.
It all went horribly wrong yesterday on The Today Show.
I suppose it’s hard to be prepared for crisis PR when you don’t know you’ve got a crisis.
The band is glad to have their buddy back and it’s a case of Sam who?
See it doesn’t go with the image guys. We thought friendships mattered in Wiggle World. Kids are taught to care about the people in their lives it didn’t seem like you cared about Sam.
Now I don’t like to criticise because you were such a part of my family for a long time, an endless loop of time actually, replayed over and over again to the point our videos literally wore out. I know you are nice guys. But given the money you’ve made out of being the Wiggles couldn’t you have offered Sam an alternative – help him record a solo album – get him a gig on a TV show. Something that didn’t sound like you just weren’t his friend any more?
my kids loved the wiggles, too! i know “fruit salad”! however, we never played it in the middle of the night! maybe that’s why you’re so creative? you had all that interesting musical influence during those key parenting years. well, good luck to them. i’m sorry to hear their bad news. couldn’t they just get a different colored shirt and keep going – all of them together? joy to you!
Green or orange surely one of those could have got a run.
The Wiggles were a big part of my life to, my daughter (now nearly 19) used to watch their video time and time again during the day…even my parents couldn’t get the songs out of their heads at that time! I thought it was so sad when Greg couldn’t continue due to bad health and in my opinion he still doesn’t look well enough to have the energy required for the amount of touring the Wiggles do…I love them but they do come across as somewhat naive.
I know he’s taking on a big job again. It’s lovely he can come back but they just were a little silly in their handling of the whole thing.
Funny thing is that I think us parents are all much more upset about this than the kids themselves are. They were just all so wholesome, and now, some 15 years or so on, we have realised that they actually are just human. Shame though.
Definitely think it’s the mum’s upset about this – I’m just fascinated that they was so unprepared! It’s interesting that they had no idea there would be any reaction – I think they were forgetting that people do get attached to performers.
I just learned about this yellow Wiggle situation a few weeks ago – the fact that it was one guy, but was then another – can’t believe it blew up like this!
Neither can the Wiggles.
Oh Dear…what about Sam? (awkward silence). I really never took to him to be honest as a legitimate Wiggles member but I agree they should have handled the whole situation better, it’s a pretty abysmal affair – here’s 60 grand thanks for the last 5 years, bye. I was at Uni in Newcastle when the Cockroaches were doing the pubs and clubs but Coogee was my old stomping ground( I lived on Brooke Street). I have lived and breathed The Wiggles through early child care education and children of my own. My son once cried when they wouldn’t let him sit in the Big Red Car at Australia Zoo ( so, being the rebels that we are, we snuck him in when no one was looking!)
My husband lived on Coogee Bay Road and I was at Randwick and then Waverley for 12 years. I get the feeling the Wiggles didn’t take to Sam either.