This is a global player original podcast.

Veal Cumming.

So here we are once again for your midweek chippy tea, two slices of square sausage composten and smart.

Your deep fried podcast pairing, ready as always to make your arteries harder than ever.

As is so often the case, Robert Dennearly is joining us online from his Vegas retreat where he's packing all of his worldly belongings for a trip home for a new gig very soon.

And by worldly belongings, three pairs of pants in every Celtics trip home and away since 1984.

He's sprinkling his stardust in the school on making magic, baby.

Hello, Mr.

Maltese.

Good morning, Martin.

How are you, Paul?

I'm very.

I'm a bit.

I'm glad I'm not there today because I'll let you do the thingy, but this is a housewives.

Yeah, this, There's a lot of handsome Celtic middle aged going on in there.

It's a handsome podcast.

My view, like even my view, I'm slightly turned on.

Before we start today, how long has it been since you fell out your scratcher this morning and put the laptop on?

Oh, no, mate, I've been up because it was tomorrow.

I've been up.

I'm on the school runs in the morning.

Mornings is my time to shine.

But I thought I was doing all of it and then so I wake Tiana didn't get she's away to fuck.

She's away to Atlanta, then Brazil, then San Francisco.

You're not in any of those city soons, are you?

You got in there first.

Yeah, I meant to say to you, man, I'll give you a shout from Brazil.

Anyway.

Yeah, this time tomorrow I'll be fucking flying about the strip on a helicopter.

So, yeah, the next couple of weeks are going to be wild, but I'm excited.

Yeah, well, we've got a man today who can give you some advice on what you're about to do because I'm joining you today from our Manchester studio.

Because I like to hang about here, sleeping in hotel sheets, soaked in the DNA of misfiring media personalities living away from their families.

But there is nothing misfiring about our guest today.

The podcast is no stranger to sexy Welsh men.

Look no further than the voice of Deliveroo.

Owen Teal is an example with his extraordinary colonoscopy escapades.

But today we bring you TV royalty as Prince Charming of the panto circuit, A violin playing star has Strictly come dancing, the 31st Blue Peter presenter, and if the Internet is to believe, a former bank clerk Telly salesman and labourer on a building site is the star of BBC Morning Live, our dear pal from Wales, Gethin Jones.

Hello, Gethin.

Yes, big man.

You had some bastard, you.

I was genuinely wondering what I just walked into then.

You two were talking about San Francisco and Brazil.

I thought, what is this?

And then I realized I was here.

I've made it go on, be honest.

Who pulled out?

Honestly, Guess who dropped out last minute?

Nobody.

This is the thing now.

I kind of live in Manchester.

I said to Martin, Luke, I'll ask Geth.

Because, Martin, you're about to go on a bit of a mad documentary, right, for two weeks.

Yeah, I'm starting that, but I'm filming the ITV thing at the same time, so, like, I'm running back and forth between Vegas and London.

So it's.

It's going to be a wild time.

Because the reason I mention it, right, Martin, is because you're going to be doing some crazy stuff.

I don't.

I don't know if you can tell us the details, but, Gethian, when you were doing Blue Peter, you got to do some of the best stuff, didn't you?

Best job in the world.

Just the best job in the world.

See where that.

Get how this always fascinates me in terms of, like, people go, you kind of grow up, you want to be.

Everybody's different.

I want to be a footballer, but actor, singer, how do you go?

I want to be a presenter.

Is that what you wanted to be?

No, I didn't.

I wanted to be a fireman.

Did you?

Yeah.

Or Shaken Stevens.

I've got to say, it's a fireman Sam.

Yes.

Or in Welsh, it's Sam Tam.

Fireman Sam is a Welshman, ain't he?

Yeah, he is Welsh.

After tonopandy.

Yeah, I do.

And who's that wee prick, Norm?

Somebody needs to get a handle on him, man.

Sake, man.

Careful.

Definitely be related to him.

Is that the dog or the cat or is that a different shirt?

The wee ginger guy.

The wee ginger guy gets trouble all the time.

Norm, what's that we dick doing now?

Probably better than us.

He's.

He's the doctor of morning life.

Yeah.

I remember you used to watch it as a wee guy.

You went, oh, this is good.

Fireman Sam's on again.

When you start watching it as a.

As a dad, where you're.

Sudden you're going, somebody needs to get a grip of this way.

He's running riot.

Yeah.

Starting fires and avalanches and getting stuck at sea all over the place.

I Could cope with any.

Well, it inspired me.

Yeah.

And.

And I wanted to be Shaken Stevens, although that role had been taken.

I actually wrote.

This is a bit of a dark start, but I actually wrote to Jimmy Savile to see if I could make Shaking Stevens.

But.

Yeah, never made it.

Did he write back?

Didn't.

Didn't hear anything back.

I don't know.

You want to be a farming gift because, you know, rugby was your thing as well, wasn't it?

Kind of, yeah.

But then I started in the Welsh language.

I didn't.

To be honest, I had no plans of being on tv.

I thought it was this weird.

I don't know if you thought the same, but I just thought it was this weird, magical box in the corner of the room and it was like a different world that I would never live in.

Yeah.

And then I went.

I was working on the S4C viewers hotline, Guveren Gwilwood Esperek, taking complaints about shows on S4C, but norm.

About Norm and others.

And fast forward, I suppose.

Then I started sort of creating the complaints by being on telly.

But I was approached.

Have you ever thought about it?

No.

Went for this job on this pop show.

Didn't get it.

Didn't get it.

The guy who got it didn't want it.

And then I ended up doing it with Sarah Elgan.

Yeah.

It is a bit of rugby now.

Yeah.

And Alex Jones.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And started on my 24th birthday with those two on a pop show called Pop D.

And Steve Jones was doing the English version upstairs called the Pop Factory.

Yeah.

And ever since then, everyone thinks we're the same person.

I was gonna do.

You get confused.

There's a lot of people that.

A lot of people sort of.

Even now, you sort of go.

You go shopping, you hear someone whispering.

That's the one that Jack.

Pam Lentison.

And I'm like.

That was.

That wasn't.

Never mind.

Yeah, never mind.

Actually, can I just.

Literally last week, I was in the car park in Altrincham and this.

There was this lady, older lady, and she was trying to pay for a parking is £1 18.

She's trying to pay with her phone, but couldn't.

So I thought, you know what?

I'll just pay for you.

It's £1 80.

Nice thing to do.

She looked at me, she went, oh, I recognize you're not.

This is great for the brand, isn't it?

Yeah.

This is brilliant.

If she just mentions this, maybe puts it on Facebook.

So I'm loving life.

And as she Leaves she's other side of the car park and she just turns back and says, I can't wait to tell the ladies in the hairdressers that Steve Jones got me a ticket for the car park.

I'm like, no, no, no.

And it's too late.

So let it go.

So geth and punched her.

Do you know, it's funny, Martin, she.

Was too far away.

It winds me up, Geoff, because normally what happens, it happens on Morning Live.

It'll normally be Gabby Roslyn saying, how's Martin?

Before she said, how are you, Gordon?

Right.

So it's like the Martin Compston conversation happens before it comes to me.

But the one that I get Scotland is, I love this baker's Bain's, the bakers where I live.

And one of the women there said to me the other day, before I'd even ordered my food, she said, and this was the direct quote, what does Gethin smell like?

Oh, no.

Yes.

Oh, before Martin, I was like, oh, that's an honor.

Yeah.

Martin, you're to the back of the queue.

I want to know.

Yeah.

How did you answer the question?

Optimism.

That's what I said.

Smells of optimism.

Hope.

I nearly killed the Moodle Morning Live the other week when Helen made a joke about that.

She said something.

What does it smell of?

What do you smell, Gordon?

And I was just like, depression.

I was like, this isn't the right show for this.

Depression by Gordon Smart has got a ring to it.

It does.

Mine was for line of duty.

People made us poor Perfumes.

Mine was corruption.

Corruption by Copsen brings corruption.

It's something I've been.

God knows I've been trying to get in.

Busting his head with Jo Linko and stuff.

But it does.

It really interests me, the language stuff.

And in Welsh, use wheels.

You really are proud if you're Welsh and the language is going strong.

Yeah.

Actually there was.

We were doing.

Is it the island that's just on the BBC at the moment?

It's Gaelic.

Yes, yes.

70%.

How do you say it in Alien?

That's right, yeah.

Yeah.

And we had a couple of actors on from there and she.

She was first language Gaelic, I think, and very proud of that.

And it's like a big old.

Big old budget.

But it was great to see that because.

Yeah, I think you're right.

I think.

I don't know, we are slightly better in Wales at celebrating the language, maybe, or getting it more widespread, I guess.

I don't know.

But yes, first language my end.

And it certainly gave me My opportunity in telly and probably an identity that helped along the way.

Well, I think it's helpful having people like you, Ellis James, in Scotland.

We've got Martin Comston.

It's not quite the same way as Settlement Hastings.

I know, but two words in it.

But the reason I started is I went to the.

To the Gaelic TV Awards years ago and present that.

And I felt really embarrassed that I didn't.

I didn't know.

Couldn't you string two words together and you know what I mean?

When everybody was talking, I went, at the very least, I should have something.

All of us should have something.

Yeah.

Why didn't.

Is that a school thing?

We don't.

Yeah, we.

It's something that's became back again where it's starting to get cool now and we're starting to celebrate our heritage a bit.

But it was something that was really looked down upon.

It was kind of saying.

We always said, oh, it's the Chukta language.

It's sort of.

So the people in the islands, I.

Live geographically further south than you.

Anybody who said the central belt, actually, anybody who said west coast, even Edinburgh, I would say was Chictor's.

See, we had Michael Jones, like, slight tangent.

We had a Michael Jones.

The Reverend Michael Jones in 1851, built a boat called the Mimosa.

The left Liverpool dock to find the promised land.

Took 151, they think was 151 on the boat.

And back in the day, it was just you talking about, look down upon.

The language was looked down upon and kids used to have to wear the Welsh knot and everyone thought it was religion.

Some people thought it was their language and he thought the language has to live on.

So they headed off for Cleveland, actually didn't get there.

Ended up in Patagonia, Met the indigenous people back in the day and to this day, in Gaiman, the capital of Patagonia, they speak Spanish and Welsh.

I took my dad up and it's the most emotional I've ever seen.

Yeah.

What an amazing documentary was.

It was like the Welsh Cowboys or something like that.

I can't remember.

I mean, every year we have a Matthew Reese.

Did one, a brilliant one on horseback.

Brilliant actor.

Matthew Reese.

Yeah.

Yeah, he's amazing.

Perry Mason, he's so good.

But yeah, we're just starting to get backset to get it back and because I think the Gaelic schools in Scotland have got a great reputation, stuff for education.

So people are starting to take up.

But I just.

Look, I don't think it should be forced on anybody.

But I just think it's part of our heritage that we should celebrate.

But it's not.

It's not like.

I mean, I'm very proud Welshman out of my language.

But, you know, in terms of.

It's not sexy, you know, it's a lot of consonances.

There's a lot of chat to say, you know.

You know what I'm trying to say.

If you're trying to schmooze someone in Welsh.

Yeah.

It's not.

It's difficult.

But if you flip that.

If you're trying to smooth somebody in Welsh who is Welsh, but if you're trying to.

Somebody who can't speak it.

It does sound exotic.

It does sound good.

That's where.

That's where you get favorite Welsh words.

Martin, have you got any?

Ah, very good.

Is that Welsh?

I think that means you're an idiot.

Yeah.

In what language?

I go quite different.

Yeah.

No, I think because Welsh, Welsh, Irish and thing.

It's different, mate.

There's different.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I like him.

Poppy P.

That's.

That's a myth, man.

Is that a myth?

It's a total.

Don't kill the myth.

Pop D's oven ping is just the sound ping.

And they put a ping in an oven together and called it a microwave.

Let me just tell you that now.

So let's just sort that out.

It's a microdon.

It's a microdon.

Excellent.

How do you go from.

Didn't you.

We better welsh to that.

How do you get to Blue Peter?

How does that happen?

You had to audition as well, didn't you?

Yeah.

It was like eight months of addition.

It's 1600 guys, all kinds of different tests.

It was mad.

It was a mad experience.

And then.

Yeah, and it was brilliant.

It was just, you know, it's a bit different now, obviously, because constraints in TV and stuff.

Yeah.

Lives in a different world, but we had all the resources at the time.

And I was doing.

Literally, I had 14 days off in two and a half years, including the weekends, 27 grand a year.

And I did 31 different countries, six broken bones, four world records, two lifetime ambitions, you know, and just.

I couldn't.

I got on the plane.

I didn't.

First trip I went to was Vermont.

And I didn't know how much I was getting paid, and I didn't care.

And it was just the best experience.

Amazing.

Yeah.

Some of that stuff's crazy.

Like a guy, I mean, you know, Aldo Kane, he said, if you see Helen, remind her that I helped her Change the light bulb in the top of the steeple at such and such a cathedral.

And I was like, how do you end up in those situations?

Yeah, I know.

I never worked with hand skeleton.

I missed.

I missed her by about a year or two, which is a.

Which is a shame.

Yeah, it would have been great.

Yeah.

She was brilliant on it, you know.

Yeah.

What a great job.

Like.

So going back to some of those things.

Six broken bones.

How did you do that?

Oh, like didn't.

I did what you call it the luge.

But obviously we do it in.

In 1850s outfits.

So I'm in a suit and tie.

So dangerous head first.

So bust my finger on my shoulder on the first corner.

And then I was hang on for dear life.

That is terrifying, by the way.

Of all the things you can do.

That is scary.

It's quite quick that it feels fast as well because your chin's literally on the.

On the ice.

Isn't it about 80 miles an hour?

Is it the skeleton illusion?

I never remember which one is.

The skeleton's the one on its own, isn't it?

Yeah, but like what's on your face first?

Ah, that's a good point.

The difference, isn't it between.

Yeah, I can't remember which one is.

Yeah.

In the 1800s, skates as well.

Jeez.

I think I fell off this friction climb in Namibia.

Had a little wrestle with an alligator.

That's not the entire story, but, you know, I like to embed trying to rescue an alligator in Louisiana swamp.

Yeah.

And all you have is some insulation tape because you put that around the mouth.

Yeah.

And it seemed like a good idea.

And Lloyd and zz, I remember they both look like a big and mini size Hulk Hogan.

Yeah.

And my job was to jump on the mid part of the body of the alligator.

So I did it with all my Blue Peter ambition and drive and I jumped on the back of this alligator and funny enough, he didn't like it.

So it went a bit mental and it sort of whacked me in the ankle.

Went to the floor.

The alligator looked at me.

This is a good one.

My little back of the alligator.

Whoever made the next move would live.

Apparently just wasn't hungry.

You should hear that story in Welsh as well.

Just dropping all the Paul Hogan crocodile.

Yeah.

Did you ever get to say no?

Like, did you ever anything with every one knock?

I'm not gonna do it.

No, because like, I don't think you sign up to say no for a show like that.

Don't get me wrong, I was really scared.

At times, petrified.

But I think that was.

Without sounding too cheesy, that's what I loved about it, because as a kid I was scared of stuff.

Yeah.

And I was not scared to say on camera, I'm scared of that.

Yeah.

You know, we got better at that as blokes, haven't we?

But I don't know, 20 years ago it'd been like, oh, you gotta be macho and alpha and you gotta take this on.

I'm like, no, actually, I'm scared of the dark and I don't want to be in London dungeons overnight on my own with live actors for 24 hours.

I'm going to shit myself.

And I was happy to tell people I was scared.

Someone jumping out of you, the mirror.

What are you doing?

What are you doing in here?

I saw so many that I've seen that I loved you doing.

You shared some of it recently.

It was Tom Daly when he was just emerging and jumping off a 10 meter diving board, like, have you done it?

I've done it, yeah.

Oh, it's horrible.

It's horrible, isn't it?

It's the anticipation in the way.

It's always the worst.

Then once you do it, it's not as bad as you think.

Oh, it was bad, was it?

Yeah.

Panic.

Did you hurt yourself?

Y.

Yeah, panicked.

I had a little belly flop from.

Do you hit the water at some like 40 miles an hour or something?

I don't know.

And it wasn't a good look.

And my.

I still walk a bit lopsided.

You could do some damage with us.

I know.

And that was the thing.

But you.

I mean, you do.

There was, you know, like I went back to renegotiate my contract after two years and I went in and had a thought in my head what it might be and literally the boss went, we're going to give you this because we're going to do more of that, you know, and you get risk assessments.

I don't know if you've had this mark with some of the stuff you've done.

You get risk assessments.

Same presenter may die and they.

And people have to sign that off.

My God.

Imagine that.

Yeah.

The.

The one that I was really impressed with as well was, I think you did the Royal Marines commando.

Was that in Blue Peter or was that after.

But you passed, didn't you?

Yeah, yeah.

That 30 mile jump, which is actually 32 miles, which always makes me laugh.

48 kilometers, isn't it?

50 kilometers with all the weight and then the kit and the.

You Know losing your toenails and stuff.

That feels like an out of body experience.

Now looking back.

Yes, you had to run.

You had to run that a jump is like.

So you run and you run down and then you march up hills and it's down in Dartmoor which has its own micro ecosystem and they have certain rules which you have to eat a pasty every six miles, you have to drink a certain amount, you have to do press ups.

It's brutal.

Yeah.

But you know, respect to Troop 891 and they're still out there doing their thing, you know.

Yeah.

Fighting for us and.

Yeah.

Met some amazing guys.

I've been to Afghan quite a few times doing remembrance of BBC and I saw a few of them there and it's funny because you turn up not as a presenter but as part, as part of Troop 891.

So they immediately take you in by going, oh, you've done the yomp.

You, you know, you've earned our respect and you could.

We did some amazing things with them.

But then same time lost nine or ten of them.

I still carry a little kilometer bullet from Afghan, you know, every day on my, my key ring in my house because I always think about them and when I go home I turn the door key and I'm always grateful, you know, that I'm able to do that because some of them aren't with us anymore.

So it's the ultimate sacrifice.

That still happens every day.

It's brutal, isn't it?

Yeah.

I work with a guy and he always said that, he said, you know, the closest we come to death and our job's choking on cocktail sausages.

Right.

But you, you've had that life, that side of it, you know, like the showbiz events Strictly and all.

But you have earned your stripes, haven't you?

No, not at all.

I've been blessed to see it from the outside.

Like when I finished the Yom the next day, I was dressed as a mermaid in Batsy park in the book club.

Whereas there was someone spraying cold water on me thinking this is weird.

But it wasn't even for an event, was it?

You were just there.

I'm still on that website as well.

But those boys have gone off to.

That's before only fans ruined everything.

You could just do that stuff.

Yeah.

No Bitsy, isn't that the blessing of what we do?

And I'm sure for you as well, Martin, playing different roles to have it sort of, you know, I love it when actors are kind of.

And to spend a lot of Time studying someone or something to play the role.

That must be so cool.

I know.

Well, I'm always jealous of, like, you know, when you have to get fit for something.

Yeah.

What a gig that is.

Oh, my God.

Like the night agent or something.

Yeah.

Or, you know, Superman.

And then you're.

You're on Men's Health reading an editorial by Gordon Smart, and then you're flicking through the pictures to see how'd you get big biceps.

You messaged me.

I didn't understand what you meant.

Was it about how some kind of.

I don't know, some mad workout that was in Men's Health one day and I thought, what was Geffen on about?

And you'd read the magazine?

Yeah.

I like your stuff.

Yeah, it's really good.

Thank you very much.

But you know, that fitness thing for a role is.

That's the dream gig, isn't it?

Because our mate, Joe Dempsey, friend of the podcast, when he was doing Game of Thrones, I just assumed that they'd have loads of money for him to go and train and get himself.

He did it himself, did he?

But then.

I'm doing it myself right now.

You're doing it now?

Have you.

When you started.

I'm about to play a.

Yeah.

Why are you naked doing this?

But yeah, that is.

It's literally.

They'll kind of give you a bit of a steer, but it's not like you're.

Unless it's something you're really on your own.

In terms of, like, diet and training.

The eating is the hardest part.

Yeah, it is.

Because I enjoy the training.

It's the eating.

I'm a fat little bastard inside and on the outside, according to Gordon, because I like.

I like my grub and I like a pint.

But.

But yeah, that is.

Once you're there, I think once you get into a rhythm, it's easy to keep disciplined.

It's when you're at home, as I say, doing the school running stuff and picking up after school and going to trampoline places.

Now, it's not easy healthy when you're running about with the home life, you.

Know, geth the camaraderie is really good.

That's what I like about training.

When other people are there, I just.

I'll give a martin stick.

But I.1 recently when I went training with Foxy and Rory Lawson.

These boys are unbelievable athletes.

I train a lot with Rory.

He's a great boy.

We've got to get him on.

Great boy.

But Rory, if you're not, you should get him on he's got some great lads.

So Rory, they were doing this thing, Martin, it was a single chin up with a weight around your waist.

Max weight.

Right.

And Rory's ridiculous at that stuff because that's what he did for a living.

And the boy that ran the gym came in and I was battered by this point.

I had nothing left.

And I was doing press ups on my knees because I had nothing left.

And the guy just looked at me and went, gonna put that in Men's Health.

Yes, I am.

I've never felt more emasculated in my life.

Training for me has just been more mental than anything else because we've never.

I've never had a routine.

Yeah.

For the last 20 years, I've not done a job with a routine.

So unless I was getting up and doing something and, you know, it's hard to be productive, isn't it, and being positive?

So I think it's been more for that.

And then the side part of that is that you feel good, you're physically healthy.

I think you're doing live shows on your feet, doing corpus, whatever.

You could argue that you need to be fit for that as well.

It's not.

Yeah, yeah.

So I'm so glad you're here today, actually, Geoff, because I don't get a chance to speak to you properly.

No, we don't actually chat with her, Majors.

It's not on WhatsApp late at night.

You know, we do get quite serious about it as well, Martin.

You know, and I had a great chat with a mutual pal of ours, Sarah J.

Me, S.J.

the other day.

And she was just making the point that we lead weird lives.

Right.

So in terms of routine, she was up watching Five Lives.

She says, you were dribbling into a coffee in the holiday in the Media City.

She thought, I better go and save him now.

Is that true?

Crying in a coffee on my own.

Just me, Maga Manchetti on the other side of the room, Charlie State, Ben Shepherd's trying to ignore me.

And as she said, a great thing, she said, because we were just talking, she was in at 5 live and Geff was on Morning Live.

And she said, you know, there are these times in your life where you just think, what am I doing?

Like this root, this lack of routine is ridiculous.

And Martin, you have it as well, don't you, where you've got like a mad four months of filming and then suddenly you're like, oh, shit.

Well, because that's the thing I always say, my advice to young actors is always Check the return flight or your return travel because they'll do everything to get you there.

But on that day, you're finished.

Fuck you.

It's like you're waiting outside.

Where's the car?

At the airport.

You can't.

All the production phones are off.

You can't get a hold of anybody.

It's like the job's done me, man through that.

Oh, my God.

The places I've ended up thinking, how do I get home?

No one cares.

What is.

What is the one guest like?

I mean, I had one recently where I found myself in Sheffield.

No, actually, I was in Long Sight in Manchester.

Oh, my God.

In a legal center having a conversation with a woman who had had her legs broken being human trafficked at 8 o'clock in the morning.

And I was.

I was sitting there like, I've not seen my kids for 10 days.

I'm staying in a hotel again tonight.

I just need a cuddle.

And, you know, you do find yourself in weird places.

I think mine last week.

It was a couple of weeks ago.

Where I'd been kicked off Hinge twice in eight hours for violating the code of conduct.

And it wasn't what you think it was.

300 women had reported me for catfishing, which is when you're on Morning Live.

I should know better to not verify my account.

But at the moment where I have to write to Hinge, do you Hinge Thursday night on your own?

Right into an online dating app.

Hi, it's Gethin here 46.

Just wondering why.

Just if I get my money back if it's not really working.

That was eating some cereal because then you got some food and thinking, this is.

That's why I'm like, yeah, what am I doing?

Oh, okay.

In my life, I guess.

But then I thought Raya was the one.

Or was that what it's called?

Yeah, don't give us that bollocks matter.

You're still on.

You were straight in.

You were straight in with the right pronunciation, weren't you?

Carton Momston on there.

We don't got a joint account.

You should be messaging me again.

I'm famous for the podcast.

It's for the podcast.

I'm fed up of messaging robots, but it's so nice to me.

I haven't done this in a podcast with you yet, Martin, but somebody misunderstood my name the other day, and I'm now getting correspondence from the bank calling me Torton Start.

Torton Starts.

Good.

It's my real name.

Is it?

It's not a station.

You were made for show business.

Gordon Smart.

Come on.

Don't know if Gordon's a showbiz name, is it?

Yeah, we're smart after smart.

That's true.

Yeah.

It's Gethin Jones.

You're William.

Yeah.

I mean, I get called Declan, I get called Gertrude.

All kinds of different things.

Well, I lived in America for three years.

You go to Starbucks, there'd be more ink on the cap at the end of it.

In caffeine, trying to.

It's Tom.

You're Tom Jones.

Oh, no, okay, forget that.

No, no, he's my dad.

No, he's not.

He's not real Jones.

What was your American experience like, Geoff, compared to young Compton over there in Vegas?

What was?

I was just up the road, down the road, up the road to you.

I lived in Santa Monica for three years.

It's amazing.

It's a heck of a life, isn't it?

Yeah, Martin, it's like, Santa Monica is good.

Venice is all there.

Because that's the one thing with la, you can't get anywhere without a car.

But down at the beach, you can.

Have a walk around, you can go.

Pub to restaurants, which you did.

Being from the uk, we walk a lot.

You know, whether it's London, Manchester, whatever, we get around.

But you do kind of miss that in la.

You going anywhere, you've got to fucking drive.

If you can't drive, Uber's changes that bit.

But when we start going out there, if you couldn't drive, you were gummed.

The weirdest thing, you have some really strange experiences in LA and just you talking about driving there.

I ended up being sort of friends with Matt Lucas, who's out there at the time, and he was mates.

He lived with Rebel Wilson and he was mates with Stephen Mo.

And so we went for dinner once, we used to hang out a little bit, and he's like.

He said to me, geth, will you teach me how to drive in America?

I'm like, yeah, sure.

So I had this sort of BMW hire car, so picked him up.

He literally got in, went straight into the back of the car behind, like, what are you doing?

It's a rental car.

I'm like, why?

It's an automatic.

He was like, no, I can't drive.

I said, yeah, but you can't drive in America.

He went, no, no, I've never driven.

I'm like, this massive bill going, oh, it'll be a good story for a podcast one day.

But, yeah, the time, it wasn't great.

The thing about that story, that doesn't ring true.

For me is that it wasn't a Mustang.

I did have a Mustang after.

Yeah.

I had the black Mustang convertible.

My mates used to say, why don't you just wear a sign on your head saying you're British?

I know.

Yeah.

Maybe I should.

We laugh every time, don't we, Martin?

You've got to do it.

Did you go out there?

Because was.

I always think like a presenter version of leaving Blue Peter must be the character.

Yeah.

Equivalent of leaving.

Like EastEnders or Coronation.

You're taking a jump.

That's a big show.

Safe bet.

There must be time.

Yeah.

You can't get a job after Blue Peter.

It was really difficult because.

And everyone remembers you for Blue Peter, which, by the way, I'm really bloody proud of.

Like, I'm so glad to have had that experience.

It was in.

It's incredible.

But no, I split up with my fiance at the time.

Was like, you know, just been grafting, really.

Sort of.

It was a tough time.

So I was like.

My friend had gone to Australia.

I thought that was a bit far.

So I went halfway and had a friend who had a house there.

So I sort of rented that place for.

For a while.

And dad didn't really have ambition to work out there.

Just more of a couple of things going on.

A few businesses outside of work, which kept me going for a little while.

And then I wasn't very good Idol, so I was coming back and forth doing different things.

So.

Trying to enjoy California.

Yeah.

I didn't really.

I'm glad I didn't go out there needing a job because it's not a great place for that, is it, Martin?

But it's cutthroat.

Yeah.

So I was glad that I experienced California and then grafted when I needed to.

And then that would be my little place to sort of.

I don't know, just figure out.

Yeah.

What I'm trying to do.

Still.

Still working on that bit.

It's interesting.

You've got another thing, though, like another hustle.

Because I have a hustle.

I don't know if, you know, Martin's in the gnome game.

Are you really?

I was actually looking at them yesterday.

Yeah.

It's like the Oasis ones out the back, staring at them for loans.

Like one.

Yeah.

I think it's folded now, of the last I've heard.

It's been a while.

But, yeah, we.

We got scuppered.

On the cusp of greatness.

We got scuppered.

I still think there's something there.

Your commitment to the gnome game is one of the things I Admire most.

About you, Martin, I am telling you, there's definitely a B and Q, little train spot, little Game of Thrones.

You could do more than my presenters, you know, life size Helen.

Yeah, but I want to make money with it.

You're in a hotel business.

Yeah, a little bit of that, yeah.

Yeah, yeah, a bit of that, bit of events.

Yeah.

Bit of this, bit of that.

Yeah.

You have to, don't you?

You do.

Like, you can't.

I mean, imagine if I had to rely on talent on screen.

It wouldn't last very long, but still getting away with it.

Billy Baxter was the old Blue Peter editor.

Two quotes, one probably not even right for this podcast.

And I know you put up with a lot, but one of them was brilliant.

I remember doing a show early on.

She wasn't editor at the time, but she was.

She used to come back and visit and stuff.

She's the one that created the show.

She's the one that designed Blue Peter flag.

The Blue Peter ships, the ones that went out to war.

A naval Second World War.

Every show was supposed to be voyage of discovery.

She is Blue Peter.

And I remember having a particularly bad show and I came up and she went, my darling Gethin, keep doing it until someone realizes you're shit.

From BE Baxter.

I'm gonna keep that.

You know, I was going to ask.

We're going to ask for your words of wisdom.

There you go.

I think we've got it.

That's fantastic, isn't it?

Do you know one of my prized possessions, I've got a Blue Peter badge.

I've still got to surprise me.

I've still got.

You get it for.

I got it for doing a report for Blue Peter on the Brit Awards.

I took her a Blue Peter presenter.

God, I was.

Who was that?

It was quite a while ago now, Gethin and I should really remember this.

That's right.

But we went to the Brit Awards and explained how we would do a report for a newspaper and then how we would present that the next day.

Oh, that's cool.

And at the end, he said, well, you've got a Blue Peter badge to say thank you for that.

And it was rubber.

I was really quite shocked by that.

And, yeah, the rubber sort of came in when it kept piercing through my skin.

I was like, plastic.

It's not really good anymore.

Can we just.

And I think it sort of changed to being less dangerous.

Connie Huck, Katie Hill.

It might.

Tim Vincent, maybe.

Oh, I was after that.

Yeah.

Tim Vincent.

I have to check.

Simon Thomas.

Matt Baker.

Who's your favorite.

Who's your favorite Blue Peter presenter of all time?

Oh, my God.

I've never been asked that before.

Have you not?

No, no.

It's what we do.

There's one you can't see, I think.

I think.

Oh, yeah.

I think because he's my favorite John.

Noakes, purely because he went up Trafalgar Colin without any safety gear.

I think fair play, mate.

That was incredible.

To clean off pigeon.

He was.

That was the thing about Bleed Peter, though.

You do these amazing things and that would be the end of it.

I remember, like, I remember I was with a girl in Amsterdam once and she's like, I've got some nice restaurants and, you know, been there a few times.

Have you been to Amsterdam before?

I'm like, yeah.

See that little pillar in the middle of the canal?

That was for corporal punishment in 1838.

Like, our worlds are so different, like, amazing.

They're so different.

Different.

How are you single?

I don't know.

You tell me.

Who was.

Who was the footballer who smashed up the Blue Peter Garden?

Do you remember that?

That was Dennis Wise, wasn't it?

Was it Dennis.

Dennis Wise?

It was famous story.

The Blue Peter Garden got really badly smashed up and years later it turned out to be a footballer.

Yeah.

Was it Dennis Wise?

Was it Dennis Wise?

Did he sneak in with a shot or something?

He climbed over the wall in.

In London and just think they had.

A few drinks, trashed it.

Yeah, I don't remember the story properly.

Yeah, it's a great story, though.

Great story.

I always like this.

I love us nester presenters.

You don't eat name names, but what was your.

What was your most awkward or weirdest interview?

You don't need name names.

But what you do, you're just like, this is the.

Going well and it's took a left turn.

Catherine Tate was very funny because we were liked at the.

You know, she was doing.

Catherine Tate was doing her bothered, though.

Bothered, yeah, yeah.

And we were three and a half minutes late at the end of the show and she just wouldn't talk to me.

So she get bothered.

Please say something.

Three and a half minutes ago.

There's three minutes of that.

It's an amazing one.

It's.

But I don't think this is the kind of thing you're asking, but there was a guy called Everett Highland, we were doing the story of Hiroshima, went over to Pearl harbor, interviewed him by the USS Missouri, and he was telling, you know, some horrendous stories.

He's 82 being shot.

87 times by Japanese suicide bombers.

So he's basically metal.

And at the end I said, you got any animosity towards the Japanese now?

He went, hell no.

When as he said it, his wife, Japanese wife, walked on the corner.

He went, I married one.

And I thought that was one of the coolest moments I've ever had here on TV or in life, really.

That was cool.

But it was just.

There was always some, you know, like the.

I remember snake shitting across the floor and I couldn't stop myself from being sick.

Shat myself on telly.

Did you?

Yeah, in Malawi and chatting to Alice, who we used to run these sort of bikes for the local village and we'd all gone down, some of us were malaria, psych, whatever.

And I was like, last man standing.

And I asked this question to Alice and I'm like, alice, how many bikes do you have here?

At that point I'm just, you know, just coming out of me, I'm like, this is.

This is not.

This is not.

And there's nowhere to put it.

There's no way to clean it.

No.

You just have to take everything.

Oh, man, can.

Yeah, that's a big moment.

You know, 14 countries in Africa, I think within 44 states in America now and traveled.

I mean, it's just amazing.

How many passports have you got?

A bit like born identity, Matt Damon now.

I do love that though.

I think one with third passport.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But it's funny, there's something you never speak about because it's glamorous.

But see, you're in those wild locations.

Yes.

And it's never really brought up, but you do kind of think like, where am I going to go at the toilet?

Because when you go, right, we're up at 6am and then it's a four hour bus drive to the middle of Africa or something and then we're going to go.

You're like.

You can see everybody's thinking it but nobody says it.

Nobody saying, as you get older, it's hard to control.

You need to know.

Yeah.

You say, martin, fame doesn't respect hangovers.

So can you work on a hangover?

No, hangovers, Hangovers.

Don't you always get that backwards?

Hangovers don't respect fame.

Sorry, yeah, I can't do that.

Have you been in a pickle before where you're like, today is not the day for somebody to have a conversation?

Yeah.

With Kew Gardens, it was the worst.

No, that was the only time I ever done it.

We had a few drinks and we're in Kew Gardens.

It's really humid in there, innit?

And it was just like, oh, God, remember links?

And I was having a little.

I had a little puke in Caroline Grace's Spitfire as well, because I was doing the story of Roald Dahl plane to plane.

Oh, wow.

And then you sort of having to puke and she's like, eat an apple because it's easier, it's less painful if you puke it out.

Out.

Yeah, that's great advice.

Really.

That's good.

See that?

You must have been given so many pieces.

Yeah.

But it's like, when are you gonna.

Yeah, yeah.

Just so you know, if you're ever having a puke, have an apple because it's less painful when you puke.

It's weird, though.

Somebody said to me the other day, if you ever have seasickness, it's counter intuitive, but you should always eat.

And that's one of the best things.

Yeah.

Little bits of wisdom like that.

So random, isn't it?

Yeah.

Oh, that's class.

That's class.

It's part of the beauty and the experience, though, isn't it?

Yeah.

Can I ask you about your soccer aids experience?

Oh, yes.

Because you must have been playing when Martin made his debut.

How good is it, Martin?

It's the best thing ever.

That's you saying that like.

Yeah, it's just even, you know, getting even.

The buildup to it is what, like, I love just being with everybody, trading with all these legends and stuff.

Getting to see them up close and how they go about their business is.

Is brilliant.

And then as you get older, you start to appreciate just where that money goes.

Because definitely when I first signed up, it was like, I need to play in this game.

Game.

And then you get to go on one of the trips and you see the difference.

It really does, like, save lives, encompass together and it's a great laugh.

And it's kind of like.

It's like this we bubble.

It's like a.

It's kind of a stag.

Do is the wrong word because it's like a.

It's hard, but it's like.

Because the kind of.

Now the hotel's kind of cut off just for us.

You see all these random people and they're all just relaxed.

They're all just having a beer and it's.

It's kind of like a real life madame to swords at times.

What was the first?

It was 2009.

You played for the first time.

It was a while ago.

Yeah.

Who's the star player?

Oh, mate, there's some commentary.

I think I still have it somewhere on vhs, probably Clive Tilsley.

And the commentary goes, Figo.

Figo to Jones.

Jones to Zidane.

Zidane to Figo.

Figo plays Jones down the line.

He goes round.

I don't know, it was probably something like Ralph Little crosses it in to Larson.

Larson, oh, just misses.

And I run back and remember Luis Figo just turned to me.

Well played, John Zone, like, I'll make that run for your day, pal.

Beautiful man.

You beautiful, beautiful man.

I've been.

I've been lucky with it, but that would have been the ultimate Zidane and Larson.

Kenny Dalglish come out team sheet like, obviously.

Then Eric Harris and that who subtitle everything for him.

Goal.

Jones a right back.

Ramsey at left back, who always plays about nine minutes before he pulls a hand.

Yeah, yeah, I think it was Yap Stamina and Sammy Hippier.

Wow.

Then you had a midfielder, Giggs, Nicky Byrne, Westlife, Figo.

Can't remember.

Right.

Right wing.

And then Austin Powers and Zidane up front.

Mike Myers.

I mean, and then Tony Blair's doing the team speech on.

On, you know, speakerphone with Alistair Campbell on the way to the ground.

You're like, what.

What am I.

What am I experiencing here?

That's crazy.

What was the.

The night out.

The night.

Oh, it was a really good one.

Oh, it's so good.

For some reason, genuinely on my phone.

True story, you know, on your iPhone.

The picture comes up on the.

The little circle on the screen and I don't know how to change it.

It's Joe Calzaghe passed out on the back of the bus, hammered.

I don't know how to change it.

And it's got to the point now.

I don't want to change.

No, never change that.

We've never discussed Kawzagi on the podcast, but he is one of the best nights out you will ever have sparred with him.

Yeah.

Oh, mate, what an experience.

Really incredible, man.

He hit me 15 times before I even realized what was going on.

It's unreal, isn' it?

Trained in Newbridge with him and his dad.

Some gym that, isn't it?

Oh, my God.

He.

I was on a night out with him and he bit me on the shoulder and I got home and got.

Got undressed and Kate was like, you're having an affair.

I said, what?

She said, I can see the bite marks on your shoulder.

You're having an affair.

I said, kate, how many women do you know with a mouth that big?

It Was just like a shark bite.

Who's Kate?

Kate Hill.

There's stories, you know, for the generation.

Sydney Dean Zidane, clipping his toenails just beforehand.

And he doesn't wear a blazer, he just wears it on his shoulder.

Doesn't put his arms in.

Why would you use Sydney down?

And everyone's thinking, if I collect those toe clippings and put on ebay, what am I getting for that?

You know, everyone's got the same similar.

Thing, but it was with the app, because you have such a.

He doesn't head the ball, he headbutts a ball, you know, and he's such a beast.

But I saw him cutting up his son's bacon in the morning before the game.

And up.

That always sticks with me.

Like I'm sitting with these small pieces.

Craig.

Craig.

David smashed him at Wembley.

He went random smashed ammo.

Yeah.

That was something to watch.

Yeah.

Yeah, the nice one.

It's a good.

I mean, honestly, it's a brilliant event.

One day, Gordon, I'll get you a ticket.

I'm not bitter.

I'm not anymore.

Daytime now, I mean, those days are gone.

There was Old Trafford, rest of the world, obviously playing for rest of the world, England.

Robbie Williams is the captain.

He's got the fifth penalty to win.

It misses.

I've got the fifth penalty.

I score it, we win.

If I don't.

Unbelievable.

I'm walking up to the palanty.

Robbie Williams, who randomly, I used to hang around with quite a bit in la.

Lovely.

Robbie.

And Ben Sheppard turned to me and went.

As I was walking up to the pal, he went, mate, this difference between daytime and prime time, I hit it all right, but it got saved by Jamie Theakston.

And sure enough, I started on Daybreak the following week and that was it.

And then above penalty, 17, Woody Hollis from Cheers scored and the crowd.

I was there that night.

I came to that, yeah, because I went to see a gig the day before.

Bad Lieutenant played on the Cobbles, which was the original members of New Order.

And it was an amazing gig.

Adidas put it on.

So went to that and then went to the game and then went out with Woody Harson and all that mob afterwards.

Because I think Serge played that Jeep Sabian, didn't he?

I think.

Was that the first time he played?

Anyway, gave them Martin Compton's number.

Get.

And we'll see you at the Six Nations, Geoff.

No doubt at some point.

We've got you.

Got your way Got your way.

It's be tough up there.

We'll have a night in Scotland this year.

Yeah, we've got a good chance if our captain wasn't injured.

And Martin, you're back soon, so we should try and engineer a map.

But bad news for everybody is that Jimmy Nesbit's moved to Manchester.

Has he?

Which means.

Which means really, because I messaged him as well and said he loves a.

Sing song, that boy.

When you do morning work, like.

Geth, you're up.

What happened?

Half, what, five in the morning to get into work?

Yeah, yeah, four, but I'll let you off an hour.

So when.

So when did you get in?

And for half five, what?

What time did you come in?

I'm having to work with him.

Why?

Why did you get special?

What time did you get in?

What time did you get in?

Get high five.

Oh, half five.

Yeah, okay.

I was a bit panic.

Me too.

You're on a better deal and, well.

We can cut that battle.

Guys.

What time do you get up?

Save that one for Men's Health.

So Jimmy Nesbit's moved to Manchester, which is terrible when you start working early in the morning because he's like, would you like a pint?

Yeah.

And you think, no, Jimmy.

I just realized it was Jimmy that pulled out of this.

That's why, isn't it?

No, it's not.

No.

What I'm telling you, Geth, is we are now in Manchester with Jimmy Nesbit and Martin's coming back.

A pint.

It's not.

We'll split the ghost.

Yes.

Have you been to Mulligan's in Manchester?

No.

Best Guinness.

One of the best points of Guinness there is.

I think all roads are living.

Are leading to me living here a bit more with five live and stuff.

So you still.

You're playing football?

The boys tonight.

Why aren't you playing injured?

I've got this medical.

Medical condition at the moment.

I saw the doctor.

It's not great.

It's like there's nothing you can really do about it.

You just have to manage it.

It's called aging.

Apparently from a horse, there'd be a different outcome, but.

Yeah, he's just played.

What was it last week?

You played again for the party thistle?

Under 45.

Oh, that's amazing, mate.

And I swear to God, see, the next day I went fucking.

That was good.

I feel fine.

The day after that.

Jesus, two days I did a High Rock played tonight.

Are you playing tonight?

You're playing tonight, aren't you?

Yeah.

Arctic Tussle versus Santos.

Oh, that's amazing.

They just signed Neymar haven't they?

Yeah.

Lovely.

Yeah.

Jesus.

The end of 45s.

Geth is in, by the way.

Geth has just signed up the other day to do his first High Rock Smarten.

No, I've done one before.

I did one before I took you seriously.

But then scouts called me over the weekend and was like, oh, my partner's dropped out.

Can you do it the next day?

So I did it on Sunday morning with her.

She was amazing.

Like, she's proper sled, like, which is under 50 kg, like she was trying to push a wall.

She looked back with puppy eyes going, I don't want to do.

I'm like, oh, God.

But she was amazing at the running, like, proper.

She's a machine, isn't she?

Foul runner, isn't she?

Yeah, she's a fit girl.

She's a fit girl.

Yeah.

But to your point, two days later, dying.

I'm like a baby giraffe walking around the place.

John Wayne with a stone in his shoe.

Right, so when you're back, Martin, a night with Geth in a Manch.

Right, Absolutely.

And Jimmy Nesbit.

But thanks so much for coming on.

You know, it's lovely to speak to you and actually to see you in Manchester when we're not ships passing in the night.

It's a pleasure.

It's a brilliant podcast.

And Martin, great to see you, brother.

I'll catch you on the other side.

All that remains for us to say, Martin, is let's.

This is a global player original podcast.