Is acting your first love?Well, actually dancing was my first love.
Many many years ago I decided that I wanted to be a dancer.
I was doing quite well and getting lots of jobs.
So I would say Ive kind of moved around, really.
Did working on Saturday Scene prepare you for Tiswas?
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No!
[laughs] Nothing could prepare you forTiswas!
Then you suddenly go up toTiswasand suddenly theyre all chucking pies around and throwing water and going completely mad.
It was a complete shock!
I dont think anything could prepare you for that.
Did you watch much of the early series of Tiswas?
No, because it was only up in the Midlands.
I was already popular in London so I think they thought that was good.
It was the producer who said Look, I think we need a female influence in here.
And so he said Oh well, all right then, and sort of gave into it.
But in fact we got on very well straight away and it all worked very well.
So yeah, we had a very good working relationship.
Did Matthew Butlers mother, the rabbit singing Bright Eyes, really make costumes and props for the show?
Yes, she certainly did.
Well, she made all the rabbit outfits.
She didnt make all the props obviously there were unions that would have come down from a big height.
When you say the props, she made all the carrots.
It was just so bizarre, and we all wore them.
Ive still got mine!
When did I last wear it?
And so I hopped outside about five minutes later.
You know, obviously they knew it was me, but it was quite fun [laughs].
That was many years ago.
Yeah, I did used to get fan letters from various, you know, various people.
So yes, it was obvious the kind of people that were watching: all the lunatics really!
[laughs]
Do you meet many people now who tell you that you were their first crush?
Oh yes, I do actually its quite sweet.
There is a huge fondness out there forTiswas.
People love to reminisce and to talk about it.
What do you remember about the Bucket Of Water song?
Well that was just great.
John came in one day and he said Ive sort of got this idea.
Its a march basically, and we all sing this song.
And its another excuse to chuck buckets of water!
So obviously we didnt do it in the studio.
Yknow, their badge of honour.
They were all bonkers [laughs].
You just couldnt do that now, could you?
Do you think a show quite that anarchic could happen now?
I dont even know that you might put a child on your lap…?
And pulling them up by their ears, thats probably some kind of abuse.
So I wouldnt like to try it [laughs].
Were you tempted to leave the show when Chris Tarrant went?
The whole success ofTiswaswas down to when we are all together.
How did you feel when fans picketed to have the show put back on the air?
Well, once its gone, its gone, and it cant be like that again.
So I didnt really take a lot of notice of that.
That was never going to be an issue.
You seemed to disappear from television once Tiswas ended.
And I did a nightly chat show with David Soul calledSix Fifty Five Specialfor about eight weeks.
Chris, for instance, is not remembered for anything betweenTiswasandMillionaire, and he did about fifteen other projects.
Its just the perception.
So life just goes in different directions.
Im doing a lot of work now forFilm 24, which Im enjoying very much.
Ive always been doing something, albeit certainly not as high-profile asTiswas.
Did you enjoy your return to radio a few years back?
I did enjoy that.
What can you tell us about Sally Sorts It, the program youve been involved in developing?
Well thats at a very embryonic stage.
Its very hard to get new things off the ground.
Oh it was fantastic.
It was absolutely fabulous.
Such an insight and such a privilege to see how they worked, as well.
So they made it very easy, really.
Sally James, thank you very much…!
