Channel 4 talent Christmas Q&A

8 December 2017

 

Photo: Sketch's Prison Ink. Because nothing says Christmas like a bloke with tattoos being kept behind bars. Ho ho ho etc.

 

DAVE & SHIRLEY - GOGGLEBOX

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

With family eating, drinking and relaxing

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

Yes without doubt always buy the TV guide to plan our viewing

 

Do you have any family traditions?

Yes karaoke every Christmas eve, everybody needs persuading then you can't get them off

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Shirley sticks to her brandy and coke, I'm a lager man but do like the odd Baileys over ice

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

The usual turkey, pork sprouts, roast potatoes done in beef dripping, carrots peas, and lashings of thick gravy, getting hungry thinking about it

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

My best was my very first bike, Shirley’s worst is most of what I think she might want! she says I’ve got no taste!

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

Being with family, time to relax and chill, and watching the kids opening their presents

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

When it's all over and, you got to go back to work and wait a year before it happens again

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

As long as we are healthy, got food on the table and a roof over our head we can make the joy ourselves

 

What would be your dream Christmas?

Winning enough money so you could help the kids, and yourself of course so nobody need worry

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

Always at home a few drinks… perhaps more than a few, lay out the table with nice grub, get the family round and go for it

 

How will you remember 2017?

All in all it hasn't been a bad year, it's had its ups and down but that's life

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

That we all stay well , and that there's less much hate and turmoil in the world, a bit cheesy but true.

 

Gogglebox – Best of 2017 is on Channel 4 on Sunday 24th December at 9pm.

 

THE SIDDIQUIS - GOGGLEBOX

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

Family time, food time and TV time. Christmas isn't Christmas unless we've watched Elf, Lord of the Rings, or Harry Potter.

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

We watch the soap Christmas specials and try and fit Sherlock in. You always plan to watch a lot of telly but there's always some turkey to be eaten or family to go and see

 

Do you have any family traditions?

A Christmas walk after the Christmas meal is always a nice Christmas tradition. As a family because there are a lot of brothers and sisters, instead of buying everyone a present we do a secret Santa between us all which is always a lot of fun. Baasit always tries to guess who everyone’s secret Santa is, but he never guesses right

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Baileys or whatever festive Jack Daniels is out that year. Last year there was a nice cinnamon cocktail which was very festive.

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

Turkey and Lamb. The turkey is pre carved and marinated in gravy before being served (this is a Sid Siddiqui special) - it's very tasty.

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

The funniest was when dad said in passing he needed a fleece. That year he got four fleeces, two of them were the same one!

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

All the little things that build up to Christmas. Mince pies, decorating the tree, the local pub usually has a salvation army band that play Christmas tunes on trumpets around that time of year.

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

Last minute shopping, Brussels sprouts, post Xmas dinner remorse.

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

Dad will be asking for a fleece, Umar needs a new Fitbit and Baasit needs another Fred Perry t-shirt to add to his collection.

 

What would be your dream Christmas?

I can't remember when we had a white Christmas so that would be really fun. If Michael Buble just so happened to turn up that would be great!

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

Umar tends to have a house party which usually leads to someone pulling his curtains down. Thankfully that's as messy as it gets.

 

How will you remember 2017?

The craziness of North Korea and trump!

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

Game of thrones comes out a little early enough before North Korea and Trump ruin it for us!

 

Gogglebox – Best of 2017 is on Channel 4 on Sunday 24th December at 9pm.

 

 

 

JIMMY DOHERTY

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

At home with all the extended family. We have a big lunch then we walk around the farm and wildlife park.  It’s shut on Xmas day so all the animals love the attention and the kids love to see our reindeer on Xmas day.

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

We love sitting around an open fire watching a family film, I love all the old classics like Indiana Jones.

 

Do you have any family traditions?

Putting up the tree is always a big event in our house as the kids love it.  It’s always a fight as to who puts the fairy on the top.  And they love writing their letters to Santa and putting them up the chimney. On Xmas Eve Santa is left a cold beer, a carrot and a mince pie.

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

A really nice whiskey would be my choice.

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

From September onwards we rear over 10,000 free range turkeys on our farm which we deliver nationwide in the run up to Xmas so turkey is always a must for us. Via my Jimmy’s Farm online shop we also deliver Christmas Meat Boxes, containing all the meat you could want for the festive period – Turkey of course but Pigs In Blankets, Sausage Meat, Gammon etc! 

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

I bought an army land rover on an auction site but my wife took it away to a specialist who refurbed it and she surprised me with it as I love land rovers…

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

Watching the kids open all their presents.

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

Taking down all the decorations after the festive period.

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

I love surprises!

 

What would be your dream Christmas?  

A traditional white Christmas or a hot Christmas in Sri Lanka which is one of my favourite holiday destinations.

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

There’s always an event at the farm – we have a big party in the restaurant on New Year’s Eve which is open to the public.

 

How will you remember 2017?

Finishing the year with 3 kids knowing we are going into next year with more on the way!

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

The opening of the new aviary and reptile centre with star attraction being a crocodile. Our online food shop is also really taking off – we ship across the UK so our farm and excellent meat really is far-reaching now.

 

Food Unwrapped Does Christmas is on Channel 4 on Tuesday 12th December at 8pm.

Food Unwrapped Diet Special is on Channel 4 on Thursday 4th January at 8pm.

Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night feast is on Channel 4 on Fridays at 8pm.

 

 

ANNA RICHARDSON

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

Every year, Sue and I do a bit of a Christmas tour and over New Year too. We spend some time down in Cornwall where Sue has family and then we move up to the Bath region for Christmas Day where we volunteer believe it or not. And then we will head up to Stoke on Trent to see my family, before heading up to Scotland for Hogmanay. It’s brilliant, it’s exhausting and it’s really bad for my liver, but it’s brilliant.

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

I have a tradition that I will rotate one of three films, you see I’m quite scheduled. I will always try to watch: Benjamin Button, which I love or Its a Wonderful Life or Forest Gump. All three of them are about the goodness of humanity and they are just deeply joyous films, so I’ll put those on strict rotation.

 

Do you have any family traditions?

Christmas is extremely important to me and to my family, as I was brought up in a church household as my dad is a vicar.  Obviously, Christmas is about the birth of baby Jesus, so certainly for my Dad, It’s a very important time. I always do Midnight Mass, and I love that. Also every year as a family we get together, and it’s quite a fractured family as my parents are slit up, but we get together, and we do Secret Santa. My mum organises it, we get an envelope in the post with just one name written down. And the agreement is that we wrap the present in newspaper and in a bin liner and deposit the presents at my mother’s house. We really are quite a nuts family!

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Sherry or a really good vintage port.

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

I’m vegetation so none of the above… a really good vegetarian option like butternut squash and mushroom wellington.

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

Last year my little brother who I share a tremendous sense of humour with, bought me an enema kit, and the year before he bought me a vagina mould.

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

I cannot express how much I love Christmas. It’s the nostalgia of being brought up in a vicarage, with a real fir pine tree, going to midnight mass as a child and seeing my dad at the front of the church hosting midnight mass to a full church with all the candles, talking about the birth of Baby Jesus and then getting really excited about Father Christmas. For me it just equals love.

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

Because my family are quite scattered, I end up doing a tour of the UK, to see everyone and its becomes really tiring. It’s just exhausting.

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

I sound like a child here. I genuinely would like a bike for Christmas. I would quite like an all-terrain, off-road mountain bike.

 

What would be your dream Christmas?

I already do my dream Christmas. Sue and I go to a hotel in the county, we wake up on Christmas morning, open our Santa sacks that we’ve hung at the end of our beds for each other. I play Kings College Carols on Radio 4, then we have breakfast together, and then we go off and volunteer. I think the older you get I think it’s really important to remember that there are people less fortunate than you. We get back about 7pm to settle down to a lovely Christmas dinner and snuggle up to watch a Christmas film.

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

For the last few years we’ve gone up to Edinburgh and done Hogmanay because we have family up there and the scots do Hogmanay like no other.

 

How will you remember 2017?

The highlight for me is launching my own online therapy service Mindbox.

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

To help thousands of people overcome their anxiety.

 

Supershoppers Sales Special is on Channel 4 on Wednesday 27th December at 8pm.

 

 

 

ALICE – TATTOO FIXERS

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

I’ve only got a really little family so we don’t do a great deal, but I always try and make myself feel really excited and Christmassy.

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

I watch loads of telly at Christmas because your off work, its cold outside, and there’s loads of cheese and good snacks. Mum always goes overboard and buy’s loads of nuts and crisps so you know if you stay in and watch loads of telly then you’ll get loads of snacks and be really well looked after.

 

Do you have any family traditions?

One of our family traditions is called tour of the Christmas lights where one evening my dad will drive me, my mum and my brother around in the car for a few hours looking for the best Christmas lights on the houses in our area, and rating them out of 10.

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Always Baileys.

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

My best present was a plastic mobile phone that opened up and was full of sweets - it was class! My worst should have actually been my best… One Christmas there was a Barbie that I really wanted because she had really long hair down to her feet and that was the reason I wanted her. The minute I got her I was so excited to have the Barbie with the long hair - it was twice the length of her body! But as soon as I opened her my mum took it off me, even before I’d had the chance to take her out of the packaging, and she chopped all of her hair off to a normal Barbie length! She said that having it so long would be silly and I’d get it all tangled up - I was gutted.

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

Being really merry with all your friends and family and playing lots of games. I love being snuggly in brand new fleecy pyjama’s and fleecy socks as well. When it snows it makes it extra special.

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

My biggest pet hate is the Christmas tree and decorations still being up on Boxing Day! It’s just not Christmas anymore.

 

Tattoo Fixers is on E4 on Tuesdays at 9pm.

 

 

GLEN – TATTOO FIXERS

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

I normally spend the Christmas break on the sofa with my dog watching films and eating! I also like to tattoo friends during my time off as well - it gives me a chance to catch up with them!

 

 

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

I watch as much as I can over Christmas. I’m trying to find a good series that I can get stuck into whilst I’ve got some time off!

 

Do you have any family traditions?

My family tradition is the annual bar crawl with all the boys! They’re basically my family and we do it every year without fail!

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Bacardi and coke or a cocktail! They couldn’t be any less Christmassy but I like what I like! Mulled wine is a big NO!

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

I’ll be having roast turkey cooked by my younger sister on Christmas Day, and then another roast dinner cooked by my older sister on Boxing Day! You can never have too many roast dinners.

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

The most memorable present I received was a BMX when I was about 10 years old. I cried when I got it!

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

My favourite thing about Christmas is knowing you can eat whatever you like and not have to feel guilty about it.

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

The weight you have gained by the end of it!

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

I’ll be asking Santa for money for new tattoos! I really want my neck done.

 

What would be your dream Christmas?

My dream Christmas would be spent in Iceland looking at the Northern lights with my family and my dog!

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

With a Chinese takeaway and a good film on the sofa with my dog! The crazy life of a tattoo artist!

 

How will you remember 2017?

2017 has been amazing for me as it’s when I joined the Tattoo Fixers team! I’ve learnt so much in such a short space of time and met so many cool people! It’s been a good year!

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

My hopes for 2018 are to carry on progressing with tattooing! Meet more cool people and have even more fun! A trip to Vegas would also be nice!! 

 

Tattoo Fixers is on E4 on Tuesdays at 9pm.

 

 

SKETCH – TATTOO FIXERS

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

On Christmas Day, I volunteer with my family at the Tope Project which is for kids that are alone at Christmas. 

 

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

I love the Muppets Christmas Carol, it’s a tradition! 

 

Do you have any family traditions?

The mother-in-laws roast potatoes! 

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Jack Daniels

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

Has to be Turkey with all the trimmings. 

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

A hideous mustard jumper.

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

Family. 

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

Wrapping presents, I hate it! 

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

A new phone, my one is smashed! 

 

What would be your dream Christmas?

A log cabin in the snow with all the family. 

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

I’m usually working! 

 

How will you remember 2017?

As a year of growth and self-discovery.

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

To try and spend a bit more time with the family. 

 

Sketch’s Prison Ink is on Tuesday 12th December at 10pm on E4.

 

 

BEAR GRYLLS

 

How do you normally spend the Christmas break?

With close family cosy at home with all the extended family joining us for actual Christmas Day which is always pretty crazy!

                          

Do you watch much telly at Christmas (and if not, why not?)

Queens speech and a bond film are the essentials with a few other good movies on those evenings between Christmas and new year where it gets dark early, we light a fire and all get snug with the kids

 

Do you have any family traditions?

Church in the morning and a late lunch that goes on for many hours - and coins in the Christmas pudding!

 

What’s your Christmas tipple of choice?

Shot of Siberian vodka from a bottle I got from there a while back!

 

Turkey? Goose? Pot noodle? What’s on the menu?

Turkey with roast sweet potatoes lots of homemade bread sauce and roast chestnuts and mini sausages and roast parsnips which are my favourite!

 

What are the most memorable presents you’ve received (either best or worst)?

The best moment always for me is seeing the smiles on our boys faces when they see their stockings

 

What’s your favourite thing about Christmas?

Fires and walks

 

What’s your least favourite thing about Christmas?

Feeling I haven’t trained enough!

 

What will you be asking Santa for this year?

New paraglider!

 

What would be your dream Christmas?

As above - I love Christmas so much at home in UK - pantos, a visit to go shopping in London, cold crisp weather, mulled wine, fires, walks, carol services, having time to just stop at cafes and have hot chocolates

 

How do you normally see in the New Year?

At home with a small group of close buddies

 

How will you remember 2017?

Did my best, stayed alive, and took Roger Federer on a Running wild which had been a dream for a while

 

What are your hopes for 2018?

Follow my dreams, dodge the dream stealers, be courageous and kind and never give up!

 

The Island with Bear Grylls will return in 2018.