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When Wagon Wheels Were Bigger

When Wagon Wheels Were Bigger is a weekly podcast that watches kids' TV from the eighties and casts a more cynical eye on the shows we used to love. Sometimes funny, usually disappointing, join your hosts Mark and Martyn and ruin a small part of your childhood week by week.
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Now displaying: 2015
Dec 23, 2015

"We're walking in the air..."

Mark and Martyn succumb to seasonal peer pressure and do a Christmas special - everyone's favourite boring and depressing tale of impending mortality, Raymond Briggs' The Snowman. Everything dies eventually. Merry Christmas.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Dec 16, 2015

It's another request as Mark and Martyn finally get around to watching the bizarre sci-fi sitcom for kids Mike & Angelo. It's not the first episode, but considering the show is about an alien man-child who comes to earth in a flying wardrobe to live in a teenager's bedroom, I'm not sure I want any further explanation...

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Dec 9, 2015

Mark and Martyn look on as Kenneth Williams hangs around in the woods with giant caterpillars, fairies and TV sets that are also witches. You heard me.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Dec 2, 2015

"MacToot blows on his bagpipes, while Elspeth and Angus watch those notes go floating across the waves..."

More casual eighties racist stereotypes ahead, as Mark and Martyn watch the drunken adventures of Scottish dinosaurs and hallucinating firemen through the eyes of two children with magical whistles. Everyone learns a lesson along the way. Especially Mark and Martyn, who have been misinformed about one particular character for the last thirty years...

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Nov 25, 2015

"My Little Pony, Skinny and Bony..." Hilarious.

Mark and Martyn make good on their promise to look at more "girls' cartoons," and delve into the show with arguably the most infamous internet fanbase, My Little Pony. Given the fact that the "brony" phenomenon is more about the modern incarnation of the colourful miniature horses, will your hosts resist the temptation to talk about it? Phhh, nope. 

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Nov 18, 2015

No episode this week, but we'll be back next week with more of the same old rubbish. So that's something to look forward to.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Nov 11, 2015

The show they said they'd never do. Until someone asked them and they didn't have any better ideas... Mark and Martyn enjoy some literal toilet humour as they take the plunge to watch Round The Bend, the tv comic that was actually funny.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Nov 4, 2015

This time Mark and Martyn are watching the classic anarchic kids' sketch show Your Mother Wouldn't Like It, and it's still quite funny. And a little bit xenophobic. Would your mother like it? Probably not if she's French...

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Oct 28, 2015

The first "girls' cartoon" to appear on the show since She-Ra, and Martyn's something of an expert for some reason. Don't let appearances fool you though - this show is full of curiously adult themes and mild peril, including child abduction, rohypnol-laced beverages and a terrifying brainwashing cult of rainbow-coloured bears. How exactly do you "stare" out of your stomach anyway...?

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Oct 21, 2015
Izzy Wizzy, let's get busy! (Tap tap tap tap tap, tap tap!)
Although there's no magic wand in this episode. Also conspicuous by their absence - Soo and Matthew's beard. Mark and Martyn watch the first episode of Sooty to air in 1980, and it's a weird variety show format that neither one remembers or ever watched. At least there's a special guest to keep us entertained... Alan Randall! Anyone...?
 
Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.
Oct 14, 2015

A young Philip Schofield talks to a young Kylie Minogue and an even younger Dannii Minogue, a young Trevor and Simon do a singing sketch, and a young Gordon the Gopher squeaks at a young Philip Schofield. Meanwhile, Sarah Green and Mike Smith are in hospital. Live tv has never been this boring. Apart from a weird editing surprise that caught us off guard...
Mark and Martyn watch as much of Going Live as they can stand whilst reminiscing about other (better) Saturday morning shows. Shows that had moments like this - http://youtu.be/ftJu5YOHD88

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Oct 7, 2015

Moira Stuart as a shape-shifting crystal-stealing alien, and Fred Harris being threatened with getting vaporised. Sounds exciting doesn't it? Hold onto that imagined excitement and pray it gets you through the mind-numbing puzzles that make the questions on 3-2-1 seem simple.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Sep 30, 2015

Irish Robot Pirates! Sex Doll Robot Pirates! Kenneth Williams as a computer! Unnecessary exclamation marks! Galloping Galaxies(!) has it all! Shame nobody else remembers it. Are we really scraping the barrel already?

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Sep 23, 2015

"It's a real crazy show where anything goes..." Anything involving balloons, confetti and slime at any rate... Yes, Mark and Martyn have watched the first episode of Fun House, and it's exactly as you remember it. Except the go-karts look slower. And so do the twins.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Sep 16, 2015

"We're called Jossy's Giants, football's just a branch of science..."
A failing children's football team and their unconventional new manager fall under the scrutiny of Mark and Martyn in the first episode of Jossy's Giants, which paints a bleak tracksuited picture of 1980s England. Or "Eng-er-lund" to use its correct football pronunciation.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Sep 9, 2015

"Children of the sun, see your time has just begun..." And it's not likely to end for a long time. A really long time...
Mark and Martyn watch the first episode of the eternal saga that was The Mysterious Cities Of Gold, and marvel at the sinister undertones of child slavery and ritual sacrifice that seem to go hand in hand with the 80s. I'm starting to wonder how we made it out alive...

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Sep 2, 2015

"Everybody knows, Badger loves..." an incompetent ventriloquist's hand up its arse.
Mark and Martyn watch the baffling kids' series about a traveller and his badger-shaped mashed potato-obsessed sock that somehow lasted ten years.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Aug 26, 2015

Mark and Martyn watch another pre-school classic, where simple sounds and bright colours designed to entertain toddlers are tasked with keeping the attention of two men in their thirties. Still, at least there's a double entendre thrown in by a production crew and presenter who knew exactly what they were doing. So listen out for that.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Aug 19, 2015

"If you lived in Pigeon Street, here are the people you could meet..."
It may sound like a Channel 4 documentary about vermin-infested council flats, but it's actually a charming pre-school animation (about vermin-infested council flats). Mark and Martyn take a trip to Pigeon Street to listen to the funky theme song and be disappointed by everything else.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Aug 12, 2015

"Early in the morning, just as day is dawning..."  Mark and Martyn rewatch the first episode of Postman Pat, and confirm that every village has its dark secrets, and Greendale is no exception... A postman who delivers almost no mail but hangs around school playgrounds and children's parties, evidence of a thriving swinging scene and some very unsavoury discoveries. How did the doll get there? It's really not worth thinking about...

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Aug 5, 2015

Mark and Martyn celebrate the landmark 25th episode of the podcast that watches kids TV from the 80s by watching a show that's a) not from the 80s and b) not for kids. Adults in tracksuits play games for crystals in order to gain time to grab shiny pieces of paper in a claustrophobic vertical wind tunnel. Still, at least there's no Ed Tudor-Pole in this one.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/whenwagonwheelswerebigger - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Jul 29, 2015

"There's Somebody At The Door... There's Somebody At The Door..."
Mark and Martyn settle down to watch a man in a pink suit with a fake arm trying to control a pretend bird with a thirst for human pain. On live TV. For children. Nostalgia is a funny thing isn't it...

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/toomuch.jam - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Jul 22, 2015

"When I wake up in the morning, an alarm gives out a warning, I don't think I'm gonna make it on time..."
Smug Zack and smug Slater hit on vacuous Kelly in the pilot episode of Saved By The Bell, the flagship high school-based sitcom of the late eighties. Will Mark and Martyn avoid the obvious Dustin Diamond remarks? Pphhh, no.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/toomuch.jam - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Jul 15, 2015

"Nobody tells me what to do, no not me..."
Ah Pugwall, Australia's own rebel without a plot. Mark and Martyn revisit the summer holiday time slot filler about a 13 year old boy and his boring family and friends. There's a barbecue and disappointment - this is the most Australian TV show ever made.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/toomuch.jam - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

Jul 8, 2015

Challenge of the Gobots - the biggest challenge being can Mark and Martyn make it through an entire episode without mentioning how much better Transformers was.They fail.

Questions, comments or recommendations for future episodes? Why not tweet us using our shared Twitter feed @spreadthewhimsy, or reach us at facebook.com/toomuch.jam - why not indeed?

W4B theme composed by John Croudy.

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