EMMA: The only thing they really picked him up on is they said he did two forward rolls, and he used his hands to get up.
JESSICA: Ugh. That’s the worst.
EMMA: They said, “You don’t…” Yeah, that’s what Craig said. He said, “You have enough skill to not do that, so I don’t want to be seeing you do that again.”
JESSICA: We don’t let toddlers do that here. [EMMA LAUGHS] You have no excuse for that.
[EXPRESS YOURSELF INTRO MUSIC]
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JESSICA: Hey, everybody! We’re doing something a little bit different today. We are doing a show dedicated to the new gymnastics TV show, BBC1’s Tumble airing in the UK, and you can watch all the replays online. If you’re a first time listener, we’re a gymnastics podcast, and we’re doing something a little different–recapping a TV show today. We’re a PG13 show, so you might hear a swear word here or there. And if you’re a regular listener, we put out two episodes since last week. So we had our episode, it was an interview with Kristin Allen, world champ and Tumble star, and her partner Michael Rodrigues. Which is hilarious, by the way. Michael had me in tears, and Kristin Allen says stuff that was just so touching about what it’s like working with another person like that, so closely. And then we also put out our Commonwealth Games recap. So you’ve had two episodes since last Wednesday. Now we’re going to do our Tumble recap, and hopefully we’ll be doing these regularly, and next week we have our preview of Championships coming up. And then at Championships in Pittsburg we’ll be doing minishows directly from Championships. So much Gymcastic to look forward to! So, I hope you guys enjoy our Tumble episode. If you’re a first time listener, I hope you’ll enjoy our regular show and giggle along with us as we talk about gymnastics, and let us know what you think of this!
[BACKGROUND MUSIC PLAYING]
JESSICA: This is the official unofficial podcast of BBC1’s Tumble, bringing you all the recaps from the show. I have Emma with me.
EMMA: Hi! [JESSICA LAUGHS]
JESSICA: Emma was there in person, and I watched live and got to follow Twitter feed, and I have to say, guys, as a fan of adult gymnastics and advocate for adult gymnastics for years and years and years, and having my adult gymnastics website, Masters-Gymnastics.com, I cannot tell you how exciting it is for me to see a show like this, because… Literally, I shed tears twice during this show. Not because it was the most amazing gymnastics I’d ever seen, but because I was like, all TV shows that we have in the US, almost everything that is huge success as a reality show, its origins have started in the UK, and then the UK has sold it. That’s true with so many shows. Dancing with the Stars came from the UK, like, America’s Got Calent–Talent came from the UK, all of those shows came from the UK. And then they were huge hits here. And so I know, to the core of my being… I mean, we already know because it’s been in the development news, in television development news, that the show is already in development with Mary Lou Retton here in the US. But I know it’s going to come to the US, I know it’s going to be a huge success, because the British have this down, making shows like this a success. Watching it, it was incredibly professional, and honestly, even better that I thought it would be. And, I don’t like shows like Dancing with the Stars, because I expect to see perfect dancing, but it’s hugely successful. And this show, I had really low expectations because it’s the same format as Dancing with the Stars. And there wasn’t huge, amazing gymnastics. But you saw people in their 40s doing back flips and front flips, and doing really beautiful circus routines. And just demonstrating that, yes, you can learn this sport at, in your 40s. There’s a 50 year old on the show. He used to be on Dallas, oh my God. It’s just proves that you can do gymnastics as an adult, and it’s going to increase the amount of adults who do gymnastics. And just, anyone over 18 in the US and the UK. It’s just, it’s so exciting! Okay. So, Emma, you were there in person. So tell us about going there and what it was all like, and how long it took.
EMMA: Oh my God, I’m still, like, in a coma from it. Because it was like, the best day ever. I had the lowest expectations because I’m exactly the same as you. I hate Strictly, and Dancing on Ice, and all those things. And every time a gymnast or someone has been on it, I’ve just watched the YouTube videos, because I can’t bear the whole show. But this was so cool. I just thought it was going to be awful. And then it was like, do you want me to tell you about the whole day?
JESSICA: Yeah. Like, going in and all that stuff.
EMMA: Okay, so basically you get given a ticket. And I must thank Richard at UK Flair because he sent me his ticket because he’s away at International Gymnastics Camp and couldn’t go. So thank you so much! I had the time of my life. Your ticket wasn’t wasted! So, you get your ticket, but it’s not a guarantee that you’re going to get in [JESSICA GASPS] because they oversubscribe so that they have a full audience. So your ticket says, from 12 noon, you can queue up, and there will be people there to validate your ticket, which means you can leave the queue once you get a wrist band, and you can return later. So I got there at literally three minutes past 12, the queue was right down the street. So I was standing there with massive adrenaline of like, “Oh no, I’m not going to get in, oh no!” And then the BBC people start going down the queue, and they have like, a maximum of 600, they were saying. So you got given colored wrist bands, and I got a green one, which meant I was seated behind where the judges were. And the people on the other side got orange ones. But it you got, I think it was yellow, that means you were stand by, which means you didn’t get in until they did a final totter and saw if there were any empty seats. So you had to wait, literally all day if you were on standby.
JESSICA: Oh my God, so when did you finally get in? [EMMA LAUGHS] You got there at 12 to wait in line, and when did you actually enter?
EMMA: Well, the thing was… I was in line from just after 12 to about 12:30 by the time I was validated… maybe it was nearer to one. So about, one o’clock say, and then they let me go. And they told us to return at 2:30. We were like, “What?” So I went back at 2:30. Again, the massive line. And we were probably in that for about a half an hour, and then they let us through the gate. And we went through security, which is like airline style. You get patted down, you get your bags, you know, they check your bags.
JESSICA: Oh, that’s good. I’m glad they do that.
EMMA: They did say they were going to remove our phones, but they didn’t, which was great. So I was able to… I don’t know if you followed my tweets and stuff, yesterday, but I was able to take photos in the studio, which was so exciting. So, then we went through into this studio, which geek fans, it’s the George Lucas studio?
JESSICA: Oh my God.
EMMA: Yeah. So, hello! So we all went inside. The set is amazing. But it’s really a lot smaller than it looks on TV, and even if you were on the back row, you had an amazing view, because it only went up probably about ten rows, I’d guess. So, as I said, I was… and my seat was just behind where the judges sit. And every time someone competed, Alex, the presenter, came and sat in our little block and then did her presenting stuff. So before the show starts, you have the compare guy who gets you all Ged-Up and this compares a comedian guy, and he was so funny, doing jokes and mucking around, and being really silly.
JESSICA: So it’s like a warm up comedian to get you all excited and cheer.
EMMA: Yeah, yeah.
JESSICA: So, okay.
EMMA: So he tried to get you all excited so he gets you to do Mexican waves, he gets you to squeal, you have to do all this other stuff. We were doing the disco dancing and all types of things. [JESSICA LAUGHS] And he was very funny, and I really like people that take the mick out of themselves, and he did that a lot, which was funny. [JESSICA LAUGHS] So you do all that, and that took us, I would so, to about five PM. And then at five PM they said they needed to film the intros. So we did that. So we had to scream really loud. And they lowered Alex, the presenter, down from a hoop from the ceiling. And then…
JESSICA: Nice.
EMMA: Yeah, it was really good. But she was, oh my God, she was up there for ages. Because that’s one thing I’ll tell you about in a minute. But yeah, they lowered her down, and then the pro gymnasts did their presentation, which was great. So they filmed that, that wasn’t live.
JESSICA: Oh, interesting. So, if they messed up, they could fix something if they needed to.
EMMA: I suppose. I think they’re just the… a few bits were prerecorded because obviously I think, it’s a case of timing. Because when they do their routines they had all sorts of props. And whilst Alex was talking to the camera with the competitors who had just been up, these people were madly, like, ripping down the burger set and all that sort of stuff, and then putting something else up. So yeah, it was a question of timing, I think. So we did all the filming of that, and then it starts. And like, the… my heart was going! It was, it went all dark, and they played the intro, and then they announced–all the competitors came out, and then they announced the judges. And oh my God, when Nadia came out, I cried.
JESSICA: Aww!
EMMA: I actually cried.
JESSICA: Aww!
EMMA: I’ve seen Nadia at meets before, and I’ve not been affected in any way. I’m just, “Oh yeah, that’s Nadia.”
JESSICA: But it’s a gymnastics TV show!
EMMA: It is a TV show!
JESSICA: This is the thing we have been waiting for forever!
EMMA: Yes! And they played a film of her. “Yes, I’m Nadia. I won seven hundred medals in ’76 and got perfect 10.” [JESSICA LAUGHS] And, I was like, “Oh my gosh, I’m going, I’m going!” And I had the card, my leo card, in my bag. And I was like, “If there’s one thing I’m getting today, it’s her to sign this.” Because I took it to Commonwealth Games in the hope that she would go.
JESSICA: And these are, just so everyone knows, if you haven’t listened to the show before. So these are leo cards that are made by Meg. You can… I’ll put a link so you guys can buy one on the show. She’s a graphic designer, and she does these cards or posters, you can get them poster size, one of our listeners in Dubai has her lady cave is all like pink pillows and these all over the wall. It looks awesome, I totally want a lady cave now. And they’re just, these cool graphics of all the most famous leotards. And she’ll do custom ones if you ask her. And it’s so cool, you can get them post card sized, and you can take them to meets and have your favorite gymnasts sign them. And they love these.
EMMA: Take a picture with them.
JESSICA: Like, they freak out when they’re like, “Someone made my leotard iconic in this way.”
EMMA: Yeah, they do love them. And I don’t know if you saw recently, I sent one to Catalina Ponor. And she actually sent me a photograph of her with it.
JESSICA: Aww!
EMMA: And I was like, “Really? Ahh!”
JESSICA: So they introduced Nadia, and you cried.
EMMA: They introduced Nadia, and I cried. Oh, oh, oh! But I’d forgotten one bit. So after they filmed the intro and we were all sitting, waiting for the main event to start, I was just sitting there thinking to myself, “Oh my God, please let this be good.” Because it was such amazing energy from everybody. The crowd was all fired up, we’d met all the coaches, they were all fired up. And it was like, there’d been so much anticipation for this. And then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a familiar face walk in. And it was Mitch. And I was just like…
JESSICA: Yes!
EMMA: “Mitch is here! It’s all going to be okay!”
JESSICA: This is the thing…so Mitch Fenner is the commentator…
EMMA: He commentates, yeah!
JESSICA: …for all, every gymnastics thing in the UK. And I have to say, he’s hands down one of my favorites. Because, not only because of the way he speaks, but he can explain deductions without seeming demeaning at all to the gymnasts. He’s just extremely kind, but very honest.
EMMA: He’s…
JESSICA: He’s so sweet.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: And I really, really like him.
EMMA: We should also point out that he’s the coach of the Dutch men.
JESSICA: Oh, that’s right!
EMMA: Yes. So…
JESSICA: Which, I should also mention, he is quoted in the most recent The Hard Way to Success video series, and I’ll put a link to that too, because he coaches the Dutch men. So, and everyone should watch all those videos, because they’re another documentary gymnastics series, and we love them. So watch them, and you’ll get more behind the scenes with him. Because they’re based in the Netherlands.
EMMA: Yes, and they are very good, and they will make you cry. So…
JESSICA: If you don’t cry when you watch those, there’s… tell us. Because we’re going to keep a tally, because we’ve never heard of anyone who’s watched those and hasn’t cried.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: So, just so you know. Yeah.
EMMA: Especially the Luke Carson and Brinn Bevan episodes. [JESSICA SIGHS] If you don’t cry watching them, then you’re a dead human.
JESSICA: [LAUGHS] You’re a dead gym fan.
EMMA: You’re dead to me, as well. [LAUGHTER]
JESSICA: So he came in and then what happened?
EMMA: Yes, so we had all the intros, everyone came out, I cried when Nadia came out. She just looked beautiful in her white suit, and obviously the crowd, they love Louis. Whatever you gym fans out there think of Louis Smith, my experience of him is he is so nice, he is so nice to me, and I’m the giddiest annoying geek ever. And the crowd love him! Kids love him! People love him! So he got huge cheers. And it was just great! So they all came out, they sat down, and then it was on to the show. So, do you want me to tell you about the performances?
JESSICA: Yes. So, let’s talk about…
EMMA: …Who everybody is, obviously.
JESSICA: Yes. Let’s talk about…so the very first one we saw was…Amella?
EMMA: Amelle.
JESSICA: Amelle, okay. Amelle. And she is being coached by David-Roy Wood, who is Princess Catherine’s other coach.
EMMA: That’s right!
JESSICA: So Rochelle Douglas is the main coach, and then he’s the other coach.
EMMA: Rochelle was actually there as well.
JESSICA: [GASPS] Yay!
EMMA: However, I didn’t see her, and I didn’t know she was there until after. Because obviously when filming starts, your phones have to be off. So throughout the whole thing I wanted to tweet so bad. But, you’ll get turfed out, so I couldn’t. But yeah, she was there yesterday.
JESSICA: So the very first performance was Amelle, and how do we know her? Like, who is she?
EMMA: She is out of a girl group called the Sugababes, who are actually very good. So she’s, she’s pretty famous here, I would say.
JESSICA: Her performance, hands down, I think that she and… I mean, to start, they started her off for a reason, because I was like, “Uh, she just learned this. How is that possible?”
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: I was completely impressed. And let me just say, you’re not going to see people doing double backs on this show; this is not the Olympics. This is beautiful, entertaining little teasers of gymnastics. It’s like Dancing with the Stars. They’re not the best dancers ever, but they have incredible partners, and it’s really entertaining. And the whole time you will feel inspired. You’ll watch this and be like, “Holy crap, why am I sitting on my ass right now? I need to go join a gymnastics class somewhere.”
EMMA: I do. I want to learn how to do everything.
JESSICA: Yes!
EMMA: I do! I’m going to start my own gymnastics class. [JESSICA LAUGHS] And I’m going to employ Nadia to be my coach.
JESSICA: Perfect. Okay, so what did you think of them? What was it like, watching? They did a hoop routine.
EMMA: The two events that they did yesterday–they alternated, so the first one, Amelle, she did the hoop, and then they did floor also. And they just alternated the two events. So, she did Man in the Mirror, by Michael Jackson. And they start off, her and her partner on a hoop, each. And then they go on to one hoop. But she did a really good job. I watched her warming up, just before they cut to actually filming her. And she was rocking those splits. She could really do them, you know?
JESSICA: Mmhmm.
EMMA: And I, I was watching her, and I thought, “Oh my goodness. This is–She’s, like, really good.” Considering the amount of training. She’s obviously fit already, which helps. And obviously having, being in a girl band they do all those choreographed danced routines and stuff. So that’s obviously got to help in your performance. But I was really impressed with her. She did, she did really well.
JESSICA: And I just have to say, just to play devil’s advocate here, the other view of the show, I was, you know, my husband was watching in the background, and he’s like, “I’m not watching, but this is what I have to say about this.” And his whole thing was, you know, it’s, just there’s so many people who work harder than the people on this show, like the celebrities, and deserve this more, and they’re real athletes who spend their whole life, and they’re way better than these people. But these people are getting their TV show, and, you know, it’s not fair, and blah blah blah. And I was like, “Yeah, except this is how you get people to watch a gymnastics show. You want someone that they know and have some connection to, whether you love them or hate them, and you watch how hard it is to do the very basics of this sport. And that is how you get buy in to watching this.”
EMMA: I would, I would love nothing more than to sit on a Saturday night and watch professional elite gymnastics, but this is the only way it’s ever going to happen.
JESSICA: Yeah. It’s great because…
EMMA: So, I’ll take it. [LAUGHTER]
JESSICA: Exactly. And it features these incredible elite athletes alongside the celebrities. So they get more exposure too. And all these people who do acro and circus sports, this is a great way for adults to get involved in gymnastics too. I love it. And by the way, if you’re totally interested, you can go to my website, Masters-Gymnastics.com. We have a map and a list by state in the US and also abroad, where you can find adult gymnastics programs and tumbling classes and open gyms. And then the British Gymnastics has done the most amazing job preparing for this. They have this Team G program, which is kind of like parkour, that you can find a place that you can do that. They have adult gymnastics programs, and they have a way that you can find what adult gymnastics programs are around you. There are so many programs that are outside of artistic gymnastics that are perfect for adults, or anyone. Even a teen, if you want to get into this and you’re a beginner, they are setting the bar. They are the gold standard for what every single gym owner and gymnastics association of the federations around the world should be doing to prepare for the success of this show. Gold standard, I cannot say enough good things about British Gymnastics. Everyone should be following suit. And if you’re a gym owner and you want to get involved in this, and you don’t really know how, go to their website, because they actually have training programs, and they have literature about how to start it and what the rules are and training. They’re just, I love you guys, you’re doing such a good job. Please, please, I bow down to you, British Gymnastics, I’m so proud of what you guys are doing. Just, thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything, because you’re going to get so many people into gymnastics. Okay, back to the show. Let’s discuss.
EMMA: Yay! [CLAPS HANDS] So, after Amelle was Peter. And Peter was one of my childhood heroes really, because he was on a TV show they had for kids called Blue Peter. Where they do all sorts of…there’s loads on YouTube of gymnasts on Blue Peter. There’s a Danusia film, she went on Blue Peter. Valeri Liukin went on Blue Peter. So search the archives for some old clips on there. But he was this amazing presenter, and on Blue Peter one of things that they used to get all presenters used to do was these, like, ridiculous challenges. So they’d go to the site of Sarajevo Olympics, and they’d have to do the bobsleigh course. [JESSICA LAUGHS] Really crazy stuff. And he got a spinoff show, called–his surname is Duncan–he got a spinoff show called Duncan Dad. Which was basically him doing adrenaline-type crazy antics. So as I was sitting there before the show started, the lady in front of my turned out to be his sister. Which was quite exciting, because it’s always nice to chat and meet new folks. And she was saying that he’s 60 years old.
JESSICA: Wow!
EMMA: Yep. He’s 60 years old, and he’s, like, super fit. And I was like, “God, I haven’t seen him on TV for years. I can’t even remember, if, really what he looks like and if he is going to be super fit.” But she goes, “No, he is super fit.” And he came out, and he is super fit, and he could do all the lifts! And even, you know, Louis said, “You try, if you’re a parent, and you try, like, chucking your two year old up in the air, which I do all the time my nephews…”
JESSICA: Yeah, he did the floor routine, by the way.
EMMA: They’re heavy!
JESSICA: Yes!
EMMA: And you know, he was doing these mad lifts.
JESSICA: He had a partner who would do, like, the round off back tuck over him, and he caught her half way and lifted her. I was so impressed with him.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: So they did the floor routine, and honestly, he had the kind of personality that I was like, “Oh my God, he’s going to be so successful.”
EMMA: He’s amazing. He’s such a decent guy.
JESSICA: Yes.
EMMA: That…
JESSICA: You could see the love that, like, he was like, “This is so fun!”
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: Like, kid in a candy store. Even though it was hard, and he was like, “Oh my God, what if I drop her, I’m terrified.” I just loved watching him. And I mean, he’s 60 and he’s doing this…
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: And it was fun, and he had this big smile on his face.
EMMA: I mean, goodness me, if you can teach a 60 year old to do flips, then I need to be going to this class. [JESSICA LAUGHS] I need to be on Tumble! I need to do something that’s going to make me famous to get on it. [JESSICA LAUGHS]
JESSICA: You’re gymternet famous. That’s good.
EMMA: I am.
JESSICA: Oh, so let’s talk about the scores for a second, because I was like, this was the only part my husband liked. He was like, “Good, the scores are accurate, they’re not just giving everyone a ten.” [EMMA LAUGHS] So they, the scores were what they should be getting. Like, based on the 10.0 system, which is…
EMMA: I actually…
JESSICA: …correct.
EMMA: Yeah. I actually thought a few people were scored too highly, and although Craig was getting booed for doing his low scores, it’s week one, people!
JESSICA: Exactly.
EMMA: And he was saying that the gymnastics content is quite low, so that’s why I’m giving you four. And he was right. I’m with Craig. You know, you don’t be bringing out eights and sevens on day one. Nah.
JESSICA: Exactly. And…
EMMA: Did Shannon Miller get a ten on her first day of gymnastics? No. [JESSICA LAUGHS]
JESSICA: Right, and that’s what you get if you’re really being scored as a level five or level six, and you bend your knees 25 times in your routine and flex your feet. You’re going to be getting a 5.0 if you’re lucky. So I like that the scores were accurate in that way. And at first people are freaking out, and I’m like, “Uh, welcome to gymnastics people. Did you see how many times she bent her legs or flexed her feet?” That’s what’s up. So, I liked the scoring, I thought it was great.
EMMA: Yeah, me too. After Peter was Andrea. She’s, like, a TV presenter of Loose Woman, which is a hideous show.
JESSICA: Oh my God, what does that mean? Loose Woman? Like, we heard that, and we laughed so hard.
EMMA: It just means… Yeah.
JESSICA: Because you know what that means here, right?
EMMA: It’s loose mouths, so it means you just talk a lot. And it’s basically like, you get over there, you get The View, with like, Whoopi Goldberg and stuff, don’t you? Ours is exactly the same, but it’s just called Loose Women.
JESSICA: Oh, yours probably started, and that’s why we have ours now. But loose woman here means that you’re promiscuous. You have a ton of sex.
EMMA: Yeah. [LAUGHS] I guess it has that… It could have that meaning too. But it just means loose tongue. “Loose lips sink ships,” that’s where it’s coming from.
JESSICA: Gotcha. So I could totally relate to her, because I once brought someone I was dating to gymnastics class, like, “Oh, this will be great.” And it ended in puking in the bushes. So I can totally relate.
EMMA: Yeah, she was really ill. She was doing the hoop, and she got really bad motion sickness. So she was basically on every medication going trying to make her not be sick.
JESSICA: Just for people learning, like a forward roll for the first time, it can make you nauseous. Like, it’s one of those things that when you’ve done gymnastics for your whole life you take for granted, that you can flip around, and you’re, your, you’ve developed that sense in your inner ear. And it’s one the reasons why I think all kids should start, even if they don’t want to do gymnastics, start them in gymnastics because they’ll learn how to fall without getting hurt. Because you know, you have an innate ear sense when you do gymnastics. And that’s the reason everyone should start it. But yeah, she, that’s like a legit concern. And to start on hoop and spinning around…
EMMA: Yes.
JESSICA: …Aww, I felt so bad for her.
EMMA: I thought she did okay. She wasn’t one of the best, but then again, she’s in this sort of older age bracket. And she did have that awful sickness. But I thought that she was quite tentative. So she’d do a skill and it’s almost like she was thinking it through, talking it over in her head, like, “Oh, the next thing is I’ve got to put my leg and point my toe. And the next thing, I’ve got to hold the hoop with my hand and lower myself down…” But you know, I’m sure she’ll be better in the coming weeks. And then my new best friend, and… I’ve actually seen this guy in concert twice, and anyone in the UK will like, be, “Oh my God, you went to a Steps concert. And you went twice? You need to die.” [JESSICA LAUGHS] So, his name is H, which stands for “Hyperactive,” so that’s a good start. And he was in a pop group called Steps. They were one of the groups that came up following the Spice Girls, and they were really popular. They had, like, coordinated outfits. There was two guys and three girls. They had coordinated outfits, they had dance routines for every single song. All the kids absolutely loved them. And me as well. So he was great. He did floor routine, and he did it to Johnny B Goode. And so…
JESSICA: Wait, wait, before we get to this, they played… did they play the background of them training? Did you see that in the studio?
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: Oh my God, so he’s the one, right, that the choreographer was like, “You need to just shut up and just do this right now.” [EMMA LAUGHS] Like, you’re complaining too much.
EMMA: [LAUGHING] Yeah.
JESSICA: [LAUGHS] I was like, “Oh my God. How many times have I wanted to say that to someone at work?” Like, we had the high school interns this summer. And I was like, “Listen. If I hear you talking one more time about finding this boy’s e-mail address and not doing your work…”
EMMA: He…he’s a bit of a drama queen. He’s, recently Steps were, like, a really big pop group over here who had, like, tons of number ones. And on Boxing Day one year they split up, and all the kids started crying. And they basically had, they just fell out, and they were just horrible to each other. And years later they reformed, but it was all filmed, so it was like a reality show that was all filmed, and they were like, all in tears, and still bitter, it was really fun to watch. [JESSICA LAUGHS] It was. You should look it up, I’m sure it would be on YouTube.
JESSICA: I loved his background though, because you could see, like, “It’s really hard.” And we’re like, “Yes. It’s really hard and painful.”
EMMA: Yes, and he’s a drama queen. But he did a special thing for me at the end, so I’ll talk to you about that after. So I love him. So yeah, he did the routine where they started off flipping burgers, and then they sort of, kind of flipped over the counter. But he was very good. It was very fast paced. And very entertaining. He did lots of flips and lifts and tricks. The only thing they really picked him up on is they said he did two forward rolls, and he used his hands to get up.
JESSICA: Ugh, that’s the worst.
EMMA: And they said, you know, “You don’t…” Yeah, that’s what Craig said. He said, “You know, you have enough skill to not do that. So I don’t want to be seeing you doing that again.”
JESSICA: We don’t let toddlers do that here. [EMMA LAUGHS] You have no excuse for that.
EMMA: Yeah. But he’s…I would say he would be my second place. I think he came in second place anyway. But in my judging system, he would be second for me as well.
[CHANGE OF SUBJECT BLIP]
JESSICA: Do you have any questions or feedback for us? Do you have any gymnastics crisis that we can solve for you? Contact us, we’re here to help. Our e-mail is gymcastic@gmail.com, our voice mail is 415-800-3191, or you can call us for free from anywhere in the world on Skype. Our user name is GymcasticPodcast. Just call GymcasticPodcast and leave a voice mail for free.
EMMA: And then your special friend from last week…
JESSICA: Yes.
EMMA: Kristin, with Bobby. Now Bobby, I didn’t know who Bobby was, but I believe he’s on a kids TV show.
JESSICA: Teen Wolf.
EMMA: And it’s kind of Twlighty type show…
JESSICA: Mmhmm.
EMMA: So it’s huge. He’s totally in love with Kristin. They’re totally together, they have to be!
JESSICA: Did you see how they were sitting after the thing? I mean, their knees were touching. Mmhmm.
EMMA: I didn’t…I wasn’t looking, they were all sort hunched over, you know, after they’d been on everybody went over to where the judges were sitting, and they all sat on these benches. And yeah, I wasn’t really watching. But he was so, you know when there is chemistry?
JESSICA: Mmhmm. They definitely, like the TV show obviously tried to play that up, but I wondered if they tried to play that up ’cause they were like, “By the way…”
EMMA: Yeah, they do make this sort of stuff up. But, like, you know, there’s been romances on these shows before. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s another one.
JESSICA: I love how Mitch was doing his commentator. So like, Mitch would do comments on the replay afterwards. And he was, “Who knows if there’s…” I mean, he said something that was so something he would never normally say, but it was so funny to hear it come out of his mouth about, “Who knows if we’ll see more love in the air next week?” And I was like, “Oh my God.” [LAUGHTER]
EMMA: It’s so funny.
JESSICA: And, oh my God, Kristin looks just stunningly gorgeous.
EMMA: Yeah, she is.
JESSICA: Oh my God.
EMMA: Yeah. Amazing. What I was kind of–I mean, I know they did, they had a display of Louis and all his teammates, which I guess is like the entertainment section that they have in Strictly, but I would have loved to have seen–and they did do a display at the start, but I would have loved to have seen more professional displays, so hopefully they’ll do more professional stuff as the weeks go on.
JESSICA: Yes, because you have, I mean, she’s a two time world champion, and the stuff that she does will just make everyone lose their minds when they see, hopefully she’ll actually do a routine. But I don’t know if she has a partner right now.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: But I hope that they display the people that are already on the show, so you can see how amazing they are, like, the pro partners.
EMMA: Can I just say, can I just say that when I–I had to get a, there was no trains yesterday, so I had to get a bus home, which was a disaster, it takes so long. And I listened to her Gymcastic interview on my way home, to like, so my buzz wouldn’t die. So [JESSICA LAUGHS] yeah, that as so cool.
JESSICA: And it’s funny. That interview was so funny. And, so we have her male partner on, who was her world partner for World Championships.
EMMA: He’s amazing, he’s so funny.
JESSICA: He’s hilarious. You can see why they got along, because they’re like, opposite personalities.
EMMA: Yeah. Do you remember, when he was telling the story about the pee test–my brother, he’ll kill me. But my brother’s in the military over here. We don’t call it military, but I’m trying to be Americanized. And they have drug testing, random, where they just turn up at your house and you have to pee in front of them. And I know British gymnasts here and sports people here in general, the drug people just randomly turn up at their house and like, “Drop your pants, have a pee. And I’m going to stand two centimeters away from you.” [LAUGHS]
JESSICA: That’s the thing. I knew that, like, when you’re an active athlete you get randomly drug tested, and it happens here too, and in every sport it does. But I didn’t know they put their face an inch away from your junk while you’re doing it. [LAUGHTER] Oh my God!
EMMA: It’s hideous. We don’t even do that, and I work in the medical profession, and we don’t even do that. [JESSICA LAUGHS] You know? It’s taking things a bit far, I think. But…
JESSICA: But then you have, you know, the people who somehow used a fake penis and peed, like, what’s the bicycler who, you know…
EMMA: Well, I’ve seen it all in my job as well, where people have smuggled in pee. But we have these bottles now where it knows if it’s fresh pee. When you put it in.
JESSICA: Ooh.
EMMA: It’s got a temperature gage on it.
JESSICA: Nice. [EMMA LAUGHS] Nice. So, there you go. Can’t get away with that now. Okay, who, how did the. How did the audience react to Bobby Lockwood and Kristin Allen’s routine?
EMMA: Oh, loved them. They absolutely loved them. ‘Cause they were obviously feed the love story and totally fell for it. I totally fell for it. I’m the most gullible person in the world, and yeah, it was beautiful. It was slow–because H was really bouncy, really fast, really trick, trick, trick. And theirs was really slow, and they have the lovely John Legend song. And it was all so sultry, and da-da-da-da, it was lovely.
JESSICA: Their routine was harder, too. Because Bobby obviously–he has to have had gymnastics before, and he’s pretty strong. So they could do some stuff–
EMMA: He’s also younger. He’s only about 21. So he’s got the age advantage.
JESSICA: So do you think, I asked Kristin about this last week when she was on the show, and I asked her, “Do you think that the paparazzi, the British paparazzi is going to be at your door the day after the show airs?” Because they’re just like, famous for stalking every celebrity. But does that happen, that people who are on these shows, like Strictly Come Dancing and stuff, they’re just…
EMMA: Yeah, oh yeah. If there’s a hint of any–it’s websites like the Daily Mail and the Mirror, and the showbiz gossip websites, all the magazines–so yes. If there’s a hint of love, and the show’s popular, I–judging from all the tweets and everything I’ve read, it was popular. She’ll get some attention, most definitely, because there was on Strictly, one of the dancers who won the show a few years ago, she fell in love with her dance partner. I think they’re still together.
JESSICA: Mm.
EMMA: And they were in the paper, like, every day.
JESSICA: Ah.
EMMA: And also on Dancing on Ice, there was a few tales about Beth and her partner for a little while, but I don’t think there was anything in that. But there was, there’s a bit of a love triangle with one of the guys, who’s a bit of a dog by all accounts, it sounds. He hooked up with his celebrity partner, and then the falling season he ditched her and hooked up with the new one. [LAUGHTER]
JESSICA: What are you going to do? Them’s the breaks.
EMMA: [LAUGHS] Yeah. And they both look pretty much the same, as well. [LAUGHS]
JESSICA: Oh no, that’s bad.
EMMA: Quite funny, yeah.
JESSICA: Replaced with a difference version.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: All right, who was next?
EMMA: Next there was Lucy, who–she’s kind of on a reality show and is famous for that. So, boo, I don’t like these types–I’m on some crappy show, and then I become famous for being nothing.
JESSICA: Someone described it as “the Jersey Shore of”–the British version of the Jersey Shore.
EMMA: Yeah, I’d say that’s pretty accurate.
JESSICA: Ugh.
EMMA: Lots of people who lots of money and not many brain cells. Lots of fake tan. [JESSICA LAUGHS] It’s very popular, though. It’s a very popular show. So, somebody likes it.
JESSICA: Not me, because…
EMMA: But she, she was very pretty and very slim, and very…
JESSICA: Weak.
EMMA: Doll-like. And I just thought, “Oh my God, she’s going to be perfect.” She’s perfect size, she’s going to be great.
JESSICA: Weak.
EMMA: But she was rubbish!
JESSICA: Terrible. Terrible. I was like, “Oh my God, don’t do a handstand, you’re going to die. You’re going to break your neck.”
EMMA: And then she did that, like, assisted front tuck. It was horrible!
JESSICA: Oh my God, she–and there are, in her interview, she’s like, “This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life!” I was like, “Oh my God, if this is the hardest thing you’ve ever done in your life, you are in trouble.” Like, you are already–I hope your life changes.
EMMA: You’ve never watched The Only Way is Essex, Jess.
JESSICA: Ugh.
EMMA: See if I can find an episode and I’ll send you a link.
JESSICA: Oh God, I don’t want to. I couldn’t even handle her at all. [EMMA LAUGHS] I was just like, “Yeah, you can’t get away with–”
EMMA: It’s shockingly bad. So, up after Lucy was Sarah. And Sarah was from a group called Girls Aloud. Who were actually pretty good, back in the day. So I thought she was good. She did the hoop as well. She looked a little labored at times, and it was almost, again, she was doing a skill, and then thinking the next on in her head before she did it. You could almost see her doing that. But you know, potential I think she’s got. And she’s got nice sort of lines, you know. She’s got a nice figure and everything. And she can point her toes and stuff. So I think she’s got potential. I think she’ll get more confident.
JESSICA: So Sarah was the one who was terrified of the height of the hoop, and honestly, I can totally relate to that because every time I would just do a front support on the high bar, my palms would start sweating, and I was like, “I need more chalk, I’m going to die!”
EMMA: I also–yeah–I also need to tell you, one thing that you, as TV viewers won’t have seen, is the amount of time they had to stand or sit or whatever in their starting poses before the cameras started to role. Because as they were running the VTs of their training clips, Sarah was in that hoop lying on her back for must have been about a minute.
JESSICA: Ugh!
EMMA: So, to be able to just lie, up high, lying in it, with the anticipation, the adrenaline, and everything, fair play to her. Because I thought she was good. I did.
JESSICA: I liked her a lot. Just like you’re saying, the only problem she had was when she would do a transition she would kind of lose form for a second, and then she would get it back.
EMMA: Yeah, yeah.
JESSICA: But I really liked her, and I loved the see-through suspenders that her partner was wearing. [EMMA LAUGHS] And you know how I feel about suspenders. And I think she has a lot of potential, and I was really impressed.
EMMA: I think she does as well.
JESSICA: Yeah, I like how she got over her fear.
EMMA: I think her confidence will grow as the weeks go on. And also Emma, who was after Sarah, Emma was off Dynasty [ph: Dih-nah-sty] or Dynasty [ph: Die-na-sty], as you say over there. [LAUGHTER] And she’s in her 50s, hello! And she also…
JESSICA: That’s amazing.
EMMA: …was standing on that guy’s shoulders at the start, wrapped in that huge coat, basically, she had to up there. [CLEARS THROAT] Excuse me. She had to get up on his shoulders, and then these crew people came with ladders and attached the coat around her. She must have been standing there a good minute before the cameras started to roll, and I’m like, I’m like, “My God, what if she falls over? What if the guy under the coat…” Because that was a big coat. “What if he suffocates?” [JESSICA LAUGHS] Because, let me tell you–
JESSICA: Suffocates!
EMMA: Let me tell you, the studio was boiling.
JESSICA: Really?
EMMA: And we were in there for hours. It was so hot in there! There was no air. And you couldn’t have anything to drink, because you couldn’t go to the toilet, they wouldn’t let you out. Obviously when the show’s on it’s an hour and half. It’s going, and you’re not allowed to move.
JESSICA: Oh my God. Well, I’m glad they kept it warm, because that’s one of the worst things as an athlete, when you’re somewhere cold–
EMMA: It was so hot.
JESSICA: But for sitting there, and yeah.
EMMA: My hair–my hair melted. [JESSICA LAUGHS] I had a photograph after. You’ll see the before photograph that I took, before it started, and the after one that I got, and my hair is like–my fringe is just, like, gone loco. [LAUGHTER] Yes, so Emma, Emma, she didn’t really do any gymnastics-y stuff. So to say, I don’t think.
JESSICA: It was more like holding lifts. Like he was holding her up in the air.
EMMA: It was… yeah. She was better than Lucy, by far, but again, I think she was quite nervous and she was quite tentative. Again, she’s never done gymnastics.
JESSICA: Yeah.
EMMA: So, fair play to her, and, you know, she’s in her 50s, for goodness sake. So I think she’ll improve. And then there was Carl, after.
JESSICA: Big fan, big fan.
EMMA: Right. See, I was a big fan of him, and I was a big fan of his good back planche, because as Louis said, Craig can’t even do one.
JESSICA: It’s so hard! It’s so hard, I was so impressed. But of course, he’s super, super mega strong. Boxer.
EMMA: Yeah. However, the rest of it–he’s really awkward and stiff. So he needs to–and I’m sure it will happen, I’m sure he’ll get more artistic as it goes on. I mean, the people like H and even Peter, they’re used to performing. You know, the older guys. They’re used to performing and they’re used to doing showy stuff. Whereas Carl, he’s a boxer. He ain’t got no toe point or anything like that. He doesn’t know all that sort of stuff.
JESSICA: [LAUGHS] But I thought his–maybe it’s just the way they cut the program in the end, but when his facial expressions, they showed it, it was hilarious!
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: Because he had this look on his face, it was half way “Aww yeah, I’m hot” and half way like, “I can’t believe I’m doing this. It’s really embarrassing.” And it was so entertaining.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: Because it felt honest instead of performance face.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: And I totally cracked up. And I, I love the part where Craig was like, “Well, if anything else–” Because they were pretending like their story line was like he was a window washer, and then he does tricks with his girl. [EMMA LAUGHS] And that was so funny, because he was like, “If anything, at least after this you’ll get a job as a window washer.” And I was like, “Hired! Woo!” [EMMA LAUGHS]
EMMA: So John is off a soap called EastEnders. I don’t watch it, so I didn’t know he was. But he, my goodness. You can tell why they put him up last, because he’s like, Mr. Firecracker. He used to be in the royal ballet, he was saying, in his VT. So obviously he’s got experience with performance…
JESSICA: He’s an athlete.
EMMA: An athlete, and dancing. So he knows how to point his toes and all that sort of stuff. He was really good.
JESSICA: He was amazing. I was like, “Uhh, he’s no beginner.”
EMMA: Yeah, he was really good. And, you know, Louis at the end was going, “Somis–tick. Lifts–tick. Splits–tick. And you know, you’ve got the whole thing.” And he has got the whole thing. Again, maybe, it’s easier for him because he’s got a performance background. However, he set a pretty high standard. So he’s got to get better every single week from what he did yesterday.
JESSICA: Yeah. He did a back tuck and a front tuck by himself.
EMMA: Yep.
JESSICA: He can do gymnastics.
EMMA: Yep.
JESSICA: And they weren’t hideously ugly, either, and they weren’t awkward, like, “Oh God, is he going to break his legs when he lands?” So I was totally impressed.
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: And the fact that he had a ballet background makes so much sense. And also his, just, the things where they show them practicing, sometimes they can be so cheesy, and you’re like, “Really, again?” But his was super entertaining. I totally loved watching his practice.
EMMA: Yeah, he was. And he was getting proper cross that he wanted to know how to do everything right away.
JESSICA: He’s totally–
EMMA: They’re like, “You need to do like, 500 reps of this.” “I’ve done 500!” and he goes. And you know he ain’t done 500. [LAUGHS]
JESSICA: When you compare him and Lucy, you’re like, so this is a professional, and that is why he’s successful. And then you’re like Lucy, who’s like, “Oh my God, they wouldn’t let me paint my face all day! I can’t do it!” Like, ugh. Go away.
EMMA: Shut up. Yeah. Lucy needs to go home already.
JESSICA: Immediately.
EMMA: Also, Amelle got actual rips. And I was like, “Woohoo, [JESSICA GASPS] she did actual training and got proper rips!”
JESSICA: Good for her! I’m even more impressed!
EMMA: And Louis–Louis said, as well, “I’m really glad you got rips.” Because, you know, you did it properly.
JESSICA: I also want to mention that the coach of Sarah, from Girls Aloud, is Ilienko, the–she coaches at Heathrow.
EMMA: Yes! Oh, yes.
JESSICA: She’s the 1981 world champ on floor.
EMMA: Natalia Ilienko!
JESSICA: She’s coached Danusia and Mitchell.
EMMA: Yes, and Loriah James, and Rebecca Wing. And Lisa Mason, at the moment goes to Heathrow.
JESSICA: I would be on the show just to be coached by her for it.
EMMA: Oh God, yeah. Me too. If any of you have never watched Natalia Ilienko’s 1981 floor routine that won her the gold medal, you must watch it immediately. It’s the stuff of legend. So do it now! [JESSICA LAUGHS] Type it. Type it now, into YouTube.
JESSICA: So then at the very end they had Craig Heap–now what, he was an artistic gymnast?
EMMA: He was. Craig Heap was our sole–I mean, this is how far British gymnastics is come in the last few years. Craig competed in Sydney as the whole GB gymnast for the men.
JESSICA: Wow.
EMMA: The women sent a team. The men, no. Just Craig. So, that shows you how far we’ve come now. You know, people are fighting over spots. So he was–he went to Sydney, and he also competed for England at two Commonwealth Games. And they were the first English team to win a gold. And then four years later, when the Games were in Manchester, they retain their title. So he’s, he’s pretty damn good. And…
JESSICA: And he can still do a nice handspring vault.
EMMA: He can, he can. I think he was a bit gutted that he nerfed up the landing, but you know.
JESSICA: He made it entertaining though. He did a perfect…
EMMA: He did entertaining, yeah. He did.
JESSICA: …handspring vault, and then like a bounder out of it. Which was fun.
EMMA: You know, you know I’ve told you about my secret gymnastics work colleague. He was telling–because I was talking to him on Friday before I was going, and he said to me that Craig is the nicest man you’ll ever meet.
JESSICA: Nice.
EMMA: He said he’s proper decent nice man. So yeah.
JESSICA: He seems like that as a judge. He gave–you know when you have a great coach, and they…
EMMA: It’s Northern! He tells the truth. You know? He tells the truth. He isn’t going to coat it all up in sugar and tell you you’re great when you’re crap. He’s going to tell you crap when you’re crap.
JESSICA: That’s the thing–but he made it funny!
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: That’s the thing. You can make the person that you’re criticizing laugh at themselves, that’s the best kind of way to give–that’s how I take it the best, anyway.
EMMA: I mean–sorry, carry on.
JESSICA: And also, I just love that Louis the same way. I just–I have no criticism of him. I like his personality comes across, he seems honest, he’s funny. He’s just a great representative of the sport. And Nadia is hilarious.
EMMA: Yes.
JESSICA: Because she just does–One, you can kind of tell that she doesn’t really follow gymnastics anymore. And the second thing is that she just says whatever. She has, like, no filter, and she’ll just say whatever. And so every once in a while…
EMMA: But that’s the Romanian way, isn’t it? You know.
JESSICA: Yeah!
EMMA: All the Romanians that I know speak like that. You know, they’re not going to tell you–if you say, “Have I got a big bum in this dress?” they’ll say yes.
JESSICA: Exactly. And that’s what we love about her, and what makes her super entertaining to watch. [EMMA LAUGHS]
EMMA: Yeah. People, I read, like, a lot of mixed reports today. You know, I’ve read some of the reviews in the paper, and some of the things on Twitter. And even stuff that nerds have written on the little Facebook gang. And there’s some things saying that they didn’t do this, and it was a bit stiff, and it was bit this and that and the other. But it’s the first show, you know?
JESSICA: Yeah.
EMMA: Their chemistry is going to build over the weeks as judges. I thought they did a good job. I thought they were entertaining. I love Nadia. Anyone that can make me cry is good.
JESSICA: And I just think they did a great job of–just like Dancing with the Stars does, they do a good job of injecting entertainment value into basic.
EMMA: Yeah, yeah definitely.
JESSICA: It’s basic gymnastics.
EMMA: Yeah, people’s expectations are off the scale, because when Strictly first started over here, no one even watched it. And it built up over time, and now it’s the most, you know, one of the most popular shows on TV. But it wasn’t from the start, because everyone watched the X-Factor. You know?
JESSICA: Yeah. And that’s the thing. Like, you–and I can’t watch Dancing with the Stars. Because they’re just not good enough, I don’t find it entertaining at all.
EMMA: No, I don’t…
JESSICA: Except at the very end.
EMMA: …watch some fat old knacker trying to dance. I want to watch the professionals dancing.
JESSICA: Exactly. But this show–except when they get to the very end, like Shawn Johnson’s final dance, when she was on the second All Stars, I was like, “Oh my God, that was beautiful.”
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: Like, she really became–And like Kristi Yamaguchi, I would watch her every week. Because, hello! She’s a professional. So same thing with this. There are certain people you’re going–either you’re going to feel like “This is terrible, you’re not good enough,” or you’re going to realize that this is the best thing that ever happened to gymnastics like me, because I’m always right.
EMMA: Well you know, all the ones that we’ve mentioned today, Lucy, Lucy, Lucy. [LAUGHTER] They’ll get shown the door, and eventually you’ll be left with your really good ones, like H, like John, like Carl, like Sarah, like Amelle. They will go through the weeks.
JESSICA: And also it’s like, because I think that dance fans probably loved Dancing with the Stars in a way because they get to see dancers that are professionals who never get featured, and now they’re featured on the show every week. Whereas dancers are never, ever featured as someone important, they’re always in the background unless you’re Baryshnikov.
EMMA: Yeah, cool, yeah.
JESSICA: Whereas here, we have these pro partners and they’re in all these sports that you never hear about. Acro and circus arts–they never get any press, and now Kristin Allen and her partner, obviously they’re going to be on the Daily Mail on Monday for sure. Or the Mirror, the cover. Just saying.
EMMA: Yeah. I mean, what…
JESSICA: It’s going to be great, and they’re going to be featured for their talents, not just the celebrity’s. [INAUDIBLE]
EMMA: I mean, what fills me with the most joy ever is, we go back 10 years. Well, let’s go back a bit more, 15, 20 years. GB had next to no gymnastics teams, it was never on the TV, and now we’ve got oodles of gymnasts winning stuff everywhere, and we’ve got a prime time Saturday night show about gymnastics on the TV. You know? It’s bleeding brilliant.
JESSICA: Yes. And I mean, there were a ton of people who were watching live when I was watching live. Oh–and to watch live, just so you know, if you’re in the States or abroad, you can use LiveTVCafe.net, just beware of all of the ads and all of the spammy stuff that’s trying to trick you into clicking on it on there. Just beware. And then another listener used…uh. Now I’m totally forgetting, I’ll put it up. Oh, Replay.com. Was that it? I’ll put the link up on the site. And then of course the replays are on the BBC. You can watch the entire episode on BBC1 every week after it’s up. And I think it was up just a couple hours after the show aired. So…
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: …you can follow the show no matter where you are, which is fantastic.
EMMA: And also if you follow the BBC1 on Instagram and Twitter, they post links to interviews and all sorts of stuff like that. There’s lots of Instagram videos and things floating around today. So have a look at those.
JESSICA: And of course, listen to–if you want to know more about the behind the scenes of the show and the romance, possible romance, between Bobby Lockwood and Kristin Allen, listen to her interview with us from last week, episode 107. And we, I think we’ll be doing this weekly. Talking about Tumble.
EMMA: I hope so! Can I tell you that the really super exciting stuff that happened afterwards?
JESSICA: Yes, all the nerdy, behind-the-scenes stuff, all the autographs and talking to people!
EMMA: Well you know I’m gigantic gym nerd.
JESSICA: So tell us about when you chatted with Louis, what did he say?
EMMA: Yes! So, I got back in the other side, and there, in front of me, in his spangly GB gym pants was Louis. So I need to tell you one thing before I tell you how fabulous he is. But I need to tell you one thing that I didn’t tell you before about the show. So, I was expecting Nile and Kristian and all the GB boys to be there, but that part was actually filmed on Friday. So they weren’t there. You know the bit where they did that display?
JESSICA: Yeah, mmhmm. Which I loved, that was great!
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: I hope we see more of that.
EMMA: So basically they got Louis out his chair and made him wear the gym clothes.
JESSICA: So it’d look like he had just done it.
EMMA: So people would think he’d just done it. But he hadn’t, they filmed it the day before.
JESSICA: And all I could think was of course I know they’re not there because I follow everybody on Twitter and I know they filmed it a couple of days ago. And then I’m just like, “Obviously, Louis would need to warm up. You don’t just–a professional athlete does not just walk over from the chair and do pommel horse like that.”
EMMA: Yeah.
JESSICA: He would pull a hamstring.
EMMA: I walked in, and he said hello to me. I’m like, “Oh, hi!” And then all the words just like, fell out of my mouth.
JESSICA: Aww.
EMMA: Just totally fell out. So I went, he goes, “Did you enjoy the show?” I was like, “Louis, I loved it. I loved it.” Also, by this point my fringe had melted and I looked horrific. [JESSICA LAUGHS] And I had a big, shiny moon face as well.
JESSICA: And Louis always looks coifed. No matter what.
EMMA: Yes.
JESSICA: He’s in the middle of a workout, he’s, whatever.
EMMA: I think he must put cement or something on his hair. [JESSICA LAUGHS] Because it was just–it wasn’t moving anywhere. I need to know what you put on your hair, Louis, because I need some of that for my fringe, because my fringe, just, ugh. So he was like, “Hi, did you enjoy the show?” And I was like, “Yeah, I did!” And I said, “Also, I saw you in Glasgow last week.” And he went, “Yeah, I know!” And all this lot. And he gave me a hug and a kiss. [JESSICA GASPS] And I was like, [PANTING]. [JESSICA LAUGHS] Like that. And then I had my phone in my hand, and I was like, “Please take a selfie.” I said, “But I can’t do it, so you’ll have to do it, because my hands are shaking!”
JESSICA: Aww.
EMMA: And one of the coaches came over and said, “I’ll take it for you.” I was like, “Thanks so much!” And I said, “Ooh, by the way, Louis,” I said, “I’ve sent you a friend request on Facebook. Because I’ve got a gym group on there. And I want you to join it.” And he says, “Well, I don’t really use Facebook much.” And I said, “You come and join it.” I said, “There’s loads of gymnasts on there.” I said, “You’ll love it, it’s loads of banter.” And so, I don’t if he will. But anyway, I said, “My name’s Emma Bailey.” And he went, “I know what your name is.” [JESSICA LAUGHS] And it was like, [SCREAMING]!
JESSICA: He’s so smooth!
EMMA: He is so smooth. And I fall for it every time.
JESSICA: And you make, you make an impression, though. What are you going to do?
EMMA: I do. What am I going to do? You can’t…
JESSICA: He appreciates good fans.
EMMA: Oh my God, Louis. Louis. I love you.
JESSICA: Louis is fabulous. And remember, he’ll be on the show this month for our book club. So send in your questions for Louis. They can be about anything. They can be about Tumble, they can be about how the Commonwealth Games were, they can be about his custom build house with his special secret room–want to know what he does in there? What video games he likes? Anything you want to ask him. Ask him what he uses on his hair. Anything. Send your questions. Gymcastic@gmail.com.
EMMA: Yeah, I need to know what he uses on his hair. So yeah, have a look on IG for my hair before and hair with Louis photographs, because it’s shockingly bad.
[CHANGE OF SUBJECT BLIP]
ALLISON TAYLOR: This episode of Gymcastic is brought to you by Elite Sportz Band. EliteSportzBand.com. We’ve got your back.
JESSICA: Visit EliteSportzBand.com, that’s “Sportz” with a “z,” and save $5 on your next purchase with the code “Gymcast.”
[STATIC NOISE]
EMMA: What I want to explain to everybody who obviously wasn’t there is the amount of energy in the place. It was amazing. I mean, I didn’t think I’d have that good a time. I thought, “Oh, it’s going to be nice. I’ll see Nadia in the flesh, and Louis will be there, and the GB people, and you know.” It exceeded everything. And it was the most fun. It was the most fun. So if any of you out there get the opportunity of a free ticket, go. And get there at 12 so that you get in the first queue and you’re guaranteed to get in. Because oh my. It was the most fun. It really was. And I was pleasantly surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it. It’s fun.
JESSICA: So if you guys enjoyed this recap of Tumble you can support us by going to Gymcastic.com and you can donate on the site. You can review us on iTunes or Stitcher. And you can shop in our Amazon store. A little portion, like if you bought Louis’ book, you bought it through our Amazon link, a little portion of what you spent will go back to help us pay the bills. And we will try our best to keep the show going and keep doing recaps every week. Because I love this and it’s really fun, so we’ll try to do it. I’ll try my best.
EMMA: Yeah, definitely for watching as well, because ah, well.
JESSICA: In addition to the regular ones. Yes. Awesome.
EMMA: Tumble!
JESSICA: Until next time, I’m Jessica from Masters-Gymnastics.
EMMA: I’m Emma, from Moomin Whiskey Meets, and also in a Tumble coma.
JESSICA: [LAUGHS] See you guys next week!
[END OF SHOW MUSIC]
EMMA: I’m going back in, but I can’t go back in the way I’ve just come out because no one’s there, it’s rubbish. So I hoof my way around to the other door, and I was like, “I need a selfie with Nadia, I’ve got to get one.” So anyway, I get back in, and there are all the celebrities and everyone were. And she’d already gone, so I failed in that. But, to get the autograph. I slept with it on my pillow, no word is a lie. [JESSICA LAUGHS] I did! I did. I’ve got a massive bed, I’ve got extra pillows, and I put it on the pillow. I didn’t get home til 2 AM–
JESSICA: [GROANS] Oh God.
EMMA: –so I was like so tired. And I just put it on the pillow. And I woke up and it was there this morning. And I looked at it, and it was like that. “Ah, it’s true. I did get it.”
