BRIGHT SPARKS CAST THEIR SPELL
Brainy youngsters competing in presenter Sue’s new Sky 1 family show prove that they’re better with letters and smash the myth that the social media generation are dumbing down
THERE are beads of sweat on my forehead and my legs are trembling. It’s not the effects of a massive post-Christmas hangover, it’s my terror at stepping into the spotlight to test my word power in Bake Off star Sue Perkins’ new family entertainment show The Big Spell All previous intellect goes out of the window as I stand on the daunting hexagonal stage, waiting to start the spelling challenge. TV news stalwart Moira Stuart glares at me from her desk and says: “Your first word is layout.” Easy. “Layout,” I repeat. “L-A-Y-O-U-T. Layout.” (Phew!) Next, edict. “Edict. E-D-I-C-T. Edict”. I’m on a roll. But as the words continue to spill in, I’m suddenly overcome with panic and, suffice to say, any hopes of victory are short-lived. It’s one thing spelling as I type on the computer but, as I quickly discover, spelling under Moira’s stern gaze and the bright studio lights is quite another. And having experienced it, the super-smart kids taking part in Sky 1’s new show have my full respect. Hosted by Sue, Moira and comedian Joe Lycett, the aim is to uncover the nation’s brightest young spellers by pitching a group of 20 children – aged nine to 13 – against one another in a TV showdown. The eight-part series follows the format from Australia’s Spelling Star and culminates with the winner being crowned Champion Speller. Along the way, expect nail-biting challenges, fun, drama and emotion.
With Sue, 47, hosting, Joe, 28, backstage with the parents, and Moira, 67, officiating as the show’s pronouncer, the line-up is not to be scoffed at.
But the real draw, they all agree, was the appeal of working with such talented kids.
Sue said: “The whole idea of, ‘Never work with children and animals’... I’d be happy to spend my entire career with both because it’s the glorious unpredictability that means it’s all the more playful.
“I like things when they go wrong and you can’t chart how your day’s going to be.”
In addition to many unscheduled toilet breaks, there’s plenty of tears, laughter, high-fives and “inexplicably cool dances”, according to Sue.
She added: “That is why I did it, because it’s a kind show and it’s out to showcase how great they are. Who wants to do a nasty show?”
Moira’s full of admiration for the contestants. She said: “These children are exquisite. They’re so fully rounded, not only intelligent but warm and generous in spirit.
“This is the way it should be done, as opposed to pushing them to compete at all costs and drawing blood if necessary.”
Moira, a familiar face from her long career as a BBC newsreader, was also struck by the balance the youngsters displayed between competitiveness and care for one another. She said: “The kids can get very upset when they think that by winning, they’ve upset somebody else’s chances.
“You cannot fake the warmth that these children have developed for one another.”
“It is really beautiful to see,” chips in Joe, best known for his stand-up and panel show appearances.
“This is a bit of a gift for me because I get to do loads of different things. I’m with the parents watching it happen, I do a bit of fun with the public and I’m doing little comedy sketches with the kids.”
And there’s no modifying the act for a younger crowd.
Joe added: “They spot it if they are being patronised. In the kids’ room, there’s a real spirit of them having a go at me for my bad jokes - and then I have a go at them for picking apart my bad jokes.
“There is definitely a sense that everyone is on the same level.”
As for pushy parents, Sue is keen to point out these are not “jazzhands stage school kids”.
Joe added: “The parents want their kids to do well but there are none where you think, ‘Chill out’. They’ve all got a healthy pride and enthusiasm for their children.
“In the elimination rounds, it’s tough with the parents. You’re with them backstage so that can be tricky to know when to pitch a slightly wry comment and when not to.”
For Sue, it was more a case of dishing out hugs. She said: “One kid just wanted to be hugged, so I just hugged her for a long time, two to three minutes, and I just absorbed a little bit of what she was feeling.”
And despite the tension, Joe is sure there’s no lasting distress when the kids are eliminated from the contest. He said: “I always bump into them in the corridor on the way out and they’re always so jolly.
“Children do just go from, ‘This is the worst thing that has happened to me’, to, ‘Oh, chocolate!”’
Having watched hours of spelling challenges and games, the trio are impressed by the young contestants.
Moira said: “With social media, I’m astounded that so many nine to 13-year-olds can spell so well and have such a wide vocabulary and a real understanding.”
Sue, a self-confessed “big kid”, added: “If this is a snapshot of what kids are like now, then we’re in a much better place than I would have thought.
“There’s so much fearmongering about the world being over and kids just wanting to play Pokemon Go. I sort of hate that. It’s just heartening to see them bonding together.
“We’re just fed a diet of fear, everything is over and we’re dumbing down. Rubbish!
“I’ve thought about what it must be like to have children and read that. That all of their achievements are worthless in the eyes of the older generation. I think these kids are an example of the very reverse.” ● The Big Spell, Sky 1, Sunday, January 8.