Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe's Parenting Hell - S6 EP4: Alesha Dixon

Episode Date: January 20, 2023

 Joining us this episode to discuss the highs and lows of parenting (and life) is the brilliant singer, dancer, author and presenter - Alesha Dixon. Alesha's latest book 'Luna Wolf: Animal Wizard ' (published by Scholastic Children’s Books) is out 2 March and available to pre-order now. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Luna-Wolf-exciting-magical-perfect/dp/0702324108 Thanks, Rob + Josh. We're going on tour!! Fancy seeing the podcast live in some of the best venues in the UK? Of course you do, you're not made of stone! Tickets available now on the dates and at the venues below. We can't wait to see you there... ON SALE NOW  14th April 2023 - Manchester AO Arena 19th April 2023 - Nottingham 20th April 2023 - Cardiff  21st April 2023 - London (The O2) 23rd April 2023 - London (Wembley) 28th April 2023 - Birmingham Utilita Arena  If you want to get in touch with the show here's how: EMAIL: [e-mail] TWITTER: @parenting_hell INSTAGRAM: @parentinghell A 'Keep It Light Media' Production  Sales, advertising, and general enquiries: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, I'm Rob Beckett. And I'm Josh Willicombe. Welcome to Parents in Hell, the show in which Josh and I discuss what it's really like to be a parent, which I would say can be a little tricky. So, to make ourselves, and hopefully you, feel better about the trials and tribulations of modern-day parenting, each week we'll be chatting to a famous parent about how they're coping. Or, hopefully, how they're not coping. And we'll also be hearing from you, the listener, with advice and of course tales of parenting woe because let's be

honest there are plenty of times where none of us know what we're doing hello you're listening to parenting hell with You can say Rob Beckett. Apple. Perfect. Uh, Josh. Whittikim. Apple. I know. I know. That was cute.

Okay, so here is my 21-month-old caddy attempting the intro. I've waited so long for her to do a decent enough job to send in. Can Rob guess the language on where we're from well i think that's welsh i'd say southern wales no we live in north wales so she speaks mainly welsh and some english as taught by dougie and bluey i had a bad experience in north wales did you well a woman in a shop refused to speak english to me and i just didn't know what i was buying and i just had and I knew she could speak English, and then in the end I just left because I couldn't purchase anything

because I didn't know what it was. What were you trying to buy? Lube. Absolutely love the podcast. Been listening for about a year, trying to catch up while listening to the new episodes too. Just getting to the Josh newborn days. It's bringing back memories of a shit sleeper roaring back thanks for your laughs you sexy beasts leo 425 months and gary 392 months lead bitter from carnarfon in north wales cannot carnarfon

that's where i was and the theater manager only spoke to me in Welsh as well. Oh, right. And I was just like, what are we doing here? Surely, if the audience can only speak Welsh, I'm in real trouble here. Well, I was just like, look, I've not applied for a job in your theatre and moved to Wales and refusing to integrate. I'm here for one night. Please, just please answer me in English. All I want, just basically, I just want to change

the lighting slightly and I'm not going on Google Translate. We're up against it. It took me five hours to get it from Crewe. For fuck's sake, Carnarvon.

And there's Carnarvon. Nearly went there by accident. Yeah, that's in South Wales. Beautiful up there though. No, it isn't, is it? Carnarvon is in South Wales. Carnarvon, Carnarvon.

Oh, there's Carnarvon as well. Oh my God. Anyway, anyway. Don't worry, I love the Welsh. I've just had a frosty reception in North Wales and I have in South Wales. I think they're a little bit calmer in South Wales, aren't they? I'm not getting into that, Rob.

I'm not getting into that kind of discussion. Is that because you agree or not? It's because I think all of the Welsh are great. I know. I love the Welsh, but I find it's more laid back. From Gareth Bale to Hugh Edwards. It's more laid back in South Wales, I think. Well, get Ellis on and ask him.

He's from South Wales. He's very laid back. Yes. Very laid back. A lot of my friends, Lou's family are from South Wales. And my mate's from South Wales. My mate Luke's from Swansea. And they're very chilled. He's a Swan. from Swansea. Is he a Swan?

He's a Swan. Big Swansea fan. He was a fan of Ellis James when Ellis James was on the forums. Oh, my word. I know. He actually went and listened to Ellis James. I saw him at a game once and wanted to say hello because I remember him on the forums. This was before Ellis.

Ellis was famous on Swansea forums, before he even did comedy. I know. He used to have an office job and he'd just argue on Swansea forums. What a loser. I thought you loved all the Welsh. I don't. I'll tell you where, though. Have you ever been to Aberystwyth?

The windiest place after Aberdeen. It's the windiest place in the world, isn't it? And when I went there, there was some sort of council problem where there was no parking attendance. You could park where you want. It was absolute carnage. Rob, make your mind up on parking attendance. Last week, you don't like them.

Today, suddenly, you think they're... Do you know what? I love the law, but sometimes you need a bit of leniency. Yeah, yeah. Right, go on, sorry. You need to tell me about... Where did your parents take you that you don't think they'd have wanted to go to?

Yes. As a child. Yeah, where did you go? After we spoke about Holly Willoughby and Louis Theroux being dragged along to YouTuber boxing by their teenage sons. Well, my mum got into Plymouth Argyle because I wanted to go to the games, which I think is above and beyond.

I think that's fair enough oh that's fine yeah we went to a uh panini swap shop oh okay yeah yeah I like the sound of this yeah before you could like do it online before you could do it online there was an exit at West Point Arena it was I think it was or somewhere in Exeter there was like loads of kids from around the southwest would meet up and it was like a panini event where you went and you swapped your premier league stickers yes and i didn't know anyone there and i was too nervous to go up to anyone so we left without me doing any swaps oh josh that is oh my god that's like the start of like a you know a bad in a superhero film, that's how it begins. What, the swapper?

The swapper. He kills people and then leaves a sticker on their forehead. Yeah, because he was too scared and then got laughed at by the bully boys. And he was like, I'll show them. And you'd kill people and stick a sticker on their head. They'll just be like a Gary Cahill sticker on their forehead. So that, this is even more nerdy. Go for a year i was into games workshop rob oh my god do you know what i like because i'm into little figures to a point but that like the actual playing a game with them yeah my mum used to drop and run even she was ashamed she wasn't ashamed

she wasn't she just wanted to leave me to play with my lead figures. She didn't stand in a corner with all her mates chatting like you. With some men in their 20s with ponytails who talked to us about our lead figures. Do you know what, though? I think that's nicer because, like... It was a lovely... I loved it. I absolutely loved it.

It got an unfair rap where, actually, I would have liked that. Like, not all, like, the fantasy ones, but, like, the other little... that like not all like the fantasy ones but like the other little i like my little micro style figures like a bit of lego i collect a few little like wrestling figures and i've got these back to the future ones i got from when i was over in orlando i quite like it but like you couldn't like that without getting beaten up in my school no in fact a friend we both know uh will briggs yeah who's a comedy promoter got uh he got mugged coming out of games workshop when he was a teenager oh my god what did they take loads of unused condoms out of his wallet i remember my mom also taking me to see the teenage mutant ninja turtles film

yeah i loved it and then about 10 years later i remember having a discussion with her i was like oh yeah it was really good, wasn't it? And she was like, no, it was terrible. And I was like, oh my God, for all those years, I thought she had a great time at the teenage reunion. Oh, well, she did well then. Yeah, she did really well. That's something she didn't aspire to.

What did we do? Lou's dad took her to see Peter Ondra at Fairfield Halls in Croydon. Oh, wow. What must that have been like for him? I don't know. I'll have to ask Mick Watts. He probably won't remember.

But let us know. Send him in. Yeah, let us know. Let us know. Well, Rob, should we bring on our guest? So this week we have got star of Britain's Got Talent and ex-strictly judge, it's Alicia Dixon. Hello, Alicia Dixon.

Welcome to the podcast. We're very excited to have you on, Alicia. Hello. Hello, Alicia Dixon. Welcome to the podcast. We're very excited to have you on, Alicia. Hello, how are you? We're good, aren't we, Josh? You all right? Yeah, very excited. Do you know what? We've never met, have we, Alicia?

No. But my wife used to work on Chatty Man, and when I said I was interviewing you, she said she is one of the nicest people I've ever we ever had on the show really yeah so I'm not saying there's a lot of pressure but what I'm saying is that's a good sign because it's you know it's a good sign when one of the production team says that as opposed to someone else who's do you know what I mean it's always a good sign I think one that has to say that yes exactly exactly they're the ones that will normally

just slag them all off but yeah yeah oh she's hated a lot of people I'll tell One that has to say that, yes. Exactly, exactly. They're the ones that will normally just slag them all off. But yeah. Oh, she's hated a lot of people. I'll tell you that, Alicia. But not you. You're on a pedestal. Oh, that's very nice. Tell her thank you.

I will do. I will do. Well, yeah, I'd say, Alicia, because you've been on some of the biggest shows on telly, proper top dog level stuff here, and you're still likeable and nice. So how do you achieve that? Because there is a level of telly where some people top dog level stuff here and you're still likable nice so how do you achieve that because there is a level of telly some people get to are you worried can you score on this podcast say whatever the fuck you want alicia i was gonna say you just don't be a dick it's really serious yeah okay yeah no just just be nice treat people how you want to be treated yeah and have a bit of humility about you it goes a long way especially with brits right yeah yeah how is working with simon cow

nice actually great fun i have to say like before i worked with him i had this idea of what he might be like but actually in reality he's a bit cheeky he likes a laugh um he likes rebels he likes people you know with an opinion he like he just loves people and actually he treats people really well um and he's always very warm so yeah it's good fun there we go oh that's good that was that was a good answer to what was to be honest a bit of a facetious question that i shouldn't have opened the interview with. We should always start with, what is your situation, Alicia, at home? What's the kids' situation?

Well, I've got a nine-year-old who's downstairs on the sofa poorly right now. Oh. And a three-year-old who is at nursery. Right. Okay, that took a bit too long, Alicia. I forgot where she was. And I have a lovely partner called Azuka. Nine and three.

That's quite a difficult gap, isn't it, a little bit? Because my brother was six years older than me. The nine-year-old will want to be doing, like, almost nearly teenager-y things, and then the three-year-old's a bit younger. How's that playing out? Do they play well? Well, I thought that leaving the gap was smart, right?

Because in my mind, I thought, OK, if by the time I have the second child, the first one will be able to assist me, she can fetch the nappies, she can do all of... You know, I'll give her a job. But my nine-year-old likes to be pampered, so that kind of backfired. And also, I thought, oh, the nine-year-old will be more motherly and, you know, big sister, look after her younger sister.

They argue a lot. So there's a lot of clashing between them. But when they're great, as you know, they are amazing. But they have those moments where they they go at it and I just have to leave the room and let them figure it out between them. Just walk away and let them. Someone said to me when i because i'm always trying to you know used to i used to intervene quite a lot and then when we were away at christmas someone said to me you know you know their kids had grown up and they said you know what when they argue just let them get on with it just let them figure it out between them so that's

what i've started doing that's good away yeah well if it turns a physical though surely the nine-year-old's got the upper hand. Which with my three-year-old, it does sometimes. Come in, the three-year-old's holding down the nine-year-old. Even turns on me. So, yeah. The younger one rules the house, period. Really?

OK. He's the boss, yeah. She is the boss. Don't mess with her. Yeah. Do you feel like, because you've had a big distance, do you feel like you're a different person? Yes, and I've got more grey hairs and I'm exhausted.

Yeah, I look different. I've had to practice the art of patience, and it's a daily practice. But my goodness, going from one to two was a massive shock to the system. It's so mad practice. But my goodness, going from one to two was a massive shock to the sister. It's so mad, isn't it? Yeah, because when I was pregnant with my first daughter, you know, towards the end I'd lie around watching box sets, you know, chill out.

But you can't do that, can you, obviously, with a second, because you're running around after your other child. Yeah, you're looking after a six-year-old. That's quite an intense kind of experience. Was your six-year-old excited by quite an intense kind of experience was your was your six-year-old excited by the idea of becoming an older sister he was because she came home one day and asked for a sibling and you got to it got to it on her in our firstborn so cute actually the first time we told her that we were having a baby and she didn't believe us.

She did not believe us. She kept saying, what? There's a baby in there. Are you sure it's not just food, mummy? Really excited. Always wanted a sister. She got her sister. And then when her father and I said to her about a year ago or so, how would you feel about having another sibling? She's like no she's over it he is over it did you was it nice so because she was in school your eldest wasn't she then i imagine when you had your baby was she still in yeah she was she should have been six, so she was in school. So did you have a bit more time in the day to sort of like one-on-one

with the baby where we found, because we only got a two-year age gap, the eldest was still at home when we had the baby, not even sort of properly in nursery. So it was a bit like you were a bit split down the middle. That's full on. But when I had the second baby, I have to be honest, it was a bit of a whirlwind because I was working right up until... My waters broke.

Yeah, sure. Whilst I was working. Really? Is that why Simon Cowell looks so shocked all the time? And I honestly, yeah, towards the end, I was quite stressed and I ended up having a nip four weeks earlier than she was supposed to be. Um, and then I had to fly to America to film America's Got Talent after five weeks of having her. Oh my God. It was a bit mental the first couple of months, fortunately

got a very supportive mom, amazing partner. And we just all, all you know we just got on with it and just made it work so we were in america for the first couple of months of her life and then yeah when we came back um i had the christmas period to kind of relax azura was at school and then it was straight back into bgt in the january so it was quite full on with him and then was that covid well actually yeah we came back from doing the promo trip in the jan and then i think we went into lockdown in the march and actually that period of time when we had that amazing summer that beautiful weather and we spent a lot of time together quality time as a family and that's when you know that's the test isn't it when you feel forced to be with with each other

if you can still like each other at the end of it. And we had a very, dare I say, successful lockdown. Like, yeah, the fact we just got on with it and it was great. But I have to say my eldest daughter, even though she, you know, doesn't want us to have any more children, she loves her sister. She's very protective. She, you know, she's been super helpful. She's proud of her. She loves showing her off.

You know, it's that typical thing. Are you panicking now because you said that she didn't want any more siblings? You don't want us to listen back in a few years' time and accuse you of being mean about her? Was that a safety sentence there, Alicia? Maybe. But you know what? She changes every week.

I mean, even the other day she said to us, oh, I think we should have 10 siblings. And you just go, huh? Do you know what? I prefer the first answer of none. I was like, last month, you said no, absolutely no way. I think it's because of the fear of having a little brother. So she's like, I'd rather not, you know, chance.

Yes. You can split, yeah, you can get a couple more girls to back her up in case there's a little boy running about. Yeah. But honestly, I think we're OK, actually, with two. I think, you know think yeah i take my hat off to anyone with more than two well yeah because you because you can you had quite a lot of half siblings i think i don't know what the correct term is anymore because i've got like

half brothers as it were was it was it quite a lot of kids around when you was growing up or did you not see them all or how was that because i find that because there was a lot of us i quite like it just having two kids where Josh was sort of, you had half siblings, but you was almost the only child. You quite like it being busy and lots of people around. Yeah, I love life being busy. Do you quite like it a bit quieter, Alicia? Yeah, like I've got five brothers, one sister, you know,

grew up with a lot of noise. So yeah, I'm probably more leaning towards the quieter side. Yeah, I've had enough of people being in the house. Fuck off and leave me alone. Rob's had enough people before the age of 20. He's done with people. There were so many people in my house. I remember once my auntie come to stay

and my mum went, oh, I was about 14. She went, can you find somewhere to stay this weekend around your mates or something? Because she's coming down. So I got shipped out to my mate's house for two nights i mean i grew up in a very dysfunctional family i mean most of us did right um and i think i always dreamed of having the classic 2.4 children scenario you know um just something very simple not too noisy you know and it i mean it's exhausting in the most beautiful way though isn't it well i mean still it's exhausting in the most beautiful way though, isn't it?

Well, I mean, still tiring with two, but I did a thought of having like four or five, six, seven kids running about. I know. And some people make it look easy. Yeah. Some people are just born to do it, aren't they? Like they're just born for that life and they just make it look so easy. But I think when you're working full time as well, and then trying to be present as a parent, that's when it a bit challenging how do you juggle that how do you split the

parenting is it and you're your partner um so is he working full-time as well or is he not because when you're properly filming it's full-on he's a choreographer isn't he is that right well he's a writer choreographer um we actually have a production company together we work a lot together and separately and we just you know we've got great support you know my sister works with me you know my mum lives very close by and i just have a really good support system and i guess because i you know i represent myself i don't i'm in control of my diary and what's coming have you not got an agent or a manager uh well i had a manager for 14 years and we departed ways just over a year ago because i just he was a good friend and we worked really well together but you know i just really

loved the idea of um taking care of my own business yeah and the 15 back i really like the idea of that more money honestly i've always that's very funny. But that's not what it was. No, no, I'm messing. I'm messing. That was very funny. I love the idea of Rob looking after himself. I'd hate it. Oh, my God.

That is the best money I've ever spent. The thought of Rob sorting out his own diary would be... Your career would have collapsed within a fortnight. Within a week, I'd be in Leicester Square looking at my phone, screaming and crying. Really? Well, you see, even since I was a little little girl I always used to write a diary for myself in terms of what I would do throughout the day it was a very strange thing to do when you're nine years old but I've always been very independent so yeah it feels quite natural so yes just so I can kind of dictate

the diary where if I've got intense periods I can make sure I pull back and then I'm there for the kids and we have quality you know good time together so it hopefully balances itself out in some way so what's quality good time with the kids if you've got three weeks off because you've just come back from America's Got Talent three weeks off well no a week you need a manager after his own diary three happen if Rob was looking after his own diary. You have three weeks off. Yeah, it's about balance. I'll have three weeks off over Christmas, Alicia. That's amazing. Rob is like a man who works on an oil rig.

He's either working or he's not working six months each way a year. That's how it works. I'm a deep sea fisherman. But okay, you've got a week off or something. You've got some time off. Are you going on holiday and doing something big or are you just indoors when they come home from school and trying to do really normal, sort of almost just like being cosy indoor stuff? What are you doing? At Christmas time, I always like to go away, need to, you know, follow the sun. We were in Jamaica at Christmas, which is where my family are from.

And it's the first time I got to take the girls there. You know, I think it was very important for them culturally to see, you know, where their, you know, their grandparents are from. So, yeah, they had an amazing time there. We always chase the sun. But then in the summer, we try not to go away as much because it's the only time in England where you get lovely weather. So you don't want to then be away and miss that. So we always and yeah, I love just doing the simple things like on Sunday, you know, it was raining, but I forced the girls to put their wellies on and, you know, we've got the woods near us. So we go out, go out walking.

Obviously we've got dogs. So we just love doing simple things, baking with them, cooking. We'll pick a family movie to watch together, play games, like all the normal, simple things. They're the nicest things. They just want your attention, don't they? They just want to know you're tuned into them and you're not because obviously when you know in our industry you're always on the end of your phone you're always doing emails working they want to know that mum and dad have put the phone away and they've got your full attention and you're invested in whatever they choose to do

even if they're sitting there you know coloring in and playing between themselves they want you to see what they're doing they want to know you're invested in them. So we try as much as we can. And like I say to Azuka all the time, when we're in the house, we're constantly working, but we've got to be clever about it sometimes. They can't always know that, you know, we're working. Sounds like you need an agent. I'll do it for you. Do not get robbed as your agent.

Your career will be over. I think 15% of just Britain's Got Talent, I'd probably retire on that, at least, with being your agent. Is that all right? When you were doing America's Got Talent with a baby, how did you... Where was the baby?

Was she in the studio? Like, were you running off to breastfeed? How did it work? How we did it was, so the four of us went and my mum joined us. And then I literally... So we were in a hotel around the corner from the studio. And I literally would have her, I would be breastfeeding her whilst having my hair and makeup done. I'd go over, do the show.

My mum would take over. And then I'd come back from work and I'd wake her up and put her back on my boobs. Amazing. What an existence. And it worked really well. And actually the schedule was very, very, it was very easy. Like it wasn't every single day. It was spaced out quite nicely.

And, you know, I don't know if you like LA, but I love LA. It's like blue sky, beautiful weather. And that actually in a weird way kind of helped with recovery because we were quite happy to be there. And so everyone was in a very nice mood and we could just like relax and, you know, it didn't feel too overwhelming. It was more the idea of it that felt overwhelming, but the reality of it, it was quite smooth.

So you were never knackered and taking it out on the buzzer on the axe. Let's get this over with i want to go to bed no it's more tiring once they start walking when they're a baby i mean it's a breeze right i thought you meant the act it's much more tiring once they start walking off the stage just put them through golden buzzer next i need to get a feed on let's go honestly i was so happy to be working on television in America that nothing was going to get in the way of that. So, not having a baby. Exactly.

So, yeah, the old American big break. Now, how did you feel about going there, though? Because obviously, like, as a man, you don't sort of think about it. You're having a baby, but, like, you don't actually physically need to be there if you're not breastfeeding and things like that. So, was you a bit nervous, like, oh, God, am I going to start the production? Am I going to be a if you're not breastfeeding and things like that. So was you a bit nervous? Like, oh, God, am I going to slow out the production? Am I going to be a hindrance? Or was the vibe quite welcoming?

And don't worry, Alicia, you do you. Because it is a huge juggernaut that, you know, for every minute it's delayed and slowed down as a sort of impact. How did you feel? It's a good question because if I'm being honest, when I first got the call that uh that NBC wanted to you know have a zoom meeting with me and discuss possibly joining the show the first thing I thought was oh my gosh they know I'm pregnant because I thought if they know I'm pregnant

they're not going to want me to join the show because as you know anything could happen they might not want to take the risk so we jumped on the zoom meeting and I hid my bump. But the first thing that the producer said was, oh, we hear you're having a baby. And I was like, oh, they know. Brilliant. Great. And they still want me to do it. So that was a relief. And then obviously they were very supportive in making sure that, you know, I could have my family with me and yeah, they didn't put any pressure on me. And as I said, the schedule was very, very, you know, well paced out. So nothing was too strenuous. And they were very understanding.

And I'm sure if, you know, there was a moment where I needed to go back to see the baby, they would have allowed that to happen. So, you know, a lot of women working on the show that have got children. So there's that understanding and empathy as well. Also, you did, Australia's Got Talent as well. It's a long way to go for what I can imagine is about half an hour show yeah that was actually that flight was hell that was actually talk us through that flight so when did you go so the first time we so the first time we went australia um well we came out of quarantine and then the day we came out of quarantine

australia went into lockdown we spent five five weeks in Australia, two weeks quarantine, three weeks lockdown, and the show was cancelled. Oh, God. Talk us through this, Alicia. Oh, my fucking God. I'm getting stressed and it's happened already. I feel like it's happening now. I had to take my daughter out of school three weeks early.

I wasn't happy about, but they put work together for us so she could do some homeschooling obviously anaya was very very young at the time and that flight to australia was i had i literally had a meltdown on the plane oh no i don't know if you've ever traveled how far you've traveled with a child but when you've got one that doesn't want to sleep on in on a 24-hour flight start to lose your mind. And it got to that point and I was feeling quite hormonal and there was, and I literally was chasing around this flight,

walking up and down, up and down. And at one point I thought I can't chase her anymore. And I sat down and the minute I sat down, she falls over, hurts herself, starts crying. Oh my word.

It was just one of those never ending, like hellish moments where everything you could imagine that would go wrong with a toddler went wrong oh my god did you get any sleep in the 24 hours so then and then you have to go into quarantine and you go into quarantine and you've got a mask on the whole time as well mask on the whole time but the whole time you're having this internal conversation with yourself going don't moan this is this is a great opportunity lucky to be doing this should not be miserable or crying right now obviously i'm there crying my eyes out but it's a oh man alive and then a year later we went back

and did it all again but luckily, we didn't have to quarantine, didn't have to do lockdown. The show was a success, and my toddler slept on the flight, so it was all good. Oh, there we go. It's got a happy ending. Another, let's get away from the every nation's got talent. Yes.

You've sold over 100,000 books. Yes. You've got a new book. 100,000. Is that good? Yeah. That's good. That's a lot of people.

Oh, good. Yeah. I think it's good. It's good, yeah. Either that or me and Rob are bad. One of the two. I think we're doing all right, but we haven't done that, I don't think.

Yeah, exactly. Oh, thank you. Basically, it goes us, Alicia, Prince Harry, and then Richard Osman. I mean, I think David Walliams sells probably about 100,000 books in a week. Yeah, yeah. I suppose you've got the problem is you're sat next to someone who's the biggest. But to give you your due, you are the biggest selling middle grade

debut author of 2018. Can David Walliams say that? That's quite cool, isn't it? Yeah, that is quite cool. And now you've got a new book, Lunar Wolf Animal Wizard, which is for, so middle grade, does that mean kind of early teen? Is that what we're looking at? Seven plus.

Seven plus. So between, I would say between about seven and 12, seven plus so between I would say between about seven and twelve like my daughter is nine and only just um picked up my first book uh which was uh lightning girl which I wrote back in 2018 obviously and it's only now she's just starting to get interest but obviously if you've got like young readers that are really interested from the age of you know seven then yeah they can get into these books it's that really it's a really cute age actually because they're very inquisitive and their little imaginations are still running wild and they're you know they're at that lovely sweet spot where you can kind of have fun with

that age group yeah and does it what what did it feel like when your daughter picked up your book do we nervous was it exciting, it was like job done. She was part of the inspiration why I wanted to do children's books in the first place. Reading to her every day, looking at the kind of characters she's into, you know,

not feeling like she's reading books that really reflect who she is and her culture. And that was a big deal for me. And I'm very much one of these people that's like, if you don't like it, just get on with it and do it yourself. So I was like,

I'm going to create characters that my children and hopefully, you know, thousands of other young children can see themselves in, feel represented, feel included. And you know what? It's kind of surpassed that now. It's really just about writing good stories that connect with people.

That's very inspiring that, you know, your daughter can pick up a book that you've written and it sort of, you know, speaks to her sort of culture and identity and things like that. Whereas my children inspiring that, you know, your daughter can pick up a book that you've written and it sort of, you know, speaks to her sort of culture and identity and things like that, whereas my children picked up my autobiography and learnt the word piss. Oh my God!

How old's your daughter? 23. No, I'm joking. She's seven. In Eldings, have I got you there? I was thinking, hold on a minute, I thought you were really young. Oh, I'm youngish. Oh, that's funny.

Yeah, no, so that's amazing. Your new one's Lunar Wolf. And you love animals. You've got rescue dogs. Is that right? You've got a couple of Spaniels. Oh, yeah. Well, we used to have seven at one point.

Whoa. Oh, my God. I thought you liked a quiet house. Apart from the dogs. We forgot to mention that bit. couple of spaniels oh yeah well we used to have seven at one point oh my god yeah i know i thought you liked a quiet house apart from the dogs we forgot to mention that bit i mean i've always i've always grown up with dogs they've always been in the house and the reason we were able to have seven dogs is because my mum lived with us in the annex and we kind of split the dogs between the two houses but they kind of meet in this middle area. And we bought this big van and we ripped out the insides and we called it the woof wagon. And all these dogs would jump in and we'd go on our big walks and go on dog holidays.

I mean, we're very much like dog lovers in this house. And all of our dogs are rescue dogs, you know, and that's important to us. So, yeah, it was only a matter of time, really, before writing a book that put, you know, and that's important to us. So, yeah, it was only a matter of time, really, before writing a book that put, you know, animals front and centre. And I've also done a lot of work with animal charities over the years and been on rescue missions. So the themes in the book are very much inspired by things that I've seen and also just those lovely little subliminal messages

to the younger audience to really respect animals treat them with kindness you know it's really important because a lot of them as you know are exploited so we touch on those themes but at the same time the book's very action-packed it's an adventure and it's an exciting read it's really interesting you said when you were growing up like you didn't have people of your kind of heritage or that you could identify within books was it like that was there like I think when I was in primary school and I used to read like Judy Blume and Enid Blyton and I loved all of those books and all those classics to be honest with you I didn't really give it much thought I kind of just accepted as a kid oh people that look like me aren't in books

like it wasn't even you know you're young you're not really not thinking of it on that deep level it was just something that I was aware of but it it you know it I guess in a way it's a little bit sad in reflection and I think it it only really dawned on me once Azura started bringing books home that I kind of thought yeah second why are there no book like why are there no like main characters in these stories that look like her reflect her and that's what got me thinking and the reality is as we know no matter who you are where you're from what your background is whether you're watching something reading or listening you want to feel like you're part of something you want to feel included and I think that's really important for kids yeah yeah because

I think it's definitely like you know as well as from like a race point of view but from even from a class point of view the books are you know we read like enid bryant and the fantastic famous five whatever they're called it's like dorothy and chipper off to the the lead mill to see the wind and all that what the fuck is that and that's a really important point because there are subject matters in lunar wolf animal wizard where you know we're dealing with like she loses her mum when she's young so there's you know there's subjects that are touching on real life you know dealing with like blended families a new step mum growing up obviously without a mum like lots of real

issues which I think is important because we shouldn't dumb down the fact that there are millions of kids out there going through serious issues at a very young age and they have to emotionally figure out how to handle that and deal a very young age and they have to emotionally figure out how to handle that and deal with that so i don't like to shy away from it even though i'm writing something that is escapism and it's action-packed and it's fun i want to make sure that there's a touch of realness to it too love it yeah that's great at least can i go back to the wolf wagon quickly yeah i should have put the roof wagon in the book i did it yes i think you could do a whole book yeah that's a series of books you could do a spin-off

series um uh so could you now you know you had the seven dogs could you name all dogs and breeds off the top of your head now can i get a picture of these dogs please what we got looking at so teggy was a very very little actually in my book i've actually name checked all the dogs so you know when you do your thank yous and that's a lot of shit you're picking up alicia seven dogs i don't think they deserve a thank you yeah good old mum so in terms of the seven that were living with us so there was teggy who was a little rescue dog from the Blue Cross, and she was black and she was mixed, but mainly with Jack Russell.

Then there was Bobby, a little Bichon. He was white. He was from the Blue Cross as well. Then we have Prince and Paris, who are still with us to this day. We love them very much. They're naughty brothers. They're two golden cocker spaniels. Then we've got Daisy, who was my beloved rescue dog I

got her from the RSPCA she was a bit like a pointer but we never quite knew what her breed was she was mixed but she looked like a pointer and the the artwork in the book is actually based on Daisy because I had her for 13 years and unfortunately had to say goodbye to her last summer she was my baby and then we had another dog who I rescued from a horrible household where there was a lot of abuse going on and her her name was Rosie and she was a little golden cock Spaniel we had her for 12 years as well so yeah a lot of lovely dogs they're they're all characters in their own right well you you can hear you lighting up when you're talking about the dogs and how much you love them and what a big part of your your life there they are so how was it

though having because obviously you had some of these dogs before you had children yes were you and what a big part of your life they are. How was it, though, having... Because obviously you had some of these dogs before you had children. Yes. Were you sort of... Was you getting out a sort of maternal energy towards them? The reason why... Yes! The reason why I ended up with the naughty brothers, Prince and Paris,

who we named after Michael Jackson's children, which is really random. That's because one day I was... You can't call a dog Blanket, though, can you? Where's Blanket's Blanket? This is Blanket's little brother, Chewtoy. Where's Blanket's Blanket? Tell you what, I'm going to go on Britain's Got Talent.

I reckon you'll buzz me through. I'll fucking smash it. You've got the gold buzzer written all over you, mate. That's funny. So basically, one day, I think I said to my partner, I think I really would love to have a baby. And he was a bit on the fence. And then I just thought, well, you know what?

If we're not going to have children now, I'm going to go and get some young dogs to look after so I can give them all that motherly love. And that's basically what i did yeah yeah that's kind of a stop gap have you ever had a puppy well i've got a dog i've got a whip and rob i'll be honest with you he's got a very different relationship to his dog to you okay because i was going to say having a puppy is like having a newborn baby because you have to take them outside every 15 minutes they keep you awake all night and they are hard work.

Yes, they are. And I actually find the dogs now, the dog I've got, is more hassle than my like seven-year-old and five-year-old because they basically stay as toddlers for their whole life, don't they? Exactly. That's the issue. I like having the dog. I love it in the family.

It's said through gritted teeth. No, I don't love dogs the way you love dogs, Alicia. However, Lou really wanted a dog. Who's got a whippet? I've got a whippet. Rob's got a whipp teeth. No, I don't love dogs the way you love dogs, Alicia. However, Lou really wanted a dog. Who's got a whippet? I've got a whippet. Rob's got a whippet. They're so cute. They are.

It's a lovely dog. Now, hear me out and see if you can get this, but I feel like there's a lot needed from me energy-wise from my wife and children and then going out and doing my job. I don't need something else on my case. On my case? He always wants something. He eats everything i get it i get it he ate a panettone the other day alicia are you joking on my life full panettone chocolate i'm not raising

don't panic about your life now rob these days you've got a waggie eating a panettone you've changed mate no i haven't because i get delivered the panettone but i don't eat fucking panettone that's why it's out on the side. I don't know if he enjoyed it. He absolutely smashed through it. They're proper scavengers, Whippets. They'll eat anything, but they get fat real quick. And is he super quick? Really quick, very agile.

I love walking him and watching him run. I've not walked him for ages, to be honest, actually. But yeah, I love the idea of walking him. Who's walking him? I've got a dog walker this week. Oh, do you? Because I can't, I'm working, and I've got the kids, because Lou's away. I haven't got a dog walker this week. Oh, do you? Because I can't, I'm working and I've got the kids because Lou's away. I haven't got the time to properly walk him.

So I'd rather he got a proper walk. Trust me, I can do it. We do walk him when we're not both, but when it's too much in a week to give a dog a proper walk. I know, I know. So who's your walker? Is your mum walking the dogs? My mum is amazing.

Honestly, I would not have been able to have had these dogs without her support. And thankfully, she's as obsessed with animals as I am. Yeah, that helps then. It's helped quite nicely. My mum hates all animals. No. My mum hates all animals. Honestly, she's not into it at all.

Yeah, it's quite weird, actually. Really? Yeah, she's not into animals. Yeah, it's a huge statement, isn't it? How can you say you're not into animals? It's like saying I's not into animals yeah it's a huge statement isn't it so how can you say you're not into animals it's like saying i'm not into trees or i'm not into the blue sky she's not a big tree fan either to be honest our ecosystem and our world and our planet she's astroturf the garden i think she's your mum's name what my mum's um susan

susan come on susan I know she's very loving with humans though she loves humans but she loves humans but humans can be arseholes well do you know what she's

so can some dogs sometimes do you know what I mean even a panettone but no she's got bad owners Rob yes okay well yeah

but then some humans have bad parents it all goes back that way my mum's bit unsteady on her feet got a bad knee bad eyes. I don't think she likes anything quick.

I don't think she'd get on with Lewis Hamilton, if I'm honest with you. Your daughters absolutely like lightning, Rob. I know, but they are her grandchildren. Anyway, let's move on from my mum's cold heart and get back into... Alicia, can I ask you a question? You're writing books and you've got a nine-year-old now. My daughter's seven. I'm already struggling with the maths.

How are you at the homework side of things? I pass the maths homework over to her dad. Nice. All his family are accountants and they're great. I mean, he's not an accountant, but he's really good at math. Annoyingly good at math. So he takes care of that. I'm more the English homework. Sure. Creative. Best good at math. So I let, he takes care of that. I'm more the English homework.

Sure. Creative. Best selling author. Best selling author. But we've got a nice balance in the house, but she's really independent actually, quite a bit like me. And she just gets on with it.

And she's, she does really well and very rarely asks us for any help, which is very good. That's nice. That's good. So she cracks on with it. Fair enough. Yeah.

It's great. And is that what you were cracks on with it. Fair enough. Cracks on with it. Yeah, it's great. And is that what you were like? Could you see yourself as a child? Because obviously you're quite a driven person. Can you see, were you like that as a child? And can you see that in her? Yeah, definitely. And I see it in my three-year-old as well.

Like down to the smallest things. Like if you try to help her put her shoes on or a coat, everything's no, no, no. I want to do this. And my mum said I was very much the same um just kind of that independence and yeah and I like that actually because it makes you confident as a parent that you know they're going to be self-sufficient and they're you know going to be able to look after themselves and not need to be babied up until they're teenagers you know

um it's very important to me that they you know I'm trying to get my you know my nine-year-old cooking dinner it's like come on let's get in the kitchen let's learn how to cook so once a week you can take over oh wow and what's she like I'm only joking I do want her to learn how to cook and be self-sufficient so that stuff's important because they're very privileged they have a great life but we don't let them, you know, sit around thinking that they're just going to be waited on. We're like, everyone has to get involved, and that's quite important for us.

Yeah. Because they are having a very different lifestyle to you growing up and your childhood and things like that. Do you have to bite your tongue to go, well, when I was a kid and stuff like that, or are you a bit more chill with it? Because it's hard not to sometimes. We talk to them about this all the time.

You know, for example, the other day she was doing her homework and her father, he was born in the UK, but he went back to Nigeria and he went to school in Nigeria. And he said that some days they'd come home and they wouldn't have electricity, right? For hours on end, maybe it would last a few days and they'd have to sit and do their homework in candlelight and she's sitting there doing her homework and he so we were talking

about this and we turned off all the lights and he said and he put the candle nearer he said try doing your homework like this he said because this is what daddy used to have to do she lasted a minute you know and he's like and it's just we just have that but we do it in a fun way but we just try to remind her and show her, you know, don't take anything for granted. You know, the fact that you have running water, food in your tummy, beautiful home, parents that love you, you know, you're very lucky and you deserve this, but we want you to be grateful.

So we constantly have that conversation and remind her, you know, show her what the real world is like, because that's important, because I want my children to grow up mindful and aware of the world and how privileged they are. And what's it like for her to have, you know, one of the most famous people in the country as her mum? Does that come up or is she bored of it now? The kids at school don't really care? Because it's a big show as well. It's a show that kids watch. Yeah, someone actually asked her that in front of me the other day and she went, it's kind of cool. She's quite chill about it.

And honestly, the only thing she cares about when I'm filming a show like Britain's Got Talent is Amanda's kid's going to be there, is Simon's son going to be there? She's more interested in organising the play date and what video games they can all play or what they can, you know, when they're hanging out. Do you take them to record dates then?

Yes. Yes. So like the live shows or when you're on the country? We try and coordinate it so that all the kids come on the same day so they can all hang out. Usually once, you know, once. We do like six live shows. So they'll maybe come to the final or something like that.

Oh, nice. Maybe an audition day as well, they'll come and hang out. And do they have a room that like is sort of like the playroom for all the kids? No, but we did used to say to the producers, when they were really little, we used to say, can we get a creche? But obviously they're older now, they can sit and watch the show.

And there was actually one day that we all brought our dogs in as well. It was mental. I've seen a photo of that. The wolf wagon turned up. watched the show and there was actually one day that we all brought our dogs in as well it was i only brought one of the seven in because every one of it you know simon's got squiggly and diddly you know david's got two dogs amanda's got a dog. Ant and Dec have got dogs. And I, you know, it was chaos. But in the best way possible, you know. I feel like they could give the kids a little dressing room to hang out in. Because have you ever worked with Geri Halliwell, Alicia? I haven't, no. So I worked with her on a show.

And she had her son there who was about 18 months. And he had his own dressing room. Did he? It was slightly bigger than mine. I need to work that into my contract. I know. Has your daughter ever disagreed with a decision you've made on Britain's Got Talent?

Has she ever gone... Always. Always. Yes, I constantly get told off for pressing the buzzer. She has a very strong opinion on every single thing I say and do. And usually I get criticised. And I'm thinking, is this normal? Like for a nine-year-old to be so critical?

Why is your hair like that? I'm not sure about that outfit. Why did you press your buzzer for that person? That was a bit mean, mummy. And I come home to a judge. So I find it quite funny. And I do ask her opinion on a lot of things because she's quite sassy she's very funny she's actually put a lot of input into to to the recent book as well like I let her choose a couple of the character names in the book and you know she'll

sit and do sketches for you know outfits that she thinks will suit characters so I tried to let her in on my little world somehow because she's, you know, she's got very, they have very strong opinions, even at nine. Do you know what, though? I'd say it's really reassuring because, like, if she thinks, oh, you don't know, I don't like your outfit, Mum,

or what you're doing that for and stuff like that, because you and your husband, there's a, I've had a photo of you at the LGBT Awards, I think. You two look so cool. You're wearing this pink jacket. Your husband's got sunglasses on and a black suit. You look like the coolest people I've ever seen. So if your children think you look silly

or you're wearing the wrong stuff, then that gives us hope for us. Does that make you feel better, Rob? Yeah, because I look at you, you look unbelievable. So basically, the bottom line is, your kids, our kids, everyone's kids know, fuck all. Because you two look unbelievable. She's not happy with that.

Jesus Christ. We say to her all the time, listen, girl, you've got some cool parents, right? I'm actually quite cool. But then if you say that, I'm actually quite cool, you know. And you don't sound cool, do you? No, exactly. You don't sound cool. And then you go, are we?

Yeah. But you're a bit more glamorous on telly. I've been on telly getting a colonic, do you know what I mean, in my pants and stuff like that. That's not the only time when you didn't look cool on TV. Like, you've never looked cool on TV. You have not done that. I've had a colonic on telly.

Are you joking? No, yeah, real life with Romesh. What's that? On Sky, on demand, Rob and Romesh versus basketball, weirdly. And I had a clear out on that. I'm fascinated with them. Have you never had one? I have had one.

They're great, aren't they? Oh, I'm not sure, Alisa. Do you know, what's it meant to achieve? You're supposed to draw out all the toxins and, you know, it depends on what your diet's like. Things get stuck, don't they? And they just help stick.

Right. Yeah, well. I think we should move on, really. No, no. I'm like this. No, basically, Romesh, so basically they put like a tube up your bum, Josh. Yeah, I'm aware of that bit. That bit's that.

I know the headline. I'm looking more for the. I assume that would be the worst bit, but I don't know if you found this. It was the pressure. They start filling you up with water. Yes. And then that sort of expands. Yeah, because it gets the water everywhere inside you

so that then it all dislodges. Yes, Alicia. I think that a colonic is the closest a man will get to experiencing what a contraction kind of feels like. Oh, really? I'm glad you brought it back to the subject as well, so it means we can talk about it more. Yes, I'll tell you why.

Because you know that bit when your stomach completely fills up and then it's like a really achy feeling, you know, like when you've got a bad tummy? Yes, yes, yep. That's a fraction of what a contraction feels like. Yeah, it's because I think you probably get the uncomfortableness with it without the sort of pain and pressure of the baby. You have to really, really breathe through it, don't you?

Yeah, well, I was trying to, but I was laughing at a butter mushroom coming out whole from Romesh. I sat and watched my friend have it done once, the first time I saw her have it done. It's fascinating, isn't it? And when you see a bit of tomato or something come out, you're like, oh, you need to chew your food, girl. Yeah, that fucking was sun-dried, wasn't it?

Jesus. When you see Saturn, were you having yours done that day or did you just go along as a spectator? I was just with her and she allowed me to sit in the room with her because I'm strange like that. I love it. I find it fascinating. And she let me watch it and I thought it was very interesting. And she let me watch it. And I thought it was very interesting.

Yes, it's very uncomfortable. But I think it does have a good old clear out. But it takes a few... I found it... It took a few days for full recovery down there, personally. I can still feel a breeze getting out of the shower. Oh, don't. I think that was the wrong tube.

Don't. Anyway, how were your births? Let's get back to that, Sin, sin as you brought up giving birth to a child first one was lovely um yeah i didn't listen to any stories from anybody else i wasn't interested in any you know horror stories i just tried to stay in a really positive place i did the hypnobirthing thing got myself really calm you know it wasn't perfect there were moments where um i was very challenged but overall my first birth was a natural birth and yeah no drugs i did have an epidural yeah last minute um yeah it was it was very painful

but my overall the overall feeling when i look back at the first birth was a really positive one. Okay, that's good. It's good to hear because sometimes it is all drama stories where it can just be quite sort of textbook in a way, can't it? So it's good to hear that side of it. But how about your second? Second one, because I was more stressed looking after, obviously, a young child. I was working, as I said before, right up until the point where my waters broke. And then my waters broke, but baby wasn't ready to come out.

And it was a very, very long process in them trying to induce me. And by that point, when you've not slept for 24 hours and you're exhausted and you've been pumped with so much stuff to try and get things moving. And she didn't want to play ball in the end. I had to have a C-section, but it wasn't planned. I didn't want it. Um, and I found the whole, I found all of that very uncomfortable. Like I've spoken to women that have chosen to do that and they've had no issues with it. But for me, I don't know if it was a psychological thing, cause I really wanted a natural birth, but I did not like it. And that feeling when your body goes numb I hated it and it felt strange to me and I there was a moment my funniest moment they said to me it won't hurt you

won't feel a thing so they they numbed my body and then when they started to like move my stomach around and open it up or whatever I started shouting shouting at them. I was like, you said it wasn't going to hurt. So I'm, I'm shouting at them. I'm shouting at them. And my poor partner, he's like, it was like a horror movie was happening over the curtain and he watched the whole thing. So in the end they gave me gas and air because I was like telling them off yeah just to shut you up had the gas and air he said then i was cracking up laughing shouting at them to literally laughing my head off and he's looking

over the curtain he can see all this blood and it was like he said it was like something from a horror movie and i'm laughing my head off and that's his memory of it so it was a bit more dramatic and then obviously baby came she was amazing we were in floods of tears it was brilliant but then even afterwards you know i was very sick i kept being sick i felt horrific for days it's a long recovery because my wife had an emergency C-section. And it's just a long... You're recovering from an operation. Exactly. Exactly.

And all I'm worried about is can I get on an aeroplane and go and do America's Got Talent? Oh, God. Yeah, so how soon after was you doing that? Five weeks after. Five? Fuck. So was it meant to be a week after then?

Yes. Yes. Oh, wow. I don't know what I it was meant to be a week after then? Yes, yes. Oh, wow. I don't know what I was thinking, to be honest. And then part of me thought maybe my little baby knew I needed more recovery time and that's why she came early for it. Yeah, or you was thinking the extra 15% get me on that plane. Mama's earning in America. I was going to have a manager then, Rob.

Oh, right, okay. But I, yeah, it was a whirlwind. But do you know what? Interestingly, they pump you with so many drugs, don't they, when you have a C-section. And then they're like, you know, you can't do this, you can't drive, you can't walk, blah, blah, blah, blah. I stayed in hospital for a few days.

I came home. I stopped taking all the drugs that they gave me. And, yeah, it was very painful getting up in the morning. But I was hoovering, like, the day after I came out of hospital I was up and I was walking yeah I was walking around the garden with the buggy I felt fine I think sometimes the the drugs kind of suppress you and dumb down what your body is actually capable of doing for itself so yeah it was great and then I spent four weeks in you know at home strolling around the garden going out for lovely walks, eating good food, relaxing.

So by the time we got on that aeroplane, I was ready to rock and roll. You're going to be one of those people that's like, when they're like 97, that you're like great-grandchildren are going to go around and you've ordered a shed and you're trying to put it up. And they're like, Nan! What? Nan, what are you doing?

It's been like that. My mum is like that. Really? It's been like that since we were kids. And I think I do get a bit of that from her. Like you'd come home and my mum had built a patio. She is still like that to this day. And I always say to my mum, mum, you know, we can,

we can pay someone to do that. And she's like, why, why pay someone when I can do it myself? So she's, she's always been like that. Very creative, gets on with it. But you're right. I will probably be building a shed or something at 90. I hope I'm still going out for runs and going to the gym when I'm 90. That's my...

Oh, I don't. I want to fucking just sack it off at about 83. Oh, mate, I'm down at 60. My nan used to go to the gym. I used to get people coming up to me saying, your nan's a legend. I saw her in the gym and she was like, thank you. Oh, my word. so you're never gonna

stop this is it just keep going well no i think i believe that the older i get the more i think the balance is important it's important to work hard but you've got to play hard and relax and the rest is just as important as stuff so i'm learning that more and more. This is terrible news for anyone that's ironed up a judge job on Somewhere's Got Talent because you're not letting it. Well, because you're going to be there 200. Nothing. Yeah. They say black don't crack, so fingers crossed.

You need to take your foot off the pedal, get lazy, so someone else can sneak in. Come on, Alicia. Oh, don't. I'm going to try and create opportunities for other people, Rob. That's the plan. There we go.

Yes, but just not on the show you're on. Our approach. As long as they don't want to be one of four judges. Create loads of ops. Alicia, thank you so much. We've got our final two questions, if that's all right. Yes.

So this basically, we ask this to all our guests and it's what's all right yes um so this basically we ask this to all our guests and it's what's the one thing so there's a positive and negative spin on it it's two questions what's the one thing that really annoys you about your partner in the way they parent and something that drives you a bit mad and then what's the one thing that they do as a dad that you're just like oh my god they're so amazing that i'm so thankful that we're obviously more interested in the first one, but get through the second one, and then we can talk about the thing that annoys you.

So let's start on a positive. The positive is, oh, my God, where do I start? And he'll probably be listening to this, so there's a lot of pressure here. It's a pretty popular show, actually. He probably will just by chance. I mean, to sum it up, if you said to Azura, what do you love about your dad,

she would literally say everything, I swear. They have that beautiful father-daughter relationship and I love watching that. I love watching how present he is for her, how caring, considerate, patient. But he's, you know, like dads are so good at being strict, but then they're so loving as well. And he's got that lovely balance.

And he's just a very hands-on parent and they love and respect their dad so much. And I love watching that. That brings me a lot of joy. So I'd say that. It makes me worry about how little my children respect me. But there we go. Oh, no, really?

No, I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. I just don't think that's limited to your kids i think in general josh you just got that kind of vibe i think the worst thing about him uh in terms of okay okay no no he's never wrong right yeah he's right and when you're quite a stubborn person too yeah that we we definitely you know we have to get to a place sometimes where we agree to disagree because he has his beliefs and i have my beliefs so we can

clash sometimes in that respect but he overall i hate the fact that i can't find anything bad to criticize about him right but he's always right i can't because i can't imagine you two arguing because i think i'd i'd find you quite intimidated. You know what we argue about? The heating. The heating. Okay. Because he has it. So there is like Jamaica and Nigeria in the house all the time.

And I like it. You know, I'd like a nice happy medium. So we're constantly fighting over the heating. It's the silly things that we bicker about. But, yeah, the heating is one of the most annoying things. But as far as the kids are concerned, that's the one area we don't really argue. Right. Okay.

Right. That's good. Because I think you'd be quite intimidating in an argument, Alicia. You could. Well, I think because you're very articulate and very intelligent, but also you've sort of lived a real life and, you know, you're using mystique. I feel like you could fuck me up if you wanted to. Do you know what I mean?

I feel like you've got, you know, you've lived a real life there's an edge if you want to go even outside of spoons you can handle yourself i think we've lasted for 12 years because he can outsmart me sometimes which i secretly love but i also hate it he's very smart himself and very sharp but then we you know there's a lot of banter and a lot of laughter in our house and i think that's the best medicine for everything really oh lovely thanks alicia good luck with your um new book oh thanks guys what's the title again uh it's lunar wolf animal wizard yes let's get that to 200 000 sales rob yes. It's coming out in March 2023. March the 2nd, but you can pre-order it now. Perfect. I'll pre-order.

Thank you, Alicia. Thanks, guys. Alicia Dixon, there we go. What a lovely woman. I love her. She's great. I met her once before at some sort of awards do. She's really normal.

Even though she's on these big shows, she's a really normal, hardworking person that's lived like a proper life and she's worked really hard and had, you know, and now doing really well. So it's really, it's nice when you see someone nice doing well. Exactly. It's so rare in our industry. But Josh, I wanted to shout with a one sonship so much.

But it's too late now, Rob. I know, but it would have been disrespectful to do it to her. It would have. It would have. Wouldn't it? Would I want to? Miss Degas. Would I want to?

Because she can sort of garage MC and she doesn't really do it much anymore. But I think she's really good at it. I think what's more disrespectful is just doing it once you know she's not on the Zoom call. But there we go. No, I think talking about people behind their backs is very underrated. And I think it's something that really helps. That's what we should call this section. Where we talk about the guest behind their backs very underrated. And I think it's something that really helps. That's what we should call this section, where we talk about the guest behind their backs.

Yes, basically. I wanted to ask her if she finds it annoying that Mystique from X-Men has sort of superseded Mystique the group. Oh, right, yeah. I'm glad you stuck with the questions you went with. Yeah, fair enough. Right, see you Tuesday.

Bye. All the ones on ship. Answer! Yeah, fair enough. Right, see you Tuesday. Bye. All the ones on ship. Answer.