''Get Fresh'' is a children's

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

programme that originally aired from 1986 to 1988 in the United Kingdom.

Format

A Saturday-morning kids' TV show, broadcast on the Children's ITV network, the show featured Gareth Jones (aka Gaz Top), Charlotte Hindle, and, for the first year of its run,

Gian Sammarco Giancarlo "Gian" Sammarco (born 30 January 1970) is an English former child actor and nurse. He is best known for playing the title role in the television dramatisations of '' The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾'' (1985) and its sequel ...

, the British child actor best known for his portrayal of the character '

Adrian Mole Adrian Albert Mole is the fictional protagonist in a series of books by English author Sue Townsend. The character first appeared (as "Nigel") as part of a comic diary featured in a short-lived arts magazine (called simply ''magazine'') publi ...

'. Sammarco was replaced for the 2nd and 3rd series by a puppet named Gilbert the Alien (voiced by

Phil Cornwell Philip Cornwell (born 5 October 1957) is an English actor, comedian, impressionist and writer. He is part of the '' Dead Ringers'' television and radio series, and was the voice of Murdoc Niccals in the virtual band Gorillaz. Cornwell has co- ...

). Each week the series would be broadcast from a different UK location and centred on the ''Millennium Dustbin'', a fictional space ship in which the presenters would travel the country. The show invited a live audience to attend and give vox-pop comments, to give presentations on local community activities, and to participate in games and challenges. Pop stars would also appear to perform on the show. The weekly music strand of the show featured musical guest interviews and pop gossip. The segment was hosted each week by

Nino Firetto Anthony Edward Paolo Firetto (born 30 June 1957 in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire) is a British radio presenter, TV host and actor, currently based in San Francisco, United States. Biography Firetto became known as a DJ in the 1970s, then as a televi ...

and David 'Kid' Jensen. The show featured a unique play-by-phone challenge, using the Amiga video game ''

Xenon Xenon is a chemical element with the symbol Xe and atomic number 54. It is a dense, colorless, odorless noble gas found in Earth's atmosphere in trace amounts. Although generally unreactive, it can undergo a few chemical reactions such as the ...

'', where viewers would call in and shout "left, left, right, shoot" commands to a blindfolded player. Get Fresh also featured the animated series '' The Centurions'' and ''

The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers ''The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers'' is an American animated space Western television series created by Robert Mandell and Gaylord Entertainment Company. It was broadcast in syndication between 1986 and 1989. The series combines sci-fi s ...

''.

Spin-offs

''Get Fresh Sunday'' was a pre-recorded Sunday morning edition of the show also presented by Gaz, Charlotte and Gilbert. This spin-off featured ''

The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin ''The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin'' is a children's animated television series based on Teddy Ruxpin, an animatronic teddy bear created by Ken Forsse and distributed by toy manufacturer Worlds of Wonder. Produced in 1986–7 for television syndi ...

'' and '' Gummi Bears'' and studio-based interviews and features, and was more item-based than the activity driven Saturday live show. Gilbert later featured in a further two series for

Tyne Tees Television ITV Tyne Tees, previously known as Tyne Tees, Channel 3 North East and Tyne Tees Television, is the ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. Tyne Tees launched on 15 January 1959 from studios at a converte ...

, ''Gilbert's Fridge'' (1988) and ''Gilbert's Late'' (1990).

Production notes

The series was administrated by Tyne Tees Television from a Central Unit based at their London office, but was produced in conjunction with the local ITV station from where the series was to broadcast that week. ''Get Fresh Sunday'' was produced solely by Border Television. The theme music for the programme was written by Mick Jones of The Clash and Big Audio Dynamite fame.

Series 1 - 1986

* * 3 May - The Glebe, Windermere (Border) * 10 May - Coney Beach Pleasure Park, Porthcawl (HTV Wales) * 17 May - Tuxedo Princess, Newcastle (Tyne Tees) * 24 May - Glasgow Mayfest (Scottish) * 31 May - Carmunnock Highland Games (Scottish) * 7 June - Portrush (Ulster) * 14 June - Cardiff Castle (HTV Wales) * 21 June - Colchester Zoo (Anglia) * 28 June - Bath Festival of Steam (HTV West) * 5 July - Weymouth Beach (TSW) * 12 July - Bellahouston Park, Glasgow (Scottish) * 19 July - Aberdeen (Grampian) * 26 July - Swaffham (Anglia) * 2 August - Whitehaven Harbour (Border) * 9 August - Scone Palace, Perth (Grampian) * 16 August - Ashton Court Park, Bristol (HTV West) * 23 August - Tyne Tees Studios, Newcastle (Tyne Tees) * 30 August - Carlisle Castle (Border) * 6 September - Beamish Open Air Museum, County Durham (Tyne Tees) * 13 September - Plymouth Hoe (TSW)

Series 2 - 1987

* 25 April and 2 May - "Get Ready for Get Fresh" (Studio-based episodes made by Border) * 9 May - Sheepmount Athletics track, Carlisle (Border) * 16 May - Yeovil (TSW) * 23 May - Duxford Air Museum (Anglia) * 30 May - Edinburgh Castle (Scottish) * 6 June - Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (Grampian) * 13 June - Lakeland Forum, Enniskillen (Ulster) * 20 June - Ulster Folk Museum (Ulster) * 27 June - New Lanark Old Mill Town (Scottish) * 4 July - Cardiff Ice Rink (HTV Wales) * 11 July - Plymouth (TSW) * 18 July - Newquay (TSW) * 25 July - Kelso Agricultural Fair (Border) * 1 August - Clydebank (Scottish) * 8 August - Northumberland Scout and Guide Camp, Gosforth Park (Tyne Tees) * 15 August - Border TV, Carlisle (Border) * 22 August - Norwich (Anglia) * 29 August - Bristol (HTV West)

Series 3 - 1988

* 9 April - Newcastle, County Down (Ulster) * 16 April - Giant's Causeway (Ulster) * 23 April - Maritime Museum, Exeter (TSW) * 30 April - Lord Montagu's Transport Museum, Beaulieu (TVS) * 7 May - St Austell (TSW) * 14 May - Great Yarmouth (Anglia) * 21 May - Galloway Games, Stranraer (Border) * 28 May - Ferry Meadows Country Park, Peterborough (Anglia) * 4 June - Roman fort, South Shields (Tyne Tees) * 11 June - Dundee (Grampian) * 18 June - Killington Lake services (Border) * 25 June - Glasgow Show, Bellahouston Park (Scottish) * 2 July - Summerlee Heritage Trust, Coatbridge (Scottish) * 9 July - Eden Court Theatre, Inverness (Grampian) * 16 July - Glasgow Garden Festival (Scottish) * 23 July - Teignmouth (TSW) * 30 July - Douglas, Isle of Man (Border) * 6 August - Metrocentre, Gateshead (Tyne Tees) * 13 August - Tropicana, Weston-super-Mare (HTV West) * 20 August - Tavistock Meadows (TSW) * 27 August -

Margam Country Park Margam Country Park is a country park estate in Wales, of around 850 acres (3.4 km²). It is situated in Margam, about 2 miles (3 km) from Port Talbot in south Wales. It was once owned by the Mansel Talbot family and is now owned and ...

, Port Talbot (HTV Wales)

Transmission guide

*Series 1: 20 editions from 3 May 1986 – 13 September 1986 *Series 2: 19 editions from 25 April 1987 – 29 August 1987 *Series 3: 21 editions from 9 April 1988 – 28 August 1988

References

External links