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Hello and welcome to The Week Junior Show.
I'm Bex and I'm joined by writers Joe and Eve from The Week Junior, the magazine making sense of the world for 8 to 14 year olds.
Now, in a week where the biggest artists in the music industry were recognised at the Grammys and Dame Sarah Mullally officially became the Archbishop of Canterbury, we're going to be talking about some of the other stories that entertained and interested The Week Junior team.
Make sure you're listening closely, because at the end of this episode we'll be asking a question about what you've heard.
And if you answer it correctly, you could win a prize.
Now this week's issue of the magazine is celebrating Children's Mental Health Week, which runs next week from the 9th to the 15th of February.
So the theme this year is This Is My Place, which is all about helping young people to find a sense of belonging.
And it got me thinking, what is your happy place?
So Eve, go for it.
I would say I feel like I've mentioned on the podcast before I really like playing the game Dungeons and Dragons.
But it's quite hard to find other people that like playing Dungeons and Dragons.
It's quite a niche interest.
But I have a club that I go to with some of my friends to play it and I just love it.
It's really fun and I feel like I've, you know, made some great friends there.
So I'd say that's my happy place.
That is a great one.
Okay, Jo, how about you?
My happy place, it's quite a simple one.
It's sitting in a cafe on a Saturday morning, having my breakfast and reading the news.
I find it's a really great way to de-stress after a busy week.
And on a good weekend I'll have even dragged myself out of bed early enough to have done a park run beforehand.
So I'll have really earned the breakfast and the chill time.
Wow, that's a true journalist at work there, going to read the news on your day off.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Never stops, never stops for us at The Week Junior.
We're always, always on it.
Always.
I love that.
My happy place is just to be with my friends.
I love being around people and my friends make me really happy.
In particular, one of my happiest things of the year is pancake day, because I host a pancake party for my friends that I'm with.
Big shout out to Jenny, Carmen and Megan who will all be at my pancake party this year who I always take requests for toppings and then also make them eat any ridiculous flavors that I've concocted through the year as well.
So yeah, that's my happy place is being with my friends, basically.
So I want to know what your happy place is.
Send us an email to hello at theweekjuniorcouk or leave a voice note at funkidslivecom.
Slash theweekjunior.
Just grab a grown up, look for that big red button and record your voice.
Then if your voice note is played out next week, you could win a Week Junior roving reporter badge.
Last week, we asked listeners what song cheers them up when they're sad.
So we had a voice note here sent in from Harrison.
Hi, The Week Junior.
My name's Harrison and I'm eight.
And my song that cheers me up when I'm sad is the Top Gun anthem, because it's really uplifting and I like the tune and I just absolutely love playing the film.
Bye!
That's really funny because I was about to say, is Harrison in some kind of aeroplane?
And then he said... Yeah, Top Gun.
Harrison in my head right now.
You're about to jump out of an aircraft and do something heroic with the Top Gun theme in the background.
Do we know what the Top Gun theme is?
Can anyone sing it for me?
Highway to the danger zone.
On cue, Eve just had it in her back pocket.
All right.
Wow, well done.
Thank you for that.
That was lovely business.
Next up, we've got a voice note here in from Sonny.
Hi, Week Junior.
My favourite song to calm me down is Seven Years.
It goes like, once I was seven years old.
Thanks, Week Junior.
Love your show.
Oh, Sonny, thank you for that.
That song makes me cry.
It makes me very emotional, that song.
But that's a great choice.
Haven't heard that for ages.
Next up, we had a voice note from Alma.
Hi, the Week Junior.
My name is Alma and I'm 11 years old and I was thinking about songs that cheered me up.
Recently I went to the Young Voices concert at the O2 Arena in Greenwich and a song that I sang there was that cheered me up, was part of a disco medley and it's called Celebration and I think originally it's by a band called Cool and the Gang and I like it because it sends out such a positive message to everyone and it's such a nice song and yeah, that song cheers me up.
Bye!
Oh, that celebration is a great choice.
That is such a joyful song.
And that reminds me actually I should have mentioned last week my actual favourite song ever is Do You Remember the 21st Night of September?
Oh, very good.
Classic.
Alma, thank you so much for reminding me about that.
And what a lovely reason to pick it as well for being in the Young Voices.
Finally, we've got a message here from Frankie.
Hi, The Week Junior.
My name's Frankie and I'm seven years old.
My favourite song is from a film called Sing, and it's I'm Still Standing.
Elton John plays it, but also another person, but I like the Elton John version.
Bye, love your show.
First of all, I love it when people say they love the show.
Thank you so much to Frankie.
What a choice.
We've had some excellent choices here today.
All kind of like different types of music.
And I'm Still Standing, that is an anthem.
That is the kind of tune that makes you feel like you are invincible.
You can do anything.
So Frankie, I've got to respect that.
And also, I don't know if you guys Joe Eve, have you seen the film Sing?
Yes oh, my god, i love it.
I love when um i can't remember the name of um, the main character, but the gorilla when he sings i'm still standing.
It's so good.
Oh my, i love that film.
Um we, what a perfect playlist we've just been given there from harrison sunny, alma and frankie.
Thank you so much, guys.
And uh, if you want your voice to feature next week on the podcast, just send us a voice note at funkidslivecom.
Slash the week junior and tell us what your happy place is.
Now let's turn our attention to the latest magazine and talk about what's been in the news headlines this week.
Eve, what story do you have?
So my story is from our UK news page and it's about Europe's biggest fire festival, which is called Up Helly R, And it took place in Lerwick, which is a town in the Shetland Islands in Scotland.
And it's a festival that dates back to the 1880s.
And hundreds of torchbearers and locals dress up as Vikings.
And they're known as the Jarl Squad.
And they parade through the streets.
And it marks the end of Yule, which is a traditional winter festival.
And it celebrates the Shetland Islands Viking heritage.
And the parade starts very early in the morning and they go all the way through Lerwick and they make stops on the way at primary schools, care homes and hospitals.
And then in the evening, they paraded through the town, pulling a replica of a Viking longship.
And then at the end of the procession, they set fire to the Viking longship.
And there's these incredible photos of the Viking ship on fire.
It looks amazing.
And it usually takes place on the last Tuesday in January every year.
And I would love to see it one day.
Apparently this year it attracts visitors from as far away as China and Canada.
And I would just love to know if we have any listeners in Shetland, if you've ever seen or taken part in the festival.
And if you have, please send us a voice note telling us all about it.
It sounds amazing.
I've never heard of it before.
It feels like it should be something that we all know a bit more about almost now.
Yeah, definitely.
Also, when you say the last week of Yule, I thought of Yule as just Christmas time, but it's still going on.
Yeah, exactly.
So yeah, it's just so interesting.
And I kind of, I love everything about Viking history.
I find it really interesting.
So I loved that story.
A great story.
Thank you very much.
Jo, what's another story you've seen in the news this week?
It's a story from Around the World pages about a farm in Saxony in Germany that is giving away thousands of potatoes for free after enjoying a bumper harvest.
The farmer has organized a potato dump in Berlin, which is the country's capital city, telling people to help themselves.
Food banks, churches and schools are among some of the organisations to have received spuds.
And even Berlin Zoo has got in on the act, taking potatoes to feed its animals.
People hope the giveaway will stop about four million kilograms of potatoes going to waste.
Although some farmers have expressed concern about the impact it will have on the value of their own crops.
OK, I mean, I love the idea of being given potatoes, Joe.
Say hypothetically right now, I give you two potatoes.
What are you doing?
Are you mashing?
Are you boiling?
Are you jacketing?
What's happening?
Oh, gosh, that's pressure on the spot.
Maybe I'd make one into a jacket potato and the other one I'd mash.
I'd sort of mix and match it.
Maybe I'd have a friend over for dinner and I could have a jacket potato and they could have mash, or vice versa, you know, or I'd take requests.
I'd take requests, take requests.
Uh great, okay i'm.
I've just realized there are so many other options.
I could have said chips, i should crisps waffles um, there's a lot going on there, so hopefully the people in this area of germany are, you know, making the most of their potato crop.
Thank you very much, joe.
Uh, what a good story.
I'm now a little bit peckish But, moving on, it's time for Real or Rubbish.
Now, this is the bit where I hear a story from the magazine.
I have to guess if it's true or false, fact or fake news.
So Joe, come on then.
I believe it's your turn this week to trick me.
Yeah, so when you build a snowman, you usually expect it to melt when warmer weather comes.
But a man from Colorado in the US recently celebrated his snowman's 50th birthday.
Jeff Johnson first made the snowman in his back garden when he was just eight years old.
And he was so attached to his frosty friend that his mom allowed him to keep it in a large chest freezer in their garage.
The snowman, which is nicknamed Chili, proved to be very resilient because he survived.
And for years Jeff has carefully taken Chili out of the freezer each winter and put him on display in his back garden, just like he did all those years ago when he was a child.
For Chili's birthday, Jeff bought him a scarf and even some balloons.
But Bex, is this real or a frosty fib?
Oh, my goodness.
This sounds like a Pixar short film, the idea of this lovely snowman popping out every winter.
If I was him though, I'd be really nervous of getting him out every winter, in case it wasn't cold enough and he started to melt.
I'd be absolutely terrified.
He'd be kept in that freezer all year round if this was me.
And also, did you say he just bought him a scarf?
Surely he deserved more.
He's been around for 50 years.
Surely a scarf or a hat could have happened a bit sooner than this.
Yeah, I guess so.
I mean, I don't know.
Maybe 50th is just the first time it's come to the attention of the media.
You know, there might have been a birthday party when he turned 18.
I don't know.
20th.
What are the other milestones on the way to 50th?
30th?
40th?
Yeah, we don't know.
Maybe a half century for a snowman.
I mean, that's not just like a 20th birthday, is it?
That's staggering.
He's surely the oldest snowman in the world at this point.
I would be concerned about keeping him in a freezer.
First of all, that's a lot of space to be wasting when you could be popping some pizzas in there.
But when you're taking out your snowman, I'd be really nervous of him falling apart or breaking.
In my head, if he's standing up...
You'd have like, you know those big things you cook pizzas on and you put the pizzas in the oven?
Yeah.
You'd have to like slice it underneath the snowman and then like squeeze him out or slide him out.
But I'd just be terrified he would break the whole time.
Sure, they must have had some breakages in 50 years, you'd imagine.
Yeah.
Uh, maybe, maybe.
Yeah.
I mean, I suppose.
I suppose if it's cold weather and it's snowing, there's sort of more building materials around you, isn't there?
You know, I think he wheels him out on a little platform into the garden.
And yeah, I know, I suppose he doesn't necessarily bring him out at strictly the same point each year.
I mean, if Jeff Jeff is a sensible guy and it sounds like he is because the snowman survived 50 years he must be checking the weather forecast to make sure uh, chile is going to be okay.
But it is a risky business because i suppose you've got a slightly washing outside, isn't it?
When it rains, you've got to be prepared to take it inside at sort of a moment's notice.
And i wonder whether you know he has the same arms every year, because you know people put like sticks in for arms.
That's actually a good question, because i've only seen a picture of the snowman with the arms that he currently has.
Um, I mean, you're probably right, actually.
You're probably right, because I suppose if you use sticks, those might not survive 50 years.
They probably will, wouldn't they?
But I suppose that's the beauty of a snowman, isn't it?
It's a bit like Mr. Potato Head in Toy Story.
You can kind of add bits to it and keep it kind of propped up with snow and stuff over the years.
Yeah.
I am fascinated.
I really want it to be real because it's such a lovely idea.
So hopefully I'll come to my answer at the end of the show.
So stick around and we can find out what the truth is together.
So while I'm thinking about that, it's time to talk about our book of the week.
This week, it's The Lion's Run by Sarah Pennypacker.
So here she is to tell us a little bit more about it.
I'm Sarah Pennypacker, and I've been writing books for kids for nearly 30 years.
My newest is an historical fiction for middle graders called The Lion's Run.
It's the story of an orphan in France during World War II who's pretty tired of the Nazi occupation.
He's also tired of thinking of himself as a coward.
After he begins to carry messages for the resistance, he also starts to find heroes working all around him and to find courage in himself.
Part of the plot involves saving a thoroughbred horse, which I can trace back to my own childhood love of reading.
One of my favorite books back then was The Black Stallion.
So it was a joy to be able to have my characters in The Lion's Run read that book as they find their way and have the experience of bonding with and riding a remarkable horse.
Thanks for reading.
And if you want to win a copy of The Lion's Run, stay with us until the end of the show to find out how you can enter our prize draw to win a copy.
Next up, we've got a very special visit this week from Associate Editor Laura.
Hello, Laura.
How are you doing?
I'm good, thanks.
How are you?
Very good, thank you.
Tell me, what is going on this week?
So this week, I wanted to talk about our All About feature. which focuses on Greenland.
And it's a country which has been in the news quite a lot over the last few weeks.
And you might have read our news story about it a few weeks ago.
Basically, the US President Donald Trump has said that he wants to take control of Greenland.
And there's been lots of protests over this from the people of Greenland and others in Europe.
So we wanted to sort of delve a bit deeper if you will.
So yeah it's all about Greenland which is the world's largest island.
About two-thirds of the country is inside the Arctic Circle, which is Earth's northernmost very icy region, and it's sort of right between North America and Europe, and that's partly why the US says it wants to control Greenland.
Basically it says that Other countries that could threaten the US want it too.
And although Greenland is part of Denmark, Trump says that Denmark is incapable of defending the island, which lots of other countries disagree with.
But yeah, there's lots to unpack, but we really wanted to kind of explore the island itself and the sort of culture and the history of it, which is really really interesting.
So people have lived on Greenland for between 4,000 and 5,000 years.
They arrived on the island by crossing the frozen sea from what is now Canada.
And it's got loads of history.
There was a Viking called Eric the Red who arrived there at one point.
And he was the one that named it Greenland, apparently to try and attract more people to come.
Although much of Greenland is actually quite icy and white and frozen all year round.
But today, Greenland's population is just over 50,000.
And the people there are Inuit or mixed Inuit and Danish.
And the Inuit people are descended from the Thule people. who arrived thousands of years ago.
And the main language in Greenland is called Greenlandic.
And I discovered in this feature that it gave us quite a lot of words that we use in English, words like kayak and anorak and igloo.
And there's so many fascinating facts about Greenland.
It sounds so interesting.
80% of it is permanently covered in ice.
There are no roads between towns.
So you can't sort of.
If you're going to the next town to do your shopping, you can't jump in the car.
Most people use a dog-drawn sled or a snowmobile, which is basically like a kind of motorised sled.
Lots of people.
There's obviously shops and cinemas and airports and things like that, but most people make a living fishing.
So they often have to cut a hole in the ice to get to the fish.
And it's such a beautiful country.
It's got such a unique culture and really unique wildlife.
And that's the other reason that lots of people are interested in Greenland because you know it has such unique, lots of endangered species.
And it's really important in the fight against climate change as well.
So Greenland's got loads of glaciers which are kind of slow moving areas of ice on land.
And if all of Greenland's ice sheet melted, the water level across the world would rise by about seven metres.
So protecting Greenland and its incredible nature is really quite important.
And you can find out about loads of the animals that you can see on Greenland as well, if you read the feature.
That is fascinating.
I didn't know any of that stuff.
That's really cool.
So tell me Laura, if you are planning a trip to Greenland and you're thinking OK, I'm checking in with the tourist board, what would you recommend that we all do first?
What would you go for?
Oh, so many things.
I don't know.
I actually really want to go after reading this feature.
I mean, I love the idea of travelling on a dog drawn sled for starters.
So I'd want to do a bit of travelling around and obviously see some of these glaciers and the icebergs and things.
But probably, as you know me being sort of in charge of the animals and environment page i love um, all the wildlife so yeah, you can read about um.
There's these huge hairy musk ox, these big sort of cow-like beasts, i suppose, with horns, and they're really hairy So you can meet them.
There's polar bears.
There's lots of polar bears in Greenland, which is one of the kind of endangered species that needs protecting there.
And there's loads of other little critters.
So you can find out about the Arctic fox and also the unicorn of the sea, which is, of course, the narwhal which is lurking in the waters there.
And one of the things I didn't realise about the narwhal is that their big horn that they have on their head hence why they're called the unicorns of the sea is grown from a single tooth.
Wow.
Wow.
I'm sorry.
I just love the phrase unicorn of the sea.
That's really, just really made me very happy.
Laura, thank you so much for telling us all about it.
It sounds incredible.
No worries.
Thanks for having me.
Oh my goodness.
I want to go read that page immediately.
But before that, it's time for this week's big debate.
And the question is, should the UK restrict social media?
Now, Joe and Eve will go head to head and take a side each on this argument.
But before we hear from them, here's some information that you need to know.
On the 21st of January, the House of Lords that is part of Parliament They voted in favour of banning social media for under-16s.
The vote doesn't change any rules, but it shows the government how some senior politicians in Parliament are feeling.
The vote came two days after the government launched a consultation on children's social media use.
This will ask parents and young people how they think social media affects young people.
So the Education Secretary, Bridget Philipson, recently wrote a letter to headteachers in England saying children should not be using phones in school.
Now, should the UK restrict social media?
Eve is team yes, Joe is team no.
Each of them have 60 seconds to make their case.
Eve is going to go first.
So Eve, whenever you're ready, take it away.
Okay.
So many studies show that social media can be really addictive.
When we use it, it releases the feel-good chemical dopamine in our brains.
And social media algorithms are designed to keep people watching and scrolling.
So it's really easy to just sort of waste so much time scrolling through social media.
And this actually means that people might be spending less time doing things that they enjoy, like hanging out with friends and family in person or doing hobbies.
And it can even distract you from doing things you really need to do, like chores or homework.
So if there were restrictions on social media, then maybe you'd have more time to do those things.
But also studies have shown that social media can affect children's mental health, because people often only post nice pictures of their lives online which aren't really a reflection of the full truth.
You know, they post their best days and this can make other people feel like their own life isn't as much fun, because they're comparing themselves, which doesn't seem right.
So I think that there should be restrictions on social media.
All right.
Thank you very much, Eve.
And under a minute.
Well-timed.
So Joe is going to disagree.
Joe, whenever you're ready, tell us why.
So, when used properly, social media can help people stay in touch with each other and encourage them to forge connections that they might not otherwise have, making them feel less lonely.
Social media can also be an important platform for people to express themselves.
When it comes to harmful content, the pressure should be on social media companies to stop people from seeing it.
The fairest approach here is to make the platforms themselves take action and restrict what people can see, rather than introducing an outright ban.
Because whether we like it or not, social media is a part of modern life and it is here to stay.
So it makes sense that we get used to using it sensibly and safely, not punish everyone by restricting access to it.
Okay, an excellent argument there from Joe as well.
I've got to say you're right, social media is here to stay, but I know it can also cause a lot of harm as well.
So I want to know what the listeners and readers of The Week Junior think.
Tell us right now.
You can vote at theweekjunior.co.uk.
You can also email your thoughts to us at hello at theweekjunior.co.uk.
Or send us a voice note.
We love your voice notes.
Go to funkidslive.com slash theweekjunior and scroll down until you see that big red button.
Now, in the last big debate, we asked you if Lynx should be returned to Scotland.
Let's find out what our Week Junior listeners and readers voted.
Joe?
79% said yes, they should be returned to Scotland because it would be good for nature.
That is a high percentage.
Eve, any other opinions on this?
One person said, I think it would be a very good idea to bring the lynx back to Scotland.
It would be great to see a new animal roaming the Scottish Highlands.
I maybe wouldn't be so sure if I encountered a lynx.
I'd be a bit scared.
But someone else said.
I think that we shouldn't, as Scotland's wildlife is very important and adding more could cause problems in the food chain.
Hikers when they go hiking could come across one and that could be very dangerous, like I said, and potentially the links might need colder weather than Scotland can provide.
So, yeah, people were well, I was going to say people were divided, but then 79 percent said yes.
So clearly lots of our readers were in support of bringing them back those links back into the world.
Um well, if you've got an opinion on this week's debate on social media, tell us at funkidslivecom.
Slash the week junior or theweekjuniorcouk slash polls.
Now every week, readers of the week junior send lots of messages into the inbox to tell us what they've been up to.
Um an editorial assistant, elena is here to share some of her favorites.
Hello, elena Hi Bex.
Hi, everyone.
Our inbox has actually been flooded with messages lately.
First of all, we got a voice note from Holly.
Hi, The Week Junior Show.
My name's Holly.
I love your show.
It's so fascinating for curious kids like me.
The magazine is so amazing and well done for whoever made it.
What I'd like to tell you today is I've just been awarded my Demi points in ballet.
Once again, I love your show.
Bye.
Congratulations, Holly.
For anyone who doesn't know, demi pointe shoes in ballet are shoes used to build foot strength before moving on to pointe shoes, which are the ones that allow ballerinas to dance on the tips of their toes.
And it actually takes years of hard training and effort to get there.
So this is an amazing achievement.
Joe, what do you think about this?
Yeah.
Well, thank you for the explanation.
I wouldn't.
I didn't really.
I don't really know a lot about ballet, but it sounds like an incredible achievement.
And I'll look out for Holly's name in kind of the ballet headlines in the future.
And also I'll pass on her well done to the rest of the week junior team.
It's kind of a joint effort, the magazine.
So I'm sure everyone else will be really pleased to hear that she she likes the magazine and that she's given us a well done.
Lovely.
Yeah, I did ballet for a little bit last year, and that's the only reason why I know.
So I was actually really excited to get the message.
Yes, something that I can talk about.
We also got a picture sent in from Felix and Amandine, who set themselves a holiday project to make three Totodos out of old copies of The Week Junior.
They said it was a labor of love and they are very proud of their creations.
And you should be, felix and amandine, here at the week junior with love studio ghibli and i think, is a big fan of your craft.
I bet they are so cute.
I actually this has given me a great idea.
I want to make my own version of these.
I would also love to make.
My favorite Studio Ghibli film is Howl's Moving Castle, which I feel like I talk about on the podcast quite a lot.
I would love to make my own version of Calcifer from Howl's Moving Castle using old copies of The Weak Genius.
So I feel inspired by Felix and Amandine.
This is such a good idea.
I love calcifer.
I i've made a drawing of him.
It uh the other day and uh, i'm gonna be.
I'm gonna be joining you eve, but that's it for this week.
Thank you holly, felix and amandine, and thank you to every single one of our readers and listeners.
For anyone who wasn't here last week, this was actually my very last day on the podcast.
I'm moving away to Spain and I won't be working at The Week Junior anymore, so I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who has sent us voice notes, pictures or has just been in touch in general,
It's been amazing to keep up with all of you, and I will continue to do so, listening in from my new home.
So thank you so much again.
Someone else will take over to you from next week.
So this is my very last reminder that if we play your voice notes on the podcast, you will be getting a roving reporter batch in the mail.
So yeah, just thank you everyone again and see you soon.
Elaine, let's give you a round of applause.
Come on, we've got to give you a round of applause.
Elaine, we will miss you so, so much.
But thank you for everything.
And thank you for being such a great roving reporter as well.
We will miss you lots and lots.
And we'll keep in touch with you.
And of course, I'm sure weekly junior listeners and readers will miss you as well.
So thank you so much.
I will miss you very much.
Well.
I guess we've got to move on to the magazine this week and the team's favourite stories.
Eve, who's been, apart from Elena, who's been your hero of the week?
That's exactly what I was just about to say, apart from Elena.
Elena is, of course, my hero of the week.
But apart from that, it's also someone else that's Spanish.
It's Carlos Alcaraz, a 22-year-old tennis player, who last week won the men's singles title at the Australian Open Championship.
And the Australian Open is one of the four biggest tennis competitions each year, known as Grand Slams.
And the other three are Wimbledon, the US Open and the French Open.
But by winning the Australian Open, Alcaraz has now become the youngest male player to win all Grand Slams at just 22 years old, which I just think is so incredible.
What an amazing achievement.
And yeah, I can't wait to see how many more Grand Slams he wins in future.
Absolutely.
I think he's going to get quite a few under his belt.
Joe, what's been your favourite fact from this week's issue?
It's from a story on our UK news pages about bakers in Scotland making what is thought to be the largest Empire biscuit in the world.
Now, Empire biscuits are a Scottish favourite, consisting of two shortbread biscuits sandwiched together with jam and topped with icing and a jelly sweet.
And the fact I've gone for is obviously the width of the biscuit, which came to an impressive 198 centimetres, which is greater than the height of most humans.
That is an impressive biscuit.
I'd probably devour it in one sitting, to be honest.
One thing I saw in the magazine this week which I enjoyed was from China, about a sad horse becoming a really popular toy.
Now, it's a very, very funny picture if you see it on the page.
It's the Around the World pages, and it's about a sad-looking red horse.
He's become a massive must have toy because basically the horse's mouth was sewn upside down by mistake and it looks really miserable, but still really cute.
And it's become the mascot of unhappy office workers.
So if you get a chance, definitely check that out in the magazine this week.
Before we go, we've got to talk about this real or rubbish.
Joe, you had an interesting story for me.
Can you remind me what it was, please?
Yeah, it's a story about a snowman celebrating his 50th birthday.
Its owner, Jeff Johnson, was just eight years old when he first made him.
He put him in the chest freezer and now brings him out every winter before putting him back into hibernation.
But Bex, is this real or rubbish?
Well, it's snow joke that I do not know what to do with this one this week.
It is... I love watching Joe wince at every time.
I was expecting you to do one earlier and you didn't, so I should have sort of seen it coming.
I thought you were safe.
You're never safe.
Don't assume I'm not going to try and come, Joe.
I i genuinely don't know with this one and i really want it to be real, and i think that's what's swaying me, because i think it's such a cool idea, although if i was in charge of a 50 year old snowman, it would have melted after six weeks.
Um, i am gonna say the story this week is real, just because i want it to be real.
So that's what i'll do.
Should we do a drum roll?
It's rubbish.
Yeah, a family.
There's no snowman being put in hibernation to my knowledge, but a family in Nevada in the US have kept something a bit smaller, a snowball, in their freezer for 50 years, storing it in an old peanut butter jar.
What a great story.
Honestly, I think also Joe, because you are very good at talking as if it's real and it's in front of you.
And the way you were speaking was so convincing.
I was like, well, I think it must be true.
That was very well done.
What a well-crafted lie.
Well, I want to go and check out that snowball as well.
That's so cool.
Now, finally, it's time for Listen Up.
This is the part of the show that gives you a chance to win a copy of our book of the week.
This week, it's The Lion's Run by Sarah Pennypacker.
So all you've got to do is answer a question about something that's been said in this episode.
And if you think you know the answer, grab a grown-up and head to theweekjuniorcouk slash listenup to fill in our online entry form and enter the prize draw before the closing date of the 12th of February at midday.
Congratulations also go out to Hector, who won a copy of Where the Dragon Waits in a recent giveaway.
The Week Junior team will randomly select a winner from all of the entries with the correct answer.
And if you're under 16, you must have a parent or guardian's permission to enter, and terms and conditions apply.
You can find out more at theweekjunior.co.uk slash terms.
So are you ready?
Listen up.
How old is tennis player Carlos Alcaraz?
If you know the answer to the question, go to theweekjuniorcouk forward slash.
Listen up to enter the giveaway.
And that brings us to the end of this week's show.
Thank you, of course, as usual, to Joe, Eve and Laura.
And a special thank you to Elena for her last ever podcast and for everything she's done for us.
Next week, we'll be back to discuss more of the fascinating stories that are happening in the world.
And don't forget to send in voice notes for your chance to have your voice on the podcast and to win a roving reporter badge.
Plus, we would love it if you could rate, review and subscribe, or follow us wherever it is you get your podcasts from.
And if you like The Week Junior Show, you'll love The Week Junior magazine.
Head to theweekjunior.co.uk to find out more.
Bye or three issues of The Week Junior Science and Nature for £5 by heading to theweekjuniorcouk forward slash podcast offer.
