Hello and welcome to The Week Junior Show.
I'm Bex and I'm joined by writers Kay and Eve from The Week Junior, the magazine making sense of the world for 8 to 14 year olds.
Now, in a week where Christians around the world celebrated Epiphany...
And the Royal Mint revealed some special new coins for 2026.
We're going to be talking about some of the other stories that entertained and interested the Week Junior team.
We'll be talking about snow, dinosaur fossils and a viral cat.
So 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 the cover of this week's magazine highlights some of the amazing heroes who've been honoured by the King's New Year's Honours list.
And it got me thinking, who is a hero that you look up to?
Eve, first of all, of course, Happy New Year.
And who's your hero, please?
I'm going to have to go for Dr Maggie Adair-Pocock.
She's a space scientist and I think she is so cool.
I probably mentioned a thousand times on this podcast, but I did physics with astronomy at uni.
And so I just think that she is amazing.
And she worked on the James Webb Space Telescope.
And she just did the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures, which is really cool.
So I just I think she's amazing.
And I've met her and she's amazing.
So I love her.
When you meet someone you love and they are amazing and they live up to your expectations.
That must have been lovely.
Yes, it was so nice to speak to her, honestly.
And I had space earrings on and she loved my earrings.
So all in all, it was a great interaction.
Excellent times.
OK.
Kay, again, Happy New Year.
And who is your hero, please?
My hero is Dermot O'Leary.
And when I was younger, I used to see him quite a lot at my local church.
And now I also get to see him on Christmas Eve because I go to this really cute church where he goes.
And yeah, I love him.
And I got to interview him for the week junior as well.
I have interviewed him as well.
Isn't he the nicest man in the world?
He is so nice.
And he does loads of charity work, I think.
And has released lots of great kids books as well.
So some of our listeners might actually know Toto the Ninja Cat series, which is absolutely massive.
So two great choices there guys.
Thank you for those.
I'm going to go kind of old school here.
I don't know whether a lot of our listeners will know Victoria Wood, who was an incredible comedian, like really funny, really clever writer, wrote plays and TV shows and musicals and sketches and always makes me laugh and I watch all of her work as much as I possibly can.
So I'm going to say that because I like somebody who can make me laugh and also can catch the essence of people and put them in a script.
Like she's very good at writing real people.
So I think that's who I'd pick there.
But of course, we want to know who your hero is.
So you can 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 next week, you could win a Week Junior roving reporter badge.
Now let's turn our attention to the latest magazine to talk about what's been in the news headlines this week.
Eve, what story do you have for me?
So I'm sure many of our readers and listeners will be aware of the snow and ice that swept across the UK this week.
It's been very cold and the weather has caused hundreds of schools to be shut and there were severe travel disruptions as well.
Now I thought it was cold where I was when it reached minus five degrees, but that wasn't even that cold in comparison to the coldest night of winter so far was on the 5th of January, when the lowest recorded temperature overnight was minus 125 degrees in Norfolk in eastern England.
Wow.
I just can't even imagine how cold that would have been.
But there was heavy snow in many areas in Loch Glascarnock in Scotland.
There was 34 centimetres of snow.
So you can imagine this has caused lots of disruption.
There were a few airports that had to close, including two in Northern Ireland.
And in Wales, police had to help some motorists who'd been stranded in the snow while they were driving.
But I'm sure lots of our listeners will be aware that many children were meant to be going back to school this week after the end of the Christmas holidays.
But thousands of pupils had the day off or maybe even two days off because of the weather.
So hopefully everyone got plenty of snowball fights and snowmen building in.
And the week junior actually went to press before Storm Goretti hit, which was due to bring more snow and strong winds to parts of the UK.
So that could bring further disruption this week.
But If anyone's been affected by the snow and you've been up to something fun on your days off school, we'd love to see pictures or hear what you've been up to.
So please email us at hello at theweekgenie.co.uk.
Yes, please.
I want to see some snowmen.
Definitely.
Now, Kay, what's another story that's been in the news this week?
So I love the story about Japan's prime minister campaigning for more female toilets in the country's parliament buildings.
The Prime Minister is called Sanae Takaichi, and her and 58 female lawmakers have asked for more toilets because there are increasing numbers of women in Parliament and there are 12 men's toilets with 67 cubicles and just nine female toilets with 22 cubicles in Parliament.
So yeah, they're really trying to get more toilets for women.
I respect it.
I understand it.
Yes, hopefully they'll get the toilets they deserve.
Lovely.
Thank you very much, Kay.
Now, moving on, it's time for my favourite part of the show.
It's the beginning of a new year, which means a new tally is up for grabs here, because this is fact or fake news.
I have to guess whether the story I'm about to hear is true or false.
And hopefully, because it's the first one of the year for me, hopefully I get it right.
And then that'll put me in good stead for the rest of 2026.
But time can only tell.
So Kay, what is the story, please?
So dating apps are used by humans all over the world to meet their soulmates.
But did you know that They also help members of the animal kingdom find their perfect partners.
A dating style app called Herd Plus allows cows to be paired up with bulls so that they can have healthy calves that produce high quality milk.
Joe Hayden, who owns a farm in County Wicklow Ireland, enters his top cows into the app and looks for characteristics.
He is keen to find him balls and the system matches them up.
So do you think the stories are real or are we pairing you up with a lie?
OK, so first things first, I need to just clarify.
You're telling me that the cows themselves aren't swiping on this dating app.
They're not getting their hooves out and kind of going through the lists.
No, the farmers are doing that bit.
So the farmers say, say I'm a farmer and I've got a cow and I think what a moveless cow.
Sorry, not sorry.
I have decided to pair it up with a bull.
I need to find the best bull.
So I need to go online to match it with someone.
Is that right?
Yeah, I guess maybe years ago they would just go to a local farmer and that bull would have to do.
But now they can search wider and like search a whole country and find the best bull and meet up and then yeah, but but why would you, I mean, searching the whole country?
It seems like you seems like a big task really.
You just want to go to the farm next door because it's nearer to you.
If you have to go so Wicklow is obviously an island.
If you have to go from you know one place now into the whole other side of the country, is it worth your time really?
Could you set location limits on this what?
What the categories here?
Yeah, I guess you could.
You could um, you know, match it up to see whatever you you want, whether you want someone near or like to travel really far.
But yeah, I think it sounds cool.
And, you know, the point is to get the best milk from the calves as a result.
So I guess there is a good reasoning for it.
And it's cows only.
We're not thinking horses and pigs are going to be matched up next.
Just cows.
Just cows.
I know a few farmers actually and I would love, if this is real, I would love to see their reaction.
As to whether they would use it or not, I don't know about.
This is one of the silliest ones we've had for a while, which I love, but it does mean I have no idea.
Anyway, while I think about the answer, I'll not milk it too much.
Let's have our book of the week.
Now, this week, it's The Not So Great Escape by Emma Green.
So here she is to tell us a bit more about it.
Hello, I'm Emma Green, the author of The Not-So-Great Escape, which is a book about two boys who accidentally steal an alpaca and end up going on the run rather than getting caught, in the hope that they can take the alpaca to a rescue center.
Unfortunately, things go a bit wrong for them, and they end up becoming overnight internet of sensations.
My favorite book when I was growing up was a book called Superfudge by an author, Judy Bloom.
And it was the first time that I'd ever read a book which made me laugh and cry at the same time.
And there was something about the way that it was written that was so conversational that it felt really easy, almost like talking to an old friend every time I picked it up.
And I think that that kind of style of voice can really appeal to people and connect them to a book, which is what I've found.
So I've enjoyed all of her books and I thoroughly recommend them.
All right.
If you'd like to win a copy of The Not So Great Escape, stay with us until the end of the show to find out how you can enter our prize draw to win a copy.
Now, next up, we've got a very special visit on this week's episode by editor Vanessa.
Hello, Vanessa.
Happy New Year.
Welcome back.
Happy New Year to you, too.
And that's actually just what I wanted to say to our regular readers and listeners and to welcome everybody who's joining us for the first time.
In the first issue of every new year, when we get lots of new readers who've been given the week juniors a Christmas present, we try our best to show what the magazine's all about.
Pretty difficult to cram it all in, but we try.
So it's about positivity, creativity, using your skills and your voice to make a difference.
And this week's cover story, I think, is perfect for that.
Yeah, the cover this week is beautiful.
It's really striking.
And it's both colourful and informative.
I absolutely loved it.
Can you tell us a little bit about it, Vanessa?
Yeah, the story for the cover this week is the New Year Honours list.
And the honours are awarded by the King to people who have contributed to society in some way.
And on our cover, we've got just some of the people who've been recognised for their work.
So we've got Cynthia Erivo from Wicked, who is rewarded for services to drama and music.
We've got Bobby Seagull, who's quite a friend of the Wheat Juniors.
And he works very hard campaigning for support for public libraries.
I love my own public library, by the way.
So well done, Robbie.
And Toby Roberts, who is a medal winning athlete for his services to sport climbing.
And you can read the full report, including how people actually get nominated, on page six of this week's issue.
It is such a good story.
And yeah, the front cover is a brilliant way to start the year, right, Vanessa?
Exactly.
The main word on the cover is heroes, because that's what they are.
Brilliant stuff.
Thank you very much, Nessa.
Hopefully we'll see you again soon.
Now it's time for this week's big debate.
And the question is, is it OK to sell fossils at auction?
So Kay and Eve are going to go head to head to take a side each on this argument.
But before we hear from them, here's some information that you need to know.
So a 68 million year old fossil of a skeleton recently sold for 3.47 million pounds at auction.
Scientists think the dinosaur, known as Spike, could be a newly discovered species.
If you don't know, fossils are impressions of ancient plants or animals that have been preserved in rock or turned to stone.
Most dinosaur fossils used to be sold to museums.
However, in the 1990s, fossil collectors began to sell their finds to private buyers at auction.
This interest in dinosaurs actually was partly driven by the 1993 film Jurassic Park.
So is it OK to sell fossils at auction?
Kay is team yes.
Eve is team no.
Each of the team have 60 seconds to make up their case.
And then I'll make up my mind on which side I agree with more.
So we're going to hear from Kay first, who thinks it's OK to sell fossils at auction.
Kay, it may be a new year, but the old clock stays the same, the massive timer.
So whenever you're ready, take it away.
So fossil collectors should be able to sell their discoveries for as much as people are prepared to pay for them, because they spend a lot of time searching for them.
And so why not?
A lot of fossils.
They are sold at auction, but then these buyers can loan them out to museums and then they'll be on display for the public to see them.
And allowing more people to sell dinosaur fossils will encourage more people to go on out hunting for them.
And this could lead to really important scientific discoveries which benefit the whole of society.
Excellent stuff.
Thank you very much, Kay.
But now it's time for Eve to disagree.
So Eve, whenever you're ready, tell us your argument.
Well, dinosaur fossils are important historical and scientific items.
And I think they should be made available to museums all the time so that scientists can study them and learn as much about them as possible.
But also because if they're kept in museums all the time, the public can view them and learn lots more about them.
And then my theory is that if loads of kids are going to museums and seeing dinosaur fossils, they'll be inspired to then go on and become paleontologists.
But also what if the people who are buying these fossils aren't responsible and don't look after them properly?
It kind of stresses me out the idea that an amazing dinosaur skeleton could just be sitting in someone's basement gathering dust.
And then that could mean that no one gets to see it.
And that just really doesn't seem fair because the dinosaurs sell for such large amounts of money.
And that means that only the richest people in the world can get access to them.
And I just think that everyone should have access to them.
Interesting arguments there.
I've got to say Eve yeah, I was a bit worried that the idea of them not being looked after properly, the idea of these real precious objects not being cared for, is my concern here.
But of course, it's not about my opinion.
It's about our readers and listeners.
So we would love to hear your opinion on this week's big debate.
You can get involved right now.
Go and vote online right now at theweekjunior.co.uk slash polls.
You can also email your thoughts to us at hello at theweekjunior.co.uk or send us a voice note.
Just go to funkidslivecom, slash theweekjunior, scroll down until you see that big red button.
Then grab a grown-up and record your voice.
Your message could be in next week's episode.
Now, in the last big debate, we asked you if it's better to give gifts than to receive them.
So let's find out what the Week Junior listeners and readers voted.
Kay, what were the numbers?
66 said giving gifts is better than receiving them, because the true spirit of Christmas is about spreading joy.
I love that.
OK, and Eve, any opinions been sent in?
Yeah, so we had loads, but I picked a couple of my favourites.
One person said getting Christmas presents is better than giving them, because opening surprises feels exciting and it makes you feel appreciated without worrying afterwards about if people like your presents, which is a fair point.
Someone else said both giving and getting presents are great experiences for anyone.
And overall, I would say there is no better option.
I would say they are both great feelings.
But then they said in brackets, unless you get or give socks.
And I'm afraid to say I disagree with this, because you're going to reach an age where socks are the best present you will ever receive.
I got some socks this year and they were like really fun patterns and I was absolutely thrilled.
Um, I do you know what?
I do agree with the, the listener who also mentions uh you, it's.
You worry sometimes about giving people presents, whether they like it or not, so I also get that opinion as well.
It's a very good point.
Uh now, every week we have readers of the week junior sending in lots of messages to the inbox to tell us what they've been up to, and editorial assistant Elena is here to share some of her favorites.
Hello Elena, how you doing?
Hi Bex.
Happy New Year.
Happy New Year.
Just, I must say, socks are an amazing present.
I agree as well.
But yes, indeed, we had so many messages over the holidays this year.
And one of my favorites was from Ishan, who told us In the holidays when I was playing Mario Kart, I got inspired to create a puzzle to keep me engaged.
I made the puzzle with around 75 plus pieces to make it simple.
However, it took me an hour to reassemble.
It turned out to be fun and entertaining.
Good part is that my entire family loved it and started doing it again and again.
And Ishan, this is so cool.
I love Mario Kart, so it's kind of why I chose the message.
But he first made an artwork where he wrote Super Mario in big, bold, colorful letters.
And it's surrounded by some of the elements that are common in Mario Kart.
So I can spot a star.
I can spot...
One of those green pipes that take you to different places, a lightning bolt, mushrooms and so many more.
And then he cut the artwork into small pieces.
And that's where the puzzle begins.
And it's so cool.
Eve, as a video game fan, what do you think of Ishan's puzzle?
I love it.
Also, I have to say I love this idea that the puzzle begins had so many pieces that it then took an hour to reassemble.
I think Ishan made it quite hard, but I think it looks really cool and I love Mario Kart.
And now I kind of want to make my own puzzle as well.
I want to make my own puzzle too.
But if I made an artwork like Ishan's, I would feel so sad about having to cut it into little pieces.
I just decided to frame it probably.
We also had a message from Frankie and Emilio, who sent us a picture holding up some drawings they made for the Lunar New Year.
And they're posting with their huge dog, Ted.
They said, 2026 is the year of the fire horse.
Ted is upset that it's not the year of the dog.
Kay, tell us what you think about Frankie and Amelia's drawings.
I love your drawings.
They're so colourful.
And the fire horses look amazing.
And I also love your dog.
He looks like he loves your drawings too.
Yeah, it's like a great use of watercolour.
I love how the orange and the red and the yellow sort of blend together.
It actually is a really good fire impression.
And I'm sad to say that Ted will have to wait until 2030, which will be the next year of the dog, and it will be the year of the metal dog.
So Ted, hold on for that.
And that's it for this week.
Thank you, Ishan, Frankie and Emilio.
And thank you to everyone who was in touch over the holidays.
We'd love to know what you were up to.
So please send us a message or a voice note.
And if it's played on the podcast, we will send you a roving reporter batch.
Thank you again.
Happy new year and see you next week.
Thanks, Elena.
Lovely stuff.
Now it's time to turn our attention back to the magazine this week and to the team's favourite stories.
Eve, what do you think is the funniest story this week?
So I really love the story about a cat called Maximus Texturus Pulcher, who has become a social media star.
The cat belongs to the Belgian prime minister and he is a rescue cat.
And he has a social media account that has gained 142,000 followers on Instagram.
And he just posts lots of fun pictures on Instagram with little captions.
But my favourite picture from his Instagram is a picture of him looking at an image of the Belgian Prime Minister meeting Keir Starmer and Larry the Downing Street Cat.
And Maximus has a little speech bubble coming out saying, what is this I see here?
Because he's obviously jealous about Larry the Downing Street Cat.
But it's just so cute and I love it.
Oh my goodness, I'm going to have to check that out.
I love that story.
Thank you, Eve.
Kay, what's been your favourite fact from this week's issue?
The world's most expensive comic, sold for £7 million, and it was discovered by three brothers in their mum's loft.
Wow, I love the idea of discovering some kind of hidden expensive treasure in a loft.
That's like the beginning of a great story.
Kay, that sounds exciting, right?
Do we know what the comic is?
I think it was Superman.
Okay, okay.
Well, I'll look out for Superman comics on my travels.
The thing I saw in the magazine that I very much enjoyed was well basically, Brighton Pier is up for sale.
Kay and Eve, how do you fancy pooling our money together to see if we can buy Brighton Pier?
Do you reckon we could do it?
Absolutely.
I love going to the arcade.
Oh, I'm sold.
I'm there.
Kay, would you fancy it?
Are you in?
Yeah, I remember going on this ride called Mousetrap when I was younger there and it was amazing.
Yes.
I've been on Mousetrap.
I know that ride as well.
Apparently, it's 126 years old.
Nobody actually knows how much it's up for sale for.
It could cost millions, apparently.
So we might have to save our pocket money for a little bit longer, but you never know.
You never know.
We can dream the dream.
Now, it's time for the moment of truth.
Kay, can you please remind me what the story we heard before was all about, please?
So this is the story about a dating app for cows to meet bulls, and one farmer has said that it's really really been useful and he's managed to enter his top cows into the app and match them up with some bulls and yeah, it's worked out really well for them.
I'm just fascinated now at thinking what pictures they put in of the cows.
Is it them, like, I don't know, skiing?
Is it them just with their friends?
Is it them chilling out?
I don't know what to do with this.
I have to say the story is outstanding in its field.
But I am going to say the story this week is terrific.
I'm going to say it's real because I want it to be, because it is kind of a good idea, even though I don't know many farmers would use it.
I like the idea of it.
So I'm going to say the story this week is real and not rubbish.
Should we do a drum roll?
Yes, you're right.
Yes!
And it's been used by more than 25,000 Irish cowherd.
Okay.
I shouldn't have taken the mickey out of it so quickly.
Clearly it is very useful indeed.
Okay.
Well, if I ever have some cows to match up, I know where to go.
Thank you very much.
Now, finally, it's time for Listen Up.
This is the bit of the show that gives you the chance to win a copy of our book of the week, which this week is The Not So Great Escape, by Emma Green.
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, listen up.
Just fill in our online entry form.
Enter the prize draw before the closing date of the 15th of January at midday.
Also, we have to say congratulations to Elisa, who won a copy of Avalanche in a recent giveaway.
Now 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 much money did the world's most expensive comic sell for?
If you know the answer to the question, go to theweekjuniorcouk forward slash.
Listen up to enter the giveaway.
Thank you very much, Eve.
Now that brings us to the end of this week's show, the first one of the year.
Thank you, of course, to Kay, Eve, Elena and Vanessa.
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 a chance to have your voice on the podcast and win a Roving Reporter badge.
Also, please do rate, review and subscribe or follow us wherever it is you get your podcasts from.
Of course, 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.
