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 Canada held an election and hundreds of thousands of people attended the funeral of Pope Francis, we're going to be discussing some of the other stories and the events and people that amazed, inspired and entertained the editorial team.
And make sure you're listening closely, because at the end of the episode we'll be asking a question about what you've heard.
And if you answer correctly...
You could win a prize.
But before all of that, I'm going to say hello to Joe and Eve.
There's something I want to talk to you about.
There is a story in this week's magazine, which we'll be talking about later, about a young boy's brilliant seagull impression.
So, of course, I want to hear your best animal impressions, please.
Eve, you go first.
I don't know if anyone has seen the film Babe.
I really hope you have because it's a classic.
But whenever I am on a country walk and I see some sheep in a field, I always have to go...
Far am you, may your breed be true.
So yeah, that's my animal impression.
And do the sheep then walk towards you and kind of follow you around?
Do you know what?
I sometimes get a vibe that we're connected.
I love that film.
Maybe I'll start saying that to sheep as well, just to see what happens.
Lovely.
Joe, can you top that impression of Babe?
I don't think I can.
I struggled a bit with this one.
I was really nervous about it.
I've been looking at people doing animal impressions online.
But yeah, I think I've landed on something and I don't have to use my voice for it, but I may close my eyes or look away from both of you while I'm doing it.
But yeah, it's kind of, I was actually taught that, and I think I've just done it completely wrong.
So I'll be honest, my editor, Vanessa, passed that on to me, and I think I've not done it justice.
For those listening, it was supposed to be a horse, but I think in my kind of hurry to get it out I kind of broke the impression.
So I'm sorry.
Yeah, you were saying, can you top it, Bex?
And I clearly have not.
I think Eve is the clear victor here.
There's so many things I love about this show.
You could have just done a simple moo and we would have all moved on, but what you've done instead is make it much more of a talking point.
I'm trying to live up to expectations.
So that was a horse running, was it?
It was meant to be a horse hopping along, running.
What do horses do?
Trot.
Yeah.
But no, it was just me clapping and slapping my leg in the end.
Yeah.
I'll give a go of my impression and then we'll all be embarrassed for me.
So it's fine.
Joe, you'll be swept away.
You'll be like, it's fine.
Bex took over in the embarrassment stake.
Okay, here we go.
What is that?
Um, ducky duck, it's a duck yeah yeah oh, it's a duck.
Oh, i'm so sorry, i was expecting realistic noises.
No no, i'm not specifically, it's just a duck.
Yeah, i'm going cartoon ducks, all right.
Yeah, that was really good.
Thanks yeah, that was great.
It took took us a while, but it's fine.
So clearly we're not going to be animal impersonators in the future.
Uh, but if you've got, If you've got a good impression, do leave us a voice note at funkidslivecom, slash theweekjunior, and give us your excellent animal impression, which will probably be better than ours.
We also love to hear what you're up to as well.
You can email us hello at theweekjunior.co.uk.
Now, of course, if your voice note is played on next week's show, you'll win one of our very special The Week Junior Roving Reporter badges.
So get those animal impressions sorted or tell us what you've been up to or what you think of this week's episode.
Now let's turn our attention to this week's magazine, because I want to know what's been in the headlines this week.
Joe, what have you got for me?
So a major news story that we covered this week on our big news pages was the power cuts in Spain and Portugal.
They began on 28th of April and by the following day, most power had been restored.
But In the meantime they had a massive impact, leaving millions of people without electricity across the two countries.
And parts of southwest France were also affected.
Actually, during the power cut, France and Morocco helped out by supplying electricity to parts of Spain.
So traffic lights stopped working, leading to traffic jams.
Trains came to a stop, leaving some people stuck on them for hours.
Flights were cancelled.
Car payment machines in shops stopped working.
Lights went out in buildings that didn't have backup power, and on and on.
And all that is just to show the extent to which they basically brought life to a halt for many people while they were going on.
Now, we don't actually know exactly what caused them yet.
The cause... of the power outage is still being investigated.
But the Prime Minister of Spain said they can't happen again.
I've got to say, when I heard this story it did surprise me.
When you forget how many things are powered by electricity and the traffic lights.
I was like, oh my goodness, yeah, stuff like that.
It does get everywhere, right?
Yeah, it's almost slightly frightening, really.
When you read about it, like you say, you kind of stop to think.
You realise how utterly reliant we are on electricity and how difficult it must be, you know, when it does suddenly go out there for so many people.
I mean, I understand actually, that members of the public were helping to direct traffic at junctions in some places.
So, you know, people stepped in and helped each other out and did their part.
And you know, whenever bad things like this happen, people do always kind of come together to show their humanity, don't they?
I love that.
Yeah, that is excellent point.
Thank you very much, Joe.
So Eve, speaking of humanity, what is your feel good story that you've seen in the news this week?
So I've seen a really amazing story on our Around the World page about a miniature dachshund, which is a sausage dog, called Valerie, who has been found after spending 529 days in the wilderness.
So Valerie went missing on Kangaroo Island, which is just off the coast of Australia.
And she was last seen by her owners during a camping trip in November 2023, which feels like a very, very long time ago.
But volunteers from a wildlife charity called Kangala Wildlife Rescue managed to find her after they spent more than 1000 hours hunting for her.
And they finally managed to catch her by tempting her into a cage containing toys and food and her bed from home, and they say that she's now fit and well and she's going to be reunited with her owners soon after her very lengthy adventure.
She's had a right old time.
Yeah, my goodness, she's the thing she'll have seen on her days away.
Lovely holiday.
That is a good story.
I enjoy that one Moving on.
It's the moment we've all been waiting for, particularly me.
It is my weekly test to find out if I can work out what is real or rubbish.
Now this is the bit of the show where Joe or Eve tell me a story and I have to guess if it's true or false, if it's fact or fake news.
So the answer will be revealed at the end.
Don't you worry about that.
We've got some time to think about it.
Eve, what have you got for me this week?
Well, it's always nice to have a sweet treat at the airport before you go on holiday.
And London South End Airport is doing just that, because the airline EasyJet is serving snail and garlic ice cream to passengers who are heading to Paris and France.
So this is inspired by the classic French escargot recipe, where snails in their shells are cooked in garlic and butter.
And EasyJet has actually included tiny crunchy pieces of sugar in the ice cream to mimic the crunch of a snail's shell.
There's a few other flavors as well that you can get.
There's not just snail flavor.
There's also custard tarts inspired by Lisbon and Portugal, and cacio e pepe flavored ice cream as well, which is a popular Italian pasta dish.
So Bex, is this story real or have we whipped up a lie?
All right, let's begin with this.
First of all, I'm flying with EasyJet quite soon.
So hopefully if this is real, I'll get to try some delicious ice cream.
I've had snails.
Have you had snails Eve?
Um, they were once on offer on a year six primary school trip in france, but i have to admit i didn't really like the look of them.
So no okay well i, i mean, you're missing out, man.
They are delicious if cooked well with a bit of garlic.
But i also think the cooking well does not include being chucked in some ice cream, some vanilla ice cream.
And so are you telling me you, you say, the idea that they have the, the sugar in there to mimic the shell?
That's just another flavor to add into the garlic, right?
Does sugar and garlic go well together?
To be honest, I love garlic.
I think garlic bread is like the best thing ever.
So to be honest, I would probably actually really like garlicky snails.
I think garlic could go with anything.
Garlic and sugar sounds great.
While I consider that ice cream adventure, it's time for our book of the week.
And we've got a message here from the author to tell us a little bit more about it.
Hello, my name is Louis Sit and I am the author of a children's middle grade book called Land of the Last Wildcat.
In this book, you'll meet 10-year-old Puffin Lau and a wildcat with healing powers called the Curie.
In the book.
When Puffin realises that the Curie's life is in danger from people, including her own mother, who want to conduct experiments on it to find out how it heals, she does everything she can to save the last wildcat from the fate that awaits it.
Land of the Last Wildcat is a story about respect for our natural world.
And it's also about the power of friendship and how, in Puffin and her best friend, Lance's case, it's about how brave you are, not how big you are.
That can matter.
And that also when the adults around you won't stand up for what you think is right, you have to sometimes stand up yourself.
One of my favorite authors growing up is Beverly Cleary, because she invented the character Ramona Quimby.
I read all the Ramona books when I was young Ramona the Brave, Ramona the Pest, amongst many others because I could not get enough of Ramona's buoyant irrepressible, curious personality.
And I loved how she always had the best intentions, but often got into trouble.
I found her so realistic and very relatable and I thought of her as my best book friend.
I still think of her as a best book friend.
Thanks for having me.
Brilliant stuff.
Thank you so much to Louis Sitt for that.
And if you'd like a chance to win a copy of Land of the Last Wildcat, stay with us until the end of the show.
You can find out how you can enter our big prize draw.
So while we were talking about that, we were joined by the Week Junior editor and legend, Vanessa.
Lovely to have you here, Vanessa.
Hiya.
Well, it's lovely to be here.
Thanks for having me.
And yeah, my exciting news this week is that we are celebrating The Week Junior's 10th birthday this year.
Happy birthday to The Week Junior.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I love that we're the same age as a lot of our readers this year.
It's actually our actual birthday isn't until November.
OK, but it's such a big occasion that we're spreading the celebrations out, as any proper birthday should be.
And so big occasion. bigger magazine.
So yes, readers will see that we've added more pages this year and even more brilliant stuff, including what is pretty much everyone's favourite even more puzzles.
And, as part of our celebrations, we did a survey to find out the state of conversation around the nation's dinner tables, because we know that our listeners and readers have lots to say.
The trouble is life is so busy and people are on their phones so much that poor old family dinner is is getting squeezed.
But it's brilliant time to have a chat, discuss the news and catch up with what everyone's been up to.
And having conversations is actually really good for you too.
And we examine that on our wellbeing feature in the magazine.
So it builds up your debating skills.
It helps you sort of sort out your ideas and even starts you on the way to public speaking, if that's what you want to do.
Plus, it just brings you closer as a family.
And it's where you get those family in jokes.
You know, those ones that make you and your family absolutely fall about and nobody else understands what on earth you're talking about.
That kind of stuff, which is just all about bringing people closer and making people happier, basically.
But anyway, thanks to the survey, we found out that people aren't having conversations as often as they would like.
So we've included some fun cue cards to help you start a conversation, But at the front of the magazine we started our Something Worth Talking About feature.
That's going to be a regular thing in the magazine every week.
And we pick out three topics and the debate from that week's issue to help everyone get chatting.
I'm a big fan of this.
I love the idea of people becoming even more chatterboxy than usual.
So thank you so much, Vanessa.
Thank you for joining us.
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.
And I'm just, yeah, more pages, more fun.
Really excited.
Happy birthday, The Week Junior.
We love to see it.
Time for this week's big debate.
Speaking of getting those debating skills on the way.
The question this week is should schools remove mirrors?
Now eve and joe are going to go head to head and take a side on this argument, but before we hear from them, let's get some information now.
A secondary school in lincolnshire england, has removed all of the mirrors from its bathrooms.
The head teacher says this is because some people spend too much time in the toilets, which makes them late for lessons.
Pupils are still allowed to ask for a mirror at reception for medical purposes, which may be, for example, putting in contact lenses.
Schools have banned bathroom mirrors before.
One school said it encouraged pupils to focus on their lessons.
Another replaced mirrors with posters telling pupils to embrace their natural beauty.
The mirrors were later put back after a protest by parents and students.
So should schools remove mirrors?
Joe is going to be team yes.
Eve is going to be team no.
And each of them have 60 seconds to make their case.
After that, I'll make up my mind on who I agree with more.
So let's face it, guys, everything to play with here.
It's my opinion that we're all chasing after, isn't it?
So, Joe, I think you're up first.
Whenever you're ready, take it away.
Yeah.
So, Bex, anyone who's...
Pride.
Washing their hands when there are groups of people huddled around a mirror knows how problematic they can be.
Whether they're used for checking hair or makeup or taking selfies, they're just an excuse to hang around the bathroom, which could make people late for lessons.
It could also encourage people to wear makeup, which is against the rules in a lot of schools.
Spending ages in front of a mirror just isn't healthy.
And there's more important stuff to be getting on with at school, like getting to class on time.
It's true that some pupils do need mirrors for medical reasons, but they can always ask to use one in the office or medical room.
Lovely stuff.
A short and concise argument there.
But of course, it's up to Eve to convince us of the other direction.
Eve, do you have your argument at hand?
I do.
I'm ready.
All right.
So, Eve, take it away.
Okay, so mirrors are really important.
It doesn't make you vain to look at them.
It actually helps you to stay smart at school and stay nice and tidy throughout the day.
You've got to check that everything's okay with your hair.
I used to have braces when I was at school and I would get food stuck in them after lunchtime.
So I would have to go and check the mirror to make sure I didn't have bits of tuna sandwich hanging out my braces.
So you know, it's important to have mirrors there so that people can check those things to make sure they're not feeling insecure about anything.
Because mirrors do actually give people confidence, because it makes sure that you feel comfortable with how you're looking and you're not walking around with, you know, a stuck up collar on your blazer or anything like that.
You know how you look and you feel comfortable with the way you look.
Also, without mirrors, I think students will just find other ways to look at themselves.
They might start taking in pocket mirrors or stand in front of a dark window.
Or you know a lot of schools you're not allowed to have mobile phones, but they might sneak out their front phone camera to have a look.
So I think that we should just keep mirrors in bathrooms.
Standing in front of a dark window.
That's a top tip, isn't it?
Didn't know that one.
OK, good life advice there.
Thank you very much for that.
I'm going to say...
I'm so sorry, Joe.
But Eve, it has it on there for me just because of the idea of confidence.
And it is awkward.
The amount of times I've gone to a mirror to look if I had something in my teeth.
Something like that would stress me out quite a lot.
So I'm going to go this week.
Eve has convinced me very, very well.
But you know, joe also had an excellent argument, but of course it's not my opinion that really matters.
It's what the listeners and the readers think.
So we want to know what your verdict is on this week's big debate.
You can get involved by voting online at theweekjuniorcouk slash polls.
You can also email your thoughts to us at hello at theweekjuniorcouk or send us a voice note.
Just go to funkidslivecom, slash theweekjunior, scroll down until you see that big red button, grab a grown-up and record your voice, and it could be in next week's episode.
Now, last week's Big Debate was all about whether Superman is the greatest superhero.
So what did our Week Junior listeners and readers say, Joe?
80% said that Superman is not the best hero because other heroes are more relatable and interesting.
Oh, that is fascinating.
We also have a voice note here from Daisy with her thoughts on the debate.
Hello, my name is Daisy and I am nine years old.
I wanted to talk about this week's big debate and whether Superman is the greatest superhero or not.
I think not, because I think Wonder Woman is a better, because she is a strong independent, sassy woman.
Joe, what do you reckon about that?
A bit of Wonder Woman there?
Yeah, I think Wonder Woman's great.
I remember seeing the first Wonder Woman movie years ago with Gal Gadot in.
It was really, really good.
I mean, my personal fave. is Spider-Man but Wonder Woman is also a fantastic shout.
Yeah thank you very much Daisy for getting in touch.
Eve what else did we have from the listeners?
So this sounds like it could have been sent in by Joe, or also by you Bex, because I know you're a big Spider-Man fan as well.
But someone said, no, Superman is not the greatest superhero.
Sure, he has all those superpowers, but Spider-Man can balance the life of a teenager, a romance and saving the world.
Superman only wears glasses for his identity, but Peter Parker is a completely different person without his spider suit.
Spider-Man has a lot of witty catchphrases, but Superman does not.
I really love that comment.
I think it's great.
I love the idea of catchphrasing a love life because... being part of a superhero's makeup.
Anything else?
Someone else said, Superman has lots of cool powers, making him super strong.
And he's also the original superhero.
So everybody knows him, which, yeah, I think that's a very fair point.
He is a household name, which I said on the podcast last week.
Everyone knows him.
He is the OG.
What lovely stuff.
Thank you so much to everybody who got in touch.
Now, lots of people get in touch about different things with The Week Junior.
We've heard our listeners' and readers' opinions on the big debate, but editorial assistant Elena is here to share a few of the other messages we've got this week.
Hey, Elena, what's going on?
Hello, hello.
Well, there was a lot to choose from, as readers and listeners are still sending in their pictures from the Easter holidays.
Daisy Ella got in touch to say...
This week, I ran my first ever mini marathon in London on the 26th of April.
I ran with my school running club who meet once a week.
At first, I felt really nervous.
But as soon as I started to run, I felt a big smile break over my face and I loved taking part.
Stacey Ella also sent a picture with her medal.
And that's absolutely amazing.
Congratulations.
I couldn't even think about running the marathon this year.
But I believe Eve was there as well.
Yes, I was there, not running it though.
No one get your hopes up, but my best friend ran the London Marathon on Sunday and she absolutely smashed it.
And I think Daisy Ella is perhaps a future London Marathon runner.
So I look forward to seeing what sort of running you get up to.
I entered the ballot for the 2026 Marathon a couple of days ago because I got FOMO and I thought it was amazing, but I don't think I'll get it.
And even if I do, I'll really need to think about whether I'm actually going to do it.
We'll be cheering you on.
Thank you.
Anyway, we also got a voice note from Eleanor.
We're just going to play it now.
Dear Week Junior, I love your podcast and I want to tell you this.
At my gymnastics we have a work bear which is a stuffed bear.
You get to keep until the next gymnastics class for working hard.
But I have to put it up on the shelf and I can't take it down or else my puppy will eat the work bear.
Bye.
A stuffed bear.
Oh my goodness.
I love the idea of getting a stuffed bear for working hard.
Can you guys give me a teddy bear for working hard, please?
We sure can.
Do we have teddy bears lying around the office?
Maybe we do.
I don't know.
Elena?
I don't have a teddy bear, but I do remember I didn't have a dog, but my cousin's dog once ate my teddy bear.
So actually, Elena is right that this can happen.
Brilliant stuff.
We've had some excellent messages in this week, Elena.
Yeah, thank you so much, everyone.
And don't forget, if you send us a voice note, you're in with a chance of winning a Roving Reporter badge.
I'll be back next week with the latest messages from our readers and listeners.
And it's over to you, Bex.
Brilliant.
Thanks, Elena.
Now it's time to turn our attention back to the magazine this week and to our team's favourite stories.
So, Jo, who's your hero of this magazine this week?
My Hero of the Week is a teenager called Niamh Braid.
Now, Niamh was born deaf and, to help her in school, wears hearing aids that connect to a microphone worn by teachers.
When she realised she wasn't picking up everything, the teachers said she asked for an interpreter who could use British Sign Language, which is a communication system that uses hand signals and gestures.
The local authority said it wouldn't be able to provide an interpreter because it would involve employing extra staff.
But the National Deaf Children's Society helped Niamh take legal action, and she won her case.
Now, Niamh wants to work in politics to help bring about changes in deaf education.
So well done, Niamh, and congratulations.
I love that story.
I think that's incredible.
Big well done to Niamh there.
And Eve, every issue of The Week Junior is packed with amazing facts.
Which one from this week do you think the world needs to know?
So there was a story on our science and technology page this week about a team of scientists who say they've discovered a new colour that humans have never seen before.
And while I was writing this story, it made me think.
There's a myth, a common myth that dogs can only see the world in black and white.
But this isn't true because I was Googling afterwards thinking...
Can dogs only see in black and white?
So dogs actually, they do see the world differently to humans, but not the way that you might think.
So their eyes only detect light in two colours, and they detect light in blue and yellow, which is really interesting.
I didn't know that.
I had no idea about that.
That is interesting.
That's a great story.
Joe, any funny stories from this week?
Yeah well, it's actually the story that led to my horrendous impression and very disappointing earlier on and your rather better impressions.
So it's about Cooper Wallace, who's a 10-year-old boy from Derbyshire, England.
And Cooper recently won gold at the European Gold Screeching Championship by imitating the calls and actions of a seagull.
And Cooper actually won in 2024 too.
And that's not all.
Animal impressions clearly run in his family because his seven-year-old sister Shelby, came fourth at this year's event.
Yeah.
There you go.
Isn't that wonderful?
There's a gull screeching competition.
There is.
There is.
There is.
I remember seeing a video of them online.
I mean, it's astonishing.
I mean, it puts us all to shame with our animal impressions.
You could close your eyes and a seagull is flying overhead.
It's amazing.
It's amazing.
Yeah.
That could have been a real rubbish story, to be honest.
Lovely stuff.
Well, there's lots to discover in this week's issue of the magazine.
The one I read that I loved.
One story was that artists have been able to put their pictures on the top of bus shelters.
Now this is great because if you're on a double-decker bus and you're looking down, sometimes maybe the bus shelter roof is a little bit grim, a little bit grey, a little bit full of rubbish.
But now there's going to be some incredible artist photos.
I think the one I saw was of ice cream and an ice cream cone.
And particularly great for Brighton because it's near the seaside.
Speaking of seagulls, maybe Maybe there's one of seagulls.
I don't know.
But yeah, I think that was my feel good story for this week.
What a way to make a space that's usually a little bit grim, a little bit nicer.
So big fan of that.
So all of those stories are in the newest issue of the Week Junior magazine.
And before we go, we've got to have the moment of truth.
It's time to reveal this week's real or rubbish.
Eve, can you remind me what the story was, please?
Well, on the subject of ice cream, it's all about the snail flavoured ice cream that EasyJet are serving at London Southend Airport today, the passengers who were off to Paris.
Now, I didn't even know London South End Airport existed.
Apologies to the good people of London South End Airport.
I have no idea.
So for me, I'm learning a lot of stuff today that that exists.
And also the ice cream situation, it might be a little bit more gourmet than I expected it to be.
I mean, this is a great promo for the beginning of the summer holidays and for everybody planning their trips away.
I can imagine they only have like two scoops worth of each one because, let's face it, nobody's buying that ice cream.
But I think it's real.
I'm going to say it's real because...
It is a good little novelty thing for them to do.
So I reckon, I reckon I scream, you scream, we all scream for snail flavoured ice cream.
That's what I'm going to say.
OK, drum roll, please.
It's real.
You're right, Bette gutted.
Yeah easy, jet is serving ice cream inspired by the destinations they fly to from london south end airport, and the airline said that south end residents are no strangers to tasty ice creams.
Um, so yeah i, i imagine i would quite like to try the snail one.
It does sound um, does sound quite interesting.
But bex, our score now so far this year you're, you're winning.
It's nine eights to bex with real or rubbish.
So we really need to up our game um, so we can overtake you.
It is tight, i know, Thrilled to be winning, but terrified of losing that lead.
So hopefully next week I'll extend it even further.
Now, before we go, it's time for Listen Up.
This is the part of the show that gives you the chance to win a copy of our book of the week, Land of the Last Wildcat, by Louis Sitt.
Now, all you've got to do is answer a question about something that's been said in this episode.
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 8th of May at 1159am.
The Week Junior team are going to randomly select a winner from all of the entries with the correct answer.
And if you're under 16, you've got to have a parent or guardian's permission to enter.
All the terms and conditions apply.
You can find out more at theweekjunior.co.uk slash terms.
Now, are you ready?
Listen up.
Dogs see the world differently to humans.
Their eyes only detect light in two colours, blue and something else.
What is the other colour?
Now, if you know the answer to the question, go to theweekjuniorcouk forward slash.
Listen up to enter our giveaway.
Oh, my goodness.
I know the answer.
I want to enter, but I won't.
I shan't.
I can't.
That brings us to the end of this week's show.
Of course, thank you to Eve and Joe, who will be joining me again next week to discuss more of the wonderful, weird questions and sometimes yucky things that are happening in the world.
And don't forget to send in voice notes for a chance for you to get your voice on the podcast and to win a roving reporter badge.
And, of course, you can also rate, review and subscribe, or follow us wherever it is you get your podcasts from.
Plus, if you like The Week Junior Show, you will love The Week Junior magazine, I guarantee it.
Head to theweekjunior.co.uk to find out more.
We'll see you next week.
Bye.
You can get six free issues of The Week Junior or three issues of The Week Junior Science and Nature for £5 by heading to theweekjuniorcouk forward slash podcast offer.
