Latest news with #Wiggles
West Australian
20 hours ago
- Automotive
- West Australian
The Wiggles & Thrifty turning out screenless Backseat Braniacs
The Wiggles and Thrifty are aiming to break the in-car obsession with screens, as they launch Backseat Brainiacs — a fun car game for the family. Thrifty customers can receive a free interactive Backseat Brainiacs pack with their hire-car booking. Each pack has a memory game printed on cards, a road trip scavenger hunt, and the listen-along Backseat Brainiacs audio quiz which is read out by The Wiggles themselves. Red Wiggle Simon Pryce says: 'Long car rides with young children can be a challenge, so we wanted to bring a bit of Wiggles magic to help make them more fun. Backseat Brainiacs is all about sparking imaginations, sharing laughs, and helping families enjoy the journey together. It invites families to play, think and connect during the drive.' Damien Shaw, vice-president at Thrifty Asia Pacific tells us: 'As a parent, I know how tough it can be to keep children engaged on long drives. With Backseat Brainiacs, we wanted to offer something that goes beyond the usual screens and snacks, something that turns the journey into a shared experience for the whole family.' It's a sweet combination for The Wiggles which is rated as the world's most popular children's entertainment group and has three decades of history, and Thrifty Car Rental, which was established in 1958 and now has 170 locations across Australia and operates in 80 countries. fact file + For a limited time, when booking a rental car with Thrifty, customers can get The Wiggles activity pack for free. Backseat Brainiacs and the accompanying The Wiggles travel packs are available from participating Thrifty Car Rental locations across Australia and New Zealand. and + Non-Thrifty customers can head to or to download and print off the road trip scavenger hunt or access a link to the Backseat Brainiacs audio quiz. + Full terms and conditions at
7NEWS
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
The Wiggles launch Backseat Brainiacs to combat children screen time on road trips
Road trips with children can be tough at the best of times, with parents usually resorting to screen time to occupy restless kids on the road. However, Australian parents have revealed their children now spend a staggering amount of their time on tablets and smartphones, prompting children's music group The Wiggles to push for change. 'We live in a digital world,' mum and red Wiggle, Caterina Mete, told 7NEWS. 'So children need to be familiar with that, but it shouldn't be everything.' Mete said she didn't know what to anticipate when it came to navigating screen time as a new mum after giving birth to her twin girls, Dolly and Gigi, in 2024. 'I didn't know what to expect,' she said. 'I know it can help a lot for parents to have a screen. 'Especially if they need to have a shower. I know that helps me. 'But I think also just making sure that you monitor it, and it's a healthy amount, and it is not overdone because children love to play.' Most Australian children spend more time on screens than is recommended, according to the Australian Institute of Family Studies. Estimates from primary research suggest only 17–23 per cent of preschoolers and 15 per cent of five-to-12-year-olds meet screen-time guidelines. In an attempt to curb the screen time trend, The Wiggles has partnered with car rental company Thrifty to launch Backseat Brainiacs, a screen-free car game aimed at reducing the amount of screen time for kids on road trips. 'There's a staggering amount of screen time used in cars, and it's nice if we can just get away from that a little bit and just look at the beauty of nature,' Mete said. '(Backseat Brainiacs) makes car rides more engaging for the children in an interactive and fun family way. 'Children have got the best imaginations. They come up with such wonderful things, and being able to do that in a car ride is pretty special, I think.' The Wiggles activity pack includes memory card matching games, a road trip scavenger hunt, and the listen-along Backseat Brainiacs audio quiz read out by The Wiggles. 'There's a scavenger hunt where children can tick off things they've seen on the car ride,' Mete said. 'It might be, you know, a kangaroo, and they can tick that off, and it keeps them looking out the window and looking at the Australian landscape and beautiful of always relying on screens.' Mete said her favourite road trip game as a kid was 'I spy'. 'It's still a great game for children. You know, it's a game that will last forever.' Damien Shaw, Vice President at Thrifty Asia Pacific, said they wanted to create something that turns the car ride into a shared experience for the whole family. 'As a parent, I know how tough it can be to keep children engaged on long drives,' he said. 'With Backseat Brainiacs, we wanted to offer something that goes beyond the usual screens and snacks.' Backseat Brainiacs and the accompanying The Wiggles travel packs will be available from July 14 at participating Thrifty Car Rental locations across Australia and New Zealand Non-Thrifty customers can head to or to download and print off the road trip scavenger hunt or access a link to the Backseat Brainiacs audio quiz.
Sky News AU
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News AU
'It's the principle': Sunrise weatherman Sam 'Mac' McMillan calls out 'sparkling scam'' hitting diners across the country amid cost-of-living crisis
Sunrise weatherman Sam 'Mac' McMillan has issued a warning to Aussie about what he's calling the "sparkling scam". The 42-year-old Channel Seven favourite took to social media on Tuesday to share his outrage after being hit with a $12 bill for a one-litre bottle of San Pellegrino at a restaurant, all because he said "sparkling" when asked what water he wanted. "I said sparkling," Mac wrote in text over his video, filmed from the table. "And suddenly I was the next victim of the #SparklingScam." In the clip, the father-of-two shook his head in mock disbelief before turning the camera to the high-end bottle sitting on the table. "Not today bro!" he declared, before knocking back several glasses. "I will drink that one litre of sparkling water whether my bladder likes it or not." "It's the PRINCIPLE!" he added. "They are fully aware it's available in 250ml bottles." While McMillan didn't name the restaurant, he did post a photo of the receipt showing the bottle cost $12.00, sparking a flood of comments from followers who felt his pain. "This might be a little niche… but is anyone else onto the #SparklingScam," he captioned the post, which was reshared to his Instagram Stories. Fans were quick to back him up. "I'm with you on that, Sam! Let's spread the word!" one user wrote, while another added: "Biggest rip-off ever- should be free whether it has bubbles or not as most can just put it through an aerator." Famous friends joined in too, with The Cockroaches frontman and former Wiggles manager Paul Field dropping two laughing emojis, while Dancing with the Stars champ Aric Yegudkin admitted: "Hahaha I get done every time too." Still, not everyone agreed, with one follower leaping to the defence of the sparkling offender: "It's San Pellegrino, Sam! It's the Moet of Italian water! You should be smiling and grateful, it's delicious!" Another user pointed out that the Sydney-based weatherman's dilemma seemed like a "big city" problem. "Where was this? There's a bit of big city energy about that," they wrote. McMillan, known for his humour both on and off air, has been easing back into the swing of things after returning from "Dad leave" following the birth of his second daughter. In a recent reel, the self described "TV Weather Boi" documented his whirlwind week covering more than 6000 kilometres across Auckland, Waiheke Island, Brisbane, K'gari (Fraser Island), Caloundra and Sydney, all while tackling "the big topics". "Do you put the cream on first or the jam on first?" he asked a chef while filming a segment involving a tray of fresh scones. "It can divide a nation."
Daily Mirror
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Robert De Niro, 81, in wild crossover as he takes daughter to meet The Wiggles
Taxi Driver actor Robert De Niro, 81, enjoyed a wholesome trip to see The Wiggles in New York City with his two-year-old daughter, Gia Robert De Niro swapped Hollywood sets for something a little more wholesome as he took his two-year-old daughter Gia to meet The Wiggles. The 81-year-old A-lister, who shares the toddler with martial artist girlfriend Tiffany Chen, 45, took the little one to hang out with the Australian children's group before their show in New York over the weekend. The Wiggles shared a sweet clip of Robert shaking hands with all the cast members, who were dressed in their colourful costumes ready for the show. The Taxi Driver actor looked delighted to be there while adorable Gia played with bubbles and looked at her favourite characters in awe. "It was such a thrill to spend some time with the legendary Robert De Niro and his family before our concert here in New York City," they captioned the post. A few other children and their parents were seen backstage with the cast as they entertained the little ones. Earlier this year, Robert opened up about life as a new dad. While appearing on BBC Radio 2 's Breakfast Show in February, the actor spoke to radio host Scott Mills about his daughter Gia. Robert - known for films like The Godfather Part II (1974) and Taxi Driver (1976) - revealed in the interview that he doesn't watch as many films as he "should". He went on to tease that he watches children's shows with Gia though. Asked what he watches at home, the actor told host Scott: "I don't watch as many movies as I should. I try to watch films especially that I'm told ... I just wanna keep up, but I watch current events if you will, news, stuff like that. "Now I watch with my little girl ... the Wiggles and Ms Rachel." Scott then asked about his knowledge of other kids shows, saying: "Do you know about Bluey?" Robert replied: "No. I'll look up ... I'll look for them." The presenter said: "Please will someone write this down because this might change your life in terms of attention span. Do you know what I'm saying? Bluey and Hey Duggee." Robert responded: "Bluey and Hey Duggee, okay." While discussing the Wiggles and Ms Rachel, he added: "I didn't know of them until I started seeing them and my daughter loves to watch them." He later said about the Wiggles: "They're great. Got lots of energy, they're terrific." In January, Robert told The Times that he's an "early riser" and said about his youngest daughter: "I spend my mornings watching Ms Rachel with her, and I give her her bottle."
Perth Now
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
‘I will always love you': Excited Wiggles meet legend Dolly
Australian music legends The Wiggles have saddled up with country superstar Dolly Parton in a meeting that was extra special for one Wiggle. After collaborating on two songs together remotely, Friends! and We Will Always Be Friends, the country legend and Aussie performers finally met up in Nashville, Tennessee. They had the chance to link while The Wiggles were performing in Parton's home State during their USA tour. 'From growing up singing her songs to actually singing with her, this was truly a dream come true,' The Wiggles said on social media. 'Meeting Dolly in Nashville felt like a big warm hug. Her kindness, joy and sparkle are everything we imagined and more. 'Dolly, you're a legend, a light and a friend for life.' It was an extra special meet up for Red Wiggle and super fan Caterina Mete, who has a tattoo of Parton on her forearm, which the country music singer signed. The Aussie music group met up with the country megastar. Credit: The Wiggles Mete brought along her twins — Dolly and Gigi — with the former named after the country sensation, who Parton was delighted to meet. 'Hello Dolly, I'm Dolly,' the 9 to 5 singer said to the one-year-old. The Aussie music group met up with the country megastar. Credit: The Wiggles After meeting all the current members of The Wiggles, the group came together for a photo with Parton showing her appreciation for the Aussie icons. 'Thank you for being part of my life,' she said. 'Let's get a picture, let's get famous together.' Before saying cheese, the group had to teach Parton how to do their signature 'Wiggle Fingers'. The Wiggles are currently on the US leg of their Bouncing Balls tour, fittingly for their country music album Wiggle Up, Giddy Up where Parton featured on two songs. The album has cameos from other Aussie and international country music singers including MacKenzie Porter, Troy Cassar-Daley, Morgan Evans, Slim Dusty and Travis Collins.
