Wednesday, November 15, 2023
Your daily kids news podcast.
Minecraft movie back on track; Diwali sets a world record; Lion on the loose in Italy; and astronaut tool kit alert.
LINKS
Diwali sets a world record: https://www.npr.org/2023/11/12/1212584838/millions-of-indians-set-a-world-record-celebrating-diwali-despite-air-quality-wo
The Garfield Movie: Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssM7srcz49w
Squiz Kids Book Club: https://www.squizkids.com.au/book_club/
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THE LOWDOWN
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Are you ready to see Minecraft made into a live-action movie starring Aqua Man, Jason Momoa? Or what about a remake of the Disney classic, Lilo and Stich? Perhaps a new series of Stranger Things is more your speed? Or – if you’re really daring – and your parents let you – the zombie apocalypse thriller The Last of Us?
Because all of these projects are tipped to be back on track soon after reports yesterday that a long-running strike by Hollywood actors is about to come to an end.
What’s a strike? It’s when a group of workers stop working in an attempt to improve the conditions in which they work. All sorts of professions go on strike: from train drivers to teachers. And for the past 118 days, actors have been on strike as they seek better pay and working conditions from the big studios that produce so much of the TV and movie content we love to watch. Reports yesterday say that the actors and studios who distribute their TV shows and movies and make money of them – have reached an agreement. Minecraft movie – here we come!
In other pop culture news .. it’s time to whip out your best sequinned dress – for tonight is the ARIA Awards – when all of Australia’s most-loved musicians and popstars and songwriters get together to celebrate the best of the best.
Canberra’s own Genesis Owusu leads the nominations with seven, just ahead of Troye Sivan and Kylie Minogue.
There’ll be a big old red carpet and a whole bunch of wonderfully crazy outfits tonight as the likes of Jess Mauboy, Baker Boy, G Flip and Dylan Alcott take to Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion.
And for the mums and dads out there: Aussie rockers Jet will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Makes you feel old, doesn’t it?
SPIN THE GLOBE
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Each day we give the world globe a spin and find a news story from wherever it stops – and today, we’ve landed back in India … where we were on Monday … and that’s because it’s time to check in on how the Diwali celebrations went.
Diwali – as we talked about earlier this week – is a major Hindu festival – also sometimes called the festival of light – for all the candles and lanterns and lights that are lit and fireworks that are set off.
In the state of Uttar Pradesh, near the Nepalese border, more than 2.22 million oil lamps were lit at a temple by the river … which looked spectacular – and broke a Guinness World Record.
I’ve stuck a link to a photo of it in today’s episode notes. It’s quite something. Just as the air pollution that follows Diwali is quite something too. With many of India’s very heavily populated cities already suffering extreme air quality problems – Diwali with its oil lamps and fireworks makes for a smoggy few days afterwards.
ANIMAL KINGDOM
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And so to a special Animals On The Loose edition of Animal Kingdom – starting with the family in Kent, in England, who were stunned to look at their front door video camera to see an emu staring back at them – and pecking at the doorbell. How very polite. Seems it had escaped from a wildlife sanctuary not far away and taken it upon itself to go and meet some neighbours.
There was much excitement this week in Italy after Kimba the adult lion escaped from a circus and wandered through the main street of the seaside town of Ladispoli. Kimba was on the loose for seven hours before being recaptured.
And speaking of animals being let loose: everyone’s favourite food-obsessed cat, Garfield has been let loose on the silver screen – with the trailer dropping this week for The Garfield Movie … Guardians of the Galaxy’s Chris Pratt voices the ginger fluffball in a movie that tells the story of how he adopted his owner Jon. And not the other way around. I’ve stuck a link to the trailer in today’s episode notes. You’re welcome.
SPACED OUT
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Here’s something to put in your diaries for next March … if you happen to be out and about, you might want to keep an eye up in the sky for an astronaut’s tool bag burning up as it plummets to Earth – after it was dropped by a couple of astronauts tending to the International Space Station earlier this month.
NASA revealed yesterday that the tool bag was accidentally let go of during a routine space walk – and was now in orbit above the Earth.
There’s no need to worry though – as it’s not in an orbit that will impact the space station and those wrenches and screwdrivers and hammers will burn up on re-entry to our atmosphere next year. Oops a daisy …
JOKE-A-THON
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(SEAGULL SOUND) .. Can you hear that? That’s the sound of summer holidays. And they’re not far away! Which is why we here at Squiz Kids are getting ready for the looming school holidays by putting together a bunch of cool summer content – including our Bumper School Holiday Quizzes, Shortcuts and Squiz The Worlds – and – announcing the return of the Great Big Squiz Kids Holiday Joke-A-Thon. The perfect pod for those lazy summer days, holidays and road-trips. Do you have a cool joke you want to share with the kids of Australia? Then put it in an email and send it pronto – along with your name, age and where you live – to [email protected].
Christie and I will collect your jokes and turn them into a podcast of unprecedented, side-splitting, jaw-hurting hilarity. Because who doesn’t like a laugh?
THE S’QUIZ
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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …
- What did a pair of astronauts accidentally let go of during a space walk earlier this month?
- Name the Hindu festival that involves a whole lot of candle and lamp lighting.
- Which cartoon cat is about to star in his own animated movie?
SHOUT OUTS
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It’s November 15 … on this day last year the world’s population kicked over to 8 billion .. is it just me, or is it getting crowded in here?
It’s also a special day for these Squiz Kids celebrating a birthday today… Alaynah from Junee, Macy and Izzy from Sydney, Pavan from Williams Landing, Harry from Munno Para, Aliya from Dalkeith, Matilda and Elsie from Leura, Jobe and Tate from Thurgoona and Aya listening over in Yokohama, Japan.
Belated shout outs go to… Amelie from Randwick, Chloe from Sutherland, Ella from Charlestown, Theo from Maroubra, Loveleen from Burnside, Akeam from Surrey Hills, Jayden from Woolloongabba, Emmett from Canberra and Cayleb,Jax and Kyan all from Tregear.
Classroom shout outs go to … class 4/5 with Miss Lukong at Maitland Lutheran School, class 3S with Mrs Skondro at Harrington Park Public School, class 4A and Miss Stokes at Sunshine Heights Primary School, class 4C with Ms Claudia at Elwood Primary School, class 6M and Mr Gubler at Saints Peter and Paul Primary School in Garran, class 6R and Miss Richards at Cronulla Public School, year 6 at Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary School in Tarneit and lastly classes K-6 Sapphire with Mr Powers and Miss Billie at Wilton Public School.
The S’Quiz Answers:
- Tool bag
- Diwali
- Garfield