50 Fun Facts About The Wiggles

In the Wiggles' TV guessing game 'Where's Jeff?', what is Jeff Fatt always found doing in his hiding place?

Sleeping became Jeff's gimmick because he was the only original Wiggle without teacher training, and it let him join in without having to do much. Each round of the game ended with him being woken.

Who became the first female Wiggle in 2013, inspiring young fans to wear yellow bows to concerts?

Emma Watkins proved so popular that up to 80% of a concert crowd would dress in her colour. She was given her own solo TV series in 2015.

Which flowers does Dorothy the Dinosaur, the first of the Wiggles' costumed characters, love to eat?

Roses are Dorothy's favourite meal, and she grows them in the backyard of her pink and purple house. Murray Cook invented her because his preschool class had no good dinosaur songs.

Which band's song 'Elephant' did the Wiggles cover to become the first children's act atop Triple J's Hottest 100?

Tame Impala's song was blended with the Wiggles' own 'Fruit Salad' for a radio covers segment. It was also the first cover version ever to win the listener poll.

Which wildlife presenter and his family joined the Wiggles for the 2002 album and video Wiggly Safari?

Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, hosted the shoot at his Australia Zoo and earned co-writing credits on several of the animal songs.

Which Hollywood star studied drama at the same time and academy as Paul Paddick, the Wiggles' Captain Feathersword?

Hugh Jackman and Paddick both trained at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. Paddick's five-week fill-in job in 1993 turned into decades as the friendly pirate.

In the Wiggles' 2009 video Go Bananas!, which Australian pop star guest-starred as a pink Wiggle?

Kylie Minogue sang on the track 'Monkey Man' for the release, whose album went on to win the ARIA Award for Best Children's Album.

Which Wiggles song did the Australian city of Bunbury play on a loop to deter homeless people from gathering?

Hot Potato was switched off after the group said they were deeply disappointed by its use. Jeff Fatt once called it the band's most-requested song.

What cause were the original Wiggles raising money for at the 2020 reunion concert where Greg Page collapsed on stage?

Bushfire relief was the aim of the January shows, and Page's cardiac arrest needed CPR and three defibrillator shocks. He later founded a charity that promotes public defibrillators.

Which children's TV star's live stage shows gave the Wiggles an intermission slot when they first toured America?

Barney's producers at Lyrick Studios spotted the Wiggles performing in California, then slipped Wiggles shorts into their own star's videos as trailers.

Where in Sydney did future Wiggles Anthony Field, Murray Cook and Greg Page meet while training as preschool teachers?

Macquarie University later gave the Wiggles honorary doctorates. The three were among only about ten men in an early childhood course of 200 students.

Greg Page worked as a roadie for which 1980s pop band featuring future Wiggles Anthony Field and Jeff Fatt?

The Cockroaches reached the Australian top ten with 'She's the One' in 1987, and the Wiggles later rewrote several of the band's songs for preschoolers.

Which Wiggles album, released the year after Yummy Yummy, won the 1995 ARIA Award for Best Children's Album?

Big Red Car was the group's fifth album, and the vehicle it is named after later carried the four friends through the search in The Wiggles Movie.

What Australian word describes the colour-coded tops that the Wiggles have worn on stage since their second album?

Skivvy tops in four colours were adopted partly so that very young fans could tell the members apart. Two of the founders already owned shirts in their shades.

Which understudy, who had already filled in about 150 times, replaced Greg Page as the Yellow Wiggle in 2006?

Sam Moran had earlier hosted a touring Dorothy the Dinosaur show. His classically trained voice led the group to change the keys of their songs.

Which sea creature is Henry, the Wiggles' underwater bandleader who was named after a real-life drummer?

Octopus Henry took his name from Tony Henry, the drummer in Anthony Field's earlier pop group. Jeff Fatt developed the character and voiced him for years.

What relation is Lucia Field, who joined the Wiggles in 2022, to founding member Anthony Field?

Daughter Lucia first appeared in a Wiggles music clip at the age of two, and she joined the line-up wearing the same colour as her dad.

At which famous New York venue did the Wiggles sell out twelve shows in 2003?

Madison Square Garden hosted the run two years after the group won local loyalty by keeping their 2001 dates in the city when other acts cancelled.

Which American broadcaster began airing Wiggles clips between its programs in 2002, then added full episodes?

Disney Channel was won over by the group's pro-social message, and within months it was showing full episodes several times a day.

In the Wiggles episode 'Building Blocks', what must each team build to win the Wiggly Championship?

The highest tower wins when time runs out, and Greg's team takes the trophy only after Dorothy steps in as a super-fast substitute builder.

In the Wiggles episode 'Spooked Wiggles', what do the Wiggles wrongly believe is lurking outside Wigglehouse?

Monsters turn out to be Captain Feathersword and Dorothy, who came round the back because the talking front door refused to let them in.

In The Wiggles Movie, which of Greg's belongings does Wally the Great take and accidentally snap in half?

Magic wand broken in a tug of war with Dorothy, Wally spends the film trying to get it repaired, and he finally apologises to Greg at her surprise party.

Which Hollywood studio backed The Wiggles Movie, the 1997 film starring Tony Harvey as Wally the Great?

20th Century Fox distributed the film, which ranked fifth among Australian films at the 1998 box office with takings of about A$1.5 million that year.

Which TV series, filmed between tours, returned the Wiggles to Australian screens in 2013 after years away?

Ready, Steady, Wiggle! was shot at the group's own studio and on the road, and it introduced the 2013 line-up to television audiences.

What do young fans bring to Wiggles concerts for Wags the Dog, to be collected by the dancers?

Bones for Wags are gathered from the crowd by the Wiggly Dancers. He was the last of the group's four original sidekick characters to arrive.

Which mythical creature is Shirley Shawn, the yellow Wiggles character introduced in 2019?

Unicorn Shirley Shawn is a baby with a heart-shaped nose and purple hair who says only one word, and loves rainbow-coloured vegetables.

Which Gold Coast theme park opened the world's first Wiggles World area in 2005?

Dreamworld launched the area with a live show by the group, and a decade later it grew into a wider zone for ABC children's programs.

Which 1970s hitmaker joined the Wiggles in 2008 to re-record his own song 'You Make Me Feel Like Dancing'?

Leo Sayer wrote and first recorded the song in 1976, and the Wiggles named a whole album and video after it.

In which country was Tsehay Hawkins, who joined the Wiggles as a teenage salsa champion, born before her adoption?

Ethiopia is where she was born, in Addis Ababa, before being adopted at five months old and raised south-west of Sydney. She later learned Ethiopian and West African dance styles.

Which device was fitted to Jeff Fatt in 2011, making him miss his first Wiggles shows in 20 years?

Pacemaker surgery followed weeks of feeling unwell and a blackout brought on by an irregular heartbeat. The procedure was described as urgent but routine.

Which instrument did Anthony Field play in Australian Army parades before he co-founded the Wiggles?

Bagpipes went with him on parades and training missions during three years as an infantry soldier, a break he took from touring with his pop band.

Murray Cook devised the Wiggles' signature finger-wagging move after watching professionals in which sport on TV?

Ten-pin bowling pros waggled their index fingers on screen, and Cook borrowed the gesture. He was seen as the group's analytical member and its mediator.

Which profession did Jeff Fatt, the future Wiggle with a degree in industrial design, once hope to enter?

Architect was the plan, but he ended up running a public address equipment firm with his brother while playing keyboards in a rockabilly band.

Purple Wiggle John Pearce rose to prominence with which dance troupe, winners of Australia's Got Talent in 2010?

Justice Crew went on to score two chart-topping singles in Australia. Pearce joined the Wiggles in 2021 as 'Big Strong John', promoting health and exercise.

Which company did Evie Ferris dance with before becoming the first Indigenous member of the Wiggles?

The Australian Ballet took her on in 2015 as only its second Indigenous ballerina. She is a Taribelang and Djabugay woman who was born in Cairns.

Which musical's title role did Simon Pryce perform over 100 times before becoming the Wiggles' Red Wiggle?

Phantom of the Opera kept him busy in an Australian production from 2007, and he first worked for the Wiggles as a voice artist on their albums.

Which Australian music honour did the Wiggles receive in 2011, a reunion that sparked Greg Page's return?

ARIA Hall of Fame induction brought the old line-up back together that November, and within two months Page had rejoined as lead singer.

Which national honour did the four original Wiggles receive in 2010 for service to the arts and charities?

Order of Australia membership recognised their work in children's entertainment and their support for charities. The group called it their biggest recognition yet.

Which children's organisation named the Wiggles goodwill ambassadors in 2008, prompting a special fundraising concert?

UNICEF gained from a charity show in Sydney, where scalpers asking hundreds of dollars for three tickets had their online listing pulled and the tickets voided.

Which 2022 double album of Australian artists covering Wiggles songs became the group's first ARIA chart-topper?

ReWiggled paired a disc of tribute covers with a disc of the Wiggles covering other acts, and it also won the ARIA Award for Best Children's Album.

Which music magazine's Australian edition put the Wiggles on its cover for the first time in 2022?

Rolling Stone ran the cover that September, shortly before the Wiggles became the first band in Australia to play two arena tours in a single year.

Which Australian broadcaster first aired the Wiggles' self-funded TV series in 1998, after an ABC pilot fell through?

Seven Network screened all 13 episodes, which the group paid for themselves. Its instalments included 'Muscleman Murray' and 'Jeff the Mechanic'.

In which retail chain's car parks did the Wiggles play some of their first American shows in 1999?

Blockbuster car parks drew crowds of about a dozen people, at a time when the same group could play to 8,000 fans back home in Sydney.

Which institution have the Wiggles visited to perform on every Christmas morning throughout their history?

Sydney Children's Hospital patients get the Christmas visit, and the group has also long invited children with special needs to meet them before concerts.

Which founding member left the Wiggles after their first album and went on to work in classical music?

Phillip Wilcher hosted the first recording sessions at his own home, and he never had a signature colour because he left before the coloured shirts arrived.

Which chronic condition, bringing fainting spells and loss of balance, led Greg Page to leave the Wiggles in 2006?

Orthostatic intolerance was diagnosed after he pulled out of an American tour, and doctors called it chronic but not life-threatening.

Which Sydney band, relaunched with a Radio Birdman guitarist, became Murray Cook's creative outlet after the Wiggles?

The Soul Movers recorded at famous American studios including Sun in Memphis, and Jeff Fatt guested on keyboards for the band.

The Wiggles topped which magazine's list of top-earning Australian entertainers four years in a row?

Business Review Weekly ranked them first for four straight years, and they did it while keeping full ownership of their music, videos and television shows.

Which kind of practitioner, met in Chicago in 2004, did Anthony Field credit with keeping the Wiggles on tour?

Chiropractor James Stoxen improved Field's health so much that the group began hiring teams of them in every city they played.

Which Australian chart star brought three of the original Wiggles on stage for a cameo at a 2022 Melbourne concert?

The Kid Laroi shared the stage with them for three songs that June, months after the same veterans had toured arenas for grown-up fans.