OPINION: Wiggles worm their way back into the house

"HEY! The old red Wiggle, what was his name again?” I shouted over the din in our car.

"HEY! The old red Wiggle, what was his name again?" I shouted over the din in our car.

"Mashed bananas! Mashed bananas! Murray!" yelled Long Suffering Wife as she mimed along with The Wiggles.

As we Wiggled on our merry way, I wondered what ol' Murray is doing nowadays? Probably counting his money and laughing a lot. Good for him.

Folks, if you've never heard of The Wiggles, then frankly, I'd be stunned. In spite of having absolutely zero airplay, they took Australia by storm in the '90s. And, since then, their videos and tapes, then CDs and DVDs, have been played around the clock in every household with a child over two.

And there's still a staggering amount of Wiggly merchandise to buy, from toys, stickers, badges, hats, lunch boxes and colouring-in books to instruments, school bags, costumes and games. It seems their drooling fans just can't get enough of them.

Plus, The Wiggles' simple little songs are so catchy that one workmate labelled them musical heroin. "Cold spaghetti, cold spaghetti," I'd chortle as he cringed.

Frankly, I thought my days of Torture by Wiggle were over but, many years after I hauled the last dumpster load of Wigglemania items from our home, they're back like a dodgy curry, as our granddaughter is now a fan.

Three of the originals have been replaced, and one of them is a girl, but they still sound as good as ever. And this weekend, granddaughter #1 will be attending her first Wiggles concert.

Mind you, the jury's still out about who is more excited to be going - her or her mum.

In the meantime, The Wiggles are playing on a continuous loop in our car and TV set again for at least another five or so years.

So until then..."Hot potato, hot potato!''

Originally published as OPINION: Wiggles worm their way back into the house