Date: 24 September 2008
Originally published in: The Age (Australia)
Written by:
English singer Kim Wilde admits she doesn’t know a lot about Aussie Rules football. And it probably shows.
Despite that, she’ll be a special guest on this week’s grand final edition of The Footy Show, and she’s looking forward to the experience.
Wilde, 48, is probably best known for her 80s smash hit Kids in America – certainly not her knowledge of Melbourne’s best-loved game. In fact, she’s yet to see a match.
“But I’ve heard you play with different shaped balls and stuff,” she told 3AW’s Ernie Sigley, laughing.
“You Melburnians love your footy … with your stadiums and your footballs everywhere!”
Wilde also had a laugh when she tried to pronounce the name of one of the premiership contenders, dropping a couple of vowels and using a hard `g’ instead of a soft one. In her strong British accent the Cats became “Gheelong”.
Like many a once-a-year punter, Wilde based her premiership tip on the teams’ names – the Hawks sounded fearsome and proud but the Cats sounded fierce.
Wilde said she loved to visit Melbourne and enjoyed what she called its rock’n’roll vibe and London feel.
She still works in the music industry and is a full-time mum but now focuses a lot of her attention on gardening – she’s considered something of an expert in the field nowadays.