Kim is interviewed by Ian “Molly” Meldrum, but is rather confused by his line of questioning.

Kim, welcome back to Australia via video and to Countdown
Hi

Last year was pretty hectic for you…
Yeah…

But I think it was worth it?
Yeah, it’s great, it’s lovely.

I mean ,at that stage you had ‘Kids in America’, ‘Cambodia’ was just sortof really… was just released at that time…
Yeah…

and you sort of hold the distinct record of being the most consistent artist in the chart for Australia. With that album, did you really think there were, sort of, like, so many hits on it?
Um… No, when I was recording them I had certain thoughts about the consequent singles, but I never thought of it being an album of singles at the time, but it was all so new when I recorded it.

Right. Now ‘Chequered love’ was sort of, like, the follow-up to ‘Kids in America’ and then we had ‘Cambodia’, which is totally different really. What can we expect from Kim Wilde in 1982 then?
We’re sort of currently working on our new album and our new single, which is gonna be called ‘View from a bridge’, and then we’re gonna get our tour together. You know, a worldwide tour with any luck.

Now, as far as going on to a live circuit situation, how do you want yourself to be presented on stage? There’s so many ways these days, I mean lighting effect etcetera etcetera, and all of that. I mean, do you want it simple or do you want something really big or… Have you thought about it?
Yeah, I have thought about it. I don’t want to do a big theatrical presentation – not because I don’t believe in doing them, just because I don’t really feel that it would complement our music. I’d like to concentrate more on the delivery and the good old-fashioned sort of cabaret aspect with getting across and singing well. I hope that works and it’s enough to keep an audience interested.

Is there much pressure on you now personally, that you gotta keep coming up with a hit?
I think so, there is that kind of pressure, it’s a kind of pressure that, um… Rick and dad work well under when they’re writing songs. And it keeps us all on our toes and it’s a necessary discipline.

When you look back on sort of, the three hits that you’ve had, do you and your brother sort of purposely go out to find… in other words do you knock back tracks that you may write or what? Is is a calculated thing? It’s a strange question, you know?
Ummm… (Kim looks a bit puzzled)

I mean… let me start again.
(Laughs) I don’t understand the question at all! (Laughs) It went on for so long it’s like an epic!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1P49bvrj-XE

An outdoors lipsynch of ‘Cambodia’, in which Kim wears an orange scarf and a black coat. Some popart images are edited into this performance.

[Note: images in black & white but original broadcast was in colour.]

Kim goes through a scrapbook with personal letters and press clippings with her two grannies. She also tells about her relationship with her grannies from childhood to now. The two grannies say which artists they prefer right now.

Nan 1: That’s one of my letters…
Kim: (cites:) ‘Marvellous record… I do hope it is a success and the start of plenty in store for you…’
Nan 1: That’s my other granddaughter…
Kim: Oh, this a funny one… ‘Sex kitten’.
Nan 1: ‘She loves to curl up in bed’
Kim: What do you think of it when they write things like that?
Nan 1: It’s just what they write, Kimmy.
Kim: Don’t you think it’s a bit strange?
Nan: No…
Kim: You don’t? So you don’t mind that they say things like… ‘Sensuous lips, ripe, luscious…’
Nan: I wish they’d say things like that about me…

Nan: If they said certain things I would say ‘no that isn’t right, you must say it this way’. I used to guide her in her speech.

Kim: My nan was very strict with me when I was young. She’d never let me get away with very much. I remember in a very loving way… I remember being in bed earlier than I thought I should be, it was still light outside. I could hear the ice cream van coming down the road. And I’d think, ‘Oh nan, how could you keep me in bed when there’s an ice cream van going down the road.’ They never spoilt us. They gave us a lot of love, but they never pampered us. My relationship with my grandparents is very now, it feels very, like it’s happening just recently over the last few years. I feel I’ve got to know them each as individuals.

Nan 2: I like Adam Ant, and I like Duran Duran, I like Cliff Richard

Nan 1: I do like Boy George very much. I like the way he dresses. I think he’s a very innocent looking type of boy.

Kim: Frank Sinatra is one of my favourite singers. I’ve got all of his albums, I know all the old songs. Sometimes with the success and the good things happening to me, sometimes I think maybe it’s happening too fast. But then I sort of think, no, not really.

Nan 1: You do wonder if things are gonna turn out allright. I mean, for a girl to be on the road it’s pretty scary isn’t it really? But she’s pretty levelheaded and I think she can look after herself, you know?

Kim: I think sometimes with what happens to you, you look at what you’ve got and it means nothing. And something else takes its place. There’s been various things happening to me, and I’ve looked at them and I thought ‘wow, that’s really what’s important’. And I’ve looked at what I have materially and I looked at my lovely flat and my lovely car and my success and everything and it sort of pales in comparison. Which isn’t to say it isn’t important, it just gives me some perspective.

Nan 1: I’d like her to sort of go out to do what she wants to do. If she wants to retire and settle down, that would be lovely, you know? Because it can be a hard life, as you know, can’t it, really?

(Video for ‘Kids in America’ is shown.)

Kim: (cites:) ‘Curvy Kim’.

Nan 1: ‘Famous just like dad’.

Nan 2: ‘I love boys… Sex is important’.

Kim: (Looking at nan 1) That’s what you told me nan. I only got it from you.