"Creature Comforts" (2003) 8.3

[episode - The Circus] Matilda the cow: I had to stand on one leg and blow a raspberry. Go arse over... whatsit in front of 250 people. And I bonked my head, I thought I was a gonner and I heard them as I hit the floor go 'ohhh!' like that. And it was weird, 'cause I like took off. I just like flew! And I was just so embarrassed, I was like 'no, I'm fine, I'm fine, just get back on, just get back on, just get back on, I'm fine, I'm fine'. [episode - The Circus] Toto performing monkey 1: One of the things we least like about what we do is... Muzulu performing monkey 2: [interrupting] working with each other. Toto performing monkey 1: Working with each other. Muzulu performing monkey 2: Yeah. Toto performing monkey 1: You're constantly having to travel with each other, work with each other, be creative... Muzulu performing monkey 2: [interrupting] Do interviews Toto performing monkey 1: Do interviews, do everything together. [episode - The Circus] Nancy the rat: I can do nothing like that. I can't even juggle. Sid the rat: Neither can I. I can juggle with two things, not with three. Nancy the rat: That's not really juggling is it. Sid the rat: No. It's just chucking stuff up in the air, isn't it. [episode - The Circus] Alvin the dancing bear: Apart from doing a bit of stretching, a bit of yoga, trying to get my foot behind my neck and stuff like that, just to kind of loosen the old gizzards. Um, we used to get down and do 'bang out 20! Drop and give me 20!', so we used to do that. And then all stick our knuckles together, like loads of bravado kind of blokey business, put your knuckles together. Things like that. [episode - The Circus] Ivana the lion: [to the tune of the William Tell Overture] Many men, many men, many men men men, many men, many men, many men men men... [episode - The Circus] Fluffy the hamster: I haven't got any circus skills at all. I can't juggle, I can't throw the knife at the lady, I can't tame the lion and I can't crack the whip or... or jump into a small bucket. Can't do any of those things. [episode - The Circus] Mr Tickles the seal:

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You feel sick sometimes, but as soon as I go on stage I think 'well, this is it. I can't turn back now, I'm on, I'm on, I'm on, I'm on, oh God, here comes the light, the light's going up, the light's going up'. Inside, the real me is saying 'oh my God, oh my God', you know, 'here we go, why am I doing this? I love it when I'm doing it, I know I like when I'm doing but why am I doing it? I'm glad I didn't have too much to eat'.

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[episode - The Circus] Ivana the Lion: Like, I was doing a job in Brighton recently and that had a real buzz about it and then I was in Suffolk or somewhere like that doing an agricultural show and people had come to look at the cows. [episode - The Circus] The Elephant: The thing that really excites me about performing is that it's a release of any tensions that you might have inside you. [episode - The Circus] The Flying Pig: I am scared of heights a bit. I think I could get over it though. [episode - The Circus] Fluffy the hamster: The circus is... [pause] Fluffy the hamster: it's a bit boring really, isn't it? [episode - The Sea] Walrus 1: If you get the bends, it can be quite narcotic, you can get a kind of narcotic effect. You don't know which direction you're going in, you don't know which is up or down, you don't know how long you've been in the water, you can't regulate yourself anymore. I think it's really, really dangerous. Walrus 2: I've had altitude sickness which is like the opposite, isn't it? [episode - The Sea] The Shark: Er, I just don't really like the idea of feeling like eating fish, which is a bit dumb 'cause obviously they're there, erm, the bit that I really hate is when you get, erm, all that like, seaweed, yeah, I suppose it is seaweed, that kind of like catches round, you know, that brown stuff like, erm, tagliatelle, but it's, erm, that kind of like wraps itself round, that's when I get a bit freaked out and I kind of think I'd rather be in a swimming pool. [episode - The Sea] The Shark: I have to say I don't really like the idea of what's below. I find it a bit kind of like, ooh, I think how deep am I, or is there going to be kind of, you know, 'cause I do swim quite a way out but I have to say the further out, it's sort of like testing myself, like 'go on, go on, how far can you go'. [episode - Pets at the vets] The Blue Persian Cat: I remember having a severe cold which didn't shift and I shared a flat with a couple of vet students who dosed me on Famel syrup, the main active ingredient of which I believe is creosote. So I spent several days smelling like a fence post, but it did the job. [episode - The Circus] Alvin the dancing bear: It's a kind two-way thing, it's seeing people enjoy and just connecting with them, you know what I mean, I kind of like that about it really. [episode - The Circus] The White Horse: I normally try and interact with an audience but with 800 it becomes really difficult but I actually think I managed and that's an amazing feeling to just see that you're making an impact. [episode - The Circus] Muzulu performing monkey 2: We spent a huge amount of time when we were on the road exercising, we would stay up all night long practising our handstands, we used to spend hours balancing and tumbling and helping each other learn new tricks, use our bicycles, that sort of thing. [episode - The Circus] Toto performing monkey 1: I'm not sure whether it does excite me anymore or if it's just the money. Muzulu performing monkey 2:

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It does me, the thing that excites me about performing really is the fact that you're doing some good, you're making people laugh.