They said it could never be done. But, she has been wearing the yellow skivvy for a year, now. Nigel Benson talks to Emma Watkins about being the first female Wiggle.
''I can't wait to get to Dunedin. I had my birthday there on the last tour and we went out for dinner to an upstairs pizza place [Etrusco]. It was the best pizza,'' the Sydneysider recalls.
The ''Apples and Bananas Tour'' will be her second New Zealand outing as the first female Wiggle.
''It's gone by very quickly. It's just nice to be a role model for all children. We can't wait for the tour. It always feels very relaxed in New Zealand. It feels like home. We've been learning Maori words for this tour, like 'kia ora'.''
Watkins appeared in the Wiggles as Fairy Larissa, Wags the Dog and Dorothy the Dinosaur, before donning the yellow skivvy. She, Simon Pryce and Lachlan Gillespie replaced original Wiggles Greg Page, Jeff Fatt and Murray Cook late in 2012, leaving Anthony Field as the sole survivor.
''It's definitely been the most exciting thing that's ever happened to me. I'm the Wiggles generation - I'm 24 and the Wiggles are 23 - so I watched them as a toddler and have grown up with the group,'' Watkins said.
''It was such a shock when Anthony, the blue Wiggle, approached me about it. Anthony has said if they knew having a girl was such a success they would have had one right from the beginning.''
Watkins was a big Wiggles fan as a youngster, with a soft spot for Greg, the yellow Wiggle.
''My school uniform was yellow, so I think I gravitated towards his yellow skivvy. When he came back for the reunion tour, hearing him sing the classics like Hot Potato and Fruit Salad felt so nostalgic. It was exactly how I remembered them,'' she said.
''They become your family. Being on the road around nine months of the year, it's pretty full-on and it's not like any other band or artist. They'll tour for a period then go home. We are touring all the time.''
The tight-knit group never missed a chance to have fun on tours, Watkins said.
''In the sound checks, the boys will sometimes jam to Deep Purple or AC/DC. Anthony loves Elvis, so we play a lot of this in the car and other old-school music.''
However, it was a challenge learning the Wiggles' formidable 1200-song playlist, she admitted.
''Simon, the red Wiggle, Lachy, the purple Wiggle, and I try and learn new songs every week but on top of those we're starting to get a whole lot of new songs. There is a lot of content in our brains.''
The popularity of the group was down to timeless entertainment values, Watkins said.
''The children are hearing and seeing live music and they get inspired by this. How the music is actually made tends to get lost in other forms of children's entertainment. As soon as the music starts they are up dancing and they're really honest. If they don't like it, they'll walk away, eat a muesli bar or just sit down,'' she said.
''There's also a lot of improvisation with our shows. We often rush backstage to pull on a hat or get in a tutu and that's all on the fly. The live shows are always very different. We get people of all ages at our shows. Even babies come and, while they're not singing along to songs, you can see the look in their eyes. We also get autistic children coming to shows, right up to 21. We usually have a meet and greet for children with special needs before our shows.''
The Wiggles' Dunedin show will feature old favourites with friends Dorothy the Dinosaur, Captain Feathersword, Wags the Dog and Henry the Octopus, songs such as Hot Potato, Toot Toot! and Do the Propeller, together with a selection from their new nursery rhyme CD and DVD, Apples and Bananas.
The Wiggles would be filming for a new DVD while on tour here, founding Wiggle Anthony Field said.
''We travelled all over the world last year, but there's nothing like coming to New Zealand,'' he said.
''We love the people, the music and seeing the beautiful awe-inspiring landscapes.''
The Wiggles present the ''Apples and Bananas Tour'' at the Regent Theatre on July 15.
Playing
The Wiggles' ''Apples and Bananas Tour'' stops in Dunedin on Tuesday, July 15.
