Horrible Histories. They sing, they dance, they are hilarious.

I am doing a different post today, I am confessing a guilty pleasure. I have young kids so there are times I have to watch kids TV shows. Some of them I hate but there are other ones I love. The one I love the most is Horrible Histories.

Horrible Histories are a series of books that have been developed into a television series by the BBC. The show teaches history to kids using singing, dancing and funny skits. Yes, it is taught very simplistically, but what better way to foster their interest than with sillyness?

The skits are done in a few different styles. They might be computer games, done in on-the-spot news reporter style or even as take-offs of television shows. It is a clever concept and it really works. We all know kids (and adults) are far more likely to retain information when they have been amused, but history is not something usually taught in a comic way, mores the pity. The songs are the favourites in our house, always catchy and completely silly.

Since it is school holidays we have been overloaded with 6 episode marathons of the most popular shows from ABC3. Today it is Horrible Histories so we will have it running in the background all afternoon, which means we will be humming the songs all day. No matter how many times we have seen them we still get a laugh out of them.

A quick  poll of the attendant children tells me their favourite songs are…. all of them. Hmmm, no help.

Well, the ones that are my favourite are;

Boudicca (whacked ’em smacked ’em, boy how we attacked ’em) http://youtu.be/1LhT7rCC6O8 ,

Dick Turpin (done in the style of Adam Ant) http://youtu.be/6KbXyALq7uA ,

Charles II: King of Bling (the king who bought back par-ty-ing) http://youtu.be/P2kyNbZc7oc

And the rapping Celtic Boast Battle (look at me I’m tough, I fight in the buff)

….hmmmm… OK, I love all of them too.

There are heaps on YouTube, go and have a look.