Josh Widdicombe's Archive of Pop Culture

The final part of the infamous, and at times unexpected and bizarre story of one of modern Britain’s greatest folly’s turned success stories - The Millennium Dome.

Will the gang get away with their audacious diamond heist?

And what happens to the dome in the ensuing years?

And we look at other millenium based failures across the globe..... enjoy!

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Part 4 of the infamous, and at times unexpected story of one of modern Britain’s greatest folly’s turned success stories - The Millennium Dome.

The millenium is here and the dome is finally open. But it's safe to say the illfated project has not gone well as visitor numbers are poor and multiple financial bailouts are required.

And soon news of an audacious diamon heist reaches Scotland Yard...

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<...

Part 3 of the infamous, and at times unexpected story of one of modern Britain’s greatest folly’s turned success stories - The Millennium Dome.

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A ⁠⁠⁠⁠Keep It Light Media⁠⁠⁠⁠ Production

(Copyright 2026)

Joining me today to discuss the infamous, and at times unexpected story of one of modern Britain’s greatest folly’s turned success stories - The Millennium Dome, is comedian Matthew Crosby

Coming up in part 2 - debates and disagreements on the proposed site of structure, and we discuss some of the failed other pitches for the project…

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Email: [email protected]

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Please subscribe, leave a review, and spread the word if nostal...

Joining me today to discuss the infamous, and at times unexpected story of one of modern Britain’s greatest folly’s turned success stories - The Millennium Dome, is comedian Matthew Crosby

At the end of the twentieth century on the banks of the River Thames, an extraordinary structure rose from the rubble of an old industrial wasteland… The Millennium Dome.

Born under the Conservatives…

Embraced by Tony Blair's New Labour…

Promoted as a spectacular symbol of a new Britain...

But almost from the beginning, the Dome became a political...

Still to come in part 3 is the aftermath of the tiger attack - including conspiracy theories, lawsuits, and countless controversies as the legendary duo's dominance of the Las Vegas entertainment landscape comes to an end.

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Archive of Pop Culture is a Keep It Light Media Production

...

Welcome back to part 2… Coming up in this part we've got tiger attacks, lawsuits and conspiracy theories as the Siegfried and Roy juggernaut starts to derail at the height of their fame. But we kick things off with famous magic mistakes from history.

Enjoy!

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A ⁠⁠⁠⁠Keep It Light M...

Las Vegas - 1967…

Two young men from Germany, united by a love of magic, spectacle and one extraordinary obsession, arrive in Nevada with almost nothing to their name…

Siegfried and Roy - two showmen that were set to define magic and spectacle for the next five decades…

Every evening they transformed the impossible into entertainment...

Tigers appeared from nowhere.

White lions prowled across the stage.

And night after night, millions watched as two illusionists became global superstars.

But behind the sequins, the headlines and the roarin...

Welcome back to part 4 of the story of Mary Whitehouse, Video Nasties and the Censorship debate… the controversy surrounding the film 'Natural Born Killers' (1994)

And an amusing case of the BBFC getting some payback...

Thanks for listening. Back soon with the next series.

Archive of Pop Culture is a Keep It Light Media Production

Hosted by Josh Widdicombe

Research by - David Price

Additional editing by Will Fitzpatrick + James Sheldon

Design by John Gregory

Music by Pickle & Button

...

Welcome back to part 3 of the story of Mary Whitehouse, Video Nasties and the Censorship debate… in this episode we discuss infamous video nasties titles such as Cannibal Holocaust and I Spit on your grave. And the contoversial work of literature (at the time at least) Laddy Chatterley's Lover.

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

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Coming up in part 2 we discuss the formation of the BBFC (that’s the British Board of film classification to you and I) the birth of VHS…

And the Video Nasties craze hits boiling point as infamous titles such as ‘Driller Killer’, The Evil Dead and Cannibal Holocaust cause public outrage!

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Britain in the early 1980s. A nation gripped by fear.

Not of war. Not of crime.

But of what was lurking... on the video shelf.

Cheap horror films. Violent exploitation movies. Unregulated VHS tapes passed from hand to hand…

They became known by one unforgettable name...

...the Video Nasties.

At the centre of the storm stood one woman - Mary Whitehouse

To some she was a campaigner. A Champion. A moral crusader.

To others a puritanical, self-appointed moral guardian…

She argued Brit...

NEIGHBOURS - PART 4

A sun-drenched rival soap is launched over in Summer Bay - sadly they both go the way of the Dodo. But ultimately, what matters is the friends and neighbours we made along the way...

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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New episodes are releas...

NEIGHBOURS - PART 3

Scott and Charlene get married... what more is there to say.

Is this the biggest wedding of the decade?

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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New episodes are released twice weekly. Please subscribe, leave a review, and spread the word if nostalgic pop culture...

NEIGHBOURS - PART 2

We meet the iconic cast who made the show famous, and some bizarre celebrity cameos who have appeared over the years. And disocver the story behind the iconic theme music...

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Britain in the mid 1980’s is a nation caught between tradition and change.

Margaret Thatcher's government reshapes the economy…

Duran Duran and Wham! dominate the pop charts, while Live Aid unites the world through music.

And most importantly of all - daytime TV was about to change forever…

In 1985 - a quiet cul-de-sac in Melbourne, Australia, captured the world's imagination.

Ramsay Street wasn't just a fictional location. For millions of viewers, it quickly felt like home.

From pop superstars to Academy Award Winners - the show became a lege...

Welcome back to the final part of the insane story of the making of Apocalypse Now…

Can Francis Ford Coppola pull victory from the jaws of defeat as the film spirals over budget and out of control. Or will he, like Kurtz himself, end up destroyed by his mad journey to make the film….

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

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Welcome back to part 2 of the incredible story of the making of Apocalypse Now… in this episode we’ve got casting disasters, drink and drugs problems on set, and a civil war that repeatedly sends the helicopters AWOL whilst trying to film!!

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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<...

In the mid 1970’s America stood at a crossroads. The Vietnam War had recently ended, leaving deep social divisions and a crisis of trust in government after the Watergate scandal...

Alongside this, American cinema was re-inventing itself after the demise of the old Hollywood studio system…

A new breed of young, hungry and fearless filmmakers are forging a new path - Scorsese, Lucas, Spielberg, and the elder statesman of the group - Francis Ford Coppola…

Amongst this landscape, the visionary filmmaker - off the back of huge success with The Godfather and its sequel...

Spiderman: Turn off the Dark - Broadway's Biggest Musical Failure? (Part 4)

In the final part of this incredible story of the Spiderman Broadwy musical - Turn off the dark, we discover the true cost, both finanical and emotional, of the infamous show.

How did it measure up to other notorious Broadway bombs?

Was it really a failure? And if so, who was to blame?

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Archive of...

Spiderman: Turn off the Dark - Broadway's Biggest Musical Failure? (Part 3)

In this episode the Spiderman Broadway show is hit by casting issues, money issues, and theatre issues. Bascially, anything that can go wrong does. Will the show ever open? And at what cost?

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Spiderman: Turn off the Dark - Broadway's Biggest Musical Failure? (Part 2)

In this episode we discuss the genesis story of the band whose two members soundtrack the doomed musical - rock legends U2.

And we start to get a sense of the various egos orbiting the broadway show as it starts to take shape. You could say the warning signs were there from the start....

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

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Spiderman: Turn off the Dark - Broadway's Biggest Musical Failure? (Part 1)

Joining me today to discuss one of the most disastrous Broadway Musicals ever - Spiderman: Turn off the Dark - Is comedian and friend Suzi Ruffell

There are Broadway musicals that become legends…

…and then there are Broadway musicals that become infamous cautionary tales.

From the creators of The Lion King and the visionary minds of Bono and The Edge came a musical so ambitious… so expensive… so unbelievably cursed…

…it made critics beg for intermis...

EPISODE 3

Welcome back to the final part of the life and work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

If you thought the first two parts were a rollercoaster, incredibly his life story is about to take even more wild twists and turns!!!

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle faces a series of tragic life events, before he finds himself embroiled in multiple controversies and scandals surrounding clairvoyants, fake fossils and counterfeit photographs of fairies.

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopc...

EPISODE 2

Welcome back to part 2 of the story Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes...

Coming up in this episode - Sherlock Holmes is killed and resurrected by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle… and we discuss other instances where famous celebrities have solved crimes!

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Joining me to discuss the incredible life and work of perhaps my favourite author - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - and his most famous creation - Sherlock Holmes, is comedian and friend Tom Craine.

EPISODE 1

To the world, he was the architect of logic.

The man who brought us the deerstalker, the magnifying glass,

and the brilliance of 221B Baker Street.

But Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a man of startling contradictions...

A medical doctor and surgeon whose globe trotting career took him from the rugged whaling...

In this latest episode of Archive of Pop Culture we discuss and respond to all the brilliant emails, messages, corrections and suggestions that you, the wonderful AOPC community, have sent us.

Thanks to everyone for joining the AOPC fan club community and getting in touch with the show...

If you want to become a part of the Archive of Pop Culture Community you can join the fan club and support the show at;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Archive of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fan club.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you want to get in touch with the show...

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Episode 4:

In the final episode of this series,, you guessed it, more attmpted murder and inept criminal activity from the Chippendales gang. But will those involved finally get their comeuppance?

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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New episodes are released twice weekly. Please subscribe, leave a review, and sp...

Episode 3:

Coming up in this episode - incredibly there are ven more murder plots, blackmail, and police suspicions grow as the battle for the Chippendales empire takes even more sinister turns...

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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New episodes are released twice weekly. Please subscribe, leave a review...

Episode 2:

Back for part 2 of the unbelievable story of The Chippendales is comedian and friend Suzi Ruffell…

Coming up in this episode - there’s more murrder plots, and a hilarious Chippendales calendar misprint ends up costing those involved $700,000!

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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New...

Episode 1:

Joining me today to discuss the unbelievable story of The Chippendales is comedian and friend Suzi Ruffell…

Los Angeles in the late 1970’s…

A city of reinvention, excess… and opportunity.

In the wake of the sexual revolution, nightlife was shifting and the scene was ready for something different…

Enter the Chippendales.

What began as a small club scene soon became a global cultural phenomenon. Males dancers turning fantasy into a booming business across the United States in the 1980s.

But behind the spectacle...

Episode 4:

Welcome back to the final episode of the definitive story of ‘It’s a Royal Knockout’…

We discuss Royal divorces, toe sucking tabloid pics, the Princess Diana ‘squidgeygate’ scandal, and her infamous interview with Martin Bashir…

And Prince Andrew reflects on the legacy of the event as his reputation and business are left in tatters.

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Archive of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠fan club.⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you want to get in touch with the show...

E...

Episode 3:

Welcome back to part 3 of the story of the PR disaster that was ‘It’s a Royal Knockout’....

Coming up in this episode - we discuss the fall-out of the event one reviewer called;

“the single most damaging attack on the royal family since Cromwell…”

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Episode 2:

Coming up in this episode - we meet the celebrities taking part in the show, and discover the reasons why her majesty The Queen and Charles and Diana quite wisely give the event a wide berth!

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Archive of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠fan club.⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you want to get in touch with the show...

Email: [email protected]

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New episodes are released twice weekly...

Episode 1:

In the first episode of this series, Josh Widdicombe and comedian and friend Matthew Crosby discuss the incredible story of 'It's a Royal Knockout'

The year is 1987…

And in Britain, disaster is lurking at every turn…

The stock market crash…

The worst storm to hit Southern England in centuries…

And Margaret Thatcher winning a third term...

But none of them compare to what was arguably the worst PR mistake of the decade…

A TV show, produced by an inexperienced British Prince,

In this episode of Museum of Pop Culture we discuss and respond to all the brilliant emails, messages, corrections and suggestions that you, the wonderful MOPC community, have sent us.

Thanks to everyone for joining the MOPC fan club community and getting in touch with the show...

If you want to become a part of the Museum of Pop Culture Community you can join the fan club and support the show at;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Museum of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fan club.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you want to get in touch with the show...

Email: museumofpopcu...

Episode 4:

In the final episode of the story of East 17 the dream refuses to die as various incarnations of the band rise from the ashes. Will there be a happy ending?

And we also look at other classic pop band reformations from S-Club 7, to Bucks Fizz and the lesser known Boyz on the Block.

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Museum of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠fan club.⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you want to get in touch with the show...

Episode 3:

In the third episode of this series, Josh Widdicombe and comedian and friend Tom Craine discuss the incredible story of one of the biggest boy bands of the 90's - East 17.

Coming up in this episode - a controversial tabloid news story leads to the sacking of Brian Harvey, and soon after the whole band implodes as Tony leaves and the record label drops them.

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Museum of Pop Cultur...

Episode 2:

In the second episode of this series, Josh Widdicombe and comedian and friend Tom Craine discuss the incredible story of one of the biggest boy bands of the 90's - East 17.

Coming up in this episode - it’s the battle of the British boy bands as the rivalry with Take That heats up, and they release their career defining chart topper ‘Stay Another Day’

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Museum of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠...

Episode 1:

In the first episode of this series, Josh Widdicombe and comedian and friend Tom Craine discuss the incredible story of one of the biggest boy bands of the 90's - East 17.

This is the story of a group who defied the odds, topped the charts, and then imploded in spectacular style… this is the rise and fall of ‘East 17’

All episodes for this series are available to listen to now if you go to;

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://museumofpopculture.supportingcast.fm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

And join the Museum of Pop Culture ⁠⁠⁠⁠fan club.⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you want to...