The Wiggles

1988–1991: Background Anthony Field and Jeff Fatt were members of the Cockroaches, a Sydney pop band known for their "good-time R&B material" and several singles recorded by independent labels during the 1980s. In 1988, Field's infant niece, who was the daughter of Cockroaches founder and band member Paul Field, died of SIDS, causing the group to disband. Anthony Field enrolled at Macquarie University in Sydney to complete his degree in early childhood education, and later stated that his niece's death "ultimately led to the formation of [the] Wiggles". Greg Page, who had been a roadie for and sang with the Cockroaches during their final years, had enrolled in Macquarie to study early childhood education on Field's recommendation. Field, Cook, and Page were among approximately 10 men in a program with 200 students. In 1991, while still a student, Field became motivated to use concepts in the field of early childhood education to record an album of music for children. The group received songwriting help from John Field, Anthony's brother and former bandmate, and from Phillip Wilcher, who was working with the early childhood music program at Macquarie. After contributing to their first album, hosting the group's first recording sessions in his Sydney home, and appearing in a couple of the group's first videos, Wilcher left the group and went into classical music. The group reworked a few Cockroaches tunes to better fit the genre of children's music; for example, the Cockroaches song "Hot Tamale", written by John Field, was changed to "Hot Potato". Anthony Field gave copies of their album to his young students to test out the effect of the group's music on children; one mother returned it the next day because her child would not stop listening to it. To promote their first album, the Wiggles filmed two music videos with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and created a self-produced, forty-minute-long video version. Finances were limited, so there was no post-production editing of the video project. They used Field's nieces and nephews as additional cast, and hired the band's girlfriends to perform in character costumes. Cook's wife made their first costumes. They performed at pre-schools with other ABC children's performers; As Fatt reported, "it was very much a cottage industry". Anthony Field, with input from the other members, led most of the production of their music, home video releases, and live shows. Their act was later augmented with supporting characters: the "friendly pirate" Captain Feathersword and the costumed characters Dorothy the Dinosaur, Henry the Octopus, and Wags the Dog. These characters were initially performed by the band members themselves: Field played Captain Feathersword and Wags; Cook played Dorothy; and Fatt played Henry. In 1993, actor Paul Paddick permanently joined the group to play Captain Feathersword; he later became known as "the fifth Wiggle" and was as popular as the regular bandmembers. At first, the group travelled with a small group of dancers hired from a local dance studio to perform with them. After the production of their second album, the Wiggles, who were called by their first names when they performed, began to wear costumes on stage as Fabinyi suggested and as the Cockroaches had done, and adopted colour-coded shirts: Page in yellow, Cook in red, Fatt in purple, and Field in blue. The coloured shirts also made it easier for their young audience to identify them. They produced a new album and video each year and toured to promote them. By late 1993, they "grew bigger than anyone had thought", and hundreds attended their concerts; by 1995 they had set records for music and video sales. In 1997, Twentieth Century Fox produced a feature-length film, The Wiggles Movie, which became the fifth-highest grossing Australian film of 1998, earning over a million-and-a-half dollars. In spite of their early success in Australia, Paul Field reported that the band was unable to produce a television program on the ABC, where they felt they would receive the most exposure to the pre-school market. "Around 1996–1997", Their audiences began to increase, and they toured Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, the US, and the UK. The Wiggles' popularity in the US increased "in the shell-shocked weeks after the terrorist attacks on New York City in 2001", In January 2002, Disney began showing Wiggles video clips between their programs. By June of that year, the popularity of the clips prompted Disney Channel to add both of the Wiggles' television series to their schedule and showed full episodes multiple times per day. Anthony Field reported that despite their "modest production values", the shows were popular with pre-schoolers. Beginning in 2002, the Wiggles filmed four series worth of television programs exclusively with the ABC. The network called them "the most successful property that the ABC has represented in the pre-school genre". in 2004 (seated from left to right: Greg Page, Jeff Fatt, Murray Cook, and Anthony Field) Despite their success, Anthony Field almost left the group in 2004, shortly after his marriage and the birth of his first child, due to his serious medical issues, which were worsened by the Wiggles' demanding tour schedule. After meeting chiropractor James Stoxen in Chicago, Field improved his health to the point that he was able to continue. He began to hire teams of chiropractors for himself, his fellow bandmembers, and cast members in every city they performed, which he credited with making it possible for them to fulfill their touring requirements. 2005–2006: Page's retirement In December 2005, lead singer Page, at age 33, underwent a double hernia operation. He withdrew from the Wiggles' US tour in August 2006, after suffering fainting spells, lethargy, nausea, and loss of balance. He returned to Australia, where doctors diagnosed his condition as orthostatic intolerance, a chronic but not life-threatening condition. Page's final performance with the Wiggles was in Kingston, Rhode Island. On 30 November 2006, the Wiggles announced Page's retirement from the group. In a video message posted on the group's web page, Page was replaced by Sam Moran, who had served as an understudy for the Wiggles for five years and had already stood in for Page for 150 shows. Initially, the Wiggles struggled over their decision to replace Page, but after their audience's positive response to Moran, they decided to continue as a group because they thought that was what their young audience would want. Moran said that "most children understood". Fatt characterised Moran's singing style as more operatic, so they chose different keys to sing and perform. The Wiggles never publicly disclosed how much Moran was paid, but it was reported that he earned $200,000 per year. Moran was featured in his first album and video as a member of the group in early 2007, and a new series of the Wiggles' television program featuring Moran was filmed and began airing in Australia. At the end of 2007, the Wiggles donated their complete back catalogue of 27 master tapes to Australia's National Film and Sound Archive. Their business ventures during these years included opening up "Wiggles World" sections in theme parks in North America and the Arab World, internet offerings, the creation of new television shows, In December 2010, Cinemalive beamed a Wiggles concert live from Acer Arena into movie theatres all over Australia, for children and their families unable to attend their shows. He missed the group's US tour as a result, after not missing a show in 20 years. birthday-themed tour of 90 shows throughout Australia, which Paul Field called "one of the biggest of their careers". In 2011, the worldwide financial crisis hit the group, and they recorded their first drop in revenues in 10 years, at approximately $2.5 million, a total decrease of 28 percent. 2012: Reunion with Page and departure of Cook, Fatt and Page In January 2012, and amidst a great deal of controversy, the Wiggles announced that Page had regained his health and was returning to the group in the place of Moran. He returned as an employee "exactly on the same level as [Moran]", rather than a co-owner, having relinquished his business interest in the group after he left in 2006. Cook later admitted that they were shocked by the backlash in the press and among the parents of their audience. Anthony Field remained in the group because he found it too difficult to give up and because he still had a passion for educating children. Gillespie, Pryce and Watkins wore "in training" T-shirts, and debuted the song "Do the Propeller" during these concerts. The final televised performance of the original band members, along with the new members, was on 22 December 2012, during the annual Carols in the Domain in Sydney. Their final performance, after over 7000 shows over the years, was on 23 December at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. Also by 2012, the Wiggles performed to audiences whose parents attended their shows in their early years, and they were hiring performers who were part of their audience as young children. 2013–2021: "New Wiggles" era , Emma Watkins, and Lachlan Gillespie The new iteration of the Wiggles, with Field and its new members, began touring in early 2013. Cook became the group's road manager in mid-2013. After a seven-year absence from Australian television, they filmed a new television series, called Ready, Steady, Wiggle!, in their spare time at their studio in Sydney between tours and on the road. Field admitted that they found it "hard going" until they returned to television. By 2014, however, the Wiggles found success with their new line-up, when they doubled their concert ticket sales from the year before, and won the 2014 ARIA Award for Best Children's Album with Apples & Bananas. McCabe credited their success to Watkins, who became the group's stand-out member. She was so popular that a new television series, Emma!, featuring Watkins as a solo performer, was produced in 2015. Anthony Field compared Watkins to Elvis Presley, They were married in April 2016, but made public their separation in August 2018. At first, the members of the new group were salaried employees, but in 2020, Peter Ker of The Australian Financial Review reported that Watkins and Gillespie had each acquired approximately 8% of the company and were given directorships in June 2018; Pryce was the only member who did not have equity in the business. Ker also reported that Anthony Field owned 36%, while Fatt and Cook each owned 24% of the business. The original line-up performed reunion charity concerts on 17 and 18 January 2020 to raise funds for the Australian bush fires with proceeds going to the Australian Red Cross and the WIRES Wildlife Rescue Service. Onstage on 17 January, Page suffered a cardiac arrest; he stopped breathing and required CPR and three jolts from a defibrillator. Page was discharged from hospital the following week. In March 2021, the Wiggles performed on Triple J's Like a Version segment. Cook and Fatt returned alongside Field, Gillespie, Pryce and Watkins to cover Tame Impala's "Elephant" which they interspersed with "Fruit Salad"; the cover reached 1 on the annual Triple J Hottest 100 poll for 2021. This was the first cover to top the chart, as well as the first time a children's act had led the ranking. 2021–present: Expanded line-up The Wiggles commemorated their 30th anniversary in January 2021 with a song entitled "We're All Fruit Salad!", containing lyrics centred around unity and acceptance, and featuring guest performers of different cultural backgrounds, after Field expressed a desire to include more diversity in the band. In August 2021, four new members were added to the Wiggles, with the aim of embracing cultural and gender diversity, and better reflecting contemporary society. Watkins announced her departure from the group in October 2021 and was replaced by Hawkins in the primary line-up; she became the band's first woman of colour. followed by a national Australian concert tour in early 2022. Field's daughter, Lucia Field, debuted as a member in July 2022, wearing blue like her father; by this point, the group had transitioned to an equal eight-piece line-up. The group made their first appearance on the cover of the Australian edition of Rolling Stone magazine in September, before making history as the first band in Australia to perform two arena tours in one year. A new instalment of the Ready, Steady, Wiggle! television series, the first to feature the expanded line-up, premiered in March 2023; additional series premiered in 2023 and 2024. Wiggle and Learn, a new web educational series titled, was first made available on YouTube in February 2024, with further episodes released every two weeks throughout the year. A corresponding album, Wiggle and Learn: 100 Educational Songs for Children, was released in August 2024 as the group's 100th album release. The original line-up continued to perform occasionally during this period. Cook, Fatt, Anthony Field and Page performed an adults-only reunion tour at arenas around Australia in early 2022. They also made contributions to the 2022 tribute album ReWiggled, which debuted at 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart and became the group's first number-one album in Australia. ReWiggled was named Best Children's Album at the 2022 ARIA Awards, where the Wiggles were presented with the award for Best Australian Live Act, for their dual tour featuring the group's regular and original members. Members of the original group (minus Cook) were brought on stage by the Kid Laroi for a three-song cameo during his Melbourne concert in June 2022. The original quartet also performed at Falls Festival across Australia in late 2022 and early 2023. A documentary detailing the group's history, entitled Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles, premiered in October 2023 on Amazon Prime Video. On 17 February 2026, the group announced a new worldwide distribution deal with Universal Music Group to expand their music and the brand globally. Under the new deal, Universal Music Australia will take over from ABC Music as the band's official music partner and distributor, while Republic Records will handle distribution in the United States. ==Musical style==

The Wiggles have written new music each year since their inception; they sequestered themselves for a month each summer and wrote three albums' worth of original children's music based on simple concepts familiar to young children, and using several genres of music and types of instruments. Fatt, the only member of the original group without a degree in early childhood education, tended to focus on composing music. John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival, who appeared in a Wiggles video in 2004, told The New York Times that he was "very impressed" with the group's songwriting, especially with their drum sound. Moran stated that the Wiggles wrote songs they liked and would listen to, and then made them appropriate for children. They approached simple and relocatable topics, such as food and nutrition, as teachers would in a pre-school setting, with simple melodies that were easy for children to sing and remember. The group sang the same 60s-style pop as the Cockroaches, but with different lyrics, although they were not confined to songs about love and could write about anything that interested and excited young children, which was limitless. The music they chose to write and perform was influenced by nursery rhymes, folk music, and rock songs of the 1950s and 1960s. Page reported, "First and foremost, we're entertainers". The Wiggles captured the interest of children by first entertaining them, and then by presenting them with educational messages. The group wrote and performed children's music that was different from what had been done previously; as Cook stated, "we didn't just go down the route of what people think is kids' music". They were not tied to one style or genre of music and often experimented in the studio; while some of their recordings were orchestral, others had a more live feel. The group were aware that their songs were often children's first exposure to music. Guitar Magazine speculated that since Cook was one of the first guitarists children were exposed to, he may be the most influential guitarist in the world. Cook was conscious that he was probably the first guitarist children would see and appreciated the opportunity to inspire children to learn to play guitar later. In 2013, after Cook retired from touring with the group and became their touring manager, he reported that newer bands like Regular John approached him and said that the Wiggles were the first band "they got into". ==Educational theory==

The Wiggles' songwriting and performances were rooted in their professional training as pre-school teachers and in the concepts of early childhood education. Pryce, as an experienced stage performer, was conscious that their shows were the first live theatre young children experienced; as a result, the group adapted the content of their shows to accommodate their audience's development and understanding. Simple movements were developed by their choreographers, including Leeanne Ashley, to accompany each song because, as The New York Times reported, they believed "in the power of basic movements to enchant young children". In later years, corresponding with Field's developing interests in acrobatics and gymnastics, they added these elements to their stage shows, including, as Field reported, hiring several world-class athletes such as former trampoline champion Karl Shore. Watkins, whom Paul Field called "a dancer of many disciplines", was initially hired as a member of their troupe and referred to herself as "mainly a dancer". Between 1999 and 2003, to test the group's appeal across cultures, Warren used one of the Wiggles' CDs as an educational tool in a village near Madang, on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. She found that the Madangese children were able to relate to the group's songs, and that they were able to sing along and participate in their simple choreography. Although the Wiggles' recorded and performed songs, dances, and musical styles from different cultures and languages, the Wiggles did not find that adapting their music to non-Australian cultures was necessary to reach children in other countries. The Wiggles recognised that as long as they spoke at the same level as their audience, their Australian accents would not matter, and that young children were able to adapt to a variety of contexts and to different pronunciations of common words, no matter where they resided. ==Brand and finances==

Throughout the group's history, the members and management have retained full creative control and ownership of every aspect of their business in an effort to remain as independent as possible. As Field stated, the band's corporation was "not your regular 'corporate culture'. The group does not have a chief executive, instead making decisions through consensus and made business decisions based upon their experience as performers and their knowledge of early childhood education. Endorsements of toys and other products are made carefully and only with products that correlated with their image. It was reported that as part owner of the Wiggles, Page was given a A$20 million payout when he left the group in 2006; he officially ceased to be a company shareholder in 2008. Paul Field departed as the company's general manager in March 2020, in the midst of a period of "organisational change". ==Reception==

The Wiggles have enjoyed "almost universal approval" throughout their history. as well as certified Gold in the US. The original group performed, on average, to one million people per year. The Wiggles' music has also received over one billion streams on digital services. In 2008, the group found themselves in the midst of what The Daily Telegraph called a "ticketing scandal"; The Wiggles were awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Australian Catholic University in 2006. Cook gave an address during the private ceremony honouring them. The group were named UNICEF goodwill ambassadors in 2008; they held a special concert to raise money for the organisation. In 2010, the four original members of the Wiggles were appointed Members of the Order of Australia for their service to the arts in Australia, especially children's entertainment, and for their contributions and support of several charities. They called the honour their "biggest recognition yet". The group has always invited children with special needs and their families to pre-concert "meet and greet" sessions. Controversies In 2020, a song released six years earlier titled Pappadum received significant backlash for its portrayal of Indian culture. The song's lyrics are the word pappadum repeated over and over again, and the accompanying music video sees the Wiggles dancing in traditional Indian style whilst wearing sarees, dhotis and waving pappadums about. Member Anthony Field, who wrote the song, issued an apology stating that he wrote it as a celebration of Indian culture. The song has since been removed from live concerts. In 2021, Australian senator Matt Canavan of the National Party accused the Wiggles of going "woke", following the group's introduction of several new ethnically diverse members. Canavan stated that "the Wiggles are free to do what they like. It was nice while it lasted. But you go woke, you go broke". His comments were largely criticised by fans welcoming the changes. In 2023, the Australian city of Bunbury, Western Australia played the song Hot Potato on loop to deter homeless people from congregating at a popular outdoor shelter area. In a statement, the Wiggles said they were "deeply disappointed" to hear that their music was being used for this purpose. The city subsequently turned off the song. ==Members==

Current members • Anthony Field – Blue Wiggle (1991–present) • Lachlan Gillespie – Purple Wiggle (2013–present) • Simon Pryce – Red Wiggle (2013–present) • Tsehay Hawkins – Yellow Wiggle (2021–present), Red Wiggle (2021) • Evie Ferris – Yellow Wiggle (2022–present), Blue Wiggle (2021–2022) • John Pearce – Purple Wiggle (2021–present) • Caterina Mete – Red Wiggle (2022–present) • Lucia Field – Blue Wiggle (2022–present) Former members • Murray Cook – Red Wiggle (1991–2012) • Jeff Fatt – Purple Wiggle (1991–2012) • Greg Page – Yellow Wiggle (1991–2006, 2012) • Phillip Wilcher (1991–1992) • Sam Moran – Yellow Wiggle (2006–2012) • Emma Watkins – Yellow Wiggle (2013–2021) • Kelly Hamilton – Yellow Wiggle (2021–2022) ==Discography==

Studio albums • The Wiggles (1991) • Here Comes a Song (1992) • Stories and Songs: The Adventures of Captain Feathersword the Friendly Pirate (1993) • Yummy Yummy (1994) • Big Red Car (1995) • Wake Up Jeff! (1996) • Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas (1996) • The Wiggles Movie Soundtrack (1997) • Toot Toot! (1998) • ''It's a Wiggly Wiggly World'' (2000) • Wiggle Time! (2000) • Yule Be Wiggling (2000) • ''Hoop Dee Doo: It's a Wiggly Party'' (2001) • Wiggly Safari (2002) • Wiggle Bay (2002) • Go to Sleep Jeff! (2003) • Whoo Hoo! Wiggly Gremlins! (2003) • Top of the Tots (2003) • Cold Spaghetti Western (2004) • ''Santa's Rockin'!'' (2004) • Sailing Around the World (2005) • Here Comes the Big Red Car (2006) • ''It's Time to Wake Up Jeff!'' (2006) • Splish Splash Big Red Boat (2006) • Racing to the Rainbow (2006) • Getting Strong! (2007) • Pop Go the Wiggles! (2007) • You Make Me Feel Like Dancing (2008) • Sing a Song of Wiggles (2008) • Go Bananas! (2009) • ''Hot Poppin' Popcorn'' (2009) • ''Let's Eat'' (2010) • Ukulele Baby! (2011) • ''It's Always Christmas with You!'' (2011) • Surfer Jeff (2012) • Taking Off! (2013) • Furry Tales (2013) • Pumpkin Face (2013) • Go Santa Go! (2013) • Apples & Bananas (2014) • Wiggle House (2014) • Rock & Roll Preschool (2015) • Meet the Orchestra! (2015) • Wiggle Town! (2016) • Carnival of the Animals (2016) • Dance Dance! (2016) • Nursery Rhymes (2017) • Duets (2017) • Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas! (2017) • Nursery Rhymes 2 (2018) • Wiggle Pop! (2018) • Big Ballet Day! (2019) • Party Time! (2019) • Fun and Games (2020) • Choo Choo Trains, Propeller Planes & Toot Toot Chugga Chugga Big Red Car! (2020) • Lullabies with Love (2021) • Halloween Party (2021) • Super Wiggles (2022) • Ready, Steady, Wiggle! (2023) • The Sound of Halloween (2023) • The Sound of Christmas (2023) • Wiggle and Learn: 100 Educational Songs for Children (2024) • Wiggle Up, Giddy Up! (2025) • ''Hello, We're the Wiggles'' (2026) ==Awards and nominations==