Being born in the 80's does strange things to you. It makes you tolerant of big hair and a little too fond of skinny jeans. But it also means that from 1992-94, I was the perfect demographic for a little show called Kideo.
Sure, I liked other shows more, but there was something about the daily half-hour variety show, filled with talking donkeys and worm sock puppets, that became familiar and comforting to me.
The show was packaged with neat life lessons all wrapped up in light slapstick and catchy ditties, and the continuing adventures of the worms, Strawberry Juice and Grape Juice, made it funny too.
For two whole years, a sweet brunette named Natasha Sutherland duetted with the donkey, tickled the worms’ chins, playfully scolded them when they were naughty, and sang sweet songs to me, and thousands of other kids, all across the land. She became a playful aunt who was always kind, and in her own way, became a part of my childhood.
Now, almost 20 years later, and the girl who sang silly songs to me as a child, grew up and married Steve Hofmeyr. She had two children with him, Sebastian and Benjamin, before the marriage fell apart, causing her to re-evaluate her life, and emerge a successful producer, author and motivational speaker.
I called her at her home in Johannesburg (she was born in Durban, though) for a chat about her new book, Fairytale - A Quest for Muchness. Of course, the first thing I tell her is what a big fan I am, and how much I loved Kideo.
She literally squeals with delight: “That is so cool. I could get a Nobel Peace prize and I swear people would still associate me with Kideo! It always feels really good to hear that, but then I feel old too.”
I ask what she takes from it, the whole Kideo experience, when she looks back at it. “It was an amazing baptism of fire into the television industry for me. I was in theatre before that, and I moved to Joburg to get started in TV. I remember driving to Joburg, and auditioning for Kideo on the same day, and then getting the part on the same day too. It was crazy!
"We were doing three to four episodes a day, and back then, we didn’t have autocue - you had to memorise everything, so it got quite mad at times. But I learnt quickly and I learnt a lot, it was hard work and I am so proud of it.”
Of course, there are things she doesn’t miss quite as much: “I was also the voice of Grape Juice,” she says, surprising me silly. “But you were in the same shot as Grapejuice, a lot!” I say. “Yes, we used multi cams,” she explains, “but it was still me talking to myself a lot, which, I’m certain, is where all my psychological problems started”.
At this point, I apologise for going on and on about Kideo, but she doesn’t seem to mind too much. I ask her if she has gotten used to people identifying her as “that girl from Kideo”, or perhaps as a soapie star, or even more unavoidably, as the ex Mrs Steve Hofmeyr.
“We do what we do,” she says, philosophically. “I mean, I can’t shout at the world for needing to label things. One grows,” she says, pausing at her own words, “… you absorb all the different labels - ‘scorned wife’, ‘TV star’ - each could work against you, but you can also mould it, make it work for you.”
She doesn’t need to say it, because her life already reflects it - but that’s exactly what Natasha did do; she seized the moment. “You know, if you told me four or five years ago that I would be a motivational speaker, I would have laughed. Give me a role, and I can hide myself in it, but face myself? That terrified me.
"This whole thing came out of the collapse of my marriage. I could have hid in the humiliation, forever if I wanted to. But I could also be humble and use the opportunity. Something about my story resonates with women. It started with a column (called Ten Spyte Van, for Finesse magazine) where I talked about having to restart, and it just went viral. People were saying that I helped them, that they didn’t feel so alone.
"I’ve always felt like an outsider,” she says, pausing. “I was never part of the clique. And I was scared and nervous writing, but then I got thousands of letters from so many people thanking me and saying I helped, that I sounded like them - it was the most incredible moment for me.”
Once Natasha got to writing, she couldn’t stop. After her column came her first book, Bittersweet - a thoughtful take on life after relationships. The book has so far sold over 30 000 copies, breaking its print order within its first month.
Her next book, written with her mother, was called Green and Blue, and is a children’s book that gently explains parental separation and custody. “It really centres on my two boys,” she says.
“It’s about what can get lost in the crossfire of two fighting parents; a reminder that it doesn’t matter that the parents are fighting, children should still be allowed to love and express that love, and not have us taking our frustrations out on them.”
It is evident how close the book is to her life. The cover image shows a child’s back to us, facing two different houses, one with a label that says “Dad’s Pad”. Not quite the stuff your average children’s books are made of.
As our chat draws to a close, I wonder if she’d like to return to acting?
“I actually would love to. The industry is a little hiccuppy, but I also want to trust myself. If I feel this (motivational speaking) is what I need to do, then that’s what I will do.”
Before I say goodbye, I have to ask one last Kideo question: so, did Grape Juice ever get Strawberry Juice in the end?
She laughs heartily and says: “Of course! And they took Orange Juice along with them. Are you happy now?”
We laugh, but yes, I am.
Ends