Encarta & Chill | A 90s Podcast

E37 | Mighty Morphin Power Rangers [ watchalong ]

It's Morphin time!
Before becoming the cultural phenomenon that was Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, an unhinged, unaired pilot episode (and pilot whale!) threatened to derail everything.
Welcome to a time when dinosaurs ruled the bowling alleys with their ableist slurs, a sky scraper (singular) had a mind of its own, and a stinky space witch set out to conquer earth... and some other neighbouring planet that is also there. Only four teenagers with attitude can save the day... and some grade-A nerd named Billy who is also there.
Join Tom and Tomek as they wheel out the TV/VCR combo for a watchalong of a piece of television that almost certainly should have stayed consigned to Zoltar’s gimp room.
Confused? You still will be by the end of this episode.

E36 | GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS

It's about time this incredibly manly podcast got in touch with its feminine side...
Following a brief hiatus (that was obviously spent chopping timber and branding cattle), Tom and Tom are back to talk Barbie, Baby-G and Britney.
Girl power rules in this episode that explores the parallels between the Ancient Egyptians and Billie Piper, why Polly Pockets are prime real estate, and drops a showbiz exclusive regarding a pop icon’s unbelievable power play on Pepsi.
And if that's not enough to get your pink convertible's motor running, a paper fortune teller makes a bold prediction for the podcast and Bliss magazine reveals Tomek's true style.

E35 | You've Got Mail III

The House of Lords is listening, Shigeru Miyamoto is stuck down a well, and EastEnders’ Ethel is Tottenham until she dies (quite literally)… and that’s before we even get to your correspondence!
WHO ruined a wedding with the help of Bart Simpson? WHAT makes losing at GoldenEye such an arousing prospect? WHY would anyone go fishing for dinosaurs? And HOW many decibels does a Magnum ice cream register?
All these questions - and more - will be answered in Encarta and Chill's third deep dive into the mailbag.

E34 | Books

Would you trust someone who took only a single bite out of each meal, wore a woolly hat to the beach, or shared a bed with their grandparents? Didn’t think so. Yet these were exactly the kind of deranged individuals children regularly welcomed into their imaginations in the ’90s.
In the latest chapter of Encarta and Chill, Tom and Tomek have their £1 tokens at the ready as they explore the bizarre world of books. Books that inspired. Books that made noises. Books that revealed the Glowacki family’s home address…
And just when Lou Bega and Sonic the Hedgehog’s cameos seemed incongruous - along comes a product-placing, bread-guzzling, copyright-infringing wizarding prodigy.
After all, having fun isn’t hard when you’ve got a library card!

E33 | Politics

Dr. Kasia Tee is in da house to hold Tomek and Tom's hand through the complex world of politics... but is Encarta and Chill really about to tackle the subjects of the Maastricht Treaty, Black Wednesday, and the rise of New Labour?
This was an era when ideology blurred, leadership waned, and quiet revolutions reshaped the political map forever… but who’s got time to dwell on that when Coco Pops have only gone and changed their bloody name?
Despite some spin that would leave Alastair Campbell reeling, even David Blunkett can see this is an episode about Lombard Direct masquerading as one about politics.

E32 | Little Chef

If you ever found yourself cruising down the A303 in the ’90s and looked up to see a portly fellow kitted out in a babygrow and neckerchief, you knew things were about to get wild.
Breakfast at 9pm. Pancakes endorsed by the Queen. Windows with a bovine view. What’s not to like? Quite a lot, according to the British public.
This week, Tom and Tomek raise a glass of “typical full-flavoured wine” to this fallen roadside behemoth - and discover its bulimic cousin, Happy Eater, is alive and well off the southeastern coast of East Africa!

E31 | Movie Soundtracks

As Arsène Wenger rears his head above the African savanna and dead-eyed zebras whinny themselves into submission before their newborn king, a new episode dawns on Encarta and Chill.
This week, movie music is under the spotlight - and it’s a damn bright one, because Val Kilmer is standing by with a pair of impossibly reflective lips. So be sure to don your sunglasses (and if you could put them on in unison à la Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, that’d be ideal).
The lions may look bad and the aliens even worse, but Batman demands that you pay this episode some serious lip service.

E30 | 90s Mystery Box

A mysterious package has arrived at Encarta and Chill HQ, and Melissa Joan Hart is beckoning the Toms to take a peek inside.
In this very special episode, a portal to the 1990s is torn wide open, revealing a Woolworths Pic 'n' Mix's worth of nostalgic goodies just waiting to be misremembered.
Hear the shocking tale of how a gooey alien duped emergency services, uncover the hidden subtext of Tots TV, and explore the rich (tea) backstory of the PG Tips chimps. There’s also plenty of reminiscing to be done about cress, party bags, and unnecessarily sexy rabbits.
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Check out Natstalgia1990s on Etsy to get your hands on your own Mystery Box.A massive thank you to Kieran Scully from Folkestone for sending this one our way!

E29 | School Trips

Sadly, most school buses can’t fly or transform into submarines - but they can always be relied upon to take you somewhere that sells a shark on a stick.
Join Tom and Tomek as they embark on a field trip to just about anywhere except the advertised subject matter.
Will there be mentions of the Natural History Museum, the Caribbean island of St. Lucia and 10 Downing Street? Possibly. Will there be meandering rambles about Furbies, naff birthday cards and 750-gram Toblerones? Guaranteed.

E28 | TV Ads [ insert disc 2 ]

Coco Pops have been scientifically proven to help hippos dive off boards and broker peace with aliens - but can they convince you to tune in to the 28th instalment of Encarta and Chill?
Tom and Tomek certainly hope so. After two episodes glued to the telly, they’ve saved the best for last… the adverts!
So grab yourself a pint o’ gravy, crack open a rice pudding and join them as they attempt to turn your milk chocolatey with a patience-testing deep dive into the greatest sporting comeback in the history of the Amazon rainforest.