I still love Gogglebox a year after quitting show – I’d come back for a celebrity special
PODCAST and social media star Joe Baggs has opened the door to a return to Gogglebox, a year after quitting the show.
The popular Baggs family had viewers in stitches every week with their hilarious television commentary before quitting the show for new experiences last summer.
Since then, Joe, 26, and brother George, 19, have seen their Not My Bagg podcast and YouTube show go from strength to strength and have been collaborating with major brands and celebrities.
When asked if he would be open to a return to Gogglebox, Joe told The Sun, “I would love to. If they had a celeb special or something like that and they’d let old cast members come back, I’ve always got a big place in my heart for them, but at the moment I just don’t think it fits with our brand and what we’re doing.”
The family’s time on the programme coincided with the coronavirus pandemic, which restricted them from meeting their fellow armchair critics.
“When we joined Covid, we didn’t actually meet many other families,” said Joe. “Prior to that, they used to meet once a year or whatever, so it was a weird one for us.”
So far, no Gogglebox alumni have appeared on Not My Bagg, which boasts past guests Mel C, N-Dubz, and Love Island duo Chloe Burrows and Millie Court.
But that could change later this year.
Joe said, “I’ve gotten friendly with Scarlett [Moffatt] and spoken to her at a couple of events. I spoke to her and her management about coming on the podcast, but she’s pregnant, and me and George love a drink [laughs].
“Hopefully later on in the year we can get her on, which would be great.”
The podcast often gets raucous as the drinks and jokes flow. Joe recently got more than he bargained for when he shared a boozy on-air kiss with Love Island pal Chloe.
The fun moment immediately sparked romance rumours online; however, Joe assured us it was all a bit of light-hearted fun.
He said, “That was so funny. We did have a laugh about that afterwards.
“I woke up the next morning, got the edit through, and was like, ‘Oh,’ [laughs]. I wonder how this is going to be perceived,’ and I think that [Instagram] story went out prior to the episode as well.
“It was a story I put up just joking around, and sometimes I forget. I still treat Instagram like I would have when I was in school. So I still post stories, and sometimes I’m like, ‘Oh wait’, and I kind of forget. But we had a good laugh about it, and it’s funny how it did spiral.”
Joe took the speculation in stride and was amused to see his little brother roped into the madness too, along with Chloe’s best pal and fellow islander Millie.
He continued: “Now there are rumours that my brother George and Millie are a thing, so there’s this weird double date situation going on. They’re really good friends of ours. I love them two.”
The podcast, which began as a passion project that let the siblings share their interests with fans in a fun and friendly setting, has garnered huge success and now boasts 58,000 subscribers on YouTube.
Joe said, “I never thought we’d be able to book the guests we did. Having Mel C on episode three was just crazy, to be honest. The people we’ve interviewed are pretty mind-blowing.”
Sporty Spice was an early feather in the cap for the boys. She decided to take part after Joe hit it off with her at Capital’s Summertime Ball.
As fortune would have it, Mel had a book to promote at the time, and a subsequent direct message on Instagram was all it took to get her on board.
Despite being a genuine media sensation, having teamed up for projects with Will.i.Am, Rita Ora, and now social media app TikTok ahead of Eurovision, Joe said he still gets imposter syndrome.
But that hasn’t stopped him from aiming high, and he’d love for pop princess Cheryl to be a guest in the future.
He said, “I love pop music and pop culture. Someone I’ve always wanted to meet and interview is Cheryl. She’s a dream guest of mine. Who knows? Maybe one day. She definitely has that sort of vibe. I was a massive Girls Aloud fan.”
This week, the Bagg boys have been on the road ahead of tonight’s Eurovision Song Contest final.
They’ve been making live podcast episodes in the run-up to the spectacle in Liverpool.
Joe explained: “From Tuesday to Thursday, we interviewed fellow creators. We interviewed Mae Muller and Sam Ryder and brought our podcast on the road, which was really fun.
“I love Eurovision anyway, and over the last couple of years, from entering this industry and meeting Sam and Mae, I’m into it a lot more now than in recent years.”
And Joe has his fingers crossed that Mae and her breakup banger, I Wrote A Song,” will top the leaderboard tonight.
He said, “I really want her to win, and I do think the song’s great. It’s difficult because there’s always strong competition. We’ll have to wait and see, but I’d love her to get the top spot.”