Show Diary - 12 January 2026: Scott Mills returns with Robbie Williams

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Ellie’s Tin Whistle Chaos Reaches New Levels

Scott opened the show by teasing the big overnight development: “Something has happened overnight which involves Ellie learning the tin whistle for our Christmas party.” Ellie explained she’d been practising Fairytale of New York and posting it online, only to discover that “The Pogues have entered the chat… the actual ones.” Spider Stacy — the original tin whistle player — duetted her video: “I’m going to play along with you, see if I can give you a hand.”

Scott couldn’t believe it: “In what world do you say this on the radio and the next day Spider from The Pogues is on the tin whistle?” Ellie admitted the duet “made me panic actually” and added that she’d messaged Spider offering to be a “standby whistler.”

Scott immediately reassured listeners that this was peak Brennan: “It’s so very you. I love you for that.”

And then came the legendary moment — Scott realising his power: “Am I a tin whistle influencer?” Ellie confirmed: “You are.”

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The Jonas Brothers Christmas Film Has Taken Over Scott’s Life

Scott has become the nation’s most passionate advocate for the Jonas Brothers Christmas movie. He recapped the entire plot: “They get on the wrong train… the Jonas Brothers are not booking their own trains, but just go with the plot.”

He insisted the team watch it, prompting Georgia to mumble “tonight,” which Scott immediately exposed with “Yeah, sure, sure, sure.”

Ellie tried to explain the tin whistle/recorder difference to listeners: “The tin whistle is metal and twice the size.” Scott reminded everyone that she once opened for Will Smith in Scarborough — another moment that permanently lives in Scott Mills lore.

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Listeners Join the Tin Whistle Revolution

The tin-whistle-mania continued when listener Hen called to say she’d bought one purely because of the show:
“You bought one because of listening to this show?”
“Yeah, because it sounded so good.”

Scott’s reaction was instant: “What legacy. She’s a tin influencer.”

He declared the arrival of the Radio 2 Tin Whistle Choir, which is now apparently inevitable.

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Stacey Dooley’s Christmas Trees vs. Scott’s Influencer Era

Scott and Ellie revisited the now-annual tradition of dissecting Stacey Dooley’s extremely maximalist Christmas trees. Yesterday’s was already a lot; today she posted a second one, which Scott described as “giving Ghost… lot of netting.”

Then Stacey herself sent in a voice note:
“I think I’m the Heidi Klum of Christmas… I’ve lost all sight of reality. There is actually a third.”

Scott was delighted: “Love you, Dooley.”

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Ellie & Stefan Join Scott for Peak Breakfast Chaos

With Tina away at her daughter’s nativity (“she’s a snowflake”), Stefan took her place — and immediately told Scott that his own child’s nativity included playing a camel with “three humps.” Ellie reminded him: “The one I rode once had one hump… you stole one of my humps.”

The trio spent several minutes laughing about Welsh nativities, cheap camels, and moving house: “Moving house is stressful… then you throw your son’s nativity in there as well.”

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The Easiest Quiz: Absolute Carnage

Debbie from Wrexham played today’s quiz while multitasking:
“I can be heard shouting the answers while applying eyelash extensions.”

She described competing with her cocker spaniels in agility competitions, and Scott loved it: “It’s like Best In Show.”

Her score? A heroic three — earning the title of lowest of the week:
“That’s like having a good elimination in agility… I’ll take that.”

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Scott’s Listening Age & the Great ABBA Tradition

Scott revealed his “listening age” from music apps:
“Guess my age — 43. Top artist: Loreen. Again.”

Ellie planned to manipulate her new phone so she could appear 19. Stefan stunned them both with: “Mine’s 81.”

Scott’s verdict: no judgement allowed on Radio 2.

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Elder vs Millennial: The Christmas Special

A huge part of the show: Scott giving Ellie and Emilio a deep Christmas education from decades they never lived in.

Gala Pie

They tried to guess the retro dish with an egg running through the middle. Emilio thought it was meatloaf; Scott taught them it was the legendary “gala pie.”

Snowball Cocktails

Ellie guessed instantly: “My Auntie Sarah loves a snowball at Christmas.”
Scott described it as “fizzy custard.”

Tunis Cake

This became an entire storyline. Neither had seen it before:
“It looks like ganache vibes!”
Scott: “I remember the taste so well… absolutely delicious.”
And listeners later proved Tunis cake truthers are out there in droves.

The 1980s Christmas Present: SIMON

Scott gave them the 80s electronic game Simon.
Emilio: “Is it an electronic version of Simon Says?”
Scott: “One of the biggest-selling games of the 1980s.”
They became very competitive very quickly.

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Doctor Who Spin-Off Guests

When Scott brought in the guests for today’s huge segment — Russell T Davies, Russell Tovey, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw — it felt instantly like a reunion of friends rather than a formal press stop. RTD greeted Scott with:
“There’s one show he loves more than Doctor Who… it’s this one. It’s the quiz.”

He even confessed he now structures his day around the show:
“I changed my morning routine to be there for the quiz.”

Only Scott Mills could have the nation’s most famous showrunner sending live commentary about contestants’ scores.

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Russell T Davies: A Whovian Who Loves Scott Mills

RTD’s energy was pure fanboy. He spoke about the infamous 50-point quiz incident:
“We speak of nothing else in Quizland.”

He described texting Scott during episodes — the ultimate compliment from the man who revived Doctor Who. And when he explained the new series The War Between the Land and the Sea, he was honest, warm and clear:
“There’s no Doctor in it… it’s what happens when the Doctor’s not on Earth.”

He explained the concept with classic RTD flair:
“If you watch David Attenborough, he’d tell you we don’t know what lives in the sea. Now we’re about to discover what happens when the oceans fight back.”

He even gave fans an Easter egg:
“The original Sea Devils story from 1972 is being shown on BBC Four… and when that finishes, you turn over to BBC One at 8:30 to see the revenge of the Sea Devils.”

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Russell Tovey

Tovey wasn’t just plugging a new show — he was visibly moved describing the project. He explained his character, Barclay:
“A very regular guy… a single dad, a great dad… drifting in his life.”

And then the moment everything changes:
“He’s thrust into this position to be ambassador for the planet… he stands up for humanity.”

But the most emotional part came when he spoke about acting opposite Gugu:
“Acting with you as Salt… it was magic. You didn’t have to think too much — it was just in. So real.”

He actually had to pause, saying:
“I’m getting emotional now.”

This is exactly why listeners love Tovey — he’s always been open about what moves him, whether talking art, family or metal-detecting (which Scott teased him about because the research falsely suggested he still does it). He laughed:
“I fell asleep in a field. I don’t do it anymore.”

And then:
“But when I was a kid… I’d go off for hours with my dog, digging up Victorian machinery thinking it was Saxon.”

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Gugu Mbatha-Raw

Gugu arrived with her signature calm, elegant presence — and then described the most surreal transformation of her career. Her character, Salt, is the amphibious ambassador from the ocean civilisation:

“It probably took about three and a half hours to get ready.”
“She’s an amphibian… with scales and prosthetics.”

Scott was fascinated. She explained how challenging it was:
“All your usual habits — how you move, how you speak — you can’t rely on them. You have to learn how to move your face again.”

Tovey backed this up with the most beautiful compliment of the morning:
“When you first walked out on set… the room went silent. You had such poise, grace and reverence.”
“Every day felt like a privilege.”

Then came the Prince moment — iconic radio.
Scott offered her any Prince song. She went straight to emotion:
“Kiss. He opened with Kiss when he played the Belle after-party.”
“I became friends with him… You realise what true genius is.”

And on the show’s message, she was thoughtful and powerful:
“It’s about seeing people who seem alien to you — seeing their dignity, their humanity.”

The post 4 December 2025: Tin Whistle Chaos and Doctor Who stars take over first appeared on Unofficial Mills.

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