Kim Crossman and Guy Montgomery star in new 80s-themed show. Photos / TVNZ
Kim Crossman and Guy Montgomery star in new 80s-themed show. Photos / TVNZ
Kiwi funny man Guy Montgomery will take Kiwis back to the 80s for a much-needed time warp in his new series, Survive the 80s.
Those who did survive the decade will enjoy seeing a bunch of Gen Y and Z-ers compete in challenges that reflect the time. Makeovers with spiral perms, jazzercise classes, microwave cooking and no access to modern technology, are some of the challenges viewers can expect at the end of the month on TVNZ OnDemand.
Montgomery, who was born in 1988, finished filming the show just before the country went into lockdown. Los Angeles-based actress Kim Crossman is the contestants' guide and helps explain the pop culture of the 80s era via VHS tape.
Montgomery says his approach to the show was to simply have fun.
"I just tried to lay the platform for the contestants to have the best possible time they could. The challenges were so crazy and varied I wanted them to feel like they had a neutral supporter throughout the whole process."
Crossman was born in 1990 and despite not having first-hand memories, loved the chance to explore the decade she just missed.
Kim Crossman dons some shoulder pads for the 80s-themed show. Photo / TVNZ
Simon, the electronic memory game with four lights, was a particular revelation to Crossman, and she had a lot of fun with her bouffant curly hair, shoulder pads and 80s fashion.
"The Talking Heads immaculate album Speaking in Tongues was released five years before my birth in celebration," Montgomery says. "I remember that when I was born everyone was just totally blown away. The entire delivery room thought, 'whoa, this kid has something,' and they were wrong."
Both Montgomery and Crossman have spread their talents like margarine during Lockdown.
"Professionally, I've had a lot of live work wiped out because my job of being a comedian has been illegal," Montgomery says.
"Instead (and at the request of absolutely no one,) I've been podcasting a lot, mostly with my equally idiotic friend, Tim Batt. I've also started hosting Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee with some of my comedian friends every Monday on YouTube."
Crossman says lockdown is the first time in more than a decade she has been able to have some sort of routine.
"Not travelling every week has been great for my mental health and sleep. Who would have thought?"
And that routine has been beaming her across the Pacific with her quite fantastic daily Instagram interview show, for @neon_nz, Quarantea with Kim, (also on Neon) producing her equally fantastic podcast Pretty Depressed and guest starring on Three's virtual Dai's House Party.
"I am really enjoying working on impersonations and new characters for House Party. I spent about three days exclusively watching Ellen before I felt confident to impersonate her."
This week Crossman was quite real as Hannah Babes, a social media influencer.
She says lockdown gave her time to be brave enough to be bad at something new.
"I enrolled in the University of Edinburgh to take classes in animal welfare. I was nervous about the tests or the time commitment but I am loving it and so glad I made the jump and signed up."
