After stepping off the CBeebies stage at the Summer in the City event in Salford, we managed to get an exclusive interview with the one and only Rastamouse...

How was that for you Rastamouse?

Dat was a wicked gig an' dem likkle ones out dere got into da groove fi sure.

How does the crowd up here in Salford compare with back home in Mouseland?

Mi nah sure dem eat as many cheese pies wid Bandulu's special hot sauce up here but wherever Da Easy Crew play we always feel dem positive vibes!

Did you manage to catch anyone else's set? What was your highlight?

Da Zingzillas were bustin' some crucial moves out dere an' meetin' up wid Alex an' Cerrie is always a lot ah fun. Da highlight... Mmm... seein' dem likkle ones laughin, looking irie an' dancin' free.

We're looking forward to seeing you back on CBeebies - you've got a new series starting soon haven't you?

Dere's some wicked new adventures startin' on da channel on da 20th August.

Can you tell us anything about the adventures you and the Easy Crew will be getting up to?

Dere's been some intriguin' mysteries goin' down recently, like da reason Aunt Janessa lost her voice, Wensley's missin' golf ball an' a wicked trip to da moon. Da Prez say it really does look like cheese!

We hear Mouseland has a new radio show - is that right?

Lil Patch is broadcastin' loud an direc' on CBeebies radio wid her boombastic new show on For Real FM. She's been playin' some bangin' choons, interviewin' special guests an' gettin' listeners ta tek part in her wicked quiz 'ten second ah ting'.

Were any athletes from Mouseland at the Olympics? If so, how did they do?

Mi tink 2012 was da year fi Bolt, Blake an' Wier but da President is chattin' wid Shorty 'bout mekin an impact in Rio. See ya dere!

How about for those little ones who like learning on the computer - are there any games to play with you and the Easy Crew on the CBeebies website?

Dere's some bare talented people workin' at da BBC an' dem's been helpin' put togedda a wicked dance game an' dere's gonna be a crucial new picture maker on da website real soon.

What would be your advice to any young ones starting out in music?

Play what ya love cos dat way ya keepin' it real an' havin' fun at da same time. An' remember practice meks perfec'.

Can you tell us a bit about 'Making a bad ting good' - why is it so important to you?

Nuff nuff people see a bad ting an' feel it should stay dat way den complain 'bout how bad it is. But we know a bad ting can turn into someting good wid love, care an' understandin'.

Hi everyone!

I wanted to give you a sneaky peek behind the scenes of the new Birthday Song shoot we filmed in Manchester a few weeks ago!

Obviously we can’t have a party without recording an awesome tune to dance to so here’s a photo of me doing my best to hit the high notes in the sound session (well… if I’m honest, Katy did the high notes, thanks Katy!)

The old Birthday Song is officially very, very old and though we love to sing-along, we wanted to have a song that really got our bottoms wiggling, our arms waving and made everyone feel like we were at a great big CBeebies Birthday party together!

In fact, that’s exactly how the shoot felt! We had 18 children at that party, ages 1 to 7!

Everyone came along in their very best party gear, check out these sunglasses…

The room was decorated with CBeebies Bug balloons, CBeebies’ characters, streamers and beautifully decorated boxes which the children were sorely tempted to rip open!

…So was I if I’m honest! Katy and I had the fun job of surprising everyone by jumping out of a HUGE giftbox!

I hope you have lots of fun singing and dancing to the new Birthday Song, we had a ball making it… and now that I can’t stop singing it - every day’s a birthday day!

 

Guest Blogger Tim Atkinson writes:

In common with most parents, I'm a big CBeebies fan. Of course, I only watch it when the children ask. And I never, ever end up watching on my own when they've gone off and started doing something else. Oh no.
 
Nor do I suggest it to them. 'Shall we watch CBeebies?' I don't say. I don't know when Justin's House is on or when Show me, Show me is about to start. And I've never, ever won the 'watch too much CBeebies' Friday quiz on the Facebook page. Never been close, even. Ever.
 
It's not what dads do, after all. Dad's go out kicking balls in the park; dads teach their kids to jump in puddles, climb trees, ride bikes. Dads are out at work all day and come home in time to give the kids a bath and read them a bedtime story.
 
Well, not this one. But since giving up full-time work three years ago to become a stay-at-home dad I've had my fair share of prejudice to overcome. Mums are usually fine, once the novelty of a man at the mother and toddler group has worn off. And most dads I speak to start by saying things like 'I could never do what you do' but end by telling me they wish they could spend more time with their children.
 
No. The prejudice, the expectation, the assumption that it's mum at home with the little ones most often comes from official sources. A recent hospital admission was complicated because they could find no employment category suitable for me. 'I'll put you down as household management' said the receptionist, eventually.

Things got so bad I had to write some books (including one for dads) just so I could call myself an author! Because in spite of all our expectations of equality, being a stay-at-home dad still makes me something of a curiosity.
 
And yet, figures suggest that there has been a huge rise in dads taking on what was traditionally a mum's role. There are ten times as many of us as there were a decade ago and the latest figures suggest that as many as 1.4 million men are now primary carers for their children. That's one in seven families.
 
Some of us blog about it, too. Although mummy blogging is much bigger, the number of dads sharing their thoughts and feelings online is growing. As one of them, I'm always on the lookout for new blogs and I'm an avid reader of the CBeebie's Grown-Ups blog. Part of the attraction of such sites is discovering new links, so imagine my disappointment on seeing that the CBeebie's blog linked only to mums. No, not exclusively mums - there was a grandma too. Just no dads.
 
I fired off an email and - to my surpise and the Beeb's credit - they got back in touch acknowledging the problem and asking for a few suggestions, which I was happy to provide.
 
And I'm now delighted to see that they've implemented the changes and linked to some dad's as well as mum's blogs. So as the CBeebie's Grown-Ups blog starts a week of dedicated to the dads, why not have a look at a few of our blogs too?
 
Tim Atkinson's award-winning blog can be found at www.bringingupcharlie.co.uk.