Mariah Carey attends the premiere of Tyler Perry's "A Fall From Grace" at Metrograph on January 13, 2020 in New York City.
Jamie McCarthy/Getty ImagesMariah Carey took to social media on Monday to rally support for the return of one of her favorite childhood TV shows.
“Please support Carole and Paula! Help bring back @MagicGardenTV!!!” the icon wrote alongside a retweet of the announcement that The Magic Garden has launched a crowdfunding campaign to finance an animated reboot. As of press time, the Indigogo campaign had raised more than $78,000 of its $125,000 goal with five days left to go.
The original children’s TV show, which aired from 1972 to 1984 in the New York City metropolitan area, starred Carole Demas and Paula Janis as they told stories and sang songs, all while perched on giant toadstools on the show’s colorful set. (There may have been some talking to flowers here and there too.)
At the time of its initial airing, The Magic Garden was so popular that it reportedly rivaled syndicated kids’ programming like Sesame Street in the local ratings. During their 12-year run, the duo even scored a Grammy nomination for one of the three albums they released featuring music from the show.
When she’s not busy stumping on Twitter, Mimi has been in full festive mode because, as the Lambs know, it’s time. In recent weeks, the singer has dropped a new holiday single, “Fall in Love at Christmas,” with Kirk Franklin and Khalid; teamed up with McDonald’s for a special holiday-themed menu that launches Dec. 13; and announced her coming Apple TV+ music special, Mariah’s Christmas: The Magic Continues — all while “All I Want for Christmas is You” has begun making its annual trip up the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Check out Mariah’s shout-out to The Magic Garden reboot below.
Sharleen Spiteri joined BBC Radio 2’s The Sara Cox Breakfast Show ahead of Texas taking the stage to launch the main live music programme at Radio 2 in the Park in Stirling.
Checking in from rehearsals, the Texas frontwoman spoke about getting ready for the band’s opening performance at City Park. Radio 2’s annual flagship festival takes place there from 11 to 13 September 2026. "I’m match fit because I’ve had a couple of days’ rehearsals," Spiteri said. "We’re kicking the whole weekend off, which we’re very much looking forward to, so everybody’s got to get ready to party."
Before the live acts take over, Friday’s DJ Pre-Party gets the weekend started with Radio 2 favourites Sara Cox, DJ Spoony, Gary Davies, Michelle Visage, and Rylan behind the decks.
Jo Whiley helped set the mood with a special programme from Stirling’s Tolbooth venue. Working with BBC Introducing Scotland, the broadcast put the spotlight on Scotland’s emerging music scene through performances and conversations with Fright Years, Alice Faye, and James Emmanuel.
Fright Years, a four member band from Edinburgh, played "Never Been Wrong" and offered their take on Simple Minds’ "Waterfront." Glasgow singer and songwriter Alice Faye, the BBC Introducing in Scotland 2026 winner, paired "Some Brief Encounter" with a rendition of Lulu’s arrangement of "I Started a Joke." James Emmanuel, who was born in Nigeria and now lives in Edinburgh, sang "Brothers & Sisters" before taking on Chaka Khan’s "I’m Every Woman."
"We’re all about celebrating BBC Introducing and all the music that’s come out of Scotland," Whiley told listeners. "It's about celebrating the local music scene and the incredibly important work that BBC Introducing does to support independent, up-and-coming artists."
Joining the conversation were Stephanie Cheape, presenter of BBC Introducing in Scotland, Tara McLoughlin, venue manager for Stirling Council, and student radio presenters representing the University of Stirling’s Air3 Radio.
Listeners can catch the complete interviews and live performances from the weekend’s programmes on BBC Sounds.
