Those of you who aren’t mothers and fathers of young children may not feel the impact of this development, but it’s genuinely sad news to hear that Greg Page, aka Greg the Yellow Wiggle, has left the Wiggles due to a chronic condition known as orthostatic intolerance…

Put simply, it means that when Greg stands up, his heart does not compensate for the change in posture by pumping more blood around his body for it to function properly. A similar problem occurs when there is a change in the environment such as a warm room or hot weather.

This condition is causing problems with his walking, balance, speech and coordination. It relates to the proper functioning of the autonomic nervous system, which is the way the human body regulates things we don’t consciously have to think about such as heart beat and temperature regulation. [from this press release on the Wiggles web site]

It bums me out. There are a multitude of children’s television programs, and most of them can be quite grating on an adult’s nerves, but the Wiggles is something different. That’s one I’ve enjoyed over the last few years as a new father. Good music and very likable guys. I took my daughter to a Wiggles concert this past spring, and I’m pretty sure I enjoyed it almost as much as her.

Greg will be replaced by Sam Moran, who has been an understudy for the Wiggles for nine years. We’ll still watch, but there will always be a void.

http://www.thewiggles.com.au/

Wiggles Trivia: Former Split Enz and Crowded House drummer Paul Hester played a recurring Wiggles role as “Paul the Cook”. He’s the guy you saw singing “Fruit Salad”. He sadly committed suicide in 2005. Bummer post, I know! Sheesh…