In Australia, they’re footy cards. In the UK they’re football stickers. For sports fans, swapping and collecting them is a rite of passage, a way to recreate real-life teams and show off your love for your favourite players. Eventually most collectors move on; professional footballer and one-time Liverpool captain Jamie Redknapp is not one of those people. Now he’s been handed his greatest challenge yet: put together a collection of real-life stars in just eleven days.
Part travelogue, part trip down memory lane, part chat show, part comedy, Got, Got, Need takes the collecting urge to an absurd level without ever making fun of it. There’s plenty of light moments and laughs here; if you want banter about how a player would obviously be a generous lover because he covered every position on the field “and that’s what he’d be like in the bedroom”, this is the series for you. But the collecting side of things is no joke. When you’re trying to complete a set, there’s no messing around.
Out in Qatar ahead of the FIFA World Cup, Jamie stops by to meet old mate Jack Whitehall. For some reason the comedian – who also came up with the concept for this series – is lounging by a pool with his shirt off. But Jamie doesn’t let that distract him from some quality self-promotion.
A big get! Harry Kane (centre), England national captain and Tottenham Hotspur striker, with Harry (left) and Jamie Redknapp (right). Source: Jackpot Productions
“When big things are happening in football, you tend to find Jamie Redknapp there,” he says.
“Sniffing around, like a rat round bins,” says Jack.
Next up, sticker albums. It turns out Jamie – somewhat unsurprisingly considering where this conversation is heading – is still a big fan, even after Jack makes the sensible point that “surely when you play football you have to stop doing sticker albums, because then you’re just collecting photographs of your mates”.
And then we get the set-up for the series: after claiming to be “Mr Football”, Jamie is challenged to put together a real-life sticker album in the lead-up to this year’s World Cup. He’s got eleven days to meet eleven World Cup superstars. Easy, right? Just stand outside the ground and wait for his mates to walk by.
Twist is, they’ve got to be real football legends. “So basically,” Jack says, “none of your mates”. And he’s got to get them to sign a beat-up old football as proof.
Former England centre-back, Des Walker. Source: Jackpot Productions
Got, Got, Need is the kind of rough around the edges sports show that’s held together by the charm of the hosts – though admittedly, charm alone isn’t quite enough to get them through a segment where they visit a “football stadium for horses” so Jack can buy some semen for his breeding program back home. It’s a relief then when the charm level gets a big boost when Jamie flies home to collect his dad, famous football player and manager Harry Redknapp.
With close to half a century’s experience on and off the field, you’d think Harry’d be able to sort this contest out with a few phone calls. Instead their attempts become increasingly outlandish, as they ambush World Cup champions at lunch, while shopping for clothes, getting haircuts, and in the case of Sir Geoff Hurst, while he’s on stage giving a talk. At one point Harry decides the way to impress one of his heroes is to cook for him; fortunately, their translator is also trained in first aid.
Father and son football legends, Harry and Jamie Redknapp. Source: Jackpot Productions
But even when Jamie pulls out a few more contacts, they miss out on a few big names. Unlikely as it seems, there’s some actual tension towards the end when it appears they may not be able to pull it off and shirtless Jack Whitehall will get the last laugh after all.
Okay, there’s not really a lot of tension; it’s all just a bit of fun, a chance for Jamie and Harry (who had a UK talk show together last year) to spend time together, catch up with some comrades and fanboy over the big stars. There’s a bit of a chat show element to proceedings too, with the stars (who sometimes forget to look surprised when Jamie turns up) talking about the old days.
Big names, nice scenery, classic memories and some decent banter: that’s a set worth collecting.
Find everything you need to know about the FIFA World Cup 2022ᵀᴹ . Got, Got, Need premiered at 7.35pm, Sunday 20 November on SBS VICELAND. The three-part series continues weekly. All three episodes are also streaming now . Start with episode 1:
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