Weird But True! Interview with Charlie Engelman

The Weird But True! television series premiered September 10.  Right before the launch date, I had the chance to chat with one of the hosts, Charlie Engelman about this fascinating new show.  As a National Geographic Kids Insider, it’s exciting to have early access to information to share.  Read on to hear what Charlie has to say about the behind-the-scenes action of the show! 

The Weird But True! Television Series is a syndicated series primarily on FOX television stations (check your local listings). Each episode follows talented science-loving sibling hosts Charlie and Kirby Engelman as they investigate the fun, strange and surprising ways our world works. From exploring shipwrecks to discovering how our senses work, no topic is off-limits for the curious duo.

Material for the series is inspired by the Weird But True! books and magazines from National Geographic Kids.  The show brings these facts to life, sending the crew on location to explore the weirdest of the weird!  Charlie says his favorite locations for filming, so far, have been Six Flags in New Jersey where they filmed a segment on physics, Arizona where the cast went meteorite hunting, and Virginia where he was able to go caving.  Exploring the caves has sparked a personal interesting in caving and he hopes to discover more about this adventurous sport.

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Nothing on the show has truly grossed Charlie out yet.  He found it a little intimidating to swim with sharks for an episode and was almost trapped on a glacier in Alaska when filming, but still found both to be very exciting and rewarding experiences.  Charlie has always been curious and participating in the Weird But True! television series certainly fuels his curiosity.

The experts Charlie has met during the filming of the show have given him a different world view and have further inspired his desire to explore the world.  He found it fascinating that the experts he’s encountered have been extremely knowledgeable and focused on their subject matter.  The experience has left him with a nice appreciation for how different and unique people are.

Charlie hopes kids are inspired by the show, too, and is looking forward to creating more new episodes.

“One think I hope kids will take away from the show (Weird But True!) is to be curious about the world around them.” – Charlie Engelman

Some of Charlie’s favorite weird true facts are about everyday things in life that you though were one way but really wind up being something else.  Like the fact that peanuts are not nuts at all, they are legumes.  Check out these other Weird but True interesting facts we found fascinating:

Weird But True! is also debuting a new SiriusXM Radio Program.  Live in early October on SiriusXM’s Kids Place Live, the Weird But True! radio show features National Geographic Kids Editors Becky Baines and Kate Hale, who have spent 12 and seven years, respectively, building the impressive database of the weirdest (but all true) facts on the planet. The radio show will air new pisodes weekly on Fridays at 5 p.m. ET, with a replay on Sundays at 1 p.m. ET and two replays on “Weird But True! Wednesdays” at 2 p.m. ET and 10 p.m. ET.

For more information and fun Weird But True! online content, visit http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/adventure_pass/weird-but-true/