Grotbags actress Carol Lee Scott’s 5 best moments

Carol Lee Scott, best known for her role as witch Grotbags in Eighties and Nineties children’s TV shows has passed away following a battle with cancer.

Grotbags was an all-singing all-dancing green witch who professed to loathe kids, frequently referring to them as brats and ratbags, making her the perfect love–to–hate character.

While looking back on the TV shows thirty years later, Grotbags’ comedy green wig and make-up may seem silly rather than scary, original viewers found the wacky witch genuinely terrifying, as Twitter tributes to the actress attest.

Here we look back at her best moments, from her cabaret-style musical performances to her witty one-liners.

1. Grotbags and Rod Hull sing Kids

Grotbags gives her take on the Bye Bye Birdy song Kids, performed live as the show was broadcast. The producers even pulled off a rather nifty (for the time) split screen effect.

2. Grotbags sings Mean Green Mother from Outer Space

This musical number may originally have featured in Little Shop of Horrors, but there couldn’t have been a better song to sum up Grotbag’s garish grass-green ghoulishness than this. Look out for the headache-inducing Eighties-tastic special effects and camera filters.

3. Grotbags throws darts for charity on Bullseye

A rare appearance out of character saw Carol Lee Scott star in a charity edition of popular prime time gameshow Bullseye attempting to win some money for charity with her darts skills. While her wisecracking meant she didn’t spend too much time actually throwing, she certainly entertained the audience and won £150 for the Children’s Heart Unit in Leeds.

4. Grotbags and Rod Hull are turned into children

This episode saw Grotbags worst nightmare come true as she and Rod were transformed into children after a spell to turn emu into an egg backfired. What else to do but sing a song about it? This time it was I’m Five by Danny Kaye.

5. Grotbags sings Old Time Rock and Roll

When she wasn’t dressing up as a mean green witch, Carol Lee Scott was a successful cabaret singer, and she often brought a bluesy singing style to her Grotbags musical renditions. Here she performs Bob Seger’s Old Time Rock and Roll.