Children’s presenter Timmy Mallett paid tribute to Mikhail Gorbachev on Tuesday following the former Soviet leader’s death, in an unexpected turn of events.
Although the two figures seem like they’re from completely different worlds, Mallett explained in his tweet that Gorbachev inspired one of his kids’ shows where he unpacks exactly what the Kremlin is.
Mallett said that Gorbachev’s “perestroika” – the programme to reform the Soviet’s economic and political policies – along with his “glasnost” – roughly translates to openness – encouraged him to go to Russia in the first place.
He added: “To explain Glasnost I stepped out of the shadows into the light and entertained Red Square with Mallett’s Mallet.”
Gorbachev, also known as Gorby, is remembered as the last leader of the Soviet Union who was in office between 1988 and 1991. He ushered in an age of social democracy, moving away from the strict regimes imposed by his predecessors.
His actions played a pivotal role in ending the Cold War and triggered the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991.
He also helped end the country’s control over eastern Europe, and was awarded for his efforts with the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1990.
Gorbachev inspired Mallett to create an episode of his programme Wacaday in 1990, called: “Tales from Russia: Gremlins in the Kremlin.”
In the opening segment, the quirky presenter says: “I always thought the Kremlin was a big old building full of boring men making boring decisions, but in fact there’s more to it that.”
He described the structure of the building and told the camera: “You’d be amazed by what’s inside.”
He added: “I suppose it’s a bit like rolling the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament all into one.”
While it may seem like a pretty straight-forward explainer to children, Mallett’s episode showed that the divide between the West and the Soviet Union was gradually breaking down.
Gorbachev died on Tuesday, at the age of 91.