Wake up, Millennials. The biggest mystery of our lives has just been solved, and you're definitely going to want to hear this one.
Let it be known that on Dec. 23, 2014, we found out the identity of the person whose face filled the sun in Teletubbyland. I'm not crying, you're crying.
Jess Smith, a 19-year-old dance education student from Chatham, England has come forward, claiming that she is the Sun Baby that looked out over Teletubbyland on the children's TV show, which ran on the BBC in the U.K. (and PBS in the U.S.) from 1997 to 2001. She made the announcement on Facebook after recently turning 19.
"I used to hide it but after a lot of encouragement from my friends at university, I've gained the confidence to come out with it," Smith wrote on Facebook, according to The Telegraph. "I am the sun from Teletubbies. There has been quite a few people pretending to be 'the sun' but only I could tell you the real story."
Of course, for years we've known that a "Jessica Smith" was the nine-month-old baby on Teletubbies. We just didn't know which Jessica Smith. One high-profile rumor regarding the true identity of the Sun Baby was that Jessica Smith, who starred on MTV's privileged California teen reality show Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County in the mid-2000s was the Sun Baby. However, the now-27-year-old will just have to be remembered for this brief moment in the sun, not actually being the sun.
Smith was discovered when her mother brought her to Edenbridge Hospital to be weighed, and a healthcare worker, who had been asked by Ragdoll Productions to find "smiley babies," suggested Smith. Of course, no one could have predicted the worldwide success of Teletubbies when filming initially took place. It ended up generating more than an estimated $1 billion in revenue and aired in 121 countries. However, Smith only received 250 pounds (about $387.50 today) and a box of toys for her efforts.
But let's not forget that she has much more than that now: worldwide recognition. By revealing that she is in fact the Sun Baby from Teletubbies, Smith has basically been immortalized. That's got to feel pretty good.
And in case you were wondering, which I have no doubt that you were, the true identities of the Teletubbies themselves were revealed by The TODAY Show back in 2007 when Teletubbies was attempting a comeback of sorts by travelling to the U.S. and selling new merchandise. The Teletubbies were veteran British actors and fully-grown adults Pui Fan Lee (Po), Nikky Smedley (Laa Laa), John Simmit (Dipsy) and Simon Shelton (Tinky Winky). Watch the segment below, and have your childhood flash right before your eyes.
But wait, there's more! The revelation about the Sun Baby's identity could not come at a better time. The BBC announced in June that it had ordered 60 new episodes of the show. Can I get an "Eh-oh!" for that?
