Radio contestants try not to go hopping mad

From left, Kylie Hadfield, with son Jordan,7; Emma Lomas, with daughter Rachel, 7; and Tabitha Allen, with son Blain Johnson, 6, are camping out for 72 hours in a caravan listening to an endless loop of 'Axel F' by Crazy Frog. Picture / Greg Bowker

It's a good definition of nothing-better-to-do in the second week of the school holidays, and although it might make them slightly richer, it's bound to drive them a little crazy.

Holed up in a small caravan in Ponsonby for the rest of this week are a trio of the country's most desperate housewives who have volunteered to be driven to distraction by an annoying frog, a repetitive tune, and three pumped up children on a sugar rush.

As part of a competition by the radio station The Edge, the group of six must endure the No 1 selling Crazy Frog song being played end on end for 72 hours. They also must endure each other.

The mother-and-child pair that are able to do this without breaking any rules will win $3000. Not surprisingly, one of the rules is not to smash up the video, stereo or TV.

The radio station has dubbed the competition "Desperate Housewives vs Crazy Frog".

The mums and children are strangers to one another and come from Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch.

Inside the caravan the music is played at such a volume that you have to raise your voice to be heard. The noise is accompanied by the stark glow of a large television set that displays the video to the hit.

The video runs day and night and cannot be switched off.

The tune and its video will play 1500 times starting yesterday and ending on Friday.

Tabitha Allen of Whatawhata near Hamilton said she did not know what she and her son Blain, 6, would be doing if they were not participating in the competition.

"I'm stuck out in the wops and I'm a full-time mum so I'd probably be sitting at home watching DVD after DVD after DVD."

Auckland mother Emma Lomas compared her life to Desperate Housewives television character Lynette.

"I do watch the show a lot and relate to it."

She and her daughter Rachel, 7, both admitted hating the song. The caravan is littered with chocolate wrappers, plastic lemonade bottles, and half-eaten doughnuts. The wind blowing through the windows provides welcome respite to the warm odours that six humans can produce, complete with the sweet smell of sugar.

The third desperate housewife is Kylie Hadfield, who flew up from Christchurch with her 7-year-old son Jordan to take part in the competition.

"If we don't win the $3000 it's a trip away to somewhere we've never been before."

Looking out at the surrounding car-park, it is pointed out that her view of Auckland might be rather limited.

At least she got to see the Sky Tower the previous evening from her hotel room, she says.