Multi-generational balloon used 34 years later
The same balloon used to announce a listener's birth in 1990 was reused to announce the birth of that listener's own child 34 years later.
Snapshot · Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe
S12 EP48: Stop me if you've heard this one before
Explore episode
Jun 19, 2026
Where this was said
The World's Oldest Helium Balloon
At 50:28 · chapter starts 49:20
A previous episode apparently featured a very old helium balloon, prompting listener Ben to enter a potential record-breaker. His uncle brought a balloon to the hospital when Ben was born in August 1990 — making it nearly 36 years old. That same balloon was brought back out 34 years later to announce the birth of Ben's own son. Ben wonders if it is the world's first multi-generational balloon, and expresses hope it will survive long enough to be passed on to a potential grandchild. Rob is baffled and delighted in equal measure, asking what kind of 'metal plastic bastard' material balloon manufacturers were using in the early 1990s to trap helium for four decades.
The Multi-Generational Helium Balloon
Listener Ben's uncle brought a helium balloon to hospital when Ben was born in August 1990. That same balloon, still inflated enough, was brought out 34 years later to announce the birth of Ben's own son. Rob immediately asks what kind of 'metal plastic bastard' material they were making balloons from in 1990.
Balloon age: 36 years old
A listener's helium balloon, brought to hospital at their birth in August 1990, was still intact 36 years later and was used again to announce the birth of their own son.
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