# What Do You Think Wackus Bonkus?
In a 2011 Horrible Histories sketch, a deranged Caligula played by Simon Farnaby chats with a bloody mallet he nicknames Wackus Bonkus, voicing both sides of the exchange before killing a visiting detective. The clip sat quietly for a decade before TikToker @ev1em0 uploaded the isolated audio in August 2021, fueling a lip-dub trend where creators used their hand as a cartoon devil advising petty revenge.
## Origin
On June 2, 2011, BBC's Horrible Histories aired season three, episode four, which included a sketch called 'The case of Caligula and the mystery assassins'[1]. Simon Farnaby plays a crazed Caligula who has already murdered several people with a bloody mallet by the time '70s-style investigator D.I. Bones arrives at the palace[2].
After Bones walks away, Caligula lifts the hammer to his face, dubs it Wackus Bonkus, voices its advice in a goblin growl to 'kill him,' then declares 'oh, naughty Wackus Bonkus' before setting off to kill the detective[2]. The sketch was written for the show's third series alongside parody segments like a mock Who Do You Think You Are? episode starring George IV[1].
- **Platform:** BBC Horrible Histories (source sketch) / TikTok (viral spread)
- **Creator:** Unknown
- **Date:** 2011
## Overview
On TikTok, creators hold up their hand as a makeshift puppet while the 'naughty wackus bonkus' audio plays, performing both sides of Caligula's exchange with the mallet[3]. The hand whispers a bad decision in a gravelly voice, the user acts aghast, then does whatever the hand suggested anyway[2].
The format works because the original sketch supplies both a question ('what do you think?') and an answer ('kill him'), letting creators pre-script the back-and-forth of a mental debate[2]. Common subjects include workplace revenge fantasies and relationship hesitations, with the hand puppet reading as the user's id[3].
## How to Use
A typical video has the creator face the camera with one hand raised like a hand puppet. The hand lip-syncs 'kill him' or an equivalent whispered line in Caligula's gravelly voice, suggesting something petty like overcharging a rude customer or sending a risky text. The creator then lip-syncs 'oh, naughty Wackus Bonkus,' usually with a reluctant grin, before cutting to a reenactment of the bad decision getting carried out.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is What Do You Think Wackus Bonkus??
It is a catchphrase from a 2011 Horrible Histories sketch where Caligula asks a bloody mallet named Wackus Bonkus for murder advice, later adapted into a TikTok lip-dub format[2].
### Where did What Do You Think Wackus Bonkus? come from?
The line comes from 'The case of Caligula and the mystery assassins,' a sketch in Horrible Histories season three, episode four, which aired on June 2, 2011[1].
### What does What Do You Think Wackus Bonkus? mean?
In the sketch, Caligula pretends his bloody mallet is a sentient advisor named Wackus Bonkus, uses it to greenlight more killings, then scolds it as 'naughty' for the suggestion he follows anyway[2].
### How do you use What Do You Think Wackus Bonkus??
Creators lip-sync the clip while using their hand as a puppet to voice a bad idea, then react with Caligula's 'oh, naughty Wackus Bonkus' line before carrying out the idea anyway[3].
### Is What Do You Think Wackus Bonkus? still popular?
Peak use occurred on TikTok in October 2021 after @ev1em0 shared the original sound in August of that year[3], and the trend has since faded from active circulation.
## References
1. [https://horriblehistoriestv.wordpress.com/series-3-episode-4/]()
2. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7RxWMymHsY]()
3. [https://www.tiktok.com/@ev1em0/video/7001487386450480390]()
4. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/what-do-you-think-wackus-bonkus]()
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