'I don't like greens': Moment now happily married 7 Up! star explained why he didn't want a wife in the first ever episode of iconic documentary series

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By MARK DUELL, DEPUTY CHIEF REPORTER (DIGITAL)

Published: 00:59 BST, 15 September 2026 | Updated: 01:09 BST, 15 September 2026

It became one of the long-running documentary's most iconic moments, when little Paul Kligerman declared why he was unsure about getting married.

The seven-year-old boy told producers of Seven Up! that he was concerned he would have to eat green vegetables whenever his future wife cooked them for him.

Now, more than six decades on from the famous answer in 1964, Mr Kligerman has been reminded of the memorable response as he appears in the show's final series.

The clip - shared with the Daily Mail ahead of '70 Up' airing on ITV1 and ITVX at 9pm this evening - shows him being asked: 'Would you like to get married, Paul?'

He replies: 'I don't like… say, you had a wife, they... say, you had to eat what they cooked you and, say, I don't like greens, well I don't, and, say, she said you have to what you give, so I don't like greens… say, she gives me greens… and that's it.'

Mr Kligerman was one of 14 seven-year-olds from different socio-economic backgrounds in the show, which then followed them every seven years since.

Viewers first met him when he lived in a children's home in London alongside fellow seven-year-old boy Symon Basterfield, who also featured in Seven Up!.

Paul Kligerman told of his fears in Seven Up! in 1964 that a wife would make him eat greens

Paul Kligerman, pictured in 70 Up, married his wife Sue in 1978 and they had two children

Mr Kligerman was living in the home after his mother left his father because of what was described as a 'messy divorce'. 

But by the time the next series '7 Plus Seven' was released in 1970, Mr Kligerman was 14 years old and had emigrated to Australia with his father and brother.

He was having trouble with confidence at the time, and also featured in '21 Up' during which he told how he sometimes 'struggled to express his emotion'.

But by this time he was dating a woman called Sue and they later settled in Melbourne, marrying in 1978 and having two children by the time of '28 Up'.

His relationship with his mother had become estranged – but he credits the Up series for helping rebuild this after he saw her when he travelled back to the UK for filming.

Mr Kligerman has had a series of jobs - including as a bricklayer, working for a sign-making company and doing maintenance work at a retirement village.

He lived in a children's home in London alongside fellow Symon Basterfield, also in Seven Up!

Mr Kligerman has worked as a bricklayer, for a sign-making firm and as a maintenance man

Now featuring in 70 Up, he is shown doting on his grandchildren – and still happily married to his wife for 48 years.

Mr Kligerman tells the documentary: 'You need a good family. You need it for yourself and you need it to make your life whole.

'My dad, he passed away about ten years ago. He brought us up and was a good man. He did the best he did and, as far as I'm concerned, he did a good job.'

He adds: 'You have to learn to be kind to other people and forgive them for their failings. Live the best, honest life you can. 

'The happier your family is, the more it spreads out and just keeps getting bigger.'