Top of the Pops Review of the 80's (28/12/1989)

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Mike Read: “Hi. Welcome to our farewell party.”
Paul Gambaccini: “It's time to say goodbye to the eighties.”
Mike Read: “We have Police, the [can't make out, sounds like Brits?]*, we have Madness to Madonna. They're all here in tonight's party.”
Paul Gambaccini: “In the studio or on video. All your favourites here. We begin with the most consistently successful group of the eighties. Status Quo, Burning Bridges.”
*I cannot work out what Mike Read says here, or even guess at a word which would make sense in context.

 STATUS QUO: BURNING BRIDGES: “That was a dreadful rag bag programme and was thought of such at the time within TVC; it was put together very last minute and some of guest choices were definitely a case of who was around rather than genuinely representing the 80s.” That's Richard Marson, writer, television producer and director, who was working for the BBC at the time, commenting on the Review of the 80's at Roobarb's DVD Forum.

Maybe this explains why the first act is Status Quo. The same group who, less than a year ago, played out the 25 Years of Top of the Pops. Does the Top of the Pops office have them on speed dial? And why are they singing 1988's Burning Bridges? A song slightly over a year old. What about 1983's Marguerita Time, that got to [3]. Or 1980's What You're Proposing, [2]. Or In The Army Now, from 1986 which also got to [2].

I get that Status Quo had ten Top 10 songs in the decade (it's not quite 1 a year, their two 1989 singles didn't break the Top 40). I get that they're successful. I get that they are popular. I get that their answerphone message is “we'll do it.” But it bodes poorly for the the rest of the studio acts. Right from the start, this review of the eighties feels past its sell by date.

Broadly speaking, all Brian Whitehouse and his team need to do is repeat the success of 25 Years of Top of the Pops which hit on the ideal format at the end of 1988. A mix of old clips and representative studio performances. A few talking heads would be nice but not essential. Most importantly, the programme should be built around 10 studio performances to represent each year. A show like this takes work. Or you can call Status Quo.

 

TV Review- Doctor Who: Joy to the World

 

Unashamedly sentimental and including variations on ideas Steven Moffat has utilised before, `Joy to the World` is the best episode featuring Ncuti Gatwa so far. It’s a three-act story, the first frantic and light as we have come to expect for Xmas Specials, the middle part quieter, considered and the best thing about it and then an ending that is likely to provoke differing responses.

 

Top of the Pops 21 December 1989

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Anthea Turner: “Hello. Good evening and welcome to the very last chart Top of the Pops before that Christmas spectacular.”

Bruno Brookes: “Yup, absolutely. Bros and Sonia and a brand new number one coming later. First of all a climber of ten places to number thirty here are the FPI Project going Back To Their Roots.”

 [30] F.P.I. PROJECT present RICH IN PARADISE: going back to my roots. The hosts introducing the show from the Crow's Nest! Quantel transitions used as part of the performance! No. Paul Ciani isn't back but it's odd how much Stanley Appel decides to ape his preferred format for the final “real” Top of the Pops. (The next two are the Christmas Day show and a look back at the eighties.)

TV Review- Phil Collins: Drummer First

 

Phil Collins’ prowess as a drummer is less discussed these days than his incredible Eighties ubiquity, his ever turbulent private life and, more recently, health issues. So it is refreshing to find that as the name suggests  Phil Collins: Drummer First aims to place that side of him foremost in his long career. He has always described himself as a drummer who sings rather than vice versa and over two hours the breadth of his musical endeavours is explored.

 

Top of the Pops 14th December 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Nicky Campbell: “Welcome to Top of the Pops. We have got the best shirts on television. We're going to start with Rob and Raz featuring Leila K. A bit of Swedish house music. And every Swedish house has a sauna and like this, like a sauna, it's hot, steamy and enervating. Got to give it.”

 [13] ROB 'N' RAZ featuring Leila K: got to get. The problem with Nicky Campbell showing me how smart he is, is that it makes me all the more delighted when he cocks up. I am small and petty. It's a delight that he gets the name of the song wrong right after he has opened the top of his head to show you all the folds in his cerebellum. Also, his shirt is vile. Somewhere in TV Centre reception a building manager is furious at the Nicky-Campbell-torso-shaped hole in his carpet. The fact that Campbell has found two people with equally poor taste in shirts just goes to demonstrate the mess that was Thatcher's Britain. And that's it. No more booing at Nicky Campbell this week.

What was Xmas like before the Victorians?

 As most people are aware the so called Christmas traditions we follow each year were actually only created during the Victorian era,. Xmas imagery and festive staples like Xmas trees, cards, Xmas dinner, carol singing and even marking it with a bank holiday only started in the mid-1800s. So what happened in England before then?

 

Top of the Pops 7 December 1989

Words: Chris Arnsby.

Mark Goodier: “Hello. Good evening. Welcome to Britain's favourite pop show. We have the charts and we have Britain's number one and all the new entries and it's all in stereo on Radio 1FM. Let's start tonight with a huge Top 10 smash. Here comes Big Fun. Can't Shake The Feeling.”

 [8] BIG FUN: can't shake the feeling. Big Fun are on the Main Stage and it doesn't look like it did last week. The wings of the stage are back where they usually are. Clearly the unusual placement last week was a one off.

When Top of the Pops starts, the camera cranes up to find Mark Goodier in the Crow's Nest over the main stage. Stanley Appel doesn't like doing that, has Paul Ciani returned? Nope. This week's Producer (and Director) is Brian Whitehouse, not seen since 22/12/1988.

TV Review - Cobra Kai Season 6 Eps 1 -10

 

The thing about ongoing television series, especially when they reach what these days is a rare sixth season, is that they can never quite match expectations. On the one hand the viewers want more of what they liked before yet on the other they want something different. Caught in the middle showrunners and writers often try to meet both these criteria but the results satisfy neither. Cobra Kai has never lacked heroics and excitement  as well as some mad twists but even the biggest fan would have to admit that it’s plots have recycled similar tropes across the previous five seasons. When you reach a point wherein characters are discussing how to get two people to fall out to increase their fighting prowess you know the show is eating itself! So the first batch of episodes, dropped in the summer, seemed to lack the tournament vigour required though they had their moments.

 

Top of the Pops 23rd & 30th November 1989

 

Words by Chris Arnsby

23/11/1989

Jakki Brambles: “Hello and welcome along to the UK's top music show. Amongst others tonight we've got three great British bands and Jenny Powell.”
Jenny Powell: “Yeah pleased to meet you Jakki...
Jakki Brambles: [overlapping] “You too my love...
Jenny Powell: “… put it there. [They shake hands]. First things first. Three lovely lads. They're called Big Fun. Song's called Can't Shake The Feeling. And they're at number twenty seven this week.”

 [27] BIG FUN: can't shake the feeling. What are Big Fun wearing on their feet? Awful clumpy khaki boots which look a couple of sizes too big. Doctor Frankenstein would reject these for his monster. Unfortunately the lads have been coached in a dance routine which often involves them wiggling on the spot. The result, it look like the shoes have been nailed to the stage and the trio have stepped into them for the performance.

TV Review - The Making of Do They Know It's Christmas

 

There is not that much footage of landmark musical moments being made in the studio because acclaim and legend come much later. Yet when you gather a clutch of an era’s pop stars in one place to work together one time only the cameras are going to be there and for the recording of `Do They Know It’s Christmas` in November 1984 they certainly were. Eight film crews and a phalanx of photographers, (some of whom came with their own step ladders) were present to capture the recording and some of that footage has never been seen until now. Recently debuting on iPlayer, this making of documentary plays like its 1984 without any contemporary perspective or additions and if you remember the era (or even if you don’t) it is fascinating.

Film Review- Gladiator 2

With sequels its usual for people to say “If you liked the first film, you’ll like this one” and in the case of Gladiator 2 that may be true if what you’re looking for is more of the same. This is not a sequel that tries to break new ground, preferring to run through a similar trajectory to that of the first film albeit with different characters and an even more heightened sense of the absurdity, decadence and brutality of the Roman Empire.

 

Film Review- Wicked part one

 

I’ve seen Wicked twice on stage and both times been impressed by the way the show transcends its fantastical roots to deliver a narrative about friendship, prejudice and understanding within such an unlikely premise. It’s an unapologetic musical in the truest sense. This big screen version has done a great job in upgrading the limited production available on stage to give the tale a full cinematic experience. Yet this is far from empty spectacle; instead the proximity of the cameras and the editing brings us closer to these characters than we can ever see from the auditorium of a theatre. It reveals aspects of the narrative we might not have noticed from a distance. It also has live singing, recorded on set to give extra energy. Plus, it is hugely entertaining breezing through its two and a half hours with ease.

 

Top of the Pops 9th & 16th November 1989

Words: Chris Arnsby

09/11/1989

Nicky Campbell: “Well, Chancellors of the Exchequer may come and go but Top of the Pops is always here. Tonight is an extravaganza of rare exuberance. What a cast. Too many stars to mention just now. We're going to start with something that you're really going to enjoy. Welcome Electribe 101.”

[32] ELECTRIBE 101: tell me when the fever ended. Nicky Campbell really grates this week. He's hitting all the big words to show you his big brain and it reminds me why I never warmed to his 10pm show on Radio 1. I found him smug and self satisfied. If he was chocolate, he'd eat himself. As my nan would have said. Anyway, I'll never finish this write up unless I play my Steve Wright rules and limit myself to one criticism. Assume I'm groaning and rolling my eyes during all the links and use your imagination as to which of the bad words got used.

Nigel Lawson resigned two weeks ago (see 26/10/1989). To add a little context to Nicky Campbell's seemingly out of date reference  the affair dragged on and on. By this point it had settled down to mud slinging over whether Mrs Thatcher had or hadn't been told that Lawson would go if her special adviser Alan Walters stayed. Mrs T said she hadn't been told. Mr L said she had. Its the political version of Den and Angie arguing over custody for Roly. Meanwhile, on the night this episode was broadcast the Berlin wall was coming down.

Return to Oz (1985)

 

Just before the big screen Wicked opens, here’s something else from the land of Oz…

Released in 1985, Return to Oz is presented as a sequel to The Wizard of Oz and is adapted from two of the original novels; `Ozma of Oz` and `The Land of Oz`. While two of the characters in our world and in Oz are portrayed by the same actors there isn’t the same duality as in the 1939 film where everyone was mirrored. So it seems to suggest that Dorothy really does travel to this place whereas some interpretations suggest it’s all an imaginative dream. The film has a darker edge, especially early on, far from the sunny, almost goofy disposition manifested on the promotional posters and crucially there are no songs. Though there is a chattering chicken…

 

TV Review- Nautilus

 

Nearly twenty years ago the successful revival of Doctor Who led to a number of attempts to replicate that success with fantasy themed adventures that were suitable for a family audience, often resurrecting iconic characters (Robin Hood, Sinbad) or scenarios (Atlantis, Primeval). Nautilus would probably have fitted in then just fine as a weekly scheduled show on BBC or ITV. Thrown into the lion’s den of streaming it stands little chance of progressing especially after Disney who had signed up to distribute it dropped out after production was finished. For a while it looked like it might never be seen till Amazon Prime and the Australian company Stan snapped it up. In way though the damage to its reputation was probably already done. People were thinking – if Disney didn’t think it was good enough to show, how bad must it be? It’s a shame because Nautilus is actually really good.

 

Top of the Pops Triple Decker! 19, 26 Oct & 2 Nov 1989

 

19/10/89

Words: Chris Arnsby

Mark Goodier: “Good evening and welcome to the best of BBC radio and television together. It's Radio 1FM and BBC1 for Top of the Pops. We have the full top forty rundown tonight and Britain's brand new number one. We start with the third straight hit for D Mob with Cathy Dennis. This is C'mon And Get My Love."

 [36] D MOB introducing CATHY DENNIS: c'mon and get my love. Mark Goodier is excited, observe his little kangaroo jumps when he spins to look at the main stage. Of course an excited Mark Goodier is still Mark Goodier, it's like someone has put a party hat on a plate of boiled potatoes and rice.

TV Review- Ludwig

Imagine going to work and while a colleague appears to be exactly the same person as yesterday, it is actually their twin. Would you notice? This is the premise we are asked to believe in Ludwig, starring David Mitchell, familiar though several series such as Peep Show and Upstart Crow. Yet he has never quite been as David Mitchell as he is in Ludwig. He plays John Taylor a crossword setter (nom de plume Ludwig derived from Beethoven) who prefers words to people but finds himself thrown into a different walk of life when his twin brother James, a detective, goes missing. James’ wife Lucy persuades him to up sticks, come to Cambridge and go into the police headquarters posing as James’ to find clues as to her husband’s disappearance. Why she doesn’t just ask the police to find one of their own or even tell her son for several days is one of several odd developments dotted though.

Emerald City- Episodes 7-10

 

Episode 7 - They Came First

This is a series that likes to turn the tables frequently and take us off on a tangent so for this episode after being teased with domestic bliss as Dorothy, Lucas and Sylvie hunker down in a remote country house, we end up with the reveal that Lucas is Glinda’s defender (and lover). Its the second explanation we’ve had for his backstory so it’s no wonder he had amnesia! It’s a seriously good twist though in an episode that elsewhere has something of a shock value. The house where they are staying has a large scarecrow in the front another symbolic link to the original. The episode’s stand out moment is when the house they are in begins to turn upside down and you realise more or less anything can happen in this show!

Emerald City - Episodes 3- 6

 

Episode Three - Mistress New Mistress

The story of the Wizard has always been a tale of deception  and this episode sees Emerald City continue that tradition revealing he is not all he seems. He confesses to one of his counsels that he had no powers at all before he came here and that his name was Frank Morgan (a nod to the original author) while later he doesn’t deny that he can no longer awaken the stone giants supposed to be guarding the city in the event of the return of the Beast. Vincent D'Onofrio's performance is subtle and you can detect the sense of a man struggling under the surface to keep control over everything because he likes the power so much.

Emerald City - Episodes 1 & 2

 

The Oz books penned by L Frank Baum have proved to be inspiring fodder for a number of versions and adaptations across various media. As the best known ones are The Wizard of Oz film and the musical Wicked, the tales have become synonymous with songs. A more ambitious attempt to relocate this world to that of drama was made with Emerald City. First developed by writers Matthew Arnold and Josh Freidman for NBC the concept was to extrapolate familiar characters and scenarios from the books to give them a futuristic, edgier twist.  They also wanted to make a version grounding some of the more fanciful concepts in a more realistic though still unusual context as well as bringing characters who featured in all of the original fourteen books together to exist at the same time.

Liverpool River of Light 2024 Photo post

 Some highlights from this year's River of Light festival, held in Liverpool each autumn.

TV Review - Agatha All Along Eps 7-9

 

Episode seven takes a further step beyond the initial premise to tell something of a time travel tale centred around Lilia. Her powers of premonition prove vital to solving the next trail which takes place inside a suitably gothic mansion. Agatha and Billy  - with temporal interjections from Lilia and Jennifer - have a limited time to complete  a game of tarot and there are literal swords hanging over their heads one of which drops each time there is an error. Presented with Lilia and Jennifer’s scenes popping back and forth incorporating flashbacks to previous episodes show how deeply plotted the show has been. We also see Lilia as a child learning the skills that will now help her win the game albeit at a cost.

Top of the Pops 12 October 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Gary Davies: “Hello. Good evening and welcome to Top of the Pops, we have a great show for you tonight. In the studio we have Cliff Richard, Sinitta, Belinda Carlisle, Living in a Box but first we start off with a guy who was last on Top of the Pops a year ago with On the Beach. Here's a new entry at twenty six with Road to Hell, here's Chris Rea.

 [26] CHRIS REA: the road to hell (part 2). Gary Davies gets the wrong caption. In fact, now I check, Steve Wright and Jakki Brambles also got the wrong format caption last week. Come on guys, a little consistency please. Or have the Powers That Be decided they hate the new-style target captions and gone back to the old-school asterisk ones? I hope they make up their mind soon because I keep spelling asterisk as asterix (damn you Goscinny and Uderzo) and I'll be glad to never mention this ***** topic again.

Meanwhile, Chris Rea is on the road to hell where I hear the paving is really nice. The album splits The Road to Hell into two tracks with a total running time around nine minutes, far too long for Top of the Pops. What we have here is Part 2, also released as a single, and shaved back from the single's running time of 4:35 to around three minutes. Part one, which is a study in atmosphere and synth groans and biblical lyrics, runs to another 4:52.

TV Review: The Rings of Power Season 2 Eps 7 & 8

 

Episode 7 Doomed to Die

 “True creation requires sacrifice” one of the characters in this episode says and this is something those extremely critical Tolkien lore fanatics might consider. An adaptation of a novel is always going to be a step away from the source being a different medium. What works on the page may not always translate literally on screen. In this case a dramatization of appendices surely needs additional material to turn notes into a story. Fans of anything are over possessive of course but reading some reviews of this show I feel as if I’ve been watching something different. At least viewers seem mostly aligned with this episode which even the haters have dubbed the best of the season. I’d say it’s the best episode of any tv show I’ve seen in some time.

 

Top of the Pops 5 October 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Steve Wright: “Hi!! Hello and good evening and welcome to another Top of the Pops!! This is Jakki Brambles!! I'm Steve Wright!!”

Jakki Brambles: “Okay we've got a brilliant show coming up for you. This is the second hit for Double Trouble and the Rebel MC. We are talking a wicked tune. A winning collaboration. This is Street Tuff.”

[12] REBEL MC DOUBLE TROUBLE: street tuff. The song which inspired one of the few bits of the Steve Wright in the Afternoon show that stick in my memory. “Is he a Yankee. No he's a pratt.” That was part of the jingle for Steve Wright's character Mr. Spoons. I have no idea what Mr. Spoons did but I'm sure he was wicked zany to the max.

TV Review- The Rings of Power Season 2 Eps 4 - 6

 

Episode Four - Eldest

This starts off on a whimsical note as the wandering Stranger comes across the legendary (to Tolkien readers at least) Tom Bombadil portrayed with a delightful lightness by Rory Kinnear. The actor is playing against type to some extent though there is some hint of  something steelier under the surface and in a lengthy sequence seems to reveal he is somewhat eternal. I don’t know much about his character except that Tolkien fans like him but that he’s been left out of any and all adaptations to date. He talks in a vague manner but seems to have great powers and by the end the Stranger is asking for help mastering his own gifts. If you’re wondering about the episode title it is something that Bombadil says when quizzed about his background. His reply is that he is literally the `eldest` and remembers a time even before there were stars. While its easy to see why his character was awkward to slot into previous versions there seems to be a place for him here, as a mentor to the stranger?

TV Review- Sweetpea

 

Billed as a dark comedy drama, Sweetpea certainly delivers on the former though not so much the latter. It is essentially about three women who for different reasons are frustrated at not being seen for who they are. Rhiannon is a quiet character who is ignored, taken for granted and generally not given her due. Julia is a successful estate agent hiding her abusive relationship under a glamorous confidence. Marina is a junior police officer who works hard but whose conclusions are routinely ignored by her boss. All three come into each other’s orbit when the local community is shocked by two savage murders. Only we, the viewers, know that Rhiannon is the killer – the tension of the series is whether or how this is discovered.

TV Review - Agatha All Along Eps 4- 6

 

The witchy spin off of a spin off continues to surprise...

Reviews contain spoilers 

Top of the Pops 28 September 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Sybil Ruscoe: “Good evening and welcome to Britain's best pop music show, in brilliant stereo on lead-free Radio 1. Tonight we're making history.”

Jenny Powell: “Yeah Sybil. We must be the only two girls to present Top of the Pops, mustn't we? Well to start the show we've got Sydney Youngblood he's number four with If Only I Could.”

[4] SYDNEY YOUNGBLOOD: if only i could. Lead-free? Sybil's topical reference refers to EU legislation which required unleaded petrol to be widely available from October 1989. And the week of 25 September to 1 October was named as National Lead-Free Petrol Week by CLEAR (the Campaign for LEad free AiR -who designed that acronym?). There was a lot of excitement and confusion about what this would mean for the man on the Clapham omnibus, besides lower levels of lead in his blood. The result was reports like this from Top Gear “on the mysteries of going green.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bngMZhYgYg.

TV Review- The Rings of Power Season 2 Eps 1 -3

 

Spoilers are everywhere these days. In the past I have been spoilered just overhearing a conversation on a bus. They are online, especially in the first few hours after something drops. And I’ve now discovered they are on Wikipedia too whose character breakdowns for this series do not always stop at what has already been shown but go on to explain the ultimate fictional destination of many of the characters. To those who have read the novels- and by the looks of it the appendices- this will be no issue but if you’re chronicling an ongoing television series the most lore you should include is what has already been released. I only looked up to find out some actor’s names!

 

He knows that there are spoilers past here...

Film Review - Joker: Folie a Deux

 

The title translates as “madness for two” and appropriately most reviews I’ve seen fall on one of two sides- this is either `utter rubbish` or its a work of `genius`. As ever the truth sits somewhere else though its fair to say this is not the film you might be expecting if you saw the first one.  

 

Spoilers beyond this point

 

TV Review- Heartstopper Season 3

 

If the phrase “why are we like this?” became the mantra for season one you may well ask of season three- why are they still like this? Let’s face it, Heartstopper is never going to develop into a series anything other than the life affirming, positive drama that it is. While this third season nudges the characters a little further into self doubt and strife measured against other shows it is still featherlight and that’s fine. Enough series play the trauma or dystopia cards so surely something different is a good thing? I do feel though that with these plots the show might benefit from the approach of centring each episode around a particular character. Here the production crams everyone’s plots into most of the episodes which means some are underserved. However when they alter the format it produces the best episode of the season.  

 

Top of the Pops 21 September 1989

 

Nicky Campbell: “Woah. Welcome to indisputably the nation's top pop show. What an opener we've got for you tonight. They're frenetic, flamboyant, fun loving, the lot. You can tell from their name that they come from Germany. They're here tonight with Harlem Desire. The one and only, the two and only, London Boys.”

[21] LONDON BOYS: harlem desire. Stanley Appel doesn't like starting Top of the Pops with the host in the crow's nest. What's that all about? My best guess, he doesn't want to deal with the slight additional crowd wrangling involved in starting the show on the audience, panning the crane up to the hosts (while the Floor Manager shuffles the audience off the stage as quickly and quietly as possible), and then back down to the main stage.

TV Review- The Rings of Power Season 1

 

Prequels can be awkward things; on the one hand we all have this fascination with delving deeper into people and places we’ve seen yet this can also offer fewer surprises and far less jeopardy. After all we already know how matters turn out, a lot of things are set in stone before we start watching.  Back in 2022 when this was first released I never got round to seeing it so now that the second season is out, I thought I should catch up and I’m glad I did. Being set so long before the familiar events of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings films allows The Rings of Power some breathing space. Based largely on appendices from the original books as well I would think that only the most churlish Ringer would chafe at what is presented here. It is one of the best prequels I’ve seen but more than that it is also its own animal.

Film Review - Megalopolis

 

The reviews have been savage. “the worst film ever made”, “The worst film I’ve ever seen”, “I beg you not to see this movie” are just some of the reactions to Francis Ford Coppola’s first film in twelve years. Can it really be that bad? Only one way to find out. Well, it is not the worst film I’ve ever seen – believe me I’ve seen far worse- rather it’s an ambitious if flawed work that feels like it is still in progress despite the time spent on it. Maybe that’s the issue; perhaps too much time was spent on it? If we see it as a movie that attempts to comment on the US and more widely the use and abuse of power then it works to some extent. It is more in the delivery of that message that it becomes an uneven watch.

TV Review - Agatha All Along Eps 1-3

 

Agatha Harkness in her various guises was the breakout star of WandaVision three years ago and is now back with her own spin off. It’s a fun show that revels in its witchiness so expect high camp, scary moments, and lots of knowing references. Anchored by Kathryn Hahn’s delightfully broad range of gestures and expressions and a script that leans into spooky lore the first three episodes are top class. You don’t necessarily need to have seen anything else, even WandaVision, though I suspect that it is fans of that show who will be most attracted and I don’t think they will be disappointed.

Spoilers beyond this point

Top of the Pops 14 Sept 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Simon Mayo: “Hello. Good evening. Welcome. It's another one of those BBC1 and Radio 1 simulcast things.”
Andy Crane: “And on the show tonight we've got Madonna. We've got Tina Turner. And we've got Simon Mayo.”
Simon Mayo: “First of all. It's a jump to the left [Andy Crane, Simon Mayo, and everyone else jumps]. It's a step to the right [Simon Mayo steps, everyone else jumps -including Andy Crane, the clot]. It's got to be Damian.”
Andy Crane: “And the Time Warp. Over there.”
Simon Mayo: “Number seven.”

[7] DAMIAN: the time warp. Good news everyone. Top of the Pops has finally remembered how to do the new look captions they introduced on 24/08/1989. Right style, right graphics. Right colours. Excellent. Now do it again, next week. Damian is back rocking the same Joker look but a different wardrobe.

Noah's Castle

Looking back at this dark kids tv drama first shown in 1980

In the late  Seventies Britain was in a sorry state. There was high unemployment, industrial unrest leading to shortages, high prices (even if inflation was “down” to 8%) and a continued feeling that something needed to be done. It was this backdrop that allowed Margaret Thatcher to win the general election the following year. Kids were not wholly protected from this strife either. Each day the teatime programme John Craven’s Newsround would offer a child friendly version of the news but one that did not shirk from telling the more serious stories. A more sombre portrait of how things might end up was also offered to kids in the tv drama Noah’s Castle. Adapted from the book by John Rowe Townsend it portrays a UK where hyperinflation is eating away at food supplies and jobs. Former military man Norman Mortimer believes he can see where this is headed so he buys an isolated house on the edge of town to move his family, filling the large basement with supplies despite hoarding being illegal.

 

Top of the Pops 31 August & 7 September 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

31/08/1989
“Stand by luvvies. Have a good show.” With that and a short snippet of music that I, and Shazam, cannot identify we're off into the titles for a live edition.

 Gary Davies: “Hello. A very good evening to you. Welcome to a special Top of the Pops. Special because we are live from Television Centre. Special because it's a year ago tonight that we first started to broadcast Top of the Pops in stereo on Radio 1FM. It's special because we've got Jason, Mark, and Phil to open us up. Here's Big Fun.”

 [6] BIG FUN; blame it on the boogie. Gary Davies' caption is in the wrong style. Someone has selected the old look with an asterisk at both ends rather than the new one which debuted last week. Let's blame it on the pressure of a live show and move on.

I don't have anything new to add about Big Fun, after their first appearance on 10/08/1989. That's okay because apparently no one else is bringing anything new to the programme either. The dance routine is identical and, because I'm a glutton for punishment, I synchronised both performances and found Paul Ciani seems to be using the same camera script as well.

Zardoz

 

If you Google Zardoz, the first question that comes up is `What was the point of Zardoz?` This may well be the question many involved in the production asked themselves when the results were released. Zardoz is the work of John Boorman, a distinctive filmmaker whose catalogue includes the vivid likes of Hope and Glory, Excalibur and ,Deliverance,. The film turns fifty this year and BBC’s Front Row next week will feature the director talking about the movie while the novelisation is also being republished. So, what better time than to watch it.

 

Top of the Pops 17th and 24th August 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

17/08/1989

Nicky Campbell: “Hello, welcome to another unashamedly brilliant and superlative Top of the Pops. We've got Neneh Cherry, Alice Cooper, Jody Watley, everything and the girl. Anthea Turner.” 
Anthea Turner: “Thank you very much Nicky! Hey! Have I got an honest face?!
Nicky Campbell: “Scrupulously.”
Anthea Turner: “Believe me! Italian dance music's going to be the biggest thing to hit this country! And Black Box are here!”

 [11] BLACK BOX: ride on time. Call me Mr Cynical but I'm not sure I fully buy Anthea Turner's expert knowledge of Italian dance music and it's forthcoming impact on this country. Nicky Campbell has an odd look on his face, like he's primed Anthea Turner with this insight and is now trying to suppress a smirk. [Obligatory comment about Nicky Campbell always looking like that, goes here].

The opening to the show is a single camera shot, although it doesn't stand out because of the range of motion the camera goes through. From the opening pan up to the hosts, back down to the main stage, and then the pull back across the studio while the introduction to Ride on Time plays. Then there's some light editing trickery. After the transition, the hand held camera shot looking out into the studio comes from a different take because otherwise there's no time for the camera operator to get into position. It's unusual for Top of the Pops to cheat footage like this but it must have been irresistible because it perfectly captures the change in energy between the introduction and the song.

Film Review- Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice

 

Serendipitous circumstance makes this belated sequel to the Eighties cult film bang on trend what with Wynona Ryder being a part of Stranger Things, Jenna Ortega starring in Wednesday and the fact that ghosts and ghouls are arguably more popular than ever. So, it doesn’t really matter whether you’ve seen or recall the minutiae of the original Beetlejuice as there is if anything too much exposition to get us where we are, simply sit back and enjoy the mayhem. If you’re wondering about spelling the main character’s name is spelt as Betelgeuse (same as the red star) but pronounced Beetlejuice yet that’s also the title of the film. Believe me it’s far from being the oddest thing about it!

Top of the Pops 10 August 1989

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Bruno Brookes: “Good evening. It's Thursday night. Top of the Pops night of course. Europe's number one TV pop show. Five live acts on the show this evening.”
Sybil Ruscoe: “Now the Jackson's did it in the seventies. In the eighties it's Big Fun. In at twenty five with Blame It On The Boogie. Down there.”

[25] BIG FUN: blame it on the boogie. Derek Slee is having fun with the Lighting. He's conspired with the visual effects assistant to work out a little routine for the chorus. “Don't blame it on the sunshine” studio lights darken, a thunderflash is set off. “Don't blame it on the moonlight,” studio lights colour the stage midnight blue, another thunderflash. “Don't blame it on the good times,” bring the studio lights back up, tinted red. “Blame it on the boogie,” flash the lights a bit.

It doesn't work every time. I guess the studio lights can't cope with too much turning on and off. And the VFX Department isn't made of thunderflashes.

Roll With It

 Bands always reunite!

This week’s announcement that Oasis are reforming for concerts next year came as a surprise to hardly anyone, not just because it’s been rumoured for months but because bands always reform in the end. As long as the members (or most of them) are still with us and  playing or performing they cannot resist.  There can be different reasons but there must come a point when they tire of the procrastination and think “Yeah, lets get ourselves to the O2 Arena asap”. Even bands who unequivocally rule it out end up coming around. At least Eagles – who had once stated they would reform “when hell freezes over”- had the wit to dub their comeback tour `Hell Freezes Over”!

 

Oasis looking delighted to be back together

Advert of the Year!

 

KFC have often come up with well composed adverts that don’t follow a formula but are always interesting. It was not too long ago that they presented Colonel Sanders looking like some kind of Mafia boss riding around in a large shiny car, face hidden from view, KFC branches reflected in the vehicles’ exterior. This year though they have excelled themselves with `Believe in Chicken`, an advert that has made people laugh out loud, always an achievement. Like the best ads it is simple, effective and memorable. I know it’s only August but this could be the advert of the year!

 

Top of the Pops 3 August 1989

 

Words: Chris Arnsby
Steve Wright: “Hope you're having a good summer!! Good evening welcome to Top of the Pops!! I'm Steve Wright!! Here's Jenny Powell!!”
Jenny Powell: “Yeah. It's very nice to be working with you Steve.”
Steve Wright: “Thank you!!”
Jenny Powell: “Well the first band tonight come from Glasgow. They're three teenagers in the band, err, they're called Gun, I think...”
Steve Wright: “They are!!”
Jenny Powell: “...I think they're going to be a big hit. Here's Better Days.”

[33] GUN: better days. The guitarist at stage right has dirty great holes in his trouser legs. Is this a first sighting of pre-distressed jeans, that nineties fashion essential.

Sorry Gun. That's all I've got. Well done for not jumping when the thunderflashes go off. (John- I've got a fact for you, the drummer on this is called Scott Shields and he went on to compose music scores for films such as Black Hawk Down, Stardust, Bend It Like Beckham, Kick Ass and many more.)