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TV Pop Diaries
Pop Music on British Television 1955 - 1999

Recorded at Tyne Tees' Newcastle studios this would be the channel's first serious attempt at a pop show since Gangway nearly ten years earlier. They had enticed Cliff Richard to make the Sunday tea-time sermon with songs Life With Johnny in 1969 and the fearsome sounding Sing Out The With Settlers in 1973, but nothing that we could consider truly worthy. Which is odd since Newcastle wasn't without its own music scene but it took until 1974 for the North East when finally got a show that gave the opportunity to promote local talent. Geordie, Lindesfarne, Bullfrog, Beckett, Ace, Lamplight, Fogg, Sandgate and John Miles were among the local talent that appeared in the first series. The show followed a similar line to Granada's Doing Their Thing in which bands would play live, plugging their album, rather than a one song appearance for a single.


Arthur Clifford, director of programmes at Tyne Tees told The Stage in February 1976 "As I sit at my desk I can see the Tyne through the window and I know that the same thing is happening here as happened on the Mersey with The Beatles. That is what the Geordie Scene is about and that is why Alan Price helped to launch it."


The first few editions of series one were hosted by Dave Lee Travis, then by Dave Cash, followed by local DJ Big Phil and featured appearances from Lindesfarne, Showaddywaddy, The Bay City Rollers, Mud, Shakin' Stevens and Sweet among the big names, plus a healthy roster of local bands. For the Shakin' Stevens show Tyne Tees had brought in two hundred rock and roll fans from clubs across the north-east.


The second series, beginning in January 1975 was hosted by Dave Eager, a club DJ who had worked briefly for Radio One in the early seventies as an occasional stand-in. Georgie Fame, pub rockers Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers, The Glitter Band, Hello, The Kiki Dee Band, Splinter and Hustler played alongside local bands like Highway and Jack The Lad. It was the intention for the second series to have a tie-in with IBA radio stations whose data provided an album chart which would be used in the show, alongside features on some of the radio stations.


The third and final series, now broadcast on a Sunday evening, kicked off with Geordie legend Alan Price, followed by Glyder, Gallagher and Lyle, Andy Fairweather-Low, Osibisa, Procol Harum and finishing with another local legend John Miles.


The series was also broadcast by Thames and later by Anglia, but was not fully networked by ITV.


Tyne Tees' TX45 in the late eighties would also explore the local music scene.



THE GEORDIE SCENE


Tyne Tees

21st September 1974 - 28th March 1976

Plus a compilation 1st January 1977