TV Pop Diaries
Pop Music on British Television 1955 -
Although Frankie Vaughan had been the host for many TV shows over the years why it took so long for someone to squeak up and give him his own series proper is one of British TV's great mysteries. The man was not without charm and talent.
Vaughan had previously been the host of several TV specials before, probably starting
with ABC's Big Town Saturday Night on 5th May 1956 which pitched up in his hometown
of Liverpool, and later that year on ATV's Val Parnell’s Saturday Show on 29th December
1956. It's likely he made his Sunday Night At The London Palladium debut on 31st
March 1957, performing three of his hits, before being given his own mini-
He was back on hosting duties on 25th October 1958 but this time it was a slightly
different affair. When Frank Abelson was growing up in Liverpool he felt that he
might have been the only Jewish kid in town and decided that, should he become famous,
he'll spend time and effort into helping young kids get off the streets and away
from the temptations of violence and a sense of alienation. ATV's Frankie Vaughan
with Members of the Boy's Club helped bring attention to the kind of clubs that Abelson
(Vaughan) frequented when he was a kid. As a result of being a regular of the club
he nearly took up boxing as a career, until he became a student art teacher in Leeds,
probably becoming the first in a long line of British pop stars who got their start
at art college. The show itself was broadcast from the Festival Hall in London, but
The Six-
Another ATV hosted special at the end of the year would continue a pattern of TV appearances over the next few years. Sunday Night at the London Palladium, specials for ATV, Thank Your Lucky Stars, guest appearances on variety shows, panel duties on Juke Box Jury, even refereeing in charity football matches.
His long-
He would be back the following year with guests The Seekers, Dickie Valentine and Tom Jones, but then it appeared to be over. Despite getting himself a backing group, The V Men, and more big hits with There Must Be A Way and Nevertheless, he would now only be invited as a guest artist on other people's shows. However, things would take a serious turn in autumn 1968 when he offered himself as a mediator after an outbreak of gang violence in Glasgow saw youths ending up in hospital with knife wounds. After discussions with both sides he spoke on national TV with Cliff Michelmore about the effects of poverty and poor housing on Britain's youth.
Frankie's show never bagged the coveted TV Times front cover, but for the second series he did get one full page surrounded by his own art.
THE FRANKIE VAUGHAN SHOW
ATV
21st August 1965 -
7th May 1966 -