The Tube (TV series)

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Not to be confused with The Tube (London Underground TV series).

Screenshot of The Tube's neon sign trademark

The Tube was an innovative United Kingdom pop/rock music television programme, which ran for 5 seasons, from 1982 until 1987. Many other specials were made, including one for the eve of the millennium. It was produced in Newcastle upon Tyne by Tyne Tees Television and broadcast on Channel 4 television. The Tube was presented live by such talented luminaries as Jools Holland and the late Paula Yates. It was relaunched by Channel 4 as an online radio station in November 2006.

1 Showcase for 80s bands
2 Format
3 Demise
4 Radio revival
5 References
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] Showcase for 80s bands

'The Tube' takes its name from this entrance to Tyne Tees Television's City Road complex

The Tube was a showcase for many emerging 80s bands. Artists who played on The Tube included: Art of Noise, The Assembly, Aztec Camera, Big Country, Boomtown Rats, Cardiacs, Culture Club, The Damned, Duran Duran, Echo and the Bunnymen, Elvis Costello, Fatal Charm, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Human League, Icicle Works, Iggy Pop, INXS, Killing Joke, Level 42, Lloyd Cole & The Commotions, Madonna, Magnum, Meat Loaf, Motörhead, Paul Young, Psychedelic Furs, The Rainmakers, Robert Palmer, R.E.M., Scraping Foetus Off The Wheel, Simply Red, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Squeeze, Style Council, Tears for Fears, Terence Trent D'Arby, The Smiths, The Cult, The Cure, The Dream Academy, The Jam, The Mission, The Pretenders, The Stranglers, Then Jericho, Thin Lizzy, Twisted Sister, U2, Ultravox, Wham, XTC, Yazoo.

The Tube was a very important outlet for the performers, and provided a turning point in the careers of many of them. For The Proclaimers, performing "Letter from America" on the Tube was instrumental in helping the Scottish duo to their first top ten UK hit; it was also responsible for introducing Frankie Goes to Hollywood to their record label.

[edit] Format

The cornerstone of the shows was the live performances from three or four bands each week. In an era where most music TV shows featured non-stop miming, the fully live sets by the guest artists were innovative (but the sound mix was often very poor). The programme would also feature a couple of pop video exclusives introduced by Holland and Yates. Afterwards, Yates would conduct a rather flirtatious interview: in 1985, for example, she prompted Sting to remove his trousers. Muriel Gray would provide a more worthy item on world music. Each regular episode ended with an extended set by a band of the week. The series also featured comedy 'interventions' by the likes of Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, and comedy poetry from Mark Miwurdz.

Studio 5 was also used to produce a spin off show called TX45. This show ran for 2 series Hosted by Chris Cowey and produced by Jeff Brown and featured local bands like, The Kane Gang, Secret Sam, She and President

[edit] Demise

In January 1987, during the fifth series, Jools Holland accidentally swore with the words "groovy fuckers" during a live trailer for the show. The incident caused a national scandal, as the trailer was transmitted at a peak children's viewing time and the show was taken off air for three weeks as a result. Holland was reprimanded by Channel 4, as this was not the first time he had accidentally sworn on the live show. The show's producer, Malcolm Gerrie, and Tyne Tees' Director of Programmes, Andrea Wonfor, announced their resignations in March. They cited as reasons for doing so a mixture of internal bickering, political pressure and "stifling bureaucracy and heavy handed moralism". A further series was never commissioned. In truth, the viewing figures for the series had dropped significantly, and the original format had been watered down. Some people close to the show had said that Holland's swearing was seen as a convenient way of ending the show.

In 2000, The Tube was brought back for a one-off live special on Sky One. Hosted by BBC Radio 1's Chris Moyles and Donna Air, the show came live again from Studio 5 at Tyne Tees and the bar of the Egypt Cottage next door.

In 2005 Tyne Tees Television moved out from its City Road complex on Newcastle Quayside. The site is to be redeveloped as housing, but it is not yet clear whether the trademark 'Tube' structure will remain.

In July 2006 Studio 5 of the TTTV City Road site was leased by Metro Church International, led by Pastors Ken and Lois Gott.

[edit] Radio revival

In November 2006, the program was revived as a radio show by UKOne Productions for Channel 4 Radio[1]. Presenters Connie Huq, Alex James and Tony Wilson host the main show (The Tube) and filler show (Mind The Gap) and has been heavily promoted on the TV channel.