Bands fucking about on live TV performances/miming

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

I don't know if the conga player is 'fucking around' or just fucking mental. Either way, he's definitely not a real conga player
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJpwoQul69Y

Pipou!!! A TOTP and Chart Music legend (Legend Pipou).

[DrGreggles]

Cover star of episode 20!

[dr beat]

#WESTANDBYPIPOU

[lipsink]

Beck assembling a backing band of octogenarians for Loser

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqx3hdk0ZE0

This was the first time I ever saw Beck and assumed they were an actual band full of old guys. Love the attempt at twirling a drumstick.

[Jockice]

I still think the greatest TOTP performance ever would probably have been the one The Housemartins rehearsed with their mums for Caravan Of Love when it went to number one. But the BBC bosses wouldn't let them do it because apparently Mrs Heaton, Cook, Cullimore and Whitaker weren't members of the Musicians' Union.

What a lovely idea though. Brings a lump to the throat. And I'd really like to know what union all the more glamorous dancers who appeared on stage with other acts were in.

[sutin]

Belle & Sebastian's only appearance on TOTP. Insurrectionist rock and roll mayhem!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWTDhqwM52I

They did Funny Little Frog on TOTP too. I remember watching it.

[Johnny Yesno]

Pipou!!! A TOTP and Chart Music legend (Legend Pipou).

Did he actually play congas?

I can't tell from this interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NO3YKd1GBk

[greenman]

Say what you will about the song, but the food fight that starts halfway through Travis doing 'Sing' on Top of the Pops is a lot of fun. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbBLantVhTs&ab_channel=TellyArchive

The Orb's performance of Blue Room consisted of Alex and Thrash playing a sci-fi chess game on stage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-Q3-cTOX7E&ab_channel=Thunder2Music
Sadly no sign of the Toxygene performance which had them in, as far as I recall, bumper cars.

More revolving mini stages done up to look like hovercraft.

https://twitter.com/90salive1/status/1136290689812185089?lang=en

[buzby]

I still think the greatest TOTP performance ever would probably have been the one The Housemartins rehearsed with their mums for Caravan Of Love when it went to number one. But the BBC bosses wouldn't let them do it because apparently Mrs Heaton, Cook, Cullimore and Whitaker weren't members of the Musicians' Union.

What a lovely idea though. Brings a lump to the throat. And I'd really like to know what union all the more glamorous dancers who appeared on stage with other acts were in.

Equity. Many singers, such as Dusty Springfield, were members of Equity and not the MU too. If the Housemartins' mams had been members of Equity it wouldn't have been a problem.

[purlieu]

More revolving mini stages done up to look like hovercraft.

https://twitter.com/90salive1/status/1136290689812185089?lang=en

Hah, bloody hell, that's more ridiculous than I remember! Those outfits.

Great stuff though, cheers. Haven't seen it in years.

[Jockice]

Equity. Many singers, such as Dusty Springfield, were members of Equity and not the MU too. If the Housemartins' mams had been members of Equity it wouldn't have been a problem.

Fair point. And I'm sure that's one band that wouldn't want to be seen as scabs. But I still find it hard to believe that every dancer who appeared on every performance was an Equity member.

[buzby]

Fair point. And I'm sure that's one band that wouldn't want to be seen as scabs. But I still find it hard to believe that every dancer who appeared on every performance was an Equity member.

They have to be, as you aren't allowed to perform (singing dancing or acting) and be paid for either in public or for film or broadcast without being a member. Any professional dancer and even most catwalk models would be members - it's one of the basics of being a professional performer. Even semi-pros, like my dad's mates who were pub singers, are usually in Equity.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

They did Funny Little Frog on TOTP too. I remember watching it.

I'd stopped paying attention to most things by then. A difficult year.

[Jockice]

They have to be, as you aren't allowed to perform (singing dancing or acting) and be paid for either in public or for film or broadcast without being a member. Any professional dancer and even most catwalk models would be members - it's one of the basics of being a professional performer. Even semi-pros, like my dad's mates who were pub singers, are usually in Equity.

I see. Ta. But what about those bands who had (obviously contrived) stage invasions during their songs? Had everyone who got up there been vetted to make sure they were union members? And I don't think The Housemartins were planning to pay their mums. Hugh Whitaker's mum looked exactly the same as he did you know.

I'm not trying to catch you out here Buzby (doubt if I could anyway) but I'm just interested.

[buzby]

I see. Ta. But what about those bands who had (obviously contrived) stage invasions during their songs? Had everyone who got up there been vetted to make sure they were union members? And I don't think The Housemartins were planning to pay their mums. Hugh Whitaker's mum looked exactly the same as he did you know.

I'm not trying to catch you out here Buzby (doubt if I could anyway) but I'm just interested.

If the stage invasions were from audience members (or plants that the band had managed to get into the audience) then as long as they weren't being paid to appear it was OK. Bands, and by extension any dancers they brought with them, were paid an appearance fee for TOTP (for example, The Who were paid £63 for their My Generation performance at the Manchester studio in 1965). The performers will also be getting a residual repeat payment from any repeats too.

The appearance fee was paid to the band's management, and it was up to them to distribute it. However, they would also have had to to provide the BBC with the MU or Equity details of everyone who appeared. The BBC could not afford to upset the performers unions.

I believe the current 'engagement fee' (the payment for a single episode filmed in one day) for Equity members on in-house BBC productions is £546, which covers one networked transmission on one of their main channels, or 9 transmissions over a period of 5 years on secondary channels. If they are required for any work after that first day they are paid at £60.50 per day, up to the seventh consecutive day when it rises to £90.

[Jockice]

Cheers Buzby. As always you're a total fount of knowledge.

[daf]

you're a total fount

Language, Timothy!

[popcorn]

Sisters of Mercy on TOTP.

I don't know anything about the Sisters of Mercy but I absolutely fucking love this song even though I can't work out exactly where it sits on the cool/cheesy spectrum. It's also weirdly similar to Gouge Away, which came out the next year. Coincidence?

[studpuppet]

They have to be, as you aren't allowed to perform (singing dancing or acting) and be paid for either in public or for film or broadcast without being a member. Any professional dancer and even most catwalk models would be members - it's one of the basics of being a professional performer. Even semi-pros, like my dad's mates who were pub singers, are usually in Equity.

I did a musical at college that ended up being taken to the World Student Games in Sheffield and then the Edinburgh Fringe; we did something like 27 performances in total, because any more (I'm guessing 30 may have been the threshold?) and we'd all have had to join Equity.