Saturday Superstore

SATURDAY SUPERSTORE
Made by: BBC
Shown on: BBC1
Years shown: 1982-87

This giant of Saturday morning TV had a presenting team who felt like an extended family. Bespectacled Radio 1 DJ Mike Read was like the uncle who knew lots about pop music; John Craven, with his knitted jumpers and sensible haircut, was a bit like your dad on a good day; Sarah Greene was a sexy aunty and Keith Chegwin…well…he was the older brother who was fun for half an hour, but who you then wished would bugger off back to his modern apprenticeship.

Saturday Superstore was a blueprint for its successor, Going Live! - it had a casual, relaxed atmosphere, but at the same time it had a format, and you felt like the presenters were on top of it all, despite the appearance of chaos, sometimes. Hey, even John Craven got to loosen up a bit. There were a multitude of celebrity guests, including the biggest coup of them all - a question and answer session with Margaret Thatcher (who, Chegwin famously later remarked, had hairy legs.) One of the best-remembered features of the show was ‘Search for a Superstar’, which encouraged viewers to write in and nominate themselves, or others, as great singers/dancers/comedians/magicians etc., and then they would appear on the show and would be put to a vote. I can clearly remember a bunch of kids performing ‘Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat’ from Guys and Dolls, complete with a rowing boat on the studio floor, in case you were in any doubt. People may also recall a quartet of teachers singing ‘The Laughing Policeman’, while dressed in full uniform, and with a flashing blue light on top of the piano - well, they were from my future middle school, Marden Bridge, and I was still suffering Mr Chapple, Mr Nicholson and Mr Phillips’ rendition of it five years or so later. The emerging winners of the competition might stir a few nasty memories too: they were Claire and Friends, with a sickly song called ‘It’s ‘Orrible Being in Love When You’re Eight and a Half’ (which reached number 13 in 1986.) Gap-toothed Claire was actually nine when the record charted, but I remember the so-called video, where she hung around an older boy while he played conkers, and warbled to him, “I’ve got your picture on my wall/ Got your name upon my scarf”. Excuse me while I undergo hypnosis to remove those lyrics from my brain.

SQUARE EYES RATING: 9/10

(Thanks to www.bbc.co.uk for the borrowed pic)