BBC Cancels Top of the Pops

James Joyner @ Gone Hollywood | Wednesday, June 21, 2006

BBC has canceled its longrunning music countdown “Top of the Pops.”

The BBC’s flagship pop music programme Top of the Pops has been cancelled after 42 years, the BBC has announced. “The time has come to bring the show to its natural conclusion,” said the BBC’s director of television Jana Bennett. In a statement, the BBC said the weekly programme could no longer compete with 24-hour music channels.

Top of the Pops was first broadcast in 1964, from a converted church in Manchester. The final edition will be shown on 30 July. The pop programme was only commissioned for six episodes when it began in 1964. But it proved so popular that it won a weekly slot and has been broadcast by the BBC ever since, celebrating its 2,000th show in 2002.

The very first show was presented by BBC Radio 1 DJ Jimmy Savile and the first artists to appear were the Rolling Stones, who sang I Wanna Be Your Man. Many Radio 1 presenters hosted the show over the years, including Dave Lee Travis and Noel Edmonds. The current presenter is Fearne Cotton.

Jimmy Savile said he was “not at all” sad about the news and “not surprised in the slightest”. “In those days you would have to wait until Thursday night to get your fix and you don’t need to do that anymore,” he said. “Top of the Pops has been overrun by video of music on TV.”