Top of the Pops

Seems Mike Smith on TOTP is the new TVS Archive.....

I think it's even worse TBH. The anger in brings out in some people (well.. it's a grand total of 5 people who have ever taken exception to it, two of which never did so before yesterday, but they're very vocal and regularly derail the discussion over it) is ridiculous. I'm not sure why they can't just ignore a subject they're not interested in rather than keep jumping on people and starting arguments.

Looking ahead to some of the random people who presented TOTP in the late 80s I have absolutely no recollection of Susie Mathis. It looks like she presented twice. Did she have a Radio One Show st the time? As for Tim Smith’s one appearance with Caron Keating any idea why he wasn’t credited on screen?

I remember Susie Mathis from her days on the old Piccadilly 261 (MW) in Manchester up to about '88 when the station changed to Key 103 (FM), and also her later presenting stint on BBC Radio Manchester in the early 90s.



What happened in between, ISTR she also presented some local TV for Granada, but I'd hazard a guess she may have also filled in during holidays on BBC National & got the Pops gig that way?

Prior to that, according to wiki she was part of a late 60s girl group "The Paper Dolls" who had a #11 hit in 1968... composed by MacLeod and Tony Macaulay, the songwriting duo who also wrote songs for Pickettywitch, The Flying Machine, Long John Baldry and The Foundations .

The video's less than exotic filming location, however, seems to be the back of an empty coal wagon in West Germany en route to an open cast pit.

That's showbiz!



As far as Tim Smith's concerned, it's a name I've absolutely no recollection of so unfortunately he becomes another random bloke in my Pops category of " no, me neither "

Tim Smith as in Steve Wright's sidekick?

And short lived Weekend Early Breakfast DJ on Radio 1, which presumably got him the gig

Fair play, I think the answer would win any pub quiz!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Smith_(DJ)

And for extra anorak points possibly the only Radio 1 jock with a photo card picture taken in front of a Mark 3 desk (he was also on GLR the same time and they used the same picture)

Seeing as we got some footage from The Tube in the Story of 1986, I'm hoping we get some footage from The Roxy in the Story of 1987. I find it hard to believe it won't get a mention in there anyway. I beleive it was The Roxy's influence, having a set presenting team at first, which is why TOTP had Gary Davies & Mike Smith present 4 consective shows in September/October 87.

Tim Smith used to present the newly released weekly singles chart (The Top 20) on the World Service. Late on a Monday night the day after Radio 1's chart show. I discovered this by accident one night during the summer of 1996 and began listening regularly for a while. I've no idea how long he'd been doing it by the time I noticed or how long the World Service had been broadcasting the UK singles chart to a global audience, or even if they still do to this day.

From memory, Tim Smith barely did more than one link.

It was also Anthea Turner, not Caron Keating, that he appeared with.

That's where I always think of him from, he used to co-present a film review show there called The GLR Picture Show