1994: Return of The Radio 1 DJs
The presentation changes introduced in 1991 did not have the impact producers had hoped for and by 1993 only Mark Franklin and Tony Dortie remained from the revamped team. Despite claiming 9m viewers in January 1992, the success of the revamp was short-lived and by May 1992 less than 6.5m were tuning in - a figure which remained fairly constant for the next eighteen months. Reasons for the sustained lack of popularity for the show ranged wildly from a general apathy towards the music that featured in the charts at this time to claims that the graphics styled around the 'weathervane' idea were hard to read. Dortie and Franklin presented the show individually in rotation until January 1994 when Ric Blaxill replaced Stanley Appel as executive producer. Blaxill had produced shows for Radio 1 and had survived the first wave of change under new station controller Matthew Bannister which had seen many of the DJs deemed too old for Top of the Pops in 1991 be sacked or resign. Of those DJs that survived Bannister's cull, Simon Mayo, Mark Goodier and Nicky Campbell had all presented TOTP prior to the 1991 revamp and were all reinstated as presenters from 3 February 1994. Also returning was Bruno Brookes, another stalwart of the pre-1991 presenting team, though he was fired from Radio 1 in a second wave of Bannister cullings in February 1995 and accordingly he left the Top of the Pops presenting roster in April. Blaxill's brainwave was to make the show seem like an event and he wanted the presentation between each song to be as spontaneous as the music it was introducing. To do this Blaxill introduced the 'golden microphone' and experimented with celebrity guest presenters, mainly drawn from the realms of comedy and sport, as well as pop stars who were not promoting a single that week, to introduce the show. The presenting line-up was augmented by Bannister's new signings to Radio 1, Lisa I'Anson, Wendy Lloyd, Claire Sturgess, Jo Whiley, and Dale Winton.
- Simon Mayo (1994–1995, plus 30 August 1996)
- Mark Goodier (1994–1995, plus 28 March 1996)
- Bruno Brookes (1994–1995)
- Nicky Campbell (1994–1997)
- Jo Whiley (1995–1998, plus 23 April and 14 May 2006) (with Steve Lamacq 1995–1996)
- Lisa I'Anson (1995–1996)
Read more about this topic: List Of Presenters On Top Of The Pops
Famous quotes containing the words return and/or radio:
“I hate that word. It’s return—a return to the millions of people who’ve never forgiven me for deserting the screen.”
—Billy Wilder (b. 1906)
“The radio ... goes on early in the morning and is listened to at all hours of the day, until nine, ten and often eleven o’clock in the evening. This is certainly a sign that the grown-ups have infinite patience, but it also means that the power of absorption of their brains is pretty limited, with exceptions, of course—I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. One or two news bulletins would be ample per day! But the old geese, well—I’ve said my piece!”
—Anne Frank (1929–1945)