TOTP81.51 24/12/81

Repeated on BBCFour 16/06/2016
Presented by: David Jensen
Full chart here


Wizzard – “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday” (41)

Imagination – brief Xmas message

Adam & The Ants – “Ant Rap” (4) (video)

Elvis Costello & The Attractions – “Sweet Dreams” (45)

Bucks Fizz – “The Land Of Make Believe” (5)

The Police – “Spirits In The Material World” (12) (rpt from 10/12/81)

Kool & The Gang – “Get Down On It” (26) (Zoo)

Abba – “One Of Us” (3) (video)

Altered Images – “I Could Be Happy” (20)

Dollar – “Mirror Mirror (Mon Amour)” (9)

The Human League – “Don’t You Want Me” (1)

Philip Lynott – “Yellow Pearl” (47) (audience dancing/credits)

TOTP81.50 17/12/81

Repeated on BBCFour 10.06.2016
Presented by: Simon Bates
Full chart here

TOTP debut: The Snowmen, Brownsauce



Duran Duran – “My Own Way” (14)

Cliff Richard – “Daddy’s Home” (2) (live clip/audience dancing)

Chas & Dave – “Stars Over 45” (36)

Godley & Crème – “Wedding Bells” (8)

Brown Sauce – “I Wanna Be A Winner” (64) (video)

Rod Stewart – “Young Turks” (23) (video)

The Snowmen – “Hokey Cokey” (40) WATCH

Jon & Vangelis – “I’ll Find My Way Home” (26) (danced to by Sue)

Status Quo – “Rock ‘N’ Roll” (12) (rpt from 03/12/81)

The Human League – “Don’t You Want Me” (1) (video)

Altered Images – “I Could Be Happy” (29) (audience dancing/credits)

TOTP81.49 10/12/81

Not repeated on BBCFour
Presented by: Jimmy Saville
Full chart here



Showaddywaddy – “Footsteps” (35)

Madness – “It Must Be Love” (7) (video)

Dollar – “Mirror Mirror (Mon Amour)” (26)

Ken Dodd – “Hold My Hand” (not in chart)

Adam & The Ants – “Ant Rap” (9) (video)

Bucks Fizz – “The Land Of Make Believe” (24)

The Police – “Spirits In The Material World” (28)

Abba – “One Of Us” (11) (video)

The Human League – “Don’t You Want Me” (1) (video)


Philip Lynott – “Yellow Pearl” (TOTP theme/not in chart) (audience dancing/credits)

TOTP81.48 3/12/81

Repeated on BBCFour 09/06/2016
Presented by: David Jensen
Full chart here

Bad Manners – “Buona Sera” (34)

Soft Cell – “Bedsitter” (4)

Status Quo – “Rock ‘N’ Roll” (27)

Duran Duran – “My Own Way” (26) WATCH

Jonathan King – US chart rundown:
includes:

• Journey – “Don’t Stop Believing” (live clip)
• Rod Stewart – “Young Turks” (video clip)
• Olivia Newton-John – “Physical” (video clip)

Diana Ross – “Why Do Fools Fall In Love?” (5) (Zoo)

Godley & Creme – “Wedding Bells” (21) (video)

Fun Boy Three – “The Lunatics (Have Taken Over The Asylum)” (20)

The Human League – “Don’t You Want Me” (9) (video)

Julio Iglesias – “Begin The Beguine” (1) (video/credits)

TOTP81.47 26/11/81

Repeated on BBCFour 03/06/2016
Presented by: Mike Read
Full chart here


The Jets – “Yes Tonight Josephine” (25)

Earth, Wind & Fire – “Let’s Groove” (3) (video)

Toyah – “Good Morning Universe” (23)

Cliff Richard – “Daddy’s Home” (15) (video)

Imagination – “Flashback” (28)

Ultravox – “The Voice” (18) (video)

Kim Wilde – “Cambodia” (24)

Kool & The Gang – “Steppin’ Out” (14) (rpt from 12/11/81)

Queen & David Bowie – “Under Pressure” (1) (audience dancing/credits)

TOTP81.45 12/11/80

Not repeated on BBCFour
Introduced by Dave Lee Travis
Full chart here

Some old some new faces on tonight for a generally very entertaining show, although oddly the highest new entry (at no. 8) is not featured.


Kool & The Gang – “Steppin’ Out” (25)
Slow progress, up from last week's 32, but will do a lot better.

OMD – “Joan Of Arc” (5)
Up from no. 7 to reach its peak. One thinks that if they hadn't just released the album then this might have done even better. I for one certainly didn't buy it for that reason, and regret it to this day.

Olivia Newton-John – “Physical” (11) (video)
Saucy/funny video again will help it reach its no. 7 peak next week.

The Fureys with Davey Arthur – “When You Were Sweet Sixteen” (14)
Like OMD this band of brothers will remain at this peak for one more week. Unlike OMD they will fade into oblivion.

Haircut 100 – “Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)” (9)
Whoop! Heyward and plas storm into the top 10 and go even higher next week.

New feature:
Jonathan King – US chart rundown:

• Air Supply – “Just When I Thought I Was Over You” (video clip)
• Foreigner – “Waiting For A Girl Like You” (live clip)
• Daryl Hall & John Oates – “Private Eyes” (video clip)

Ultravox – “The Voice” (27)
Follow up to last summer's "The Thin Wall" and a bit of an epic stomper as the 'Vox shuffle up with a bovine grace and glide in syncopation. Second highest new entry after Modern Romance.

Earth, Wind & Fire – “Let’s Groove” (20) (Zoo)
Zoo's second appearance with EWF's first and last Top 10-er of the eighties.

Rod Stewart – “Tonight I’m Yours (Don’t Hurt Me)” (10)
Rod hoping for a painless entry into the Top 10.

The Police – “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” (1)
Pretty inevitably they made it to the top after last week's no. 3 debut. Life at the top will be very short lived for this one though.

Altered Images – “Happy Birthday” (2) (audience dancing/credits)
Still hanging in there - third and final week at no. 2.

TOTP81.44 05/11/81

Repeated on BBCFour 27/05/2016
Introduced by Peter Powell
Full chart here

TOTP debut: ABC, The Dukes, The Jets,


Modern Romance – “Ay Ay Ay Ay Moosey” (45)
Follow-up to party song Everybosy Salsa, doing pretty much the same thing as its predecessor. In fact i think they might vene be the same song.

The Police – “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” (3) (video)
Sting and pals are also very much in the 'up' mood with this one after the rather dour Invisible Sun, and are on their way to no. 1 - oops, spoiler.

The Dukes – “Mystery Girl” (47)
Mystery band more like it (not even listed on wiki), although this is basically Dominic Bugatti & Frank Musker - a songwriting duo who did pretty well in the mid to late 70s with stuff for Paul Nicholas, the Three Degrees and more recently with Sheena Easton's Modern Girl. Now they have a crack at doing one of thier own songs, and fail miserably.

Rush – “Tom Sawyer” (26) (live clip)
A follow-up of sorts to last year's Spirit of Radio, although Rush 'hit singles' are basically flukes more than anything.

The Jets – “Yes Tonight Josephine” (44)
Rockabilly's back, alas.

ELO – “Twilight” (30) (Zoo)


Julio Iglesias – “Begin The Beguine” (21) (video)


ABC – “Tears Are Not Enough” (50)
Debut for this glitzy outfit from Sheffield who would go on to 'define the eighties' and all that, with their debut album Lexicon of Love. ABC were indeed on the brink of something big here with what would effectively become the sound of next year, rather than this, aided by lush Trevor Horn (Buggles, Dollar) production and equally lush orchestra arrangements by Ms. Anne Dudley.
Irony of ironies, the 'sequel' album Lexicon of Love II was released the same day that this show was repeated on BBCFour. Coincidence? I say maybe....

Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin – “It’s My Party” (1) (rpt from 24/09/81)
Last week at no. 1 and back to a repeat studio performance from over a month ago.

The Four Tops – “When She Was My Girl” (5) (video/audience dancing/credits)
Amazingly at no. 5 and will go even higher to..... Tune in next week folks!