Paula Yates had eccentric flare; Jools Holland had a musical eye and that gave The Tube the ultimate Edge.
Back in 1982, there was no satellite TV or streaming and just three channels on the box. TV was crying out for a new cutting-edge show aimed at the youth. Enter Channel 4 and The Tube. This was a welcomed antidote to BBC1’s flagship music show, Top of the Pops, which was swamped with Cheesy DJ’s and dullard one hit wonders. The Tube had anarchy, edge, and old school cool. The show helped launch the careers of Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Terence Trent D’Arby. Let’s also not forget how many were first introduced to Global Megastar Madonna during her appearance on the show. It also put Newcastle firmly on the Map.
It kicked off on Bonfire night, live broadcast from Studio 5 at Tyne Tees Television Studios with a theme tune by legendary guitarist Jeff Beck. Critics thought it would never work up in Newcastle. How wrong were they! The City’s vibrancy and character enhanced the show. It made it stand out from other music shows that were suffocated by the backdrop of London.
The hosts of the show gave it that anarchy we are always talking about. The late, great Paula Yates was an esteemed Rock and Pop Journalist, aged just 21 she was writing 11 Music Columns a week for magazines such as the Record Mirror and the New Musical Express (NME). She had eccentric journalistic flare; she had an irreverent sense of humour and was way more daring than most of her contemporaries. Jools Holland complemented Yates perfectly, a Pianist for the band Squeeze, he had a strong musical ear and natural on-screen charisma.
Both Yates and Holland brought great credentials and chaos to the show, but their pairing was much more authentic than the autocued robots presenting over on the BBC. They stumbled over their lines, they used bad language, but they were stylish, cool, and crucially, well-informed. They were the TV Power couple of Pop that epitomised the 1980’s.
Although the show was shambolic, wild, and comedic, it made for great TV. All reservations about Newcastle as a place were dispelled and it showed that the North-East could be just as cool as anywhere else. I mean hello, Tina Turner, Elton John, Paula Yates, and Jools Holland all in one room at the same time, not many places in the country could have made that happen. Yates delivered the final line on the final ever broadcast saying, ‘You’ll miss us when we’re gone.’ I think she was right. Thank God for YouTube that’s all I have to say.
