Going Live!
Encyclopedia
Going Live! was a Saturday morning magazine show, broadcast on BBC1
between 1987 and 1993. It was presented by Phillip Schofield
and Sarah Greene
.
Other presenters included Trevor and Simon
, Peter Simon, Emma Forbes, and puppet Gordon the Gopher
.
The show was broadcast during the autumn to spring seasons, with other shows such as the 8:15 from Manchester
and Parallel 9
taking over during the summer months. It was preceded by Saturday Superstore
, and succeeded by Live & Kicking
.
In 1988, when the second series started, Greene was hurt in a helicopter crash with her then boyfriend (now husband), Mike Smith
. Guest presenters stood in for her including T'Pau
's Carol Decker. Similarly, in 1992-93 during the final series, Schofield was starring in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
and was unable to present the show. A third presenter took his place. Originally, Neighbours
actor Kristian Schmid took the role but soon left after problems with his work permit. Various other celebrities to stand in included Shane Richie
and Robbie Williams
during his Take That
days.
. It was replaced in later series of Going Live!, first by Clockwise, presented by Darren Day
, and then by Run the Risk
, which was again presented by Simon, along with Shane Richie
. The latter of these shows continued onto Live & Kicking
.
and AIDS
, which were uncharacteristically deep issues for a Saturday morning youth programme.
They were replaced in series five by Nick Ball and James Hickish, but returned for the last series.
, created by the BBC Design team consisting of Morgan Almeida, Mark Knight and Paul Baguley.
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
between 1987 and 1993. It was presented by Phillip Schofield
Phillip Schofield
Phillip Bryan Schofield is an English broadcaster and television personality best known for presenting shows such as This Morning, Dancing on Ice, and various game shows including The Cube.-Early life and career:...
and Sarah Greene
Sarah Greene
Sarah Greene is a British television personality well known for presenting live TV: long-running series e.g. Blue Peter, from 19 May 1980 until 27 June 1983, Saturday Superstore, Going Live for 10 years and big event/awards shows.- Early life and career :Greene was born in London, England, the...
.
Other presenters included Trevor and Simon
Trevor and Simon
Trevor Neal and Simon Hickson are a British comedy duo, best known for their contributions to the BBC1 children's television series Going Live! and Live & Kicking during the late 1980s and throughout much of the 1990s...
, Peter Simon, Emma Forbes, and puppet Gordon the Gopher
Gordon the Gopher
Gordon the Gopher, also known as Gordon T. Gopher, an English puppet gopher who first appeared on Children's BBC between 1985 and 1987, presenting television shows with Phillip Schofield on the interstitial or in-vision continuity programme The Broom Cupboard...
.
The show was broadcast during the autumn to spring seasons, with other shows such as the 8:15 from Manchester
8:15 from Manchester
8:15 from Manchester is a Saturday morning children's magazine show broadcast on BBC1 when Going Live! was between series.Broadcasting from Manchester, it was presented by Ross King and Charlotte Hindle. The first edition was broadcast on 21 April 1990. It was produced by Martyn Day...
and Parallel 9
Parallel 9
Parallel 9 was a British children's television entertainment show that broadcast from 1992 to 1994. A total of three series - one in each year - was produced, and each series ran for up to twenty-two weeks Parallel 9 (commonly known as 'P9') was a British children's television entertainment show...
taking over during the summer months. It was preceded by Saturday Superstore
Saturday Superstore
Saturday Superstore was a children's television series, broadcast on BBC1 from 1982 until 1987. It was shown on Saturday mornings with presenters including Mike Read, Sarah Greene, Keith Chegwin and John Craven. The show was very similar to its predecessor Multi-Coloured Swap Shop.A regular spot on...
, and succeeded by Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking was a BBC Saturday morning children's magazine programme, running from 1993 to 2001. The fourth in a succession of Saturday morning shows, it was the replacement for Going Live!, and took many of its features from it, such as phone-ins, games, comedy, competitions and the showing of...
.
In 1988, when the second series started, Greene was hurt in a helicopter crash with her then boyfriend (now husband), Mike Smith
Mike Smith (television presenter)
Mike Smith is a British television, radio presenter, racing driver, pilot, and businessman.-Radio career:...
. Guest presenters stood in for her including T'Pau
T'Pau (band)
T'Pau was a 1980s British Rock group led by singer Carol Decker. They had a string of Top 40 hits in the UK, and several hits in the United States and Europe...
's Carol Decker. Similarly, in 1992-93 during the final series, Schofield was starring in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the "coat of many colors" story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly...
and was unable to present the show. A third presenter took his place. Originally, Neighbours
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...
actor Kristian Schmid took the role but soon left after problems with his work permit. Various other celebrities to stand in included Shane Richie
Shane Richie
Shane Richie is an English actor, comedian, singer and media personality, known for his portrayal of the character Alfie Moon in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders.-Early life and career beginnings:...
and Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
during his Take That
Take That
Take That are a British five-piece vocal pop group comprising Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. Barlow acts as the lead singer and primary songwriter...
days.
Double Dare
Double Dare was presented by Peter Simon, and it was best known for Simon to fall, during the final round, into the GungeGunge
Gunge as it is known in the British Isles, or slime as it is known in America and other parts of the world is a thick, gooey, runny substance similar in consistency to paint. It has been a feature on many children's programmes for many years around the world and has made appearances in game shows...
. It was replaced in later series of Going Live!, first by Clockwise, presented by Darren Day
Darren Day
Darren Day , is an English actor, singer and television presenter, well known for his West End theatre starring roles.-Early life:His paternal grandfather was a support and warm-up act for George Formby...
, and then by Run the Risk
Run the Risk
Run the Risk was a BBC1 children's show, which aired from the latter half of 1992 until the beginning of 1998. It was aired on Saturday mornings during Going Live, and later Live & Kicking, and was later repeated as its own individual show. It was presented by Peter Simon for the entire run...
, which was again presented by Simon, along with Shane Richie
Shane Richie
Shane Richie is an English actor, comedian, singer and media personality, known for his portrayal of the character Alfie Moon in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders.-Early life and career beginnings:...
. The latter of these shows continued onto Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking
Live & Kicking was a BBC Saturday morning children's magazine programme, running from 1993 to 2001. The fourth in a succession of Saturday morning shows, it was the replacement for Going Live!, and took many of its features from it, such as phone-ins, games, comedy, competitions and the showing of...
.
Growing Pains
Phillip Hodson provided 'agony uncle' advice to young callers on diverse and often difficult topics in Growing Pains. The topics ranged from love troubles and general teenage angst, to more severe topics such as child abuseChild abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
and AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, which were uncharacteristically deep issues for a Saturday morning youth programme.
Live Line
In this segment, the show's producers would arrange for popular musical groups and performers to pay surprise visits to their fans. Usually this involved handsome male pop singers talking to teenage girls.The Press Conference
The big set-piece interview at the end of each programme, featuring questions from both the studio audience and from phone callers. These were often with politicians, high-ranking executives in the BBC, or people who had made a notable achievement (e.g. sports people who had success at the Olympics).The Video Vote
This was a phone-in section where the viewing public were encouraged to cast their opinions on the popular music videos of the time, which were then shown according to popularity.Trevor and Simon
These two anchormen (who were essentially clowns) provided light-hearted humour and character comedy. Popular characters played by the duo included:- 'The Sister Brothers', a pair of rogue traders;
- folk duo 'The Singing Corner';
- DJ Mick McMac and raveRaveRave, rave dance, and rave party are parties that originated mostly from acid house parties, which featured fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties people dance and socialize to dance music played by disc jockeys and occasionally live performers...
-goer Moon Monkey; - 'Blimey, that's good!', a parody of television shopping channelShopping channelShopping channels are television specialty channels that present shopping related content, particularly for home shopping enthusiasts.-USA:* America's Store* Home Shopping Network* Jewelry Television* QVC* Shop at Home Network* ShopNBC...
s; - The Bottomless Bin;
- The Witch Finders, who appeared every HalloweenHalloweenHallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
to enlist members of the studio audience to hunt 'witches' and other evil-doers. This normally ended up with them poking Phillip with sticks.
They were replaced in series five by Nick Ball and James Hickish, but returned for the last series.
Outside broadcasts
During its run, the show made several broadcasts from outside the confines of the studio. These included:- Center ParcsCenter ParcsCenter Parcs is a European network of holiday villages incorporating a UK-based company, Center Parcs UK, which runs holiday villages in the United Kingdom and a sister enterprise, Center Parcs Europe, that operates in numerous locations in continental Europe...
; - a cross-channel ferryFerryA ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
from DoverDoverDover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
to CalaisCalaisCalais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
; - a steam trainTrainA train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
on the Watercress LineWatercress LineThe Watercress Line is the marketing name of the Mid-Hants Railway, a heritage railway in Hampshire, England, running from New Alresford to Alton where it connects to the National Rail network. The line gained its popular name in the days that it was used to transport locally grown watercress to...
, HampshireHampshireHampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
; - a ferry to the Isle of WightIsle of WightThe Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
It Started With Swap Shop
Going Live! had their own section on the BBC's It Started With Swap Shop featuring classic clips of the show. It is presented as elevator employees recalling favored parts of the show.Awards
In 1992, the show's opening sequence of a 'colourbars army preparing to Go Live', was nominated for a Bafta AwardBritish Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
, created by the BBC Design team consisting of Morgan Almeida, Mark Knight and Paul Baguley.
External links
- Going Live! at bbc.co.ukBbc.co.ukBBC Online is the brand name and home for the BBC's UK online service. It is a large network of websites including such high profile sites as BBC News and Sport, the on-demand video and radio services co-branded BBC iPlayer, the pre-school site Cbeebies, and learning services such as Bitesize...
- Satkids: Going Live
- British Film Institute Screen Online
- Going Live! at Saturday Mornings