Britain’s longest-running music TV show axed
June 21, 2006
More than 40 years after the Beatles and the Rolling Stones featured on the first edition, the BBC is to scrap Britain?s longest-running music television show, ?Top of the Pops.?
From its 1964 launch at the height of Beatlemania, the weekly countdown of Britain?s top-selling singles has tracked the ever-changing musical tastes of the younger generation.
The rise of 24-hour music TV channels such as MTV and Internet downloads sounded the death knell for the show.
At its peak, the program attracted tens of millions of viewers in Britain and nearly 100 other countries.
But the BBC, Britain?s publicly funded broadcaster, said the show could not compete with rivals that enable viewers to ?consume music of their choice any time night or day.?
DJ Dave Lee Travis said the BBC?s flagship music show had ?run its natural course?.
Travis, who hosted the show between 1972 and 1984, said the ?world is just too fast moving? for the weekly show.
He said it was a ?shame?, adding that the popularity of music downloads had led to the programme?s demise.
The final edition of Top of the Pops, which began in 1964, will be aired on 30 July, the BBC announced on Tuesday.
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