The BBC is right to bring back TOTP but wrong to involve Simon Cowell

The old format doesn’t need an X Factor make-over

Reggie Yates and Fearne Cotton presenting Top of the Pops

I’ve argued more than once here that the BBC should revive Top of the Pops. Not only was it prime time viewing of the latest chart successes, but crucially it was a rare example of a programme that tended to be watched by the whole family together.

So I was naturally delighted to see that BBC executives are close to bringing the programme back. It will have a different name. Top of the Pops does sound more than a bit dated, though I suspect the real reason for a change of name is that the old one is too closely associated with Jimmy Savile.

The BBC now acknowledges that it’s a programme that can get the whole family on the sofa, one generation perhaps enjoying the music, the other wondering why. That was always part of the fun. And, let’s be generous and not make the point too forcefully that the same BBC that has been telling us for years that families will never watch TV together again, and the younger ones don’t watch programmes on TV at all, have now done a U-turn worthy of George Osborne. The good news is that a prime-time chart programme is coming back.

And then I saw that as part of the process the BBC will be consulting with Simon Cowell. Give us a break. Does this mean yet another programme with celebrity judges giving their views on the music? The one thing TOTP does not need is an X Factor make-over. I do wonder why there is such a fear of replicating a successful format and such desperation to update it. Certainly, there should be some tweaking. Albums must have much more of a presence, and we should see artists performing album tracks alongside those performing their latest singles.

But I don’t accept the BBC’s stated fear that fans have already seen artists perform their latest tracks on YouTube, so a major change of format is necessary. Fans may well have seen their particular favourites on YouTube, but won’t have viewed artists that they are less interested in. And one of the joys of Top of the Pops was seeing what those artists not in one’s collection or on one’s playlist had to offer.

It’s good that it’s coming back. Top of the Pops wasn’t broke when the BBC far too hastily binned it some years back. The fact that it still runs a Christmas version and shows regular (non-Savile) repeats is proof of that, as is the lack of any suitable prime-time music replacement. The old format still isn’t broke. A robust and confident BBC would recognise that, not go running to Simon Cowell.

Chased any good playwrights lately?

First nights clearly aren’t what they used to be. The excellent new biography by Peter Whitebrook of the late playwright and original Angry Young Man, John Osborne, tells how the 1959 West End premiere of his only musical The World of Paul Slickey, a satire on the ethics of the press in general, and gossip columnists in particular, was so loathed by critics and public, that a group of angry not so young men from the audience actually chased Osborne up the Charing Cross Road after the performance. He had to be rescued from the erudite lynch mob by a passing cab. Ah, the days when theatre really aroused strong reactions! The play was then championed by Labour’s left wing, with Michael Foot particularly vocal in its defence. What strikes me as bizarre is that this most controversial of plays never seems to be revived. Surely, many would like to see what the fuss was about. I’d certainly be first in the queue for tickets if it were put on again.

Love theatre, hate booking fees

Talking of theatre, it was recently LoveTheatre Day, a day of celebration of the stage marked by much online chat, theatres touting their wares, and actors and directors revealing some of their secrets. I suppose it might all help attract a new audience. Maybe. But how much more likely that would be, if LoveTheatre Day next year were marked by a decision not to charge any booking fees for performances on that day. Now that really would be a cause for celebration.

d.lister@independent.co.uk

Twitter: @davidlister1