''Six-Five Special'' is a British television programme launched in February 1957 when both television and

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

were in their infancy in Britain.

Description

''Six-Five Special'' was the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's first attempt at a rock-and-roll programme. Its title was derived from its broadcast time, as it aired at 6:05 on Saturday evening. It began immediately after the abolition of the Toddlers' Truce, in which programming ceased between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. so that children could be put to bed. Jack Good and Josephine Douglas were the show's initial producers, with Douglas and (initially) disc jockey Pete Murray as its presenters, with Murray using the catchphrase "Time to jive on the old six five." Its resident band was Don Lang and His Frantic Five. The show opened with film of a steam train accompanied by the programme's theme song, played and sung by the Bob Cort Skiffle Group, which began with the words "The Six-Five Special's comin' down the line, The Six-Five Special's right on time ..." BBC executives originally preferred a magazine format, but Good wanted a show with music and much movement. The original sets were removed and the empty studio space filled with the milling audience and performers. Television at that time was completely live as recording technology was limited, so once the programme started, it ran in an impromptu fashion. The running order was sketched out on Friday morning, and then only one complete run-through happened immediately before transmission on Saturday evening. The show was originally scheduled to last just six weeks but, as a result of its popularity, the series became open-ended. The BBC interfered with Good's vision of the show by including educational and information elements, which Good wanted to drop, as they diluted the music. The relationship between Good and the BBC became strained, and he resigned in early 1958. Good joined the ITV company ABC to create '' Oh Boy!'', which featured non-stop music and lost the public-service-inspired elements as part of its more frenzied pace, trouncing ''Six-Five Special'' in the ratings. The

, never keen on the ''Six-Five Special'', took this as vindication and pulled the show.

Stage Show

In January and February 1958 Jack Good produced ''The Six-Five Stage Show'', a spin-off live show which toured the UK, promoted by Harold Fielding. Presented by Josephine Douglas, Pete Murray and ex-boxer Freddie Mills the show featured performances by The John Barry Seven, Cab Kaye, The Five Dallas Boys, The Vernons Girls, Adam Faith and Kerry Martin, joined by a different "local skiffle group" in each venue. The script was by Trevor Peacock.

Artists

Among the artists on the show were

Petula Clark Sally "Petula" Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and songwriter. She started her professional career as a child actor, child performer and has had the longest career of any British entertainer, spanning more than 85 y ...

, Jim Dale, Johnny Dankworth, Terry Dene,

Lonnie Donegan Anthony James "Lonnie" Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002) was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the " King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scotland and brought ...

, Russ Hamilton, Cleo Laine,

Joan Regan Joan Regan (born Joan E. Bethell; 19 January 1928 – 12 September 2013) was an English traditional pop singer, popular during the 1950s and early 1960s. Biography Joan E. Bethell was born in either Romford, Essex, or West Ham, London (sour ...

, Finlay Currie, boxer Freddie Mills, Wee Willie Harris, Jimmy Lloyd, Marty Wilde, the Dallas Boys and

Tommy Steele Sir Thomas Hicks (born 17 December 1936), known professionally as Tommy Steele, is an English entertainer, regarded as Britain's first teen idol and rock and roll star. After being discovered at the 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho, London, Steele recor ...

. Comedy performers included Trevor Peacock, who was also a script writer for the show,

Spike Milligan Terence Alan "Spike" Milligan (16 April 1918 – 27 February 2002) was an Irish comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright and actor. The son of an English mother and Irish father, he was born in British Raj, British India, where he spent his ...

and Mike and Bernie Winters.

Film

A spin-off film was released in 1958, scripted by Norman Hudis and directed by Alfred Shaughnessy. It centred around a young woman's quest for stardom, played by up-and-coming musical star Diane Todd. It featured performances from

, Dickie Valentine, Jim Dale,

, Russ Hamilton and

, among others, and featured comic relief from Mike and Bernie Winters. The film was one of several rock musicals that followed the success of '' The Tommy Steele Story''. ''Filmink'' described it as being "along the lines of ensemble American jukebox rock musicals like ''Rock Rock Rock'' and ''Jamboree'', i.e. a loose storyline stuffed with a variety of music acts." Peter Shaugnessy wrote the film "was not exactly the sort of thing I was looking for to advance my career but it was a job and it was a musical." He claims Nat Cohen and Stuart Levy insisted Shaugnessy use the band of John Barry because Barry's father owned some cinemas in the north and he "would be sure to book the film into his cinemas" if his son's band was used.Shaugnessy p 72

Premise

Two women board a train to London full of musical acts.

References

Notes

External links

Six Five Special
at Whirligig TV. * (TV series) * {{IMDb title, 0051336 (1958 Film)

British Film Institute history
Six-Five Special
MSN Movies entry

has a section on Jack Good and the making of the Six Five Special. Retrieved October 2008
"Six-Five Special"
Clips at YouTube
Britain in a Box: 5 March 2008
(BBC Radio 4 programme) BBC Television Service (TV network) original programming Pop music television series Rock music television series 1957 British television series debuts 1958 British television series endings 1950s British music television series