The pre-Beatles period on TV...at last.

[JimN]

BBC4, 22:50 Friday night (12/04/19):

Rock 'n' Roll Britannia

50s Britannia Episode 1 of 3

Documentary about the pre-Beatles rock era, when the likes of Lord Rockingham's XI, Vince Taylor and Cliff Richard and The Shadows created a unique copy of American rock 'n' roll.

There's a veiled insult in the programme description which doesn't bode well, but at least there's an effort to reflect the fact there was life before Beatlemania.

[abstamaria]

I wish there were a way to view that here on this island in the Pacific.

Andy

[Gatwick1946]

I will watch this with interest.

Although popular music trends mostly start in the USofA, other countries then contribute their own versions, which produce some good music.

kindest regards and many thanks for the heads up.

Christopher

[Ian Miller]

Also Rock Island Line @ 9pm will be quite interesting I think, same channel, same day.

Ian

[Moderne]

Without wishing to detract from the importance of pre-Beatles pop being acknowledged and shown on TV...this was first shown several years ago.

Here's a review: https://theartsdesk.com/new-music/rock- ... a-bbc-four

I would guess it's being shown again to complement the Lonnie doc mentioned by Ian in the previous post...

[Iain Purdon]

Yes it is a repeat. Nothing wrong with that as each transmission gathers new viewers and delights old ones. I’ll probably watch it again.
A lot of BBC4 is recycled every so often.