Smashing Hits! The 80s Pop Map of Britain and Ireland

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BBC Four

BBC 4

Music: Classic Pop & Rock

A look at the music that came out of different parts of Britain and Ireland in the 80s.

Midge Ure and Kim Appleby explore the distinct sounds that came out of different parts of Britain and Ireland in one of pop's golden decades.

BBC Four HD

Kim Appleby

Midge Ure

True North Productions

Smashing Hits! The 80s Pop Map of Britain and Ireland: Series 1: Episode 1

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Episode 1

Series 1

BBC Four - Smashing Hits! The 80s Pop Map of Britain and Ireland, Series 1, Episode 1

Midge Ure and Kim Appleby explore London's new romantic movement.

Midge Ure and Kim Appleby explore London's new romantic movement, travel to Coventry to investigate the rise of ska and speak to some of Sheffield's electronic music pioneers.

Two 80s icons explore the distinct sounds that came out of different parts of Britain and Ireland in one of pop's golden decades.

Midge Ure, lead singer of Ultravox and one of the men behind Band Aid, and Kim Appleby, who had a string of hits with her sister Mel in the Stock, Aitken and Waterman-produced band Mel and Kim, go on a journey back in time to the 80s to figure out why certain cities produced their own diverse tunes.

It's a fascinating tale. Emerging from the ashes of punk, British and Irish music ripped up the pop rule book in the 80s and topped the charts worldwide. But there was no definitive 'British' pop sound. Innovative chart-toppers were being produced by artists hailing from all over the UK and Ireland.

In this first episode, Midge Ure and Kim Appleby explore London's new romantic movement, travel to Coventry to investigate the rise of ska and speak to some of Sheffield's electronic music pioneers.

The show features interviews with key figures, like Gary Kemp from Spandau Ballet, Marco Pirroni from Adam and the Ants, Pauline Black from The Selecter, Martin Ware and Glenn Gregory from Heaven 17 and 'super-producer' Trevor Horn. But of course the star is the music - and this episode includes some of the best tunes, videos and performances from the early part of this marvellous musical decade.

Smashing Hits! The 80s Pop Map of Britain and Ireland: Series 1

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