prussianblue

Not sure anyone who champions Three Lions should be taking any artistic high ground.

Savile's career was thankfully pretty much dead by the time I came along, and I've never understood the appeal. Even if he hadn't been a monster, he was creepy and weird, and I just don't understand how that was deemed prime time material for a couple of decades.

Didn't know being a blonde bloke who used to play a boring sport made you a national treasure, but then utter cunts like Cilla have been arbitrarily given that status too, so shouldn't be surprised.

I'll be throwing more than a few points in the direction of Gina G.

Isn't the show a bit of a zombie now anyway? Can't imagine that many people flock to see Flintoff, the omnipresent McGuinness and the other one in quite the same way as Clarkson, Hammond and May.

81 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta’s Paradise  65 Livin’ Joy – Dreamer 51 Whigfield – Saturday Night 41 Blur – Country House 29 Take That – Back For Good 19 Baby D. — Let Me Be Your Fantasy +4 18 D:Ream – Things Can Only Get Better 15 Pato Banton – Baby Come Back -6

83 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta’s Paradise 66 Livin’ Joy – Dreamer 49 Whigfield – Saturday Night 43 Baby D. – Let Me Be Your Fantasy +4 40 Take That – Back For Good 33 Blur – Country House 20 Pato Banton – Baby Come Back 16 D:Ream – Things Can Only Get Better 10 Stiltskin – Inside -6

Yeah, it's a good song, but I don't get people continually blowing their load over it.

73 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta’s Paradise 62 Livin’ Joy – Dreamer 55 Whigfield – Saturday Night 46 Take That – Back For Good 37 Baby D. – Let Me Be Your Fantasy +4 32 Pato Banton - Baby come back 28 Toni di Bart – The Real Thing (If I Can't Have You) 24 Stiltskin — Inside 24 D:Ream – Things Can Only Get Better 23 Blur – Country House 10 Shaggy – Boombastic -6

Idea for a film: Dick Van Dyke needs to retake his driving test at 97. It must not, repeat not, turn into vehicular manslaughter.

Just listened to that too many cooks-style Love Can Build A Bridge song that went out early:

69 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta’s Paradise 54 Livin’ Joy – Dreamer 46 Whigfield – Saturday Night 44 Baby D. – Let Me Be Your Fantasy +4 44 Take That – Back For Good 40 Stiltskin – Inside 30 D:Ream – Things Can Only Get Better 30 Pato Banton – Baby Come Back 25 Blur – Country House 24 Toni di Bart – The Real Thing (If I Can't Have You) 24 Shaggy – Boombastic -6 16 Mariah Carey – Without You 12 Take That – Never Forget

Not just a cover, it also contains deadly UB40!

*Ann Lesley, but as long as she has a pillow and decent upper body strength, who cares?

69 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta´s Paradise 44 Livin’ Joy – Dreamer +1 43 Whigfield – Saturday Night 42 Stiltskin – Inside 37 Pato Banton – Baby Come Back 37 Take That – Back For Good 35 Baby D. – Let Me Be Your Fantasy +3 32 D:Ream – Things Can Only Get Better 26 Toni di Bart – The Real Thing (If I Can't Have You) 25 Blur – Country House 23 Shaggy – Boombastic 18 Mariah Carey – Without You 18 Take That – Never Forget 14 Michael Jackson – Earth Song 14 Chaka Demus & Pliers – Twist And Shout -6 11 Outhere Brothers – Boom Boom Boom 9 Take That – Everything Changes 4 Symbol (Prince) – The Most Beautiful Girl In The World

Guys, I think Coolio is safe for a while.

53 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta´s Paradise 43 Livin’ Joy – Dreamer +2 38 Stiltskin – Inside 37 Pato Banton - Baby Come Back 33 Take That - Back For Good 31 Whigfield – Saturday Night 30 D:Ream – Things Can Only Get Better +2 28 Toni di Bart – The Real Thing (If I Can't Have You) 27 Baby D. – Let Me Be Your Fantasy 26 Blur – Country House 24 Shaggy - Boombastic 22 Take That – Never Forget 20 Chaka Demus & Pliers – Twist And Shout 20 Mariah Carey – Without You 20 Cher, Neneh Cherry & Chrissie Hynde with Eric Clapton – Love Can Build A Bridge 17 Michael Jackson – You Are Not Alone 17 Outhere Brothers – Boom Boom Boom 15 Take That – Everything Changes 15 Michael Jackson — Earth Song -6 12 Symbol (Prince) – The Most Beautiful Girl In The World 7 Simply Red – Fairground 7 Take That - Sure

With Love Is All Around, I just get Bill Nighy's Christmas-themed cover from Love Actually playing in my head.

34 Coolio ft. L.V. – Gangsta´s Paradise 30 Livin´ Joy – Dreamer +2 30 Stiltskin – Inside 26 Shaggy – Boombastic 25 Whigfield – Saturday Night +1 25 Pato Banton- Baby Come Back 24 Blur – Country House 24 Take That - Back for Good 24 Toni di Bart – The real thing (If I can't have you) 23 Baby D. – Let me be your fantasy 22 D:Ream – Things can only get better +1 22 Take That – Never forget 21 Michael Jackson — Earth song 21 Outhere Brothers – Boom Boom Boom 20 Oasis – Some might say 20 Chaka Demus & Pliers – Twist and shout 20 Mariah Carey – Without you 20 Symbol (Prince) – The most beautiful girl in the world 20 Celine Dion – Think twice 20 Cher, Neneh Cherry & Chrissie Hynde with Eric Clapton – Love can build a bridge 20 Michael Jackson – You are not alone 20 Simply Red – Fairground 17 Michael Jackson – Earth Song 15 Take That – Sure 15 Take That – Everything changes 14 Robson Greene & Jerome Flynn – I believe / Up on the roof 14 Outhere Brothers – Don´t stop (Wiggle Wiggle) 12 Wet Wet Wet – Slush is all around 08 Robson Greene & Jerome Flynn – Unchained Melody/The white cliffs of Dover 07 Doop - Doop -6

EDIT: Ignore Donald, Clorox can do maths.

msc and I previously spoke of our love for Doop when it appeared on TOTP. Hard to overstate how awful it is, especially when presented with a troupe of dancing flapper girls.

I'd never heard of Toni di Bart until he started appearing on the TOTP repeats on BBC4. The song was very successful but the guy couldn't sing live to save himself. I don't expect Simply Red to get much love here but someone who proved he definitely could sing live was Mick Hucknall.

Anastacia's mum, Broadway actress Diane Hurley, has just turned 80 and looks great! No idea if she's as prone to illness as her daughter but she looks like she could last a fair bit longer.

Regarding the 'top 4' thing, the rules as described at the start are contradictory. It says 'From each round 5 songs will enter the last round, the Grand Final, consisting of 25 songs', but then proceeds to state how 4-7 songs from each round go through. 5 ≠ 4-7, and in fact none of the rounds send 5 to the final. I can see that there were more no.1s in the later years of the decade, but giving them extra weighting skews their representation in the final round, and I'm not sure why that's a good thing? The 80s contest just went with 5 from each round, which is fairer to my mind.