Multi-Coloured Swap Shop ( TV Series 1976 - 1982 )



 

Plot



Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, more commonly known simply as Swap Shop, is a UK childrens television programme. It was broadcast on Saturday mornings on BBC1 for 146 episodes in six series between 1976 and 1982. It was ground-breaking in many ways: by being live, sometimes up to three hours in length, and using the phone-in format extensively for the first time on TV.

 

The anchor was Noel Edmonds and his associates from the beginning were Keith Chegwin, John Craven and later, in 1978, Maggie Philbin. The shows presenters formed a pop group called Brown Sauce in December 1981 before releasing a single called I Wanna Be A Winner. Soon after the groups formation, the song peaked at #15 in the UK Singles Chart and stayed in the Top 40 for a total of 9 weeks.

Also featured was Posh Paws, a stuffed toy dinosaur. Noel Edmonds once explained that his name was actually spelled Pohs Paws (sic), because that is Swap Shop backwards. Another character was Eric, the often-referred to but never seen lighting technician whose job was to lower a plastic globe containing postcards sent in by viewers as answers to competitions.

 

The content of the programme included music, visits from celebrities, competitions, and cartoons. There was also coverage of news and issues relevant to children, presented by John Craven, building on his profile as the presenter of John Cravens Newsround.