The Saturday Show (1982-1984)

The Saturday Show was Birmingham-based Central Television's flagship Saturday morning kids TV show which replaced their previous show Tiswas. It ran on ITV for two series between 1982 and 1984. It was originally planned that popular wrestler Big Daddy would star and that it would be called "Big Daddy's Saturday Show". A pilot show was recorded with Big Daddy presenting, assisted by Isla St Clair and short films were shot with Big Daddy to insert in the upcoming series; a trailer for "Big Daddy's Saturday Show", complete with logo was shown on ITV the Saturday morning before the show was due to air. It was then announced during the week that Big Daddy was dropping out and that Isla St Clair would now take the lead, with ex-Magpie host Tommy Boyd assisting and with Jeremy Beadle being used as an occasional "stand in" host. The actor David Rappaport was also a fixture playing the character "Shades", as was soccer legend, Jimmy Greaves. It was never made publicly clear why Big Daddy dropped out so close to transmission; no settlement was ever reached between him and Central. The second season of the show featured a regular technology spot called 'Interface'. Presented by IT journalist Chris Palmer, it featured a couple of notable TV firsts. It broadcast a computer programme live which viewers could record from their TV and upload to a Spectrum. The initial attempt failed due to interference on the feed from the studio floor, but it was re-broadcast the following week and many viewers successfully recorded and loaded the programme. The second 'first' for the show was the game 'Up for Grabs' which was a game played live in the studio by a player in their own home via a computer and a modem. The contestant had to steer a robotic arm and pick up prizes from a rotating turntable. This proved incredibly difficult as the contestants found it difficult to gauge the depth of the arm and also the response time of the robot arm was slow. Still, this predated many other interactive game shows by many years.