Going for a Song

Going for a Song is a British game show that originally aired on BBC1 from 31 March 1965 to 16 October 1977 and hosted by Max Robertson, with Arthur Negus appearing as the resident expert and antique valuer.^[2] It was revived on the same channel from 29 August 1995 to 3 February 2002, the revival was first hosted by Michael Parkinson from 1995 to 1999,^[3] then by Anne Robinson in 2000 and finally by Michael Aspel from 2001 to 2002, with Eric Knowles as the resident antiques expert for the entire run of the revival.^[3]

Going for a Song
Genre	Game show
Created by	John King
Presented by	Max Robertson (1965–77) Michael Parkinson (1995–99) Anne Robinson (2000) Michael Aspel (2001–02)
Starring	Arthur Negus (1965–77) Eric Knowles (1995–2002)
Theme music composer	"The Birds" by Ottorino Respighi
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	13 (original) 8 (revival)
No. of episodes	??? (original) 348 (revival)
Production
Production locations	Broadcasting House, Bristol (1965–77)[1] Pebble Mill Studios (1995–2002)
Running time	25 minutes
Production companies	BBC Bristol (1965–77) Maverick Television and BBC Pebble Mill (1995–2002)
Original release
Network	BBC1
Release	31 March 1965 (1965-03-31) – 3 February 2002 (2002-02-03)

Format

The host would introduce an antique to a panel of antique experts, valuers and celebrity panellists, who would examine the object and estimate its date and value. The antiques expert would then present its actual age and worth. Midway through the show, the host would also present a piece of furniture which he would give detailed information about; this was done to effectively break the show into two segments and allow the panellists to relax and listen midway through the show.

Transmissions

Original

Series	Start date	End date	Episodes
1	31 March 1965[4]	30 June 1965[5]	14
2	6 October 1965[6]	??	??
3	??	??	??
4	??	??	??
5	??	??	??
6	??	??	??
7	??	??	??
8	??	??	??
9	??	??	??
10	??	??	??
11	??	??	??
12	??	??	??
13	28 August 1977[7]	16 October 1977[8]	8

Revival

Series	Start date	End date	Episodes
1	29 August 1995[9]	8 September 1995[10]	9
2	5 February 1996[11]	9 May 1996[12]	40
3	13 January 1997[13]	1 August 1997[14]	60
4	1 September 1997[15]	13 February 1998[16]	73
5	12 October 1998[17]	21 January 1999[18]	64
6	6 April 1999[19]	10 June 1999[20]	40
7	14 February 2000[21]	1 September 2000[22]	30
8	4 June 2001[23]	3 February 2002[24]	32

References

1. "Old BBC Regional Production Studios". TV Studio History. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
2. "Max Robertson: broadcaster". The Times. 24 November 2009. Archived from the original on 25 May 2010. Retrieved 5 July 2010.
3. "Sir Michael Parkinson, CBE". Debrett's. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 5 July 2010.
4. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 31 March 1965". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
5. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 30 June 1965". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
6. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 6 October 1965". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
7. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 28 August 1977". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
8. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 16 October 1977". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
9. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 29 August 1995". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
10. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 8 September 1995". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
11. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 5 February 1996". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
12. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 9 May 1996". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
13. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 13 January 1997". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
14. "Going for a Song – BBC Two England – 1 August 1997". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
15. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 1 September 1997". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
16. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 13 February 1998". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
17. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 12 October 1998". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
18. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 21 January 1999". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
19. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 6 April 1999". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
20. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 10 June 1999". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
21. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 14 February 2000". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
22. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 1 September 2000". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
23. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 4 June 2001". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
24. "Going for a Song – BBC One London – 3 February 2002". BBC Genome Project. Retrieved 19 August 2023.

External links

• Going for a Song at BBC Online
• Going for a Song (1965–77) at IMDb
• Going for a Song (1995–2002) at IMDb
• Going for a Song at UKGameshows.com