News belatedly broke yesterday, unsurprising given the unfortunate coincidence of her passing on the same day as Queen Elizabeth II. As a kid growing up in the 1970s and 1980s, Gwyneth Powell was synonymous with BBC TV series Grange Hill. Although her character, Mrs Bridget "The Midget" McClusky didn't appear until series 4, episode 1 broadcast on 30th December 1980, she was the show's longest serving head teacher, departing at the end of series 14, transmitted 15th March 1991.
Gwyneth won over a whole new generation of fans when she co-starred with Greg Davies in Channel 4 comedy Man Down between 2013 and 2017 as his character's mum.
Sadly, little evidence online of Gwyneth's musical leanings and she was criminally overlooked for the Grange Hill cast's 1986 Top 5 anti-drugs classic, Just Say No. So, for today's selection, I've gone for a brief dip into songs by bands featuring a McClusky (or McCluskey, just to pad it out a bit more).
Is that the sound of a barrel being scraped...?
1) Wonderful (Cover of The Beach Boys): Adventures In Stereo (1998)
2) Just Got Lucky (12" Version): JoBoxers (1983)
3) We Love You (Album Version): O.M.D. (1986)
4) Five o' Clock World (Remix By Robert Ash & Nigel Grainge) (Cover of The Vogues): Ballistic Kisses (1982)
5) Everything And More (Seven Inch Edit): If? (1992)
6) Everybody's Somebody's Fool (Album Version): The Bluebells (1983)
7) Super Love: Wigan's Ovation (1975)
The McCluskey Brothers - Ken and David - from the Bluebells - released a couple of albums which are well worth checking out.
ReplyDeleteWell done for spotting this in the wall to wall media cover of the Royals
Thanks for The McCluskey Brothers tip, CC, will do. I couldn't fail to spot this sad news, I know what you meant about the blanket coverage. Some of the clips and items seem to be on a constant loop so it feels a bit like Groundhog Day at times.
DeleteDoes anyone else get the giggles when they see the random sausage on a fork in the opening credits of Grange Hill... whose idea was that?
ReplyDeleteI thought the theme tune and comic book style titles were perfect. The flying sausage on a fork was the idea of the designer, Bill Cosford, as he tells it: https://grangehillgold.wordpress.com/interviews-2/bob-cosford-titles-artist/
Deletetop info on GH graphics!
ReplyDeleteI aim to please!
DeleteSomehow missed this. Much respect,
ReplyDeleteThanks, Rol. I realise that I didn't comment on your post about QEII last week, which led off with your own tribute to Gwyneth Powell/Mrs. McClusky. A wonderful piece which articulated far better than I could the conflicting feelings and mood of the past couple of weeks.
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