ON THIS DAY IN 1978…
◆ June 17 — Fast Product releases the darkly mystical Being Boiled by Sheffield’s original Human League, and Bowie declares it “the future of music”. John Peel also champions the single on radio and it becomes a cult among the Billy’s and Blitz clubbing circle in London, though it does not chart until January 1982 on its second release. In the present day this is considered to be the first massively influential British electronic pop track.
VIEW ♫ Being Boiled live in 1978 on Granada TV, though the audio is dire!
◆ June 21 — Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Evita opens at London’s Prince Edward Theatre to run for 2,900 performances. A novel ploy has been to release a double album two years earlier — some songs are already chart hits
◆ June 29 — The Swinging 80s start here as David Bowie plays Earl’s Court, London. Sundry misfits recognise kindred spirits in the audience and gather afterwards at Billy’s club in Soho, long before the phrase New Romantics has been invented.
ON THIS DAY IN 1979…
◆ June 9 — Music weekly Sounds publishes Mods Without Parkas by Garry Bushell
◆ June 14 — The 70s “dressing up” imperative sees Flick’s in Dartford throw a VE Night deejayed by Radio London’s Robbie Vincent
ON THIS DAY IN 1980…
◆ June 14 — George O’Dowd parades past Buckingham Palace as a helmeted and toga’d Britannia at the annual royal ceremony of trooping the colour
ON THIS DAY IN 1981…
◆ June — The mainstream deejay’s bible Disco International publishes a plain man’s guide by yours truly, titled Who are the New Romantics and how do they dance?
◆ June — John Boorman’s epic Arthurian movie Excalibur opens in London starring Nigel Terry and Helen Mirren
◆ June 4 — Steve Strange and Rusty Egan open Club for Heroes in Baker Street
◆ June 21 — Arty Latin popsters Blue Rondo à la Turk are unveiled in Chelmsford after weeks of secret tease dates. Yours truly is there to introduce the band to readers of New Sounds New Styles under the headline He thinks he is Geronimo but Chris Sullivan is turning fantasy into fact
ON THIS DAY IN 1982…
Haysi Fantayzee 1982: ex-Blitz Kids Kate Garner, Jeremy Healy and manager Paul Caplin
◆ June 9 — Kasper de Graaf, editor of New Romantic magazine New Sounds New Styles, tells the Rebel Writers the title is to close and they are out of jobs. We retire to the Red Lion to seek consolation!
◆ June 14 — The Falklands War ends with the Argentine surrender. Its occupation of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic had provoked a war that lasted 74 days and results in the deaths of 260 Britons and 649 Argentinians
◆ June 21 — At the V&A the Middlesex fashion degree show is stolen by Stevie Stewart and David Holah. Their Matelots and Milkmaids collection establishes Bodymap as the label for the young and daring
◆ June 25 — As Haysi Fantayzee, Blitz Kids Kate Garner and Jeremy Healy release their debut single John Wayne is Big-leggy
ON THIS DAY IN 1983…
◆ June 14 — Capital Radio’s Gary Crowley starts deejaying at Bogart’s club, Harrow
➢➢ Shapers of the 80s ➣➣ 