The Best of The Tube

Relive the very best of 80s rock and pop from an iconic 80s music show with The Best of The Tube.

Presenting duo Jools Holland and the late Paula Yates saw The Tube to cult success with their confident and irreverent style, in a show that featured interviews, videos and music from the pop and rock aristocracy of the decade, as well as acts from the cream of comedy such as French and Saunders and Spitting Image.

Supported by a string of co-presenters including John Peel, Leslie Ash and Peter Cook, the show was broadcast in Newcastle in front of an enthusiastic live studio audience between 1982 and 1987.

Find performances on The Best of The Tube from legendary acts that include Iggy Pop, Eurythmics, Wham!, Madonna, Culture Club, The Bangles, U2, Tina Turner, Alison Moyet, The Human League, Duran Duran and dozens more.

Episodes:

The Legend Of The Tube
A look back at some of the highlights and performances of the hugely popular 80s music show. With performances by U2, Elton John and Paul Young amongst others and a collection of interviews with the stars, including Trevor Horn of ZTT Records.

Episode 2
Watch music performances from Iggy Pop, ZZ Top, The Weather Girls, Divine, V Corporation, George Clinton and The Jam, and relive Terence Trent D'Arby’s TV debut with his classic hit 'If You Let Me Stay'.

Episode 3
A collection of incredible musical performances from the likes of The Police, Big Country, Erasure, Eurhythmics and P.I.L. With special guests French and Saunders on hand, it takes a legendary performance of 'This Charming Man' by The Smiths to complete a must-see episode.

Episode 4
More spectacular bands - from Paul Young’s TV debut to Culture Club, and The Pretenders to Inxs, the music just gets better and better. And that's before French and Saunders and Spitting Image do their comedy bit.

Episode 5
Performances from Wet Wet Wet, Echo And The Bunnymen, The Bangles, Go West, Shalamar and The Tubes - who seemed to vanish without trace after this debut TV appearance.

Episode 6
An episode with musical heavyweights such as The Communards, Cyndi Lauper, Gary Glitter and Siouxie And The Banshees strutting their stuff - it takes Frankie Goes To Hollywood performing 'Relax' to really round things off.

Episode 7
Madonna's first British TV appearance performing 'Holiday', and pop anthems from Fine Young Cannibals, Billy Bragg, Alison Moyet and The Beat. It's set to be another entertainment extravaganza.

Episode 8
More 'Best Of' action sees performances from Fun Boy Three, Elvis Costello, The Cocteau Twins, Mark King and the Reggae All Stars. With the infamous U2 performance of 'New Year's Day' in Colorado - Bono went on to proclaim that it was this performance that turned U2 into the "biggest kick-ass rock 'n' roll band in the world".

Episode 9
Special guests Duran Duran, The Cure, Tina Turner, Simple Minds and Robert Palmer are making the music, and there's comedy from Spitting Image and Rik Mayall.

Episode 10
Must-see performances from The Thompson Twins, Chaka Khan, Depeche Mode, BB King and The Gap Band amongst others. Near-the-knuckle comedy from Hale And Pace tops off another ground-breaking episode.

Episode 11
With music from Dire Straits, Thin Lizzy, Madness, Level 42, Swing Out Sister and Swansway, it's set to be an outstanding musical journey, and a guest appearance from Victor Kiam rounds off proceedings.

Episode 12
Performances include King, Simply Red, The Pet Shop Boys and Sheila E. There's also footage from Queen's 1983 concert from Milton Keynes.

Episode 13
Music in this 'Best Of' episode comes from the fantastic Wham, Prefab Sprout, Sade, Dexy's Midnight Runners and Joan Rivers, plus an Eric Clapton performance from the Birmingham NEC to make it an outstanding entertainment treat.

Episode 14
Archive footage from the likes of Culture Club, Ian Dury and The Pretenders - it takes a spectacular live performance from Inxs to round off a unique collection of music, comedy and chat.