Tag Archives: TSDs

TSDs – Living By Numbers

I’ve no anniversary TOTP performance to post for today, 10 October. So instead here’s something different: fufilling a request from Ryan, The TSDs in 1980, on ITV pop show “Get It Together” dancing to New Musik’s “Living By Numbers”.

I’ve always assumed that TSDs stood for Teri Scoble Dancers, since Teri was the go-to choreographer for must of ITV’s pre-teatime pop ptogrammes in the seventies and early eighties.

I don’t think I’m being too harsh when I say that the choreography and dancing here is not up to the quality that Flick Colby produced for Top of the Posp, but in Teri Scoble’s defence, I should point out that she had a lot less freedom and support in her work. Where Flick clearly had some input and discussion with producers over camera shooting angles, in this performance and others devised by Teri I see no evidence of such discussion. In those circumstances, she would be unable to use the studio in the same way, instead being forced into stage choreography, assuming a static camera and audience. This suggests a lot less enthusiasm for choreography as a creative process from the ITV producers, but this could equally be about time and money constraints.

Similarly, there seems to have been a lot less money and effort put into costume and set designs. Budget is obviously the prime movitator here, but we should also remember that, as a matter of policy, the ITV companies at the time seemed to treat pop music television as exclusively for children, precluding the occasional overtly sexual nature of some of Pan’s People and Legs & Co.’s outfits.

Having said all that, it’s still a spirited and enjoyable performance. I wish I had a better quality version of the clip to share, but I must thank forum regular VintageVideos for contributing this, otherwise I could not have fulfilled Ryan’s request at all.

I don’t have any information to hand about the indiviuals dancers’ names I’m afraid: if anyone can help out with that, I’d be most grateful for a comment, either here or over on the forum.

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