The Go!! Show
| Company type | Television program |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music television |
| Founded | August 1964 |
| Defunct | August 1967 |
| Fate | Cancelled due to Actors Equity miming ban |
| Headquarters | Melbourne , Australia |
Area served | Victoria, Australia (initially) |
Key people | Alan Field (host, 1964), Ian Turpie (host, 1964–66), Johnny Young (host, 1966–67), Horrie Dargie (producer) |
| Products | Music television program |
| Parent | Willard-King Productions and DYT Productions |
The Go!! Show—also referred to simply as Go!!, was an Australian popular music TV program broadcast live before an audience on Melbourne's ATV-0, part of Network Ten, from August 1964 until August 1967. The show aired for one hour, three evenings each week.
The series was a collaboration between Willard-King Productions and DYT Productions and featured hosts Alan Field (1964), Ian Turpie (1964–66), and Johnny Young (1966–67). Among its notable guests was singer Ronnie Burns. Regular contributors included the house band The Strangers, go-go dancers, and performers such as Olivia Newton-John, Pat Carroll, Lynne Randell, Normie Rowe, and The Twilights.
History
Debuting in Melbourne in August 1964, The Go!! Show entered the market competing against the Sydney-originated Bandstand, which had evolved from rock'n'roll roots into a broader variety format. Unusually, its main rival aired on the same channel: in December 1965, ATV-0 introduced Kommotion, another Willard-King production hosted by Ken Sparkes. This new program was broadcast five times weekly and catered to a youth demographic focused on chart-topping hits, featuring group performances, go-go dancers, and mimed renditions of international songs.
Unlike Kommotion, The Go!! Show targeted a more discerning young audience by prioritizing local solo talent. This clear differentiation allowed both programs to coexist within ATV-0’s schedule while appealing to distinct viewer segments.
Production
DYT Productions, established by Australian musician Horrie Dargie along with Arthur Young and Johnny Tillbrook, produced The Go!! Show. The production team also included Dennis Smith, Godfrey Phillips, and Julian Jover. The series launched shortly after ATV-0 began broadcasting and following the Beatles’ tour of Australia in 1964. Initially recorded live before an audience, episodes were one hour long and shown three times weekly. By its third season (1966–67), the runtime was shortened to thirty minutes. Due to limited television network reach at the time, the show was initially confined to broadcasts within Victoria.
Presenters
Throughout its tenure, Go!! had three different hosts: English comedian Alan Field, who hosted during the July 1964 Beatles tour; singer-actor Ian Turpie, who assumed hosting duties from episode 26 until his departure in August 1966 to pursue opportunities in adult entertainment; and pop artist Johnny Young, who later became known for hosting Young Talent Time. In December 1966, Young suffered an on-camera collapse attributed to exhaustion caused by his intense workload.
Performers
The program predominantly showcased Australian solo vocalists supported by its resident group The Strangers. Prominent local pop artists featured included DYT-managed singer April Byron, who was the main female vocalist during season one, alongside acts such as Bobby & Laurie, The Spinning Wheels, Lynne Randell, Johnny Devlin, Colin Cook, The Twilights, Mike Furber, and Normie Rowe. Frequent appearances were made by Olivia Newton-John, with at least sixteen performances between 1965 and 1966, as well as by Pat Carroll. Singer-songwriter Buddy England became a staple after successfully auditioning for the inaugural episode.
Weekly performances by The Strangers led to one of Australia's earliest pop sponsorship agreements when Melbourne guitar maker Maton provided them with "El Toro" electric guitars and basses. John Farrar, the band's lead vocalist and guitarist, later gained recognition as a session arranger during the late 1960s before achieving international acclaim producing for Olivia Newton-John in the 1970s. Farrar also composed two hit tracks featured on the soundtrack of the Grease film.
Record label
In conjunction with the debut of the television series, the production company DYT introduced the Go!! Records label, which was regularly promoted during The Go!! Show. Although there was no direct connection, the pop publication Go-Set (1966–1974) shared the "Go" name, resulting in a distinctive marketing alignment.
Despite drawing audiences as large as 400,000 viewers weekly, The Go!! Show was suddenly cancelled in August 1967 after airing more than 200 episodes, alongside the program Kommotion. Host Ken Sparkes attributed this termination primarily to an Actors Equity prohibition on miming within television broadcasts, a ruling that significantly disrupted both shows' formats.
Performers usually lip-synced to pre-recorded tracks; while Kommotion featured popular commercial songs, Go!! often utilized recordings made specifically for the program. Following the cancellation, the Go!! label rapidly ceased operations as it lost its key promotional outlet.
The network filled the void with a nationally broadcast Saturday morning pop show titled Uptight, which continued until 1969 before being renamed Happening '70 and followed by subsequent yearly versions.
Surviving episodes
As was common for Australian television productions of that period, most episodes of The Go!! Show were erased due to archival constraints. Nevertheless, several segments and at least seven full episodes from late 1966 remain intact. These recordings were duplicated in the late 1990s and have circulated among collectors, with some clips now accessible on YouTube.