20th October

1966: Very rare for a Pops performance to start with some close-up flautism. Laying waste to all ideas of vocal projection, Manfred Mann's Paul Jones chooses to sit at the back. No wonder he gets swallowed whole.

1977: David Bowie actually in the studio with big flappy cuffs, and while Tony Visconti joined him to play bass and direct the orchestral troops I'm pretty sure that's not Robert Fripp on guitar. Tina Charles has adopted the hair flick of the day but has to share the stage with what looks like a white grand piano that's in the process of being taken apart. Showaddywaddy start in a group hug - where is the camera exactly? - before Dave Bartram disappears into the throng and comes up wearing someone's tinfoil-covered stovepipe hat which appears to have 'VOTE FONZIE' written large on one side.

1983: A month after their debut, Howard Jones and Jed are progressing in confidence. The latter has a full set of routines, not just chain rattling, and has a camera to eventually work off, while the former has found the way to get the audience to sing along. It's no good still looking inscrutable, Gary Numan, if your band has a free soloing saxophonist and you're having to play scratchy rhythm guitar over some clanking.

1988: It doesn't look right, Kylie Minogue on her own like that, puffball skirt or not. She should have borrowed some props from the woman keeping Interflora in business for another month, Enya. Oh, and the caption gets the lyric wrong, but that's another story, and this edit cuts the song off before that comes up anyway.

1994: Yes, thank you, Jarvis. Elastica can bounce about in their DMs all they want, they're still overshadowed by that big sign in the background which kind of gives away Tom Jones' presence, joined as he will be by a battalion of lighting and what seems to be Maggie Philbin on unconvincing bongos. Professional dancers they may have been, but you couldn't rely on Take That to all bring their high visibility jackets in those days.