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And Finally Artist News Media
Five Star crank caller apologises after 30 years
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 24 September 2019
A man who three decades ago angrily called in to question the talents of 1980s pop group Five Star on live TV has apologised, thanks to the magic of social media.
Ask anyone the world over what the greatest moment in TV history was, and they will undoubtedly tell you that it was that time in 1989 when Eliot Fletcher swore at Five Star on the BBC’s ‘Going Live’ programme.
The band were appearing on the Saturday morning children’s show to promote their single, ‘With Every Heartbeat’. During a live phone-in, Fletcher was patched through to the studio, uttering the immortal phrase “I’d like to ask Five Star why they’re so fucking crap”, before being quickly faded out by the show’s producers.
For those of us who saw it as it happened, it was our moon landing. Everything changed that day. I honestly believe it is the reason I do this job now.
After the classic clip was recently tweeted by a ‘Top Of The Pops’ fan account, the group’s Doris Pearson responded by noting that she would still quite like to meet Fletcher and finally come face to face with her nemesis.
Later, an account purporting to be Fletcher’s – which has been dining out on the notoriety of the clip for several years – got in touch with Pearson and apologised. He declined to meet her though, saying that she “would probably throw her drink over me and rightfully so”. Pearson, for her part, said she harbours no ill feelings and finds it all very funny now.
A solemn Fletcher also refused media interviews, telling one journalist: “I would suggest an interview with Doris be much more constructive. She’s still creative and actually bringing something to this world”.
So that’s sort of a nice conclusion to this story after all these years. Although Five Star still haven’t actually answered Fletcher’s question.
