The BBC has cancelled Top of the Pops, Britain’s 42-year-old weekly TV music-chart show that has featured performances by Nirvana, the Beatles, the Spice Girls, and the Rolling Stones, among others. “In a rapidly changing musical landscape, Top of the Pops no longer occupies the central role it once did,” read a statement released by the BBC. The show first aired on January 1, 1964 and celebrated its 2,000th show in 2002. In 2004, though, viewing figures began to drop and the show was moved from its weekday time slot on BBC 1 to Sunday night on BBC 2. The final episode of the show, which South London’s Art Brut gives props to on its album and in every live show, will air on July 30 in the U.K.
Talk: In the age of Internet, is TV losing its power as a vehicle for exposing music to new audiences? COMMENT
On the Web: Top of the Pops on bbc.co.uk
