I was one of the members of Birkenhead Operatic Society, singing 'Take Your Girl' from Ivor Novello's 'Kings Rhapsody'. Hughie was always very supportive of the amateur groups and we appeared in one of the heats, won the vote in the Studio and were invited back on the All-Winners show. Our lead singer Margaret Groome in now 93 and living in West Kirby Wirral. She's never lived down the fact that Hughie snogged her on live TV. Mary Hopkin was the star in the making, but as a young man of 25, I fancied Wendy King and I always loved her singing 'Daughter of the last of the red hot mommas'. Although I didn't realise it at the time, I appeared as an extra with her son-in law Jonathan Ansell in 'Whistle Down the Wind' at the Liverpool Empire in 2010. He was very encouraging and supportive of us extras - or supers as we were called. So I've been on the same bill as Jon and mother-in law - all strictly as an amateur - what memories. I'm still performing today - though obviously not at the moment with all the theatres closed.
@wendyking3852
4 жыл бұрын
How fabulous xx
@lennylaa1686
2 жыл бұрын
That snog sounds horrendous - poor girl, lol. 😆😆🤣🤣😂😂
@nintendy
5 ай бұрын
@@lennylaa1686 Don't think so; Hughie was good-looking back then - I was shouting 'you go for it girl'!
@gerrymclean-mh2dq
16 күн бұрын
Awesome singing from Mary Brilliant video many thanks from bonnie Scotland
@wendyking3852
8 жыл бұрын
Hello everyone, thank you for your lovely comments. I have only just now seen then that today 11 May 2016. My daughter Debbie got a copy of this for me through one of her contacts in television quite a few years ago, my brother David told me to put it on KZitem X
@celebritymessages
8 жыл бұрын
omg! you are so lucky to have had someone find this episode! Congratulations and a lovely performance! I appeared on the programme and won on the clapometer (Pickitywitch won on the votes). I have tried to find a copy but Hughie Green told me that they had all been wiped. I'm on my knees now, is it possible you could give me a lead so that I might try and find out if there is a copy of me somewhere? Drew ( I was Andy back then as a child)
@jaskvalers
7 жыл бұрын
Thanks for posting this Wendy, I enjoyed your performance.
@Hypohair
7 жыл бұрын
Loved the performance from a fellow Loiner. I was 8 lol
@theequaliser8026
6 жыл бұрын
Wendy King These were great shows I remember watching them as a child brings back Happy memories
@lennylaa1686
5 жыл бұрын
Cracking voice...and a figure to go with it Wendy !! Forgive me IDK...but did you enjoy a successful career on stage?
@mygte6219
3 жыл бұрын
We were so easily amused in them days...how times have changed !!
@alansimpson8735
4 жыл бұрын
Hi Wendy wow this brings back some great memories i can remember watching you sing on this show back in 1968 and i said to my mum i think that young lady wendy king is very beautiful and my mum said yes she is and by your picture next to your name your still very beautiful wow im lost for words i love what you put on on you tube wendy please stay and well love alan xxxx
@wendyking3852
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you so much that is so amazing of you ! Stay safe Wendy x
@davidgibbs7232
6 жыл бұрын
Lovely to see Wendy King here.My Aunt Edna worked for her family for many years as a kind of Nanny and Wendy attended her wedding in the early 70s.Edna gave me one of her albums which I have to this day.She has a great singing voice.
@wendyking3852
4 жыл бұрын
Your Aunty Edna was in my family for many years . She was greatly loved by us all .
@davidgibbs7232
4 жыл бұрын
@@wendyking3852 lovely to hear from you. Edna always spoke with great affection of you. I hope you are keeping well in these troubled times.
@winkfeild
3 жыл бұрын
i remeber watching this when 5 years old .what class these shows was xxxx#
@SALTOWNPRODUCTIONS2
6 жыл бұрын
I love this. We're so used to seeing crackly, scratchy versions of old TV shows, which leads us to think they were slightly amateurish in the way they were produced. Not a bit of it. This shows us just how professional ABC was in its day and its great to see it just as it would have been broadcast. And Wendy, you were just sensational!
@clivemason-ms8ju
11 ай бұрын
I can only remember vaguely Opportunity Knocks episodes from the ABC days, so it is so nice to see a whole episode. Well done to Wendy for her performance and for posting. Many thanks.
@JasonJason210
8 жыл бұрын
I used to watch this when I was a kid - I'd forgotten all about it. I takes me back to a time when television was still an exciting, magical thing that the family gathered around at weekends. Thanks for sharing :-)
@millionseller001
5 жыл бұрын
Youre a star Wendy.Good of you to put the whole show on.Thank You.Just goes to show how British tv variety shows have deteriorated over the years.This is top class.
@Witheredgoogie
9 жыл бұрын
Why does this old show make the X Factor look absolute shite in comparison? Wonderful slick show and whatever is said about Hughie Green now, he never exploited, patronised or looked down on his performers. Wendy got the backing she deserved here and it looks and sounds fantastic- how would a singing banjo player fair on the X Factor today?
@joesmith34
8 жыл бұрын
Yes I agree. If it was B G T most of them would have got buzzed off. May Hopkins doesnt have the Xfactor with that voice. Dave Swans jokes not too good. Dont know if he made it on to the Comedians.
@junlinim
7 жыл бұрын
Witheredgoogie hh
@jefflloyd588
6 жыл бұрын
HE NEVER EXPLOITED ACTS ? Before our audition he made us sign a contract giving him 30% of all earnings made after appearing on OP KNOCKS...NEVER EXPLOITED?
@john111257
6 жыл бұрын
your point is...its business
@norabattythe3rd
5 жыл бұрын
@@jefflloyd588 what act was you?
@paulbexfield2136
8 жыл бұрын
Wendy amazing to see the show I've forwarded a link to Royston Mayoh who is very pleased to see it after all these years Thanks for sharing with us xxx
@LadyWriter1968
9 жыл бұрын
I was born on this same year. 1968..I remember opportunity knocks in the 70's
@jeffcher10
10 жыл бұрын
Great to see this - Good Mary Hopkins cover of Turn, Turn, Turn - thanks Wendy
@Welliebootuk
9 жыл бұрын
Wendy, you scored a triple whammy with your brilliant singing, playing and all round personality.
@MrTerryb1956
6 жыл бұрын
you weren't so bad yourself Jimmy , loved your humour
@petermizon4344
2 жыл бұрын
OUR BRASS BAND APPEARED ON IT IN JULY 1970 , WONT THE CLAPOMETER BUT CAME SECOND IN NATIONAL VOTE, ENJOYED THE EXPERIENCE, WILL NEVER FORGET IT
@amberkelly3187
3 жыл бұрын
My dad was on this. I wish I could see his episode.
@Jannie-
5 жыл бұрын
Lovely and nostalgic 🥰. Thank you Wendy and your brother for posting it . You were great! If you want a giggle, pop the subtitles on when the little Welsh boy tells his story lol .
@whateverbuddy
Жыл бұрын
Whoredom ? Interesting sounding place
@Robertonnz
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much...and I mean that most sincerely...I really do...
@richardsharpe2966
6 жыл бұрын
Look no matter what people have been saying about Hughie Green he gave a lot of people there first big break into the world of showbiziness and Opportunity Knocks will always been the greatest every talent show ever
@Tenortalker
9 жыл бұрын
Well done Wendy King! What strikes me is just the range of the acts in this show. It truly was Variety. I wonder what Simon Cowell would do if Birkenhead Amateur Operatic turned up singing Ivor Novello at one of his auditions these days! The Graysons had the tough job opening the show and they were a talented act, but I'm just wondering whether it was something to do with the microphones of the time as they do sound a bit flat in places. I would have been too young to remember this particular show, but do just about remember Mary Hopkins in the Eurovision a couple of years later. Thank you so much for posting this
@thedon978
2 жыл бұрын
Real music, authentic talent. Refreshing.
@DansFlights
7 жыл бұрын
Used to watch this when we were stationed at RAF Bentwaters in the late 60s.
@stephenandrews8419
3 жыл бұрын
Well it all looks so very dated & old fashioned now. But at least Wendy brought some much needed glamour to the show and I mean that so sincerely 😀👍
@nintendy
5 ай бұрын
I'd forgotten how good-looking Hughie was when he was younger. Re- the snog; You go for it girl!
@tonysullivan9118
7 жыл бұрын
Thank you for posting this. The Graysons a Manchester act operated under several names The Boydells for one. Can't find much on The Duke's Noblemen other than they covered an early Elton John song.
@gunnerzane5230
Жыл бұрын
Wendy King is a good looking lady..
@bazmac26
4 жыл бұрын
I used to work at the the same company as one of the Graysons, Terry McGeoch man in the middle, sorry if I messed up the spelling Terry. All of the staff there ragged him mercilessly about his appearances on Opportunity Knocks, but he was as close as I ever got to a celebrity, which should give him a laugh. Happy days.
@jacksonirving4594
5 жыл бұрын
Ooooh her playing the old banjo. Grrrrrr. Am lathered with sweat just watching.
@keithmartin2334
4 жыл бұрын
Along with this show, Take Your Pick and Double Your Money enjoyed high ratings much earlier on Sundays thanks to Radio Luxembourg when it was broadcasting on 1293 meters Long Wave! .... and there is more i could add but ........
@MrGiraffics
8 жыл бұрын
The three guys singing - The Graysons - the one in the middle was my boss a few years later in 1975.
@soldier-Dave
4 жыл бұрын
When I was 6 or 7 years old round about 1966, I introduced my mon coral Edmonds on this show. She sang. She is still alive and I would love to be able to show her a recording of herself! Can anybody help!?
@pastorbri
9 жыл бұрын
wow, wish more opp knocks existed.......love to see more.
@1ATV
9 жыл бұрын
Fabulous piece of television. I didn't realise that Op Knocks was originally made by ABC and later transferred to Thames after a franchise change. It's a great find. I wish more existed. I have a feeling Thames wiped most of their shows , I believe only one or two of those productions still exist. Fabulous , 38 minutes TV gold. Thank you :-)
@arthurvasey
7 жыл бұрын
1ATV Don't remember ABC at all - yet I remember Mary Hopkin - made a favourable impression on me at the time - I was only five! A pity most of this series has been wiped - could be interesting to play them now and, using modern voting methodology, see if the acts that won at the time would win today! Or acts that didn't do so well - would they win today? Su Pollard lost to a singing dog - but she became more famous - what happened to the crooning canine? Some acts tended to be one-trick ponies - my vague memories of the show featured a yodeller and a belly dancer! Comedians and possibly magic acts and ventriloquist acts probably fared best, with solo singers, followed by singing groups - the last two types enjoyed a modicum of success on the pop charts, but vanished! Whatever happened to Berni Flint and Paper Lace? Some of the acts were really good, but didn't do so well on the show! One edition featured an act billed as The Singing Harper Brothers - Thomas Derbyshire and Robert Harper - they went on to become Cannon & Ball, despite not winning Opportunity Knocks!
@laurawood8917
6 жыл бұрын
Loved seeing this as my dad played with Bob Sharples. Brought a tear to my eyes.
@celebritymessages
5 жыл бұрын
Yes it's a shame they wiped it, I was on in 1969 but there is no copy of the film anymore :(@@arthurvasey
@arthurvasey
5 жыл бұрын
celebritymessages Who were you and what did you do? Even acts who didn’t win did well - sometimes after a change of name and act - a lot of them either got their own series (sometimes on the BBC) or appeared on other people’s shows!
@celebritymessages
5 жыл бұрын
@@arthurvasey Hello. I was Andrew Cameron, comedy impressionist. I was 15 years old and won on the clapometer. I was at Stage School with Jack Wild and Phil Collins at the time. 2010 I was semi finalist BGT and I still perform now as Drew Cameron. Just would love to have got a copy of the app knocks :)
@mateuskaulfuss5482
Жыл бұрын
That's why I love the internet. A brazilian like me, born in the early 90s, would never reach these. Glad to meet Opportunity Knocks, and all those artists.
@pastorbri
3 жыл бұрын
wish more editions existed, so many are lost
@wendyking3852
5 жыл бұрын
Absolutely it was Bob Sharples
@leonbykovski4238
4 жыл бұрын
I remember watching this on TV at the time and have only just discovered it here some fifty something years later. Many thanks to Wendy. The boy in short trousers is Ieuan Thomas - pronounced Yuy-Ann (very difficult to write it phonetically but he does explain to Hughie Green in the clip - was that banter prepared … much?). I’m a bit vague on his life story but believe he went on to get a Masters or Phd in something like marine biology. Thus far he’s living in the town in south Wales where he grew up and went on to present various TV shows on the Welsh TV channel S4C over the years. Creative, funny, sweet natured - essential part of the “lads night on the town” back in the day. Absolute legend!
@user-yu1yz6qk1g
3 жыл бұрын
Died at 69. Dave Swan, who for 17 years played King Arthur in the Excalibur's “Tournament of Kings,” died Tuesday at a local hospice after a long bout with cancer. He was 69. The Welsh entertainer came to Las Vegas as a comedian in 1979, and estimated in early 2007 that he had done 22,000 performances on the Strip.
@wendyking3852
6 жыл бұрын
Thank you so very much
@holydiver73
8 ай бұрын
How TV talent shows have changed. This is full of very talented people, it’s very light hearted and good natured and Wendy is so talented. Today, it all seems to be a lot more nastier and cutthroat and X Factor just shoots people down in flames and in the most horrible of ways and those judges seem to take great pleasure in deflating people’s dreams..something Hughie would never have done.
@antoniod
6 жыл бұрын
Here in Boston, MA, USA, they tried to bring back Boston's own "Opportunity Knocks", named COMMUNITY AUDITIONS, but it didn't last.
@Betfairhuggy
10 жыл бұрын
fantastic especially Wendy King
@nickprince9881
4 жыл бұрын
I live it Wendy x
@terryclary
9 жыл бұрын
Super Wendy ........ hug from Terry XXX
@JHollowayNetwork
8 жыл бұрын
Opportunity Knocks was created as Britain's answer to America's "The Ed Sullivan Show".
@TheOnlyOneKingElvis
8 жыл бұрын
+Kwadwo Holloway No,
@marvinmuonekejazz
8 жыл бұрын
I disagree. Sunday Night at The London Palladium was more of an answer to The Ed Sullivan Show 😊
@simonbray4113
4 жыл бұрын
I’m a big George Formby fan but have to admit Wendy King is a lot easier on the eye! Nice Ludwig by the way Wendy😊🪕
@wendyking3852
4 жыл бұрын
Thank you it is my daddy’s Ludwig !!
@thomaspenman4101
2 жыл бұрын
My cousin sang on oppertuniy knocks in the am not sure if it was the 50s or 60s i was a wee boy living in denny scotland
@alfwilliams5446
9 жыл бұрын
Awesome!
@getthefffffoffme
8 жыл бұрын
My God i'm 54 and he's still older than me....
@getthefffffoffme
8 жыл бұрын
+Paul Routledge and he'still dreadful
@audreywelshwilliamson3238
9 жыл бұрын
Thank-you for sharing this, watched this show as a youngster. Trying to find shows from 1971 that had 'The Eddie Connors Trio' (he was my Dad's best friend) been trying for years with no results :-( Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanx again.
@liamoconnor5943
2 жыл бұрын
Hi Audrey. I am Eddie Connors son, let me know if you have managed to find anything, I would love to see it.
@11carbuff19572011
2 жыл бұрын
There was a total of at least 800 acts who first made their names on Opportunity Knocks! since ABC first broadcast the show in 1964. It's all progressive now, and now these days on BGT all the judges would have buzzed off even a little comedian like Ieuan Thomas was in 1968. I've even gotta Gramophone Popular Catalogue which has the track listing of the album by Wendy King, Ukulele Girl (Contour 2870 106), which first came out in 1971 as part of the initial release on that new label. I wouldn't think Simon Cowell would allow any more of that girly pop stuff that I for one have still gone for more than 50 years on.
@bernard785
8 жыл бұрын
fab
@rowley1950
8 жыл бұрын
What a smarmy, arrogant cheezy berk- A true legend! I love the guy
@LloydSiddall
9 жыл бұрын
Hi Wendy My wife was on opportunity Knocks with Tony Holland and the Casuals in 1965 she was on the all winners show as well her name was Maureen Myres at the time we have tried to get the footage but have had no luck at all. I hope you can help as the kids and grandkids would really love to see it.
@celebritymessages
5 жыл бұрын
I feel the same. I was on in 1969 and would love to see a copy
@ninjaginger6418
7 жыл бұрын
Indeed 👌
@nicolapostle9400
4 жыл бұрын
Anyone remember my dad on this programme?? Bill Postle
@daveenglish2
4 жыл бұрын
No.
@OllyBockus
Жыл бұрын
The Postlemeister! Absolute legend..
@veganvocalist4782
3 жыл бұрын
What a professional Hugie was lol , I bet he wanted to pull that little precocious boys ears really 🤣
@cycleSCUBA
2 жыл бұрын
Grim days.
@JacciNewman
6 жыл бұрын
Does anyone have any clips of Oppurtunity Knocks from 1972. My dad Dave Newman won it for 7 weeks running. He was beaten by a boy on the drums Steven Smith and Father I think.
@sentinel998
6 жыл бұрын
I think I remember him. Was he a yodeller?
@Agnethatheredhairkid
4 жыл бұрын
@@sentinel998 Yes, Tony, he was. He actually had a chart hit with his take on 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight'.
@drinkwater319
6 жыл бұрын
Freddy Starr ripped that Welsh bloke off
@aobembracelife
5 жыл бұрын
My thoughts exactly!
@richardsharpe2966
5 жыл бұрын
At 0:17 the man who spoke first was that Opportunity Knocks musical director Bob Sharples could someone confirm this please
@trevordance5181
Жыл бұрын
You are correct. Bob Sharples also wrote, under a pseudonym, the theme music to that great series, 'Public Eye' which started out as an ABC TV production.
@georgedeathe4683
4 жыл бұрын
The ballet bit, I was expecting the Two Ronnies or Morecomabe and Wise to join in
@brez9091
8 жыл бұрын
Classic.
@Candolad
7 жыл бұрын
He reads a letter from Gail Porter battling depression at 2:45 but she wasnt born until 1971 ! Maybe she suffered before she was born.
@lennylaa1686
2 жыл бұрын
Or maybe it's another Gail Porter.
@funjuror
2 ай бұрын
Would anyone happen to know what happened to the comic Dave Swan?
@johnsymons8246
3 жыл бұрын
The dukes noblemen ho dear
@markandresen1
6 жыл бұрын
Thank God for the scroll bar. Only wanted to see Mary Hopkin's performance. Still an incredible voice and was always far too good for the competition...
@chrisredditch
8 жыл бұрын
Cool
@tommy553013
10 жыл бұрын
Wendy: Simply fantastic ! You are a precious girl. What a beatiful girl Mary Hopkin is too! From Mexico City. By the way when your birthday is? only curiosity.
@christhompson7547
4 жыл бұрын
Tommy553013 Mary Hopkin is from Ystragynlais no Swansea in Wales. Born May 3rd 1950. Where does Mexico City fit into this equation?
@cjsden7703
4 жыл бұрын
Do you have the episode with Freddie Starr on it ?
@bluewater4430
7 жыл бұрын
have you got the Freddie Starr one
@TheBudgie29
3 жыл бұрын
Where he was runner up to a singing dog.
@bluewater4430
3 жыл бұрын
@@TheBudgie29 were you there like lol?
@lennylaa1686
2 жыл бұрын
@@bluewater4430 Yes - there in 1969 - the Pickettywitch lady. 😉😉😉
@radiosoundsfamilar144
9 жыл бұрын
Hi Wendy How did you manage to get this magnificent piece of TV history, its a domestic copy of the studio 405 video recording ( not transfered to film like most archive of this era) Was the programme live ? Thanks Gary
@wendyking2322
9 жыл бұрын
Hi there Gary, my daughter Debbie got this for me from some of her contacts in television
@wendyking2322
9 жыл бұрын
The programme was live
@LadyWriter1968
9 жыл бұрын
Wendy King Is it possible for your daughter to get the one where Lena Zavaroni won opportunity knocks back in 1973 I think it was. and put that up. She won it 5x.....
@celebritymessages
5 жыл бұрын
Can she get a copy of me from the late 1969?@@wendyking2322
@kamandi1362
3 жыл бұрын
I felt sorry for that Welsh boy. There he was in Swinging London surrounded by people dressed in the latest Carnaby Street and Kings Road fashions and yet his mum made him dress like a wartime evacuee.
@alexcampbell3032
3 жыл бұрын
Do you think he inspired Gilbert O'Sullivan?
@daviddunninguk
3 жыл бұрын
Wasn’t it actually swinging Didsbury as this is one of the final ABC productions
@trevordance5181
Жыл бұрын
@@daviddunninguk It was Didsbury, South Manchester. ABC Weekend Television's northern studios there were actually in an old converted ABC cinema.
@Westy1971
3 жыл бұрын
So this was practically at the end of the ABC era then. What is the general archive status? Does the last ABC & first Thames shows exist?
@partyentertains4092
Жыл бұрын
Only two exist from the ABC Archive and 16 eps from the Thames. "Goodbye to Didsbury" episode is missing, though.
@richardsharpe2966
10 жыл бұрын
What every happend to Mary Hopkins does any one know she was a great singer could someone help me on this please. Also the old ABC TV Studios in Didsbury were owned by Manchester University after ABC and Redifusion merged in 1968 stayed open till 1999 when demolised
@celticjimfox
9 жыл бұрын
Mary is still singing and recording. www.maryhopkin.com/pages/discography.html
@cjsden7703
4 жыл бұрын
Do you happen to have the episodes with Freddie Starr on ?
@eddiedavies222
3 жыл бұрын
I’m the son of one of the Delmonts ( Al Davies). If you’ve managed to get hold of this, please let me know. And I’ll do the same for you. Cheers .
@cjsden7703
3 жыл бұрын
@@eddiedavies222 Will do my friend, sadly I’ve had no luck at the moment but I’m still trying. If you would like to keep in contact with me regarding this my email address is cjhorton@elvisfan.com
@eddiedavies222
3 жыл бұрын
@@cjsden7703 cheers buddy, will do.
@faithoffaith
6 жыл бұрын
10 x better than Britains Got Talent
@michaelmcdonald2348
Жыл бұрын
BGT is just a cheap nasty rip off of Op-knocks/New Faces with a bit of X factor rubbish added. Seen some comments about Hughie Green taking a percentage of income from successful acts, but it's been well documented how Cowell treats his artists both during the show's run and post show if he signs them up.
@FRANKTHRING1
8 жыл бұрын
Hughie Green - a slick host but what a horrible smarmy git ! We used to switch over and watch BBC.
@gazriley624
8 жыл бұрын
Paula Yates Dad! Bizarre lol
@jacksonirving4594
5 жыл бұрын
Aye. Lot of it went on in those days
@alisonwunderland9900
5 жыл бұрын
The Duke's Noblemen, the band The Beatles could have been...
@richardbrown1189
4 жыл бұрын
The European Singing Contest. Is Hughie making up his own competitions?
@davebentley4829
7 жыл бұрын
who the hell is wendy king ?
@annoldham3018
4 жыл бұрын
The ukulele girl. Like a slimmer version of Tessie O'Shea!🥰
@keithrose6931
3 жыл бұрын
Who the hell is dave bentley ?
@john111257
6 жыл бұрын
slick for the era
@niteblaster1
4 жыл бұрын
33:00 😎
@pegasus8718
4 жыл бұрын
.
@norabattythe3rd
5 жыл бұрын
I never really liked him,... He seemed false to me and what was with they American type accent?
@samsum3738
5 жыл бұрын
He was canadian .
@michaelmcdonald2348
Жыл бұрын
history hasn't been kind to him, but this was back when the family would all sit and watch together and I loved this show growing up in the 70's and found him charming at the time.
@mazzab1970
23 күн бұрын
@@samsum3738 He was a Londoner but adopted the voice after living in Canada as a teen. Fake.
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