This week, we return with the ultimate sporting spectacle of the 70s: Superstars, where our greatest athletes stepped out of their comfort zones to compete in the classiest school sports day ever televised.
First airing on New Year's Eve 1973 as "Britain's Sporting Superstars," this brilliant concept saw elite athletes from different sports competing against each other in everything except their own discipline. I vividly remember the sheer excitement of watching David Hemery, Jackie Stewart, and Bobby Moore all lined up together! The format was beautifully simple: ten events, points for placement, and may the best all-rounder win.
What made it magical was seeing our sporting heroes in completely unfamiliar territory. Kevin Keegan falling off his bike during the cycling event and still fighting on with those famous words: "These people here in the stands have come here to see me make a fool of myself and they've got a right to it!" Pure class. Then there was James Hunt chain-smoking between events before performing brilliantly, and Stan Bowles shooting a hole in the table during the shooting event before capsizing his canoe!
But for me, it was all about Brian Jacks and those legendary parallel bar dips. That man was an absolute machine on the gym tests – I tried doing just thirty dips recently and was completely done in! Brian dominated the late 70s, winning both British and European titles before missing the world finals due to shingles. The show regularly pulled in ten million viewers during its heyday.
Sadly, by the mid-80s, the magic had faded as insurance concerns and scheduling conflicts made it harder to attract the real superstars, and the BBC cancelled it in 1985. But what memories it left us with!
Did you watch Superstars? Which event was your favourite, and do you remember any of those brilliant mishaps?
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