Live & Kicking

Infobox Television
show_name = Live & Kicking


caption = "Live & Kicking" logo (1993 - 2000)
format = Children's
picture_format = 4:3
(1993 - 2000) 16:9 (2000 - 2001)
runtime = 3hrs 15mins
creator =
starring = Andi Peters
Emma Forbes
John Barrowman
Trevor and Simon
Don Austen
John Eccleston
Jamie Theakston
Zoe Ball
Steve Wilson
Emma Ledden
Katy Hill
Sarah Cawood
Trey Farley
Heather Suttie
Phillip Hodson
Peter Simon
Mitch Johnson
channel = BBC1
first_aired = October 2 1993
last_aired = September 15 2001
num_series = 8
num_episodes =
country = UK
producer = CBBC
related =
imdb_id = 0139781

"Live & Kicking" was a BBC Saturday morning children's variety programme, running from 1993 to 2001.

Features

It was aimed at young people and it included a mix of competitions, comedy, music and cartoons such as the "Rugrats", "The Wild Thornberrys" and "The Simpsons". From 1993 until 1999, there was a showbiz segment called the "Electric Circus" (also repeated in an early evening slot the following Friday on BBC2) and was presented by people such as Emma Forbes, John Barrowman, Zoë Ball, Dannii Minogue and Gail Porter. In the early series, the theme tune used for "Electric Circus" was a snatch from "I Feel Love" by Donna Summer.

Similar to Top of the Pops, live performances on the show were mimed and in the same way many bands made a mockery of this:

As well as being a Saturday morning children's show, "Live and Kicking" launched a music CD, comprising of the best music that artists had sung live on the programme. A spin-off CD-ROM game called "Live and Kicking: Make Your Own Show" was also created, where the user could combine elements of the show to create their own television production on a small scale.

For series 5 and 6, there was a short version of the show that aired on Friday afternoons called "L & K Friday", but this was cancelled after two series. The regular Saturday presenters, Jamie Theakston and Zoe Ball did the first series.

One of the last features was "L & K Castaway", which was similar to the BBC reality show "Castaway 2000".

Mitch Johnson provided commentary during the Theakston-Ball era, interacting with both audience and presenters. A competition was run which invited viewers to submit pictures of what they thought Mitch to look like - although his face was never shown, normally owing to a convenient power failure, as an onrunning gag.

It Started With Swap Shop

Live & Kicking was featured in the BBC's "It Started With Swap Shop" programme in 2006. Noel Edmonds chatted to the first pair of presenters of the show, Andi Peters and Emma Forbes about their time on the show. Including some clips of their time on the show and they made an appearance on the 'We Don't Do Duvets' sketch with Trevor and Simon and Chris Moyles.

Demise

The principal reason for the axing was blamed on an increasing loss of viewers to ITV's "SMTV Live", which had a similar format and was arguably more successful in its purpose.

Replacement

The show was replaced by "The Saturday Show", fronted by Dani Behr and Joe Mace, which was shown all year round until September 2003 when it began an Autumn/Winter-Spring/Summer loop with "Dick and Dom In Da Bungalow".

Transmissions

External links

* [http://www.saturdaymornings.co.uk/liveandkicking "Live & Kicking"] at Saturday Mornings
* [http://www.tv.com/show/4035/summary.html "Live & Kicking"] at TV.com