‘Countdown’ marks 50 years with a commemorative coin and ’70s-’80s cover band tour

This year marks half a century since Countdown first hit Australian television screens, bursting into loungerooms across the nation at 6.30pm, Friday 8 November, 1974. To celebrate, the ABC has issued a commemorative 50 cent coin which has already sold out and is currently fetching up to $99 on eBay (and they say concert ticket scalping is a scam). The ABC is also celebrating with a cute concert series to hit the road, dubbed Countdown In Your Town.

It was a good time, 1974. Australia experienced its wettest year since 1890, which was good for our farmers, though nobody dared mention the words ‘climate change’ back then. Australian road signs switched from imperial to metric meaning everyone had to get used to kilometres versus miles in their head while avoiding hitting kangaroos on our country roads. The first Australian credit card was introduced while bank officers refused to handle commercial cheques until they successfully scored a 25 per cent pay rise. Evonne Goolagong beat Chris Evert in the Australian Women’s Singles title. And several great bands formed that year, including The Angels and The Saints (two separate bands, by the way).

Aussie music act The Angels formed in 1974, the same year ‘Countdown’ launched.

Also that year, the White Australia Policy ended, resulting in the entry of Asian immigrants who contributed greatly to our multicultural ethos. Still, I don’t recall seeing any Asian pop inclusion on Countdown back then. That is if you don’t count Carl Douglas’ Kung Fu Fighting, released in 1974, or The Vapors’ Turning Japanese, later in 1980.

Below: English band The Vapors performing ‘live’ but to a studio recording on ‘Countdown’, later recycled on the ABC’s ‘Rage’.

Countdown, the Saturday and Sunday night program, ended with its final show airing on July 19, 1987, meaning 13 years were enjoyed by viewers of some rather cool music videos and on-stage performances (only just) bridged together by the mumbling chatter of Ian ‘Molly’ Meldrum – who appeared to be coming down from a big night out on most afternoons that it aired.

Fifty years on, the ABC is inviting audiences back to the party to celebrate the little Aussie show that became a global phenomenon with a TV special, Countdown 50 Years On. The show – which will air Saturday 16 November at 7.30pm on ABC TV and iview – will feature retro music and videos interweaved with guest spots by the likes of Kate Ceberano, Grace Knight, Marcia Hines, Daryl Braithwaite, Ross Wilson, Leo Sayer and other classic artists that have graced the Countdown stage.

Leo, um, Sayer being interviewed by Ian ‘Molly’ Meldrum on the set of ‘Countdown’.

There’ll also be appearances by contemporary artists such as Katy Steele, Kate Miller-Heidke, and the guys from Regurgitator, who’ll surely be gushing about what a major influence Molly and ‘Countdown’ were to them.

Kate Miller-Heidke: one of the guest spot presenters you can expect to see on the ABC’s ‘Countdown 50 Years On’.

In addition to the TV special, the ABC is taking the celebration on the road with a live show series titled ‘Countdown In Your Town’. This will be a series of live events in Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and Newcastle, hosted by familiar ABC Radio presenters and featuring live bands playing iconic hits from the Countdown era. There’s no word if any of the aforementioned artists will be appearing on stage but it is confirmed that performances will come from tribute bands such as Some Like It Yacht and the ABC’s Corporation Band as they play familiar hits from the 1970s and and ’80s Countdown era.

Touted to be joining the touring festivities will be the one-and-only voice of the show (well, the only one that could be understood clearly), Gavin Wood.

It may seem odd that there are no ‘Countdown In Your Town’ events being hosted in Sydney or Melbourne, but that’s probably because these cities might be deemed too cool for school.

‘Countdown In Your Town’ is a ticketed event and you need to be listening to ABC Radio in your city for details on how to register for tickets.

Also on the Countdown commemorative front, the Royal Australian Mint has released a special coin in celebration of 50 years of the Countdown brand. The announcement was made on the abc.net.au news site which, strangely enough, also announced that “New coins have also been released to commemorate the many animals who have served in wars”. Perhaps the ABC News doesn’t have a handle on its AI software yet.

Let’s just hope robots or mumbling fools aren’t running the Countdown touring show during this special anniversary.

Antonino Tati