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TRASH TV OR CULT CLASSIC? |
From September 1988 until December 1992, 'The Hitman and Her' filled two of the wee hours of Sunday morning on ITV. Fronted by pop mogul Pete Waterman and children's TV presenter Michaela Strachan, it never topped the TV ratings, but enjoyed surprisingly-high viewing figures for a programme broadcast at such an uncivilised hour. With the latest Dance music, a troupe of lithe young dancers, prize competitions and party games which while rarely sublime, were often truly ridiculous, the programme brought the club scene right into your very own living room every weekend.
Stumbling in from a night of posing and dancing in a night club, its followers would turn on the TV to enjoy another two hours watching other people posing and dancing in a night club. In a way, I suppose it was a kind of early reality TV show - with music!
I was rarely around to watch it, mainly because by the time it came on the air, I was usually in my car and driving home after making one of those shows.
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The 'Hitman' had been on our screens for about three months when out of the blue came a phone call, offering me two weeks' work on the programme as Floor Manager. After I'd done those and my contact was up, they invited me back - then kept me on the team for the next three years! |
Two decades after the show reached the end of the line and we all said our goodbyes, the teenagers who worried their parents by going out late to all those shady night clubs are most likely now parents themselves, and worrying about their own kids. As far as I was concerned, the 'Hitman' was as forgotten as ancient history, despite its having been a very enjoyable part of my career. I was therefore very surprised to learn that the show has something of a cult following in the 21st Century, with fan pages on Facebook, and a varied collection of grainy video clips on YouTube. It's for the fans who still remember the show that I decided to put these pages online.
Since there doesn't seem to be a online listing of all the episodes, I decided to put one together myself. All the time I worked on the show, I kept a log of the dates, venues and programmes. By collating all this information together, I can publish what is probably the most accurate and detailed listing there is. And I've shared some of my photos with you too, just for fun. I hope you enjoy our little "Step Back in Time" |
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DISCLAIMER: "The Hitman & Her" programme title, its episodes and associated logos are the intellectual property of ITV. "Ritchie's Hitman & Her Files" is a not-for-profit site published by Ritchie Hardin, Floor Manager on the programme from 1989 to 1992. These pages are offered for nostalgic interest only. This site is not affilated to nor endorsed by PWL, ITV, Pete Waterman or Michaela Strachan. All images are from my own collection, and all opinions expressed on these pages are mine alone.