Tag Archives: Nick Heyward

Off The Chart: 15 December 1983

Off The Chart: 15 December 1983

We’re going back to this day in 1983 on Off The Chart for two hours of the day’s hits, some of them vaguely festive, some of them not. There’s also the usual look at the day’s goings-on, three of the week’s new albums (such as they are), a quick sneaky look at the Dutch chart, and back home for the top five in full.

  • Which former Christmas number 1 act ended their career with a week at number 100?
  • Whose latest single made the top 20 even though they asked their fans not to buy it?
  • And who had two American hits with covers of songs by a British band, but were outsold here by that band’s new song?

Tune in and find out!


Listen to Off The Chart on Mad Wasp Radio at 9pm every Tuesday! You can stream Mad Wasp Radio via their website, their apps for iOS or Android, or through TuneIn and MyTuner, or ask your smart speaker to “play Mad Wasp Radio” – and don’t forget to tweet along using the hashtag #OffTheChart. If you’re not around, you can hear the show again on Mad Wasp Radio at 10am on Friday, or catch up on Mixcloud after that.

Get the Extended Mix!

If you enjoy Off The Chart but find it’s just not long enough, why not join us on Patreon or Mixcloud Select? For a small monthly subscription you get access to the exclusive Extended Mix of the show every week with bonus 12″ mixes, additional chatter and the week’s top ten singles in full!

Our subscribers also get access to exclusive shows including Further Off The Chart in which we play some of the records that come up in conversation on the regular shows. You can even download shows to listen offline in the Mixcloud app! Please consider backing us – we really appreciate it and your subscription allows us to keep producing a new episode every single week.

There’s a podcast too!

For those of you who enjoy the nonsense we talk but don’t have time to listen to the music, we’ve put the talky bits together with some exclusive extras to make a podcast! This week we start off talking about the chart and somehow manage to end up taking about racist comedians, the naked balloon dance and Mike Batt’s AC/DC tribute band. It’ll all make sense if you listen.

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Spotify playlists

If you’ve missed a previous edition they’re all on our Mixcloud page, or for a taster of the music we play, listen to our Spotify playlist Way Off The Chart including one track from each show!

We also have a Spotify playlist for our #ICEOTWF feature, including all (well, most) of the international hits we’ve played since the feature began in March 2017. There are all sorts of oddities in here, all of which were hits somewhere in the world but not in the UK!

Off The Chart: 16 June 1985

Off The Chart: 16 June 1985

Looking for two hours of obscure, forgotten and barely remembered hits from this day in 1985? It’s got to be Off The Chart, just 10 cm from this website. Join us as we blunder through the UK singles chart, stopping … read more

Off The Chart: 17 September 1988

Off The Chart: 17 September 1988

Smiley face T-shirts at the ready, we’re going back to this day in 1988 for another Off The Chart! Join us for two hours of forgotten and half-remembered hits, three of the week’s new albums, a review of the day’s … read more

Now Parlez 4

Now Parlez 4 artwork

Episode 4 of Now Parlez sees Steve and Julian take the conventional route by examining Now That’s What I Call Music 4, talking about the album and playing tracks from the original vinyl. Record company shenanigans abound as Paul McCartney’s … read more

Off The Chart: 18 June 1984

Off The Chart: 18 June 1984

Join us on a trip back to this day in 1984 on another edition of Off The Chart! We’ve got the usual mix of the week’s obscure and half-remembered hits, plus a flavour of the week’s album chart, a look … read more

Sound of the Crowd – a Discography of the ’80s: Fourth Edition available now!

Sound of the Crowd - 4th Edition cover

Sound Of The Crowd: a Discography of the ’80s is the ultimate record collector’s guide to the 1980s. In the era of multi-formatting, picture discs, coloured vinyl, multiple remixes, funny shaped records and tiny CDs you could lose down the back … read more

Off The Chart: 3 November 1983

Off The Chart: 3 November 1983

Looking for something to fill the awkward gap between Halloween and Bonfire Night? Come back to this day in 1983 for another two hours of hits, headlines and haggling on this week’s Off The Chart! As always there’s a heap … read more

Let’s Rock Scotland – Steve’s festival diary

Let's Rock Scotland

“Are we on the right bus?” A question, seemingly genuine, from one of a gaggle of people attempting to board an already crowded vehicle while struggling with a picnic so vast the local Co-Op must have had to close early. … read more

Let’s Rock Scotland: Dalkeith Country Park, 23 June 2018

Billy Ocean at Let's Rock Scotland

Since Rewind is brilliant, I couldn’t resist giving another retro festival a go, especially with such a stellar lineup as Let’s Rock. Joining me in this new adventure was regular festival buddy Sarah, long-suffering husband Pete, and new gig pal … read more

Off The Chart: 16 June 1983

Off The Chart: 16 June 1983

We’re going back to this very day in 1983 on this week’s Off The Chart as Steve and Julian rifle through the week’s UK singles chart, playing some of the hits you don’t hear so often. There’s also three tracks … read more

Off The Chart: 7 April 1983

Off The Chart: 7 April 1983

Come back to this week in 1983 as Steve and Julian unearth some forgotten hits on Off The Chart! There’s also three tracks from a featured album, a look at the day’s events, a Swedish hit and the top five … read more

Virtual C90: January 2018

Virtual C90: January 2018

This month our virtual mixtape takes a look back at 2017 with tracks from some of the year’s biggest releases, from Blondie to Gary Numan, Sparks to Squeeze, Depeche Mode to The Fizz! Enjoy! read more