Celebrities
Fizzical Therapy
From stories of skirt stunts at the Eurovision Song Contest to tales of tours and tantrums, front man Bobby G will have you Making Your Mind Up about Bucks Fizz in no time
How did Bucks Fizz first get together?
We were formed in 1981 to perform in the Eurovision Song Contest that year. The song Making Your Mind Up already existed, they just needed a group to sing it. I was performing in Jesus Christ Superstar at the time when my father saw an ad for this new band in The Stage. I went along and that is where it all began!
Where did the name Buck Fizz come from?
When songs are entered into the Eurovision Song Contest, they need to be entered under a name. Nicola Martin, who was part of our production company, loved drinking Bucks Fizz so she just came up with the name. Andy Hill, who is now her husband, wrote the song.
Who was your inspiration when you were first starting out?
I like artists who sing songs that have a story. Phil Collins was and is a great inspiration, as are The Beatles.
Your memorable performance at the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest included whipping off Cheryl and Jay's skirts during the song. Was this a carefully considered gimmick or just an element of fun to your routine?
At the time none of us knew whether we were going to walk off that stage into oblivion as so many bands do. It wasn't a calculated move, it just evolved naturally into the routine. Making Your Mind Up is a very rock and roll song, so we wanted to get some jive moves in there. Chrissy Wickham from Hot Gossip choreographed the routine.
You went on to win the Best Song Award at the Yamaha Song Contest in Tokyo with ‘Another Night', do you still get lots of fan mail from Japan?
Not really, the industry out there has changed a lot over the years. At the time they really liked the all-blond groups, but it has changed now. I'm not sure they even remember us!
1984 saw the band involved in an horrific coach accident, resulting in Mike Nolan being seriously hurt. How did the dynamics of the group changed in the period that Mike was out of the band?
The group more or less packed up for six to eight months. I had sustained injuries too as well as Mike, so we all needed time out to recover. To be honest the accident got so much publicity that it kept us in the public eye for all the time we were off. We decided to go back to work to get Bucks Fizz up and running again and to give Mike something to look forward to.
After the departure of original member Jay Aston, you held national auditions for a new member to replace her. What qualities do you look for in a Bucks Fizz girl?
The voices in the band need to blend together so she has to be able to sing harmonies. She also needs to enjoy what she is doing and have enthusiasm. I love every aspect of being in the business and performing in the group.
The band has seen numerous changes to the line-up over the years, what affect has this had on the Bucks Fizz sound?
To be honest I think our sound has stayed quite consistent. We do change things and adapt to new members, but we know how the band works and what people love. We are like one big extended family.
After his departure from Bucks Fizz, ex- member David Van Day set up new version of Bucks Fizz starring Mike Nolan. Do you think this confused your fans?
Our fans knew the score. They knew who the original Bucks Fizz were. Everyone in the business knew who we were, we owned the Bucks Fizz name and we had all the songs. The outcome was always going to be bad for him.
Are you still friends with the original members of the band?
I am, we have done some nostalgia gigs together, we know what each other are up to and we do keep in touch from time to time. They're work colleagues more than anything else. I speak to Jay more than the rest.
Why do you think your music is still so popular today?
Nothing has really come along to replace us. Our music is positive and upbeat and gets people up out of their seats. During the 80s, digital sounds were first coming in, and there was a lot of innovation in the music industry at the time. So our music still sounds current and original.
What is the track you most enjoy performing and why?
I love Making Your Mind Up. It makes people feel good and it has that nostalgia. We don't even need to wait for a standing ovation as people are already up out of their seats, dancing and singing along.
Which modern day artists do you most admire and why?
I like James Blunt as an artist. I don't always like his music or his performances, but I like his attitude towards the business.
What is next for Bucks Fizz?
Well we are currently doing shows with Brotherhood of Man. We are also putting together an 80s show, which we hope to get off the ground soon. But we've just been so busy. We're a working band so we're always moving around and performing all over the place. We do cruises each year, which are always great fun for us. We also do theatre tours and universities, and of course we have Butlins coming up!
When can you see them?
You can catch Bucks Fizz at:
