| Hot Gossip | |
| Years Active: | 1974–1986 |
| Label: | Ariola Hansa, Atlantic, Dindisc, DJM Records, Fanfare Records |
| Spinoffs: | Sponooch |
Hot Gossip (1974–1986) was a British television dance troupe and recording group.
Arlene Phillips moved to London to teach American jazz dance routines, working at Pineapple Dance Studios and the Italia Conti Stage School. In 1974, Phillips started forming the core of a troupe; Italia Conti student actress Lesley Manville turned her down.[1] Hot Gossip spent two years performing in Munkberry's club in Jermyn Street, London W1, where Phillips and manager/producers Michael Summerton and Iain Burton developed the group's act. Phillips, Summerton and Burton continued to work together for eight years.
British television director David Mallet invited Phillips to make Hot Gossip a regular feature of The Kenny Everett Video Show (Thames Television,1978–1981). Dancers in this version of Hot Gossip included:
Everett moved to the BBC for The Kenny Everett Television Show (1981–1988), which featured Hot Gossip only in Season 4 (1986).
In 1978, during their initial impact period on The Kenny Everett Video Show, Hot Gossip, featuring Sarah Brightman on lead vocals, recorded "I Lost My Heart to a Starship Trooper", a disco song written by Jeff Calvert and Geraint Hughes. The song reached number 6 on the UK Singles Chart.[2] In 1981, the group recorded a cover version of Suzanne Fellini's "Love on the Phone", and the same year released the synth-pop album Geisha Boys and Temple Girls, produced by former Human League and then current Heaven 17/BEF member Martyn Ware.[3]
Produced by Burton and Telecast for Channel 4 in 1982, this one-hour special was one of the highest rated shows for Channel 4 that year.
The group appeared in the film The Golden Lady (1979).
Hot Gossip were noted for the risqué nature of their costumes and dance routines, designed and choreographed by Phillips, especially considering the early evening timeslot for The Kenny Everett Video Show. The male dancers were handsome and black and the female members were attractive and white.
In 1979 the group was satirised on The Benny Hill Show as Hot Gossamer, with references to their routines for "Supernature" and "Walk on the Wild Side".
In late 1979 Mark Tyme, Dom Wood, Lorraine Whitmarsh, Carol Fletcher, Lyndsey Ward, Donna Fielding and Lee Black left Hot Gossip to form Sponooch, which was featured in the BBC TV shows Friday Night Saturday Morning (1979) and Dancing Girls (6 January 1982). They signed to EMI and released two singles, "Crime Buster" and "Lady Dracula".[4]
† Not to be confused with the actress of the same name
†† Not to be confused with the actress of the same name