Motown on Ready Steady Go!

Dusty Springfield introduces Motown to England via RSG! Here's a terrific documentary including the 1965 touring of the Motown Revue in Great Britain before appearing on Ready Steady Go! with Dusty.

Ready Steady Go! tv show

Ready Steady Go! aired in Britain from 1963 - 1966. Manfred Mann's 5-4-3-2-1 was the theme song. The show was hosted by Keith Fordyce, Dusty Springfield and Cathy McGowan, known as the "Queen of the Mods" as a result of her hosting gig. Anyone who was anyone was on this program. They ran theme shows featuring The Beatles, Otis Redding and the hugely popular Motown acts.

• Otis Redding Special, 1966
• The Sounds of Motown, 1965

Dusty was instrumental in showcasing Motown on the show.

Arthur Alexander

Learn about Arthur Alexander and his origins in Muscle Shoals.



Dusty Springfield, above, performs Alexander's Everyday I Have To Cry on Ready Steady Go!. Did she have the hugest hair or what?


Everyday I Have To Cry, Steve Alaimo, 1963

A Shot of Rhythm and Blues, Arthur Alexander, 1962


Anna (Go To Him), Arthur Alexander, 1962, (Beatles' version)


Soldier of Love, Arthur Alexander, 1962, (Beatles' version)


You Better Move On, Arthur Alexander, 1962, (Stones' version)

Cilla Cilla Bo Billa

Cilla performs on Ready Steady Go!. She sings her first hit here.


Love of the Loved, The Beatles, 1962

I Can Tell

Check out the color footage from behind the scenes of a 1964 episode
of Ready Steady Go!. They're dancing to a remake of Bo Diddley's
I Can Tell. The clip is from a Look at Life newsreel about Liverpool.




I Can Tell, The Zephyrs, 1964

leaf me alone

Billy Fury performs Nothin' Shakin' on Ready Steady Go!.

Martha and Dusty

In 1965, several Motown groups appeared on Ready Steady Go! along with host Dusty Springfield. Martha and the Vandellas join Dusty for a fabulous version of Wishin' and Hopin' – the original Salt-N-Pepa. 

In this clip, Dusty is backed up by Motown greats. What a show. 😃

Friday morning dose of 1965

Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames on Ready Steady Go!

Are you a modernist?

Cathy McGowan, known as the Queen of the Mods and host of Ready Steady Go!, appears on To Tell The Truth and answers questions about being a mod from a 1964 broadcast.

British pop music circa 1964...

...with Cilla Black and Dusty Springfield. Put on your shades and dance. Both of these performances are from Ready Steady Go!