Episode 036 - Spend Spend Spend – The Rise and Fall of Viv Nicholson (1961)
Release Date: 05/17/2026
Episode 045 - Seven Inches Of History - Lonnie Donegan - My Old Man's A Dustman (1960)
Rainbow Valley
A dustbin, a donkey jacket and one of the biggest singalongs of 1960. This time on Seven Inches of History, we reach one of those records that seems to have been part of British life forever — Lonnie Donegan’s “My Old Man’s a Dustman.” By 1960, Donegan was already the undisputed king of British skiffle. He had helped launch a musical craze with a washboard, a tea-chest bass and the encouraging suggestion that you really didn’t need an expensive collection of instruments to start a band. Thousands of teenagers took him at his word — including rather a lot who would go on to...
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Episode 044 - Seven Inches Of History 005- Johnny Preston - Running Bear
Rainbow Valley
A song about doomed love, written by a man who never lived to see it top the charts. "Running Bear" is a cheerful record about two people who drown. That tension between the bouncy production and the tragic storyline is part of what makes it so fascinating, and part of why it shot to number one in March 1960 and stayed there for two weeks. But the real story here isn't Johnny Preston. It's the man who wrote the song. Jiles Perry Richardson Junior, better known as the Big Bopper, died on February 3rd 1959 in the same plane crash that took Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens. He was twenty-eight...
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Episode 043 - The Making Of The Italian Job (1969)
Rainbow Valley
"Just remember this - in this country they drive on the wrong side of the road" In 1969, British cinema delivered one of its most enduringly cheerful acts of grand larceny. The Italian Job had Michael Caine, three Mini Coopers, a coach balanced rather inconveniently above a precipice and a plan that looked perfectly sensible provided nobody examined it too closely. In this episode of Rainbow Valley, we go behind the scenes to explore how this much-loved crime caper found its way onto the screen. Written by Troy Kennedy Martin, directed by Peter Collinson and produced by Michael Deeley, the...
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Episode 042 - Seven Inches Of History 004 - Adam Faith - Poor Me
Rainbow Valley
Two number ones before breakfast. Adam Faith was just getting started. Adam Faith was not an accident. While some artists stumble into the charts through luck or timing, Terence Nelhams-Wright from Acton arrived at number one in the spring of 1960 as the result of a series of very deliberate decisions. The name. The image. The sound. All of it carefully assembled, and all of it working perfectly. "Poor Me" was his second consecutive number one, following "What Do You Want" which had topped the chart at the end of 1959. Back to back number ones before most people had even worked out who he...
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Episode 041 - Seven Inches Of History 003 - Anthony Newley - Why
Rainbow Valley
The accidental pop star who couldn't wait to get back to the theatre. Anthony Newley never really wanted to be a pop singer. He wanted to be in the theatre. The trouble was, the British public had other ideas, and in February 1960 they kept "Why" at number one for four consecutive weeks, making it very difficult for him to pretend the whole pop star thing wasn't happening. The route to the chart had been almost accidental. Newley had been cast as a rock and roll singer in a 1959 film called "Idle on Parade," recorded a few songs for it, and watched in mild surprise as one of them reached...
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Episode 040 - Seven Inches Of History 002 - Michael Holliday - Starry Eyed
Rainbow Valley
One week at the top, a lifetime of sadness behind the smile. The first brand new number one of the 1960s belonged to a man from Liverpool with a voice like warm honey and a stage name chosen for its lightness. Michael Holliday. It suited him perfectly. What it didn't tell you was anything about the anxiety and depression that shadowed every step of his career. "Starry Eyed" went to number one on January 24th 1960, held off the blocks for one week before Anthony Newley came along and nudged it aside. One week sounds brief. In a chart as competitive as early 1960s Britain, one week at the...
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Episode 039 - Seven Inches Of History 001 - Emile Ford and the Checkmates - What Do Want to Make Those Eyes At Me For?
Rainbow Valley
The record that started a decade, and made history doing it. The 1960s didn't begin with a fanfare. They began with a carry-over. Emile Ford and the Checkmates had reached number one back in November 1959 with "What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For" and when January 1st 1960 arrived, they were still sitting comfortably at the top of the British chart. The new decade started mid-song. There are worse ways to begin. But here's the thing about that chart position that goes well beyond the novelty of a decade boundary. Emile Ford was the first Black British artist ever to reach number one...
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Episode 018 - The Making Of Cleopatra (1963)
Rainbow Valley
Episode 018 of The Rainbow Valley podcast – telling the stories that made the swinging decade.
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Episode 016 - The Hammersmith Nude Murders (1964 - 1965)
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The story of the Sixties answer to Jack the Ripper in the west of London. Six, possibly seven victims – all prostitutes…murdered in a chilling reign of terror in the early years of the swinging decade.
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Episode 015 - Matt Monro
Rainbow Valley
Matt Monro was described as the UK’s answer to Frank Sinatra, a label he detested. For Matt Monro was not an answer to anything. Matt Monro was unique, he was his own entity, had his own marvellous style, and was possibly the finest male popular music singer the UK has ever produced.
info_outlineRainbow Valley - bringing you the stories from the decade that shook the world.
Join your host, Scott, as he tells the tale of Viv Nicholson—a name synonymous with extravagance, drama, and unapologetic living. When this spirited pools winner declared she’d “spend, spend, spend!” after scooping £152,319 in 1961, she didn’t just ignite public imagination—she carved her name into British cultural history
Episode 036 - Spend Spend Spend – The Rise and Fall of Viv Nicholson (1961)
1961 – the sixties haven’t really started swinging just yet, the Beatles were still finding their feet, and rationing was still a fresh memory for some
Then BAM! Viv Nicholson and her husband Keith, from Castleford strike it richer than a triple-chocolate gateau, pocketing a cool £152,000. In today's money, that's enough to make your eyes pop and your Monzo card spontaneously combust.
Now, Viv wasn't one for dithering or asking a financial advisor. Oh no. When the reporters buzzed around like bees to a jam scone, asking what she’d do with the money, out came those three little words that cemented her place in British folklore: "Spend, spend, spend!" And did she ever! It wasn't just a motto; it was practically a royal decree.
Forget sensible shares or boring bonds. Our Viv was all about the high life – think champagne wishes and caviar dreams, but with a proper Yorkshire accent. Cars, clothes, holidays… if it glittered, Viv was probably signing a cheque for it. The fortune famously vanished quicker than a pint on a hot day, but honestly, the sheer audacity, the pure, unadulterated joy of it all? That’s the stuff legends are made of. Viv Nicholson, – she came, she saw, she shopped.
Ladies and gentlemen, why not join Scott as he tells you the story of Spend Spend Spend – The Rise and Fall of Viv Nicholson.
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Thanks for listening
Scott