The fictional band was portrayed by session musicians as well as the three lead actresses who proved they could sing; the spin-off album of music from the series entered the UK charts at number one. The songs were written by Andy Mackay, a founder member of Roxy Music. Lyrics and screenplay were written by Howard Schuman. The second series, Rock Follies of '77, was a continuation of the first, but industrial action during May of that year at ITV, the commercial channel that aired the show, caused the last few episodes to be postponed until November. The second series pushed the style further in an experimental direction: where the first series had a lot of dialogue and "offstage" scenes, the second focused more on the music and fantasy sequences, with additional songs and musical interludes used to move the plot forward rather than relying on dialogue as the first had done. More sophisticated video effects were also used. The show was a pioneer in that it was one of the first musical dramas in serial form, and in addition featured all original songs and music. It was also unusual in portraying strong female central characters, and having an overtly feminist message. Some commentators have also pointed out that its format very much anticipates the age of the music video and MTV, being made at a time when the music video itself was in its infancy. The first series won a BAFTA award in 1977 for Best Drama Series; Julie Covington was nominated for best actress, and Rod Stratfold and Alex Clarke were nominated for best design. The second series was nominated for seven BAFTA awards, winning two; for best lighting effects and for best camerawork in 1978. The series first appeared in the United States in late 1976, when several episodes from series one were shown on New York City's WOR-TV Channel 9 as part of a "Thames on 9" programming week. Soon afterward, the first series was shown in the United States on public television; it rapidly became a hit, especially in large metropolitan centres like New York and San Francisco. However, the second series was felt to be too "raunchy" for the sensibilities of a public television audience, especially as the first had received a lot of complaints from the public in areas outside the larger cities for its frank portrayal of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. As a result, the second series was not shown on US television until 12 years later. Two albums of songs from the series were released: Rock Follies, which was released on Island Records in the UK and on Atlantic Records in the US; and Rock Follies of '77, released on Polydor Records in both countries. Both albums were re-released on Virgin Records in 2000. The TV series is also available as a two-disc DVD set. Also, three singles were released: "Glenn Miller is Missing", "Sugar Mountain" ; and "O.K.?". The last of these became a hit, reaching no. 10 in the UK Charts. In addition, the second album reached No.13. Speaking in 1991, the three stars commented on the grueling schedule while working on the series, stating that for each episode they had to learn a minimum of five songs, as well as perform the dance routines and learn the script itself in a short period of time. Owing to this pressure they were reluctant to do a third series, although they did say that they would like to do another series at that time, 15 years after the first. Covington also stated that they were paid £225 per episode.
The plot
First series (Rock Follies)
1.*"The Show Business". 24 February 1976 2.*"The Little Ladies". 2 March 1976 3.*"The Road". 9 March 1976 4.*"The Talking Pictures". 16 March 1976 5.*"The Pounds Sterling". 23 March 1976 6.*"The Blitz". 30 March 1976
Second series (''Rock Follies of 77'')
1.*"The Band Who Wouldn't Die". 4 May 1977 2.*"The Empire". 11 May 1977 3.*"The Hype". 18 May 1977 4.*"The Loony Tunes". 22 November 1977* 5.*"The Divorce". 29 November 1977 6.*"The Real Life". 6 December 1977 * NOTE - A two-hour recap episode was screened on 21 November 1977 following the strike. This was a compilation of the first three episodes of Series Two.
David Dixon also appears in the first series as a record company A&R man, but is uncredited. However, this may have been amended with the release of the DVD, where he is credited. Dixon, Simon Jones, Stephen Moore and Beth Porter all later had roles in the TV adaptation of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
