1 9 8 2 – 1 9 8 3 (UK)
21 x 60 minute episodes
Airing at 10 pm on Monday nights on Channel 4, Whatever You Want was a youth magazine show fronted by Keith Allen which looked to engage with the ideals of the early 1980s British youth.
Presented from Brixton’s music venue The Ace, Whatever You Want investigated a number of pressing, contemporary issues such as teenage prostitution, the escapist route of sport, trade unions, apartheid and the army.
Allen took the helm for the majority of these features which included dramatisations – the teenage prostitution one featured a young Gwyneth Strong – poetry and discussions, but young viewers were also tasked with creating films based on the subjects being explored.
A number of cartoons and sketches appeared throughout, most notably The Bullshitters Peter Richardson and Keith Allen’s spoof of The Professionals that, eventually, became a one-off special – The Bullshitters: Roll Out The Gunbarrel.
Bands appearing on the show included Stiff Little Fingers, Cocteau Twins, The Dead Kennedys, Depeche Mode, Orange Juice, The Redskins, Killing Joke, Southern Death Cult and The Thompson Twins.
Host
Keith Allen
