Popular music shows that showcased the up-and-coming stars of the day were nothing new in 1963, indeed the BBC had led the way nearly six years earlier with Six-Five Special , and ATV had countered that in 1958 with Oh Boy . What made RSG special was that it arrived at the same time as the British beat boom, when groups such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Who were on the verge of taking the music world by storm, a time when 60's youth culture hit the streets running and swept aside all that stood in its way, a time that was fresh and exciting. The show finished in 1966 at the height of its popularity and has since gone on to attain cult status.

Filmed in Rediffusion's Studio 9 in Kingsway, London , the show went out live on Friday nights at 6pm and opened with the slogan "The Weekend Starts Here", and to the tune of the Sufaris hit Wipe Out, which was later replaced by Manfred Mann's 5-4-3-2-1. Although introduced by former Cambridge law graduate and Radio Luxembourg DJ Keith Fordyce, it was his co-host, Cathy McGowan, who became the real star of the programme. McGowan had been working in an office at the television company when she answered an advertisement for a 'typical teenager' to act as advisor to the show, and was rewarded by being pushed in front of the cameras without the benefit of any training or broadcasting experience. But her natural charm, enthusiasm, style and beauty made up for the occasional fluffed lines or missed cues, and she quickly became a role model for the female population as well as being nominated, unofficially, as Queen of the Mods. Whereas Top of the Pops (which started the following year on BBC), concerned itself with the top ten or twenty chart hits, RSG was not afraid of being the showcase for new talent, and consequently artists such as Eric Burdon and The Animals, The Kinks, Donovan, and The Pretty Things were given their television debuts, and US artists such as Sonny and Cher, The Four Tops, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Rufus Thomas and Marvin Gaye, were introduced to a British audience for the first time.

Whereas Top of the Pops (which started the following year on BBC), concerned itself with the top ten or twenty chart hits, RSG was not afraid of being the showcase for new talent, and consequently artists such as Eric Burdon and The Animals, The Kinks, Donovan, and The Pretty Things were given their television debuts, and US artists such as Sonny and Cher, The Four Tops, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Rufus Thomas and Marvin Gaye, were introduced to a British audience for the first time. Of course the popular artistes of the day featured heavily, The Beatles and Dusty Springfield being frequent visitors, and whilst most of the acts mimed to their own recordings, there were some memorable live performances from the likes of Georgie Fame, The Beach Boys and The Who.

Two other co-hosts fronted the show which also gave a weekly report on the latest fashions and trends. They were David Gell and Michael Aldred, and years before hitting the big time himself, shamed pop star Gary Glitter worked in the studio as a 'crowd controller'.

The show was not without its critics and indeed the television company finally gave in to outside pressure when it moved it to a much later 10.30pm slot on the same night, making it less accessible to the younger audience, and possibly its older viewers who would by then be out and about enjoying themselves away from the TV screens. A policy of 'live-only' music was taken too, and the combination of these new formats could well have been the death-knell for the show. But in fact the reverse happened and the shows ratings went up. It was moved to a larger studio and McGowan became
solo presenter.

Cathy quickly became a role model and nominated the Queen of the Mods. Some very cool people appeared on the show - and that was just in the audience. Clothes and dancing ability were all-important for candidates for the show's audience. The rewards were great as successful entrants would regularly be rubbing shoulders with The Beatles, Dusty Springfield, The Rolling Stones, Gerry And The Pacemakers, Marvin Gaye, Gene Pitney, The Beach Boys, Sandie Shaw, The Animals and Manfred Mann. Cathy is quoted as saying that she blundered her way through each show and some of the remaining episodes salvaged on video do confirm the 'spontaneous and seemingly unrehearsed' nature of the show. But her raw energy, enthusiasm, style and beauty made-up for any lack of interviewing or presentation technique. 

Cathy launched her own range of clothes and accessories as well as a record player and other items.

RSG's main 'rival', the BBC's Top Of The Pops, although outlasting RSG by 32 years, did not have the impact, credibility and energy that RSG manifested in its short 4-year run. With the coming of hippies and psychedelia, the beat and mod generation gave way to concept albums and beads, RSG became less relevant and Cathy 'retired' from TV, first marrying Hywel Bennett and, more recently, becoming partner to singer Michael Ball. These days she has established herself as a style guru to the stars.