Taken in context of where the company that made this was in the 1970s, it was very much a landmark series. Tyne Tees had been on its knees in the early 1970s, and had become a hollowed-out shell on the verge of bankruptcy by 1975 when they were effectively forced to "merge" with Yorkshire TV. Even in 1977-8 there were many in the North East who felt they'd run their course and wanted a new company to take over - including, somewhat ironically the Chronicle newspaper whose livery adorns the van on this programme. This show represented a return to form - the budget was higher than their entire network budget for the previous two years, and the company built from this to become a real force in children's/youth/music TV through the 1980s. This really was pivotal in the company's fortunes, and they were clearly proud of it as they repeated it several times locally in the 1980s.