Television Personalities

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post-punk, indie, indie pop, new wave, twee… see all

The Television Personalities are an English post-punk group with a varying line up. The only constant member is singer/songwriter Dan Treacy.

Their first release (January 1978) was the single “14th Floor / Oxford Street W1”. Their second release, the EP Where’s Bill Grundy Now? features one of their best-known songs, “Part Time Punks”.

The Television Personalities’ first album And Don’t the Kids Just Love It was released in 1981. It set the template for their subsequent career: neo-psychedelia, an obsession with youth culture of the 1960s, a fey, slightly camp lyrical attitude, and the occasional classic pop song. Their second album Mummy Your Not Watching Me demonstrated increased psychedelic influences. Their third album, ironically entitled They Could Have Been Bigger Than The Beatles showed Treacy’s sense of irony: the TVPs (as they are affectionately known) were never to have any major commercial success. The first three albums featured Treacy and schoolmate Ed Ball; Ball left the band to found The Times, but rejoined in 2004.

The 1985 album The Painted Word was unexpectedly dark in content, reflecting Treacy’s despair at Thatcherite Britain and his personal circumstances.

Various line up changes prevented their next album (Privilege) from appearing until 1990. Their next album Closer to God was a combination of fey sixties style pop and darker material, similar in tone to The Painted Word.

The album Don’t Cry Baby, It’s Only a Movie was released in 1998. Since then Treacy has battled mental health problems, and his addictions to heroin, amphetamine and alcohol. He has been homeless on various occasions and was briefly arrested and imprisoned in 2003/2004.

1	Silly Girl	162
2	Part Time Punks	155
3	This Angry Silence	152
4	I Know Where Syd Barrett Lives	149
4	The Glittering Prizes	149
6	A Picture of Dorian Gray	148
7	Look Back in Anger	137
8	Geoffrey Ingram	128
9	La Grande Illusion	119
10	Parties in Chelsea	117
11	A Family Affair	106
12	World of Pauline Lewis	104
13	Jackanory Stories	103
14	Diary of a Young Man	98
15	The Crying Room	95

Top Albums

...and don't the kids just love it
Television Personalities
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The Painted Word
Television Personalities
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Mummy Your Not Watching Me
Television Personalities
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And Don't the Kids Just Love It
Television Personalities
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seeyouinheaven wrote:
Wednesday afternoon

songs about paintings and movies, what a good idea

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[deleted-user] wrote:
July 2008

Dan Treacy always was my idol.I still think of him whenever I'm feeling vaguely suicidal which is nearly all the time
timahall wrote:
July 2008

Mango77 - It's in print so go buy it.

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mango77 wrote:
July 2008

Can someone help me out with "And Don't the Kids Just Love It"? I lost it when my hard-drive crashed, and my torrents aren't working for some reason.

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v_for_violence wrote:
June 2008

i really enjoy "Yes Darling, But Is It Art?"

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eriqk wrote:
June 2008

word

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v_for_violence wrote:
June 2008

the twee label is not really fitting. in my opinion. i can see why people would label Television Personalities twee, though. ignorance.

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jesusonatrike wrote:
June 2008

'...and don't the kids just love it' is the best album of the punk era.

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chapita7 wrote:
June 2008

i posted a link where you can download their Best Of.. called 'The part times punks'. if you cant find it, just leave me a shout and i ll send you the link

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hunnybunnyxx0 wrote:
June 2008

i luv the,. they re one of my favs ever. but, does it exist a greatest hits called part time punks?

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prilbot wrote:
June 2008

Cheap plug for the most awesome disco in Manchester! Come get your new wave whilst it's hot! http://www.last.fm/event/663505

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PresidentLeever wrote:
May 2008

smashing band. its been a while.

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matt0009 wrote:
May 2008

could someone please up They Could Have Been Bigger Than The Beatles? i'm dying to hear it.

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chapita7 wrote:
May 2008

saw them live last january at the rhythm factory in london.. absolutely flawless :P hahaha .. they are still great..

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brockginther wrote:
May 2008

The Good Anarchist is pretty damn pretty.

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dinosauriee wrote:
April 2008

art!

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Vonlensk wrote:
April 2008

El concierto que dieron en Madrid el fin de semana pasado en el Cultura pop, ¡es una verguenza! Qué pena me dieron los otros chicos. El vocalista estaba fuera de sí... Lamentable.

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bankrobber wrote:
April 2008

10 scrobbles for the first band to record a song called i know where dan treacy lives...

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loewenhardt wrote:
April 2008

http://www.lastfm.de/music/Loewenhardt

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timahall wrote:
March 2008

I always thought Silly Girl was a bit overrated. It's probably my least favourite track on the first album.

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