It is a pity that most of these tapes were wiped or destroyed but we have many happy memories of these performances. During our first appearance on Top of the Pops in June 1971 the thought of "How the hell did we manage this?" was universal to us all. We had been very successful in Europe and this was by no means our fist appearance on TV but we were nervous. Somehow the feeling of performing to our own people in our own country on such a high profile show on national TV was very unnerving. Sitting in the Top of the Pops Studio on 26th June 1971 with 'Chirpy' tipped for the No.1 spot the following week was our moment to relish. Ok, 'Chirpy' wasn't the most intellectual song in the world but it did turn out to be one of the most popular.

During a break in rehearsals for our spot we were waiting in position on the studio floor feeling quite lonely (we were completely unknown on the musical circuit here) when a group of girls in the audience, apparently regulars, came up to us to make contact. They had heard that we had come from Italy where 'Chirpy' was recorded and assumed that we were Italian. Presumably to make us feel more at ease they asked us what part of Italy we came from in very broken Italian. We simply replied, "Glasgow". The conversation ended there with them wandering off to the other side of the studio muttering that they thought Glasgow was in Scotland. I would like to thank those girls for easing the tension for us. We were still laughing when we had completed our performance.

After that first appearance we did appear regularly on Top of the Pops and the programme played a very important part in our success in the UK. One time a camera crane ran out of control and smashed into the drum riser during a take and I had to finish the song holding on with one hand to my floor tom tom whose legs had collapsed. Sally recollects the time when she was snubbed in the make-up room by a well known actor who had managed to achieve success in the charts with another novelty song. He apologised for his poor manners later. He had not realised that she was a fellow performer.

We met Mac and Katie on a German TV Show where we were performing 'Chirpy', which was already a hit there. We had no idea that they had recorded the song. Our reaction when we saw their version of 'Chirpy' at No.15 in the UK Charts was one of shock-horror. We were not happy at the prospect of our now worldwide hit charting in our own country with another artist. If it hadn't been for Tony Blackburn playing our version regularly on his breakfast show and the British Public hearing it played in holiday resorts all over Europe, I think Mac and Katie's version would have been as successful here as it was in the States. I don't believe there is friendly rivalry between artists over different recordings of the same song.

It's more a question of what happened to 'Samson And Delilah' in the UK. The song simply disappeared completely from the charts after comfortably climbing to reach the Top 20. The prediction on the basis of current sales was that it would at least reach the Top 10 the following week. It is quite common for a record to drop back down the charts gradually but it is most unusual for it to disappear. We continued to have top ten hits all over Europe and in other parts of the world and so we were kept very busy travelling and performing well into the late '70s.

You could have knocked us over with a feather when in the early '90s we were offered an opportunity to get back together and re-launch Middle Of The Road. We have actually performed in more live concerts since 1991 to date than we ever did in the six hectic years we had in the '70s. Most of our work is in Europe but we are playing to audiences ranging from a few hundred in smaller more intimate venues to tens of thousands in large stadia and indoor sports arenas. We make regular appearances on TV in Germany and even here on programmes like I love 1971 and Night Fever. If you didn't blink for 45 minutes last New Year's day, you might just have seen us in the audience of It's A Number One Party.

In the mid '90s, Ian McCredie (the original guitarist) left the band and set up in opposition with his son and daughter-in-law. His brother, Eric (the original bass guitarist) left a year or so later due to ill health. Ian augments his musical career with his work as a chartered surveyor in Glasgow. I am a partner in a video production company I started in 1982 and Sally and I look after the running of the band. Sally also involves herself in charity work as well as pursuing a multitude of qualifications not the least of which is a certificate in brick laying. She was always good at dropping them, now she can pick them up and make something out of them.

Funnily enough, no. People remember the songs, particularly, and they can usually put a name to the group with a little prompting. I have changed in appearance quite a lot with the bald bit I had in the '70s having erupted into a wasteland of skin and shrub-like grey hair but Sally remains remarkably unchanged and is recognised almost immediately by members of our own generation and quite a few youngsters abroad. Anyone who is prepared to admit to being a part of the band who had a success with a song entitled 'Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep' must be telling the truth. Not many people would admit to such a crime.

We consider ourselves very lucky to be able to relive the dream each time we perform in our concerts. Of course we tire of the songs sometimes but you can never tire of seeing and hearing of the pleasure that these songs give to so many people round the world. The entries in our web site guestbook have surprised and thrilled us with some very genuine comments. When Sally and I were attending the Isle of Wight Song Festival in 1985 we were recognised by a lady who was really thrilled to have the chance to tell us how 'Chirpy' actually saved her life. Apparently she was very ill in the early '70s and she slipped into a coma in hospital. Her family knew how much she enjoyed the song and played it incessantly at her bedside. She claimed that it was hearing this that brought her round. The suggestion that it was probably her brain bursting into life to get her to regain consciousness and turn the thing off was rejected outright and it has remained her favourite song ever since.

Of course we do. It is fascinating to see our peers and colleagues of the past four decades performing as they were and in some recent cases as they are now. We also watch the current Top Of The Pops from time to time. It's very revealing to see young bands and performers regularly trawling the past charts to find material to record. Maybe there's a message there... and it isn't necessarily you can't beat an oldie.