Legs & Co.: 1976-1981
After a very short tenure, Ruby Flipper left the Top of the Pops studio for the last time, and a new(ish) all female group was formed, Legs & Co, which was once more choreographed by Colby. Three of the six in the initial line-up (Menhenick, Cartwight and Hammond) were taken from Ruby Flipper, with Rosie Hetherington, Gill Clarke and Pauline Peters making up the six. Despite being an all-female group, on occasion one or more male dancers were brought in several times for routines. The most notable was Hot Gossip dancer Floyd Pearce, who was also a member of Ruby Flipper in 1976. He made nine guest appearances with Legs & Co.
By the time of the new troupe's first appearance on Top of the Pops on 21st October 1976, dancing to the Average White Band's "Queen of My Soul", the group remained unnamed. For their first appearances, they were introduced as the "Top of the Pops" dancers, and their name was listed as "??????" on the end credits. The BBC decided to allow viewers to choose a name for the new dance troupe via a competition promoted on Top of the Pops. The name "Legs & Co." submitted by competition winner Elaine Coombes, was announced on Top of the Pops on 4th November 1976.
The members of Legs and Co. comprised of:
- Lulu Cartwright
- Patti Hammond
- Sue Menhenick
- Rosemary Hetherington
- Pauline Peters
- Gill Clark
The troupe's last performance on TOTP was on 29th October 1981, dancing to "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)" by Haircut 100.
On 2nd December 1982, a week after Legs & Co.'s final on-screen appearance, Zoo, made their Top of the Pops debut. With the ongoing ramp up of a party atmosphere in the studio, and with many artists offering their music videos to the BBC for free, Zoo would be the last regular dance troupe to regularly appear on Top of the Pops.