ScreenTalk: Ray Columbus

Rocker Ray Columbus, OBE, has been a headline act since 1961 when he appeared on Time Out for Talent at the age of 18.

Since then, he has performed on or hosted a huge range of music and light entertainment TV shows including: Club Columbus, C’Mon, Happen Inn, Personality Squares and That’s Country.

With his band Ray Columbus and the Invaders, he had two number one hits with ‘She’s a Mod’ and ‘Till We Kissed’.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Columbus talks about:

• How all tapes of his early days on TV in Club Columbus were destroyed

• Being squeezed into the newsroom in Christchurch to tape the show

• Bringing a TV studio to a standstill by dancing the ‘Mod’s Nod’

• The excitement of appearing on C’Mon and working with Pete Sinclair

• Why lurid costumes and psychedelic lyrics led to changes on Happen Inn

• How a damning TV review led to the axing of My Name is Ray Columbus

• Fearing the reactions of fans to him hosting That’s Country

• Selling the show to the Nashville Network in America

• Being grateful for his TV career

This video is available on YouTube to embed and distribute via a Creative Commons licence.

NZ On Screen: Interview, Camera & Editing – Andrew Whiteside