TELEVISION: TOTP crusade gathers pace with music industry petition.

MW Awards sweep gives plugger 500 supporters

By Ben Cardew

PLUGGER DYLAN WHITE'S CAMPAIGN to bring back Top of the Pops has moved forward, with the launch on an online petition demanding a "tween- friendly" time slot for the iconic show.

White's petition, one of a number calling for the programme to be reinstated on the television schedules, is unique as it specifically targets the music industry, but he also has plans to reach out to the public in the near future.

The plugger gathered hundreds of signatures at the recent Music Week Awards and says that his bid to revive TOTP in a post-Blue Peter slot that appeals to a young audience was warmly received by the Grosvenor House crowd.

He claims only a lack of resources prevented him from gathering more signatures. "On the night I had no problem getting people to sign it. I just ran out of time and clipboards to get round the whole room. I ended up with just under 500 signatures, which at least is a start," he says. "A marketing executive said to me, `I see you're targeting tweens', which he then explained was the new phrase for eight- to 12- year-olds, to which I replied, `Exactly' as this is the next generation discovering music."

White is also calling for the regular return of sister programme TOTP2, which currently appears sporadically on the schedules, most recently throughout 2008's Christmas holiday period.