Book The Fizz

Cheryl Baker, Mike Nolan, and Jay Aston

One of The UK’s most loved brands and most certainly the most integral part of the Original Bucks Fizz lineup.

Between 1981 and 1988, BUCKS FIZZ spent over 150 weeks in the UK singles charts alone. They had seven top 10 hits including ‘Now Those Days Are Gone, ‘If You Can’t Stand The Heat’ and ‘New Beginning (Mamba Seyra)’ and three number one singles, ‘My Camera Never Lies’, ‘The Land Of Make Believe’ and the multi-million selling ‘Making Your Mind Up’, as well as another top 20 hits such as ‘Run For Your Life’ and ‘Piece Of The Action’.

They were originally put together to represent the UK at Eurovision. After winning the contest it didn’t take long for the group to move away from the musical confines of ‘Making Your Mind Up’. They quickly became one of the most popular acts of the ’80s with Andy Hill, the band’s songwriter and producer, the mastermind behind the perfectly crafted pop songs.

With more than 10 albums to their credit (most turning silver and gold in the UK and abroad), chart and touring success all over the world, BUCKS FIZZ were a household name for a decade and very much a part of 80’s pop culture history. They performed at a number of charity events in the presence of the late Princess Diana, Princess Anne, the late Queen Mother, and Prince Edward.

The band’s career very nearly ended abruptly in December 1984 when they were involved in a terrible coach crash resulting in Mike suffering severe head injuries and falling into a coma. Thankfully Mike made a miraculous recovery.

In June 1985 after the departure of Jay Aston, Shelley Preston was chosen from over 1,400 girls amid a blaze of publicity to join the band. The new line-up appeared for the first time live and exclusively on ‘The Wogan Show’ which was the biggest chat show in the UK at the time. BUCKS FIZZ was back in the top 10 with ‘New Beginning’ and in the album charts with ‘Writing On The Wall’ which coincided with a sell-out tour. The band released their last single ‘Heart Of Stone’ in 1988. In the early ’90s, the band members went their separate ways.

In 2004 Cheryl Baker, Mike Nolan, Shelley Preston, and Bobby G reunited as The Original BUCKS FIZZ (it had been 14 years since they had last performed together) for a one-off appearance in the hugely successful Christmas Here & Now Arena Tour. To their surprise, the band received standing ovations every night. Cheryl, Mike and Shelley had to perform 2 of the concerts as a trio (Bobby had other commitments) which worked so well that they, due to popular demand, decided to continue to perform as The Original BUCKS FIZZ. They are firm favorites with 80’s festivals, tours, theatres, and corporate events.

In 2005, The original BUCKS FIZZ was invited to perform live at the Eurovision 50th Anniversary Show in Copenhagen which was seen worldwide by over 18 million viewers. In 2005 the BUCKS FIZZ ‘Anthology’ 2 CD set was released.

2006 was the band’s 25th Anniversary. They played to a sold-out London Astoria for a special anniversary gig which coincided with the release of ‘The Lost Masters’ CD. In November of that year, all five original members of BUCKS FIZZ got together for the first and only time to appear in Peter Kay’s Comic Relief video for ‘500 Miles’.

2007 was also a very busy year for The Original BUCKS FIZZ. In between working on their individual careers and performing FIZZ gigs, Cheryl, Mike and Shelley spent most of the Spring promoting ‘The Very Best of BUCKS FIZZ’. This CD/DVD album features their promotional music videos – never before released on DVD. The Original BUCKS FIZZ hosted their own Top 50 chart show for the Hits TV whilst their album charted in the UK top 40. In the summer the band headlined at an 80’s festival in Denmark, playing to over 22,000 people.

2008 – The Original BUCKS FIZZ band members Shelley, Cheryl and Mike took part in a make-over TV show for Living TV called ‘Pop Goes The Band’ which will air in early 2009, alongside former Bucks Fizz member Jay Aston for a one-off exclusive. There will be a number of special TV appearances and articles in which the 3 band members and Jay will appear together for the sole purpose of promoting the TV show. Then it’s back to business as usual for Shelley, Cheryl, and Mike with special guest appearances with BJORN AGAIN, as well as two Here and Now concerts in Ireland at the beginning of this year 2009.

In 2009, Shelley Preston left the lineup and original member Jay Aston returned after a lengthy absence and now the line up is The three original members of Bucks Fizz, Cheryl Baker, Mike Nolan, and Jay Aston. They are now back with a vengeance and have to been seen!