Tom Gutteridge direct the BBC's General Election coverage. In 1980 Gutteridge moved to Music & Arts department as Executive Producer, where he was responsible for the twice-weekly Russell Harty chat shows. In 1982, he produced and directed the comedy sketch series "A Kick Up the Eighties", which first discovered the talents of Rik Mayall (as Kevin Turvey) and Tracey Ullman, and which won a Scottish BAFTA. In 1983 and 1984, he produced and directed the popular BBC1 dance series "The Hot Shoe Show", starring Wayne Sleep and Bonnie Langford, which in 1984 was nominated for a BAFTA as Best Light Entertainment Series.
Rik Mayall from performing in their double act, 20th Century Coyote, Mayall developed solo routines, using characters such as Kevin Turvey and a pompous anarchist poet named Rick. This led to Edmondson and Mayall, along with Comedy Store compere Alexei Sayle and other upcoming comedians, including Nigel Planer, Peter Richardson, French and Saunders, Arnold Brown and Pete Richens, setting up their own comedy club called "The Comic Strip" in the Raymond Revuebar, a strip club in Soho. Mayall's Kevin Turvey character gained a regular slot in "A Kick Up the Eighties", first broadcast in 1981. He appeared as "Rest Home" Ricky in