The Old Grey Whistle Test Pan Alley phrase from years before. When they got the first pressing of a record they would play it to people they called the old greys – doormen in grey suits. Any song they could remember and whistle, having heard it just once or twice, had passed the old grey whistle test. On 23 February 2018, a one-off three hour special of The Old Grey Whistle Test was broadcast on BBC Four, hosted by Bob Harris to mark 30 years since the final episode aired. The show's focus on "serious" rock music, rather than chart hits covered on BBC1 by
Sounds of the Seventies on Sunday 5 April 2009, broadcasting on BBC Radio 2. It runs from 3pm-5pm, and is hosted by former Radio Caroline DJ Johnnie Walker. There was also a BBC2 TV series called "Sounds of the 70s" which compiled 1970s performances from the BBC's music archives, taken from programmes such as "Top of the Pops" and "The Old Grey Whistle Test". This was first shown in 1993, and was rerun on BBC Four in the 2000s. Sounds of the Seventies Sounds of the Seventies was a BBC radio programme broadcast on weekdays, initially 18:00–19:00, subsequently 22:00–00:00, on Radio One during the