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
The Old Grey Whistle Test 1985. The series was cancelled in early 1987 by Janet Street-Porter, who had been appointed head of Youth Programmes at the BBC. The series ended with a live New Year's Eve special broadcast through to the early hours of New Year's Day 1988; material included "Hotel California" by The Eagles, live from 1977, and "Bat Out of Hell" by Meat Loaf. Owing to technical issues during the show's early years, and the need to ensure performances were controlled, the bands often recorded the instrumental tracks the day before. The vocals were then performed live, "99 percent" of the time. After