Show Notes
In 1983, Paul Bearman was three years old, hyperactive, and rarely slept. One evening, he defied his parents' expectations by sitting completely transfixed as BBC Two aired a documentary about Jimi Hendrix as part of its Rock Around the Clock programming… and his life was changed forever. Soon afterwards, he developed a love for The Who, watching The Kids Are Alright and The Who Rocks America on repeat, receiving albums and books for birthdays and at Christmas, and playing toy guitars while pretending to be Pete Townshend.
In this free bonus episode, Paul talks to his parents, Wendy and John, about his early exposure to music; going with them to see The Who live; his childhood fascination with musical instruments, from toy guitars to his dad's drum kit; the birthday and Christmas presents he thought had come from Pete Townshend; and his lifelong relationship with The Who, including his attempts to better understand what that connection means.
Interviews recorded April 2026
Music by The Garage
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RELATED LINKS
Remus Down Boulevard – ‘Only For You’ From the album A Week at the Bridge E16 (recorded live at the Bridge House, London, April 1978)
Thomas Dolby – ‘Hyperactive!’ Official video
Jimi Hendrix – ‘Johnny B. Goode’ From the album Hendrix in the West
The Jimi Hendrix Experience – ‘Wild Thing’ From Live at Monterey (video)
The South Bank Show episode on Pete Townshend First broadcast 3rd November 1985
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from Talking About The Who
Paul Bearman is joined by author and musician Dante DiCarlo to look at the news stories relating to The Who for September 2026 and travel down various tangents along the way:
Paul Bearman is joined by YouTuber Ethan Fisher and musician Matt Weston to report on two concerts from Roger Daltrey’s solo North American tour of 2026.
Rain. Crowd violence. Counterfeit tickets. Overcrowding. People climbing up floodlights. Lasers. Keith Moon’s last gig to a paying audience in England. The final entry in The Guinness Book of Records for loudest concert ever recorded.
The final episode of Season Three will now be released on Wednesday 22nd July. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Brian Cady (AKA Brian From Atlanta), the moderator and creator of the renowned website The Who This Month, talks about: