And then presumably on iPlayer…
A chart-topping hit single, but one which took seven weeks to reach the top, and a song whose composer claimed had “no recognisable hook-line whatsoever”. And if that didn’t exactly smack of mass appeal, the cold, sci-fi influenced lyric and Gary Numan’s aim to get “really hung up with this whole thing of not feeling, being cold about everything, not letting emotions get to you,” made it an odd single to chime with the populace. But with his first stiff, robotic appearance on Top Of The Pops (self-effacingly put down to a glut of nerves and a dearth of showmanship), Numan resonated with many kids who also felt alienated.
