Before the age of social media and reality TV that we know today, you could turn on the telly in the early hours and watch someone else's night out.
A window into the world of late night clubbing, a generation will remember The Hitman and Her show which aired on ITV's Night Network in the late eighties and early nineties. An anomaly on our screens, it gave the public a glimpse into nightlife in clubs mainly across the North.
Every week, the show would capture clubbers dancing to popular hits in the charts, playing party games and number of celebrity performances. Hosted by Michaela Strachan and Pete Waterman, The Hitman and Her was often recorded on Saturday nights, edited and then would air hours later on Sunday morning.
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Regardless of the city hosting that week, local c lubbers would arrive at the featured venue hoping to appear on television. The Hitman and Her also featured regular dancers who went on to have their own music careers - from Take That's Jason Orange to Jimmy Constable and Spike Dawbarn of boy band 911.
The first ever Hitman and Her show came from Mr Smiths, in Warrington, in 1988 and the final show, which aired in 1992, was filmed from The Discothèque Royale, in Manchester. In its time, the show also visited the likes of Liverpool, Nottingham, Birmingham, Coventry, Newcastle and, of course, others popular venues in Greater Manchester.
Whilst on air, The Hitman and Her visited a number of Manchester venues, such as Discotheque Royale and Bowlers. Over the years, episodes were also filmed in The Roxy, in Bury, and Liberties - or Liberty's - in Sale.
Today, there are some classic moments of different episodes of the show on YouTube that are a window into the past. A number of rediscovered clips uploaded online show The Hitman and Her nights across Greater Manchester.
In one episode filmed in 1990 at Discotheque Royale, the Halloween themed show featured the first TV performance of Take That. On stage, we see all five members shirtless and wearing matching red bomber jackets and white pants.
To the camera, Michaela said: "The group is going to be enormous. This is an exclusive on The Hitman and Her. Britain's answer to New Kids On The Block. Here they are, it's Take That and they're waiting around."
In another episode at the venue during music week, Michaela said the show had "gone regal" after leaving the Ritzy's behind and heading to the Royale in Manchester. Pete then said: "That's right we're back where it goes on, this is Manchester!"
"This week they've got it - they've drunk and they've danced their way through the week. We’ll be celebrating a new show this week, fantastic as always.
"Here's undercover with Lindy Layton and we've got it, this is Kylie Minogue and this is Manchester." The Hitman and Her also served as an outlet to showcase artists from Waterman’s PWL label.
The c amera quickly pans to the audience and Kylie's What Kind Of Fool begins to play. Across the screen, text reads: "Hello and welcome to another dazzling, dynamic night of The Hitman and Her, and what a show we have for you tonight.
"We’re coming to you from Manchester, the hip-happening city of the North. Home of the Rovers Return, Eccles cakes, Chip barms and the best music this side of Manchester."
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Throughout the night, track such as a remix of Abba's Dancing Queen, Rize - Underwater, Snap - Rhythm Is A Dancer, 2 Unlimited - The Magic Friend, U96 Das Boot and Kylie Minogue's Better The Devil You Know is played. In the toilets, Michaela is baffled by a cosmetics box vending machine stocking lipsticks, tights, stockings and non-aerosol hairspray before chatting to a group foo women about "two-timing" partners.
A few radio presenters are later called up on stage to play Pass The Mic, singing K.W.S.'s Please Don't Go which just a backing track and printed out lyrics to help them. A handful of clubbers also take part in a new game called doughnuting and are tasked with passing doughnuts down the line and eating them whilst wearing elephant masks.
Discotheque Royale was a huge dance-pop nightclub at Peter Street in Manchester city centre and opened in the former Theatre Royal in 1978. It was later known as Coliseum, then M-Two before closing in 2009.
In 1990, the show headed to The Roxy in Bury. Alongside hosts Michaela and Pete, DJ Paul opened the show and said: "Welcome to Bury this is The Roxy and the first track is Bizz Nizz, Don't Miss The Partyline."
But minutes later, Pete receives boos from the crowd after cutting the track and saying he's "bored with it". Turns out it was all to sing Michaela a Happy Birthday on screen, which Roxy nightclub goers joined in with.
Did you watch The Hitman and Her or attend a Greater Manchester club whilst filming? Let us know in the comments section below.
Through the episode, we see clubbers team up to pass string through each other's clothes, shirtless men strut around the stage in their underwear and receive scores from members of the audience and the winner of Pass The Mic receive a Barbie doll as a prize.
Guru Josh also performed live that evening. Briefly home to The Arena roller skating rink, the building was best known as an Odeon cinema, from 1936 until 1981.
The Rochdale Road club was later home to Roxy and later Sol Viva, which became Bury's go-to nightspot. After shutting in 2010, the iconic building's days were numbered and the bulldozers eventually moved in.
As for Bowlers in Trafford Park, The Hitman and Her headed there in 1992 for the Life Goes On Rave. Featuring DJ Welly & Kenny Grogan and with Ultracynic live on stage, the venue was dark with strobe lights and packed out with visitors dancing.
Michaela chatted to one clubber outside about the Bowlers also having dodgems and bouncy castles there most weeks. Another clubber said: "We've been raves everywhere all over the country more or less but nothing compared to this one, this is the biggest.
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"This is the best. We've been to the raves at Pleasuredome and followed on here to Bowlers and this is probably the best one yet.
"It's got the best DJs the best music." On the site today, you can find the Bowlers Exhibition Centre.
In Sale, the show came to Liberties, which saw two instalments of Pass The Mic - with a team of ladies singing Bananarama's Venus and three men having a crack at Whitney Houston's Saving All My Love For You. Music throughout the night included Kool And The Gang's Get Down On It and R.A.F's We Gonna Get.
On stage, dancers performing were Nick and Kevin know as "The Kids," Mark and Jaff, and Swanny and Karen. Couples also participated in a clothes swap behind a sheet and we saw models wearing local fashoons such as pink and white bomber style jackets with leggings and silk tops with matching shorts.
Some clubs featured on the show are now lost to the past and for some there is limited footage, information or videos. But you can be transported back to The Hitman and Her nights at some of the venues on YouTube.
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