Give Us A Call On... One of the key things that the Multi-Coloured Swap Shop needed from the very beginning was a telephone number on which viewers could call the programme. 01 288 8055 [1976-1977] This was the number that adorned Noel's desk for the first series of the show. Over 20,000 calls came into the number during the course of the series - and still came in after the end of the last show! One BBC Engineer remembered whilst setting up a phone-in switch board for the then PM Jim Callaghan a phone rang, and when he picked it up a voice said 'Is that the Swap Shop?'. Between series, the Post Office engineers (we're pre-British Telecom at this time…) set about finding a new number that was unlike any other to reduce confusion and wrong numbers… 01 811 8055 [1977-1990] From the start of series 2, we were introduced to what is probably the most famous and best remembered of all television show phone numbers - the legendary 01 811 8055. This number would go on to be used by many other BBC programmes of the time such as Lucky Numbers (Noel again!), Nationwide, Children in Need and Crimewatch UK to name a few. The 01 811 family was extended to include some other numbers such as 01 811 2211 that was used by a Monday night BBC1 programme called Help Line fronted by Mary Parkinson and Chris Tarrant, and Breakfast Time's highly historical 01 811 1066. The number outlasted both Swap Shop and Saturday SuperStore before being taken up by the third incarnation Going Live! 081 811 8181 [1990-1995] The fourth series of Going Live! brought along a surprise when it started. BT had introduced 'New London Codes' earlier in 1995 splitting the 01 into 071 for inner London and 081 for outer London. The much expected 081 811 8055 was replaced by the snappy new 081 811 8181 - for many it seemed like the passing of an old friend - Noel brought up the subject of a lack of the '8055' when guesting on the show! The new number, however, brought with it the first sung 'telephone jingle'. The number was passed on to the next Saturday morning programme, Live & Kicking, in 1993 and also was the inspiration for the 'P.O. Box 8181' address for the show. 0181 811 8181 [1995-1999] Towards the back end of L&K's second series, BTs 'PhONEday' initiative to add an extra 1 to all UK numbers meant that once again a new number came along. So 0181 811 8181 it was, and an edited jingle was used (cramming in an extra 1) until the new one arrived from the studio in the USA. The number was also used by the CBBC afternoon presentation team during its lifetime. They gave it a different twist by calling it 01-81-81-1-81-81. 0845 610 1515 [1999-2000] With the imminent arrival of BT's 'The Big Number' in 2000, and yet another code change for London, the opportunity was taken to replace a potentially far less catchy and clumsy 0208 811 8181 with 0845 610 1515, providing all viewers with a local rate number to call the programme for the first time.