| "Part Time Punks" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Television Personalities | ||||
| Released | 1980 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:37 | |||
| Label | Rough Trade | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Television Personalities singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Part Time Punks" is a song by the English post-punk group Television Personalities. Written in 1978 by band leader and vocalist Dan Treacy,[1] it was released as a single in 1980 on Rough Trade Records. The recording features Treacy, fellow teenager and school friend Ed Ball, and drummer Mark Sheppard.
"Part Time Punks" was first released as part of their 1978 four-song EP "Where's Bill Grundy Now?".[A][2] Treacy self-financed the EP, in part with a loan from his parents. He had intended to release the song as a single immediately after, but due to a miscalculation of costs, was unable to afford to press any 7-inch singles. After the track was picked up by the BBC DJ John Peel, Treacy was offered a number of record deals before eventually signing with Rough Trade. The eventual release of the single brought the Television Personalities to prominence within the then emerging independent music scene. The record sleeve contained both do-it-yourself instructions and a breakdown of the single's recording and distribution costs.[3] "Part Time Punks" eventually sold an estimated 27,000 copies in its first year.
The lyrics are a wry satire of the late-comer, fashion-oriented, so-called "plastic" punks who emerged c. 1979 after the English punk rock movement had emerged from the underground and went mainstream, especially after Bill Grundy's infamous 1976 live TV interview with the Sex Pistols, during which the band swore and after which the TV host was fired from the ITV network.[4]
- ^ Sanneh, Kelefa. "The Education of a Part-Time Punk". The New Yorker, 6 September 2021. Retrieved 19 June 2025
- ^ "Television Personalities". NTS Radio, 2 February 2024. Retrieved 15 October 2024
- ^ Damaged, Ian. "Television Personalities". Damaged Goods. Retrieved 5 July 2025
- ^ Young (2006), p. 260
Cite error: There are <ref group=upper-alpha> tags or {{efn-ua}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=upper-alpha}} template or {{notelist-ua}} template (see the help page).