Peter's Pop Show

Peter's Pop Show (1985-1993) was a prominent annual German television program showcasing leading European musical artists and significantly influencing pop trends.

Peter's Pop Show constituted a significant annual event within the landscape of West German popular music broadcasting between 1985 and 1993. Produced by ZDF, the second program of West German public television, and subsequently aired on the satellite channel 3sat, the program functioned as a multi-hour showcase of the year’s most commercially successful musical compositions, distinguished by the presence of the original performing artists. Attracting substantial audiences—reportedly tens of millions across Western Europe—and boasting attendance figures in the tens of thousands within the live venue, Peter's Pop Show was frequently characterized as the largest music show in Europe.

Hosted by music journalist Peter Illmann, the program built upon the legacy of Thommys Pop Show Extra, previously hosted by Thomas Gottschalk, and was succeeded by The Dome on RTL 2. Notably, Peter's Pop Show adopted stereo broadcasting from its inception in 1985, reflecting an increasing emphasis on audio fidelity within television programming.

The program’s enduring appeal stemmed, in part, from its diverse and extensive roster of performers.

The lineup consistently featured a broad spectrum of international artists, spanning genres from synth-pop and new wave to rock and pop. Notable performers included Sandra, Sigue Sigue Sputnik, Billy Idol, Whitney Houston, Kim Wilde, Modern Talking, Pet Shop Boys, Debbie Harry, Depeche Mode, Duran Duran, Bon Jovi, and numerous others (see full list within the source material). This breadth of representation solidified Peter’s Pop Show’s position as a key barometer of popular musical trends throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s.