Tracey Ullman — Breakaway

JUL 01 1983 · 12:00

Tracey Ullman — Breakaway (1983) Director: Dave Robinson Era: Early MTV / British New Pop (1983) - UK new wave pop era defined by 60s nostalgia revival, Stiff Records' irreverent aesthetic, and the emergence of female-led pop on the British independent scene High curatorial value as a debut single music video from a multi-platform cultural figure, directed by the co-founder of one of British pop's most historically significant independent labels. The video is a textbook example of early-80s British independent pop aesthetics, and its enduring recognition — including a 2003 VH1 Star Tracks feature — confirms its standing as a minor but durable artefact of the era. Context: Released in March 1983 as Tracey Ullman's debut single on Stiff Records, 'Breakaway' is a cover of the 1964 Irma Thomas song written by Jackie DeShannon and Sharon Sheeley. It reached No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart by April 1983 and spent 12 weeks on the chart, launching Ullman's brief but successful pop career before her television work. The video exemplifies Stiff Records' house aesthetic: deliberately cheap, comedic, and nostalgically referencing a pre-Beatles early-60s British pop innocence. It sits at the intersection of new wave independent pop and a broader early-80s UK trend of female artists reviving classic girl-group and early-60s pop idioms. Director notes: Robinson directed this video in his dual capacity as Stiff Records founder and video director — a common cost-saving practice at the label. The video was produced by John Mills and prolific music video director Nigel Dick, who also served as art directors. The result is a deliberately 1960s-inspired, low-budget performance clip most noted for Ullman's iconic gag of singing into a hairbrush. Robinson's hands-on approach at Stiff extended to video production, and this clip is consistent with the label's irreverent, humour-forward marketing philosophy described across multiple sources.