Video footage from Pulp's first decade of existence is very scarce indeed. The only material to have been commercially released is a few snippets on the Hits DVD. Specifically some excerpts from an obscure documentary called Sheffield Bands '84-'85 featuring an interview with the band and footage of them rehearsing The Mark of the Devil in their lockup-garage-cum-rehearsal-room. Along with a short clip of them preparing to go on stage at the Leadmill in August 1988. Unfortunately, this material is not supplemented by any extra unofficial recordings in circulation among fans - that really is all there is at the moment.
It is possible that more material will eventually emerge because some recordings were certainly made. Below are details of two films about which some information is known.
A recording was made of Pulp's concert at the Dolebusters Festival on 1 September 1985. The event which took place at the Octagon Centre in Sheffield was part of efforts under the name Dolebusters to help unemployed musicians in the city. The video, which also featured other local bands, was presumably intended to promote these activities.
A copy of the video apparently resided in Sheffield's Central Library for a number years but unfortunately at some point it disappeared without trace: It was presumably lost, stolen or destroyed. No other copies have come to light, so this potential insight into the band's live sound in the mid-80s is lost, at least for now.
There is a recording of the following year's Dolebusters Festival (not featuring Pulp) still available at Sheffield library.
The last Pulp concert before the band went into hibernation while Jarvis studied film in London took place at the Leadmill in Sheffield on 8 August 1988. The event, called The Day That Never Happened, was less than successful, with the planned "multimedia" effects during the show turning into something of a damp squib. Jarvis later recollected in Disco-Very that "Jean-Phillipe, a French student living in Sheffield & someone else whose name escapes me filmed the whole debacle." Some of the resultant footage was used for the unreleased Death Goes to the Disco promo video. There is also a clip from the recording at the start of the Home Movies section of the Hits DVD, but the rest remains unseen.
To do...