AN OXFORDSHIRE cameraman has unearthed footage of David Bowie performing on Top of the Pops that was thought lost for almost 40 years.

The long-lost clip of the glam rock star performing Jean Genie live in 1973 had been described as the ‘holy grail’ by fans after the BBC wiped the original tape.

But John Henshall, from Stanford in the Vale, was a cameramen covering the performance and kept his copy safe with hundreds of other reels for decades, little guessing how sought after it was.

He said: “I guarded it carefully but never realised it was rare. I couldn’t bring myself to chuck this stuff away but now I’m glad I haven’t.”

On Sunday more than 100 Bowie fans attended the first screening of the film since January 1973 at the British Film Institute’s Missing Believed Wiped show in London.

Mr Henshall said: “It’s something Bowie people have been trying to find for years. Fans came from as far as Wales and Scotland just to see it.

“When it came up on screen the hairs came up on the back of my neck and there were gasps around the room.

“It hadn’t been viewed since it was recorded but it was broadcast quality. It was as good as you can get.

“Meeting these people on Sunday was unbelievable. One guy said he had been looking for it for 12 years.”

Mark Adams, who runs the davidbowie.com fan site, said: “It is one of those holy grails that Bowie fans have always hankered after and finally it’s here. Everyone who has seen it has been overwhelmed.”

Mr Henshall used his own fisheye lens to record the performance during his first job and asked the producer for a copy. He even appears in the background of a shot.

He mentioned he had the footage in a radio appearance three months ago. It will be converted to digital and shown on BBC4 in the new year.

Also shown at the event were two lost episodes of Doctor Who from the 1960s and a Peter Cook and Dudley Moore sketch.