Countdown's 50th anniversary: Molly Meldrum remembers the moment that spawned the hot romance Kylie Minogue and Michael Hutchence

Countdown was the Australian pop music show that launched hundreds of hits.

And it was also where Kylie Minogue first met Michael Hutchence, the late singer of 80s hit makers INXS.

The pair went on to a hot romance that made headlines for more than two years. 

As the ABC celebrated Countdown's 50th anniversary on Saturday, the show's long term host Ian 'Molly' Meldrum recalled the beginnings of the love affair between the two megastars.

'I have always loved Kylie Minogue, a darling of the business and a real show person on stage,' Molly, 81, said in an interview with Stellar on Saturday.

Molly said that Kylie's first taste of Countdown came in 1981. The budding singer and actor was just 13 when she joined the in studio audience. 

'She recalled to me that one of the bands threw their drumstick into the audience and she tried to catch it but missed out..'

Kylie later hosted Countdown's second last show, in 1987 and then presented an award for most popular group alongside her Neighbours actors Jason Donovan and Peter O'Brien. 

'At the afterparty, Kylie formally met Michael Hutchence – another Countdown chapter to record,' Molly said. 

Elsewhere in his chat Molly paid tribute to his long term friend Elton John, Australian superstar John Farnham and the late Olivia Newton-John.

Countdown officially kicked off on November 8, 1974 and went on to run a whopping 13 years. It's last show went to air in July, 1987.

A constant ratings winner the show became known world wide as a tend setter helping to launch and bolster the careers of artists like ABBA, Elton John, and Olivia Newton-John.

It was particularly influential in introducing a mainstream audience to classic Aussie bands like Cold Chisel, Australian Crawl, and INXS.

Its reach was considered so powerful in the music industry that insiders considered an appearance on Countdown essential to scoring a hit in the charts.

Both Kylie and Michael Hutchence had won a huge audience for their music Down Under via Countdown.

Hutchence ended up dating the pop princess Kylie between 1989 and 1991.

In the 2019 film Mystify: Michael Hutchence, Kylie declared the rock god had 'broken her heart.' 

After the split, the Neighbours alumni went on to have a series of high profile relationships with actors and performers.

Hutchence also went on to find love with British television personality Paula Yates.

On November 22 1997, Hutchence was found hanging by his snakeskin belt in his Sydney hotel room.