ITV broadcast the show on Tuesday nights at 7pm - the same timeslot that the BBC used for Top of the Pops on a Thursday night - in order to secure the first performance or showing of the video for a new chart entry. However, this would sometimes result in rough cuts of videos being shown - for example, in March 1988, The Roxy broadcast a version of the video for Tiffany's "Could've Been" that proved noticeably lower quality than that featured on Top of the Pops two days later.
The show's filming location (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) was blamed for the show's short life span, with the press suggesting that major acts had been unwilling to travel from London to perform. However, Tyne Tees television had previously produced a similar show, The Tube (1982) for five years from the same location, attracting several star names in that time.
As the BBC owned the rights to broadcast the Official UK Top 40, as compiled by Gallup, ITV used the Network Chart, typically broadcast by commercial radio stations, for this show. As this chart was compiled on a Wednesday, but broadcast on radio on a Sunday, it often differed significantly from the official chart, which was compiled on Sundays to reflect the entire week's sales.
To differentiate it from main rival Top of the Pops, The Roxy would feature acts from across the Top 50 rather than just the Top 40, as well as occasionally showcasing new releases yet to chart.
During performances on the show, graphics showing trivia about the act would appear at the bottom of the screen - a technique pioneered by Channel 4's video only pop show, The Chart Show (1986). Following the demise of The Roxy, ITV, which funded Channel 4 at the time, was left without a mainstream music show, and moved The Chart Show to ITV in early 1989.