Brookside (1982–2003)

The everyday life and times of the residents, friends and enemies who live in a suburban street in the city of Liverpool in the north of England.

Creators:

Colin McKeown, Phil Redmond

Stars:

Alexandra Fletcher, Diane Burke, Dean Sullivan

7 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Alexandra Fletcher	...	Jacqui Dixon (280 episodes, 1990-2003)
Diane Burke	...	Katie Rogers (220 episodes, 1989-2003)
Dean Sullivan	...	Jimmy Corkhill (219 episodes, 1986-2003)
Steven Pinder	...	Max Farnham (216 episodes, 1990-2003)
Vince Earl	...	Ron Dixon (214 episodes, 1990-2003)
Leon Lopez	...	Jerome Johnson (212 episodes, 1999-2002)
Suzanne Collins	...	Nikki Shadwick (211 episodes, 1999-2003)
Tiffany Chapman	...	Rachel Dixon (208 episodes, 1993-2003)
Steven Cole	...	Leo Johnson (180 episodes, 1996-2001)
Paul Byatt	...	Mike Dixon (161 episodes, 1990-2003)
Sue Jenkins	...	Jackie Corkhill (130 episodes, 1992-2001)
Rachael Lindsay	...	Sammy Rogers (125 episodes, 1987-2003)
Karen Drury	...	Susannah Farnham (121 episodes, 1991-2000)
Sue Johnston	...	Sheila Grant (116 episodes, 1982-1989)

Storyline

The everyday life and times of the residents, friends and enemies who live in a suburban street in the city of Liverpool in the north of England.

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Plot Keywords:

liverpool | friend | one word title | family relationships | soap

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 November 1982 (UK)

Also Known As:

Meadowcroft

Filming Locations:

Benidorm, Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mersey Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 90 min (2002)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ian Hendry's stint on this soap was his last TV role.

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Quotes

Beverly 'Bev' McLoughlin Gonzales Dixon: [making fun of Lindsey] She's gone from stealing pesetas to peeling potatoes.

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Connections

Featured in The Greatest: 100 Greatest TV Characters (2001)

User Reviews

Started good, ended good, but bad in between

The (not so) everyday life of the residents of a Liverpool Close. Brookside has been known to break the 'taboos' of life and include stories that no other soap had been brave enough to do before. Throughout the 80's and early 90's, stories of rape, domestic violence, homosexuality, incest and murder earned the soap high ratings. This was because Brookside wasn't afraid to push the barriers of soap stories. In fact, most people would say that Brookside helped pave the way for other soaps to be so extreme.

In it's heyday 10 million viewers regularly tuned in. This was in 1993, with one of the most controversial storylines to be on TV at the time. From that point on things began to go downhill. Though remaining popular, the 10 million viewers gradually decreased to around 1.5 million. Thus, in 2002, Brookside was moved to a Saturday afternoon slot, then to a late night Tuesday slot. It was eventually axed, and the last episode runs tonight.

So what went wrong? I was a fan up until around 2000. Up until this point the stories had been as exciting and controversial as ever, but maybe it was so exciting that it was unbelievable?

Most soaps have long, drawn out stories that gradually develop, and these are few and far between. While this is dull for some, it can at least relate with the everyday life of people. These long stories allow for character development, so people will become familiar with people on screen and feel as if they 'know' them. Brookside had none of this. Within the space of a few years we had a virus that killed off half the cast, the incestuous relationship of a brother and sister, a man killing his mother-in-law to get rid of her cancer pain, a drug-rape (which did drag for over a year, but became boring), a man purchasing a shotgun and killing a burglar, a couple of bombs/explosions, racist thugs that came from nowhere, a schoolboy killing and, to top it all off, a seige that trapped the close for three weeks.

Whilst these all sound good on paper, most of these characters and stories came and went in the space of a year, hauling tonnes of emotional baggage (that we hadn't seen develop) with them. Viewers didn't feel as though they knew the characters.

There was also no continuity. With other soaps, they all have at least one character that has been there all along, and most have lasted the majority of the show's life. Brookside has just one remaining character that has made it past the fifteen year mark. The rest have came and gone in very little time. Other soaps have familiar pubs and shops (ie the Cabin, Queen Vic, Woolpac, Rovers Return) Brookside has no familiar 'mascot' as such.

So it ends tonight. The thing is, since it was moved to a late night slot, it has became brilliant viewing. I have since heard that this was the way it was supposed to be as of last year, but the movement to an afternoon slot made it impossible to show what they wanted to.

I'll be watching tonight, as will the 1.5 million left. Maybe more since the final episode has had some surprisingly good news coverage.

"Brookie"-1982-2003