Crossroads 

The four or five times a week adventures of a motel owner, son, daughter and her staff. Drama was never far away from the ringing of the reception bell.

Creators:

Hazel Adair, Peter Ling

Stars:

Noele Gordon, Susan Hanson, Ronald Allen

Cast

Series cast summary:
Noele Gordon	...	Meg Mortimer / ... 220 episodes, 1964-1981
Susan Hanson	...	Diane Parker / ... 204 episodes, 1966-1985
Ronald Allen	...	David Hunter 196 episodes, 1972-1985
Paul Henry	...	Benny / ... 172 episodes, 1976-1987
Roger Tonge	...	Sandy Richardson 153 episodes, 1964-1980
Jane Rossington	...	Jill Harvey / ... 126 episodes, 1964-1988
Sally Adcock	...	Jane Smith 119 episodes, 1973-1978
Kathy Staff	...	Doris Luke 107 episodes, 1978-1982

Storyline

The four or five times a week adventures of a motel owner, son, daughter and her staff. Drama was never far away from the ringing of the reception bell.

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Plot Keywords:

motel | midlands | partially lost tv series | sergeant | wobbly sets | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official fan club

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 November 1964 (UK)

Also Known As:

The Midland Road

Filming Locations:

Ramada Hotel, Penns Lane, Walmley, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Associated Television (ATV), Central Independent Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min (4510 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The survival rate of episodes is very hit-and-miss: the first edition currently known to exist in the archives is episode 126 from April 1965, with the next, sequential, run of installments comprising 496-500, aired over one week in November 1966. Thereafter, some years are represented by no editions (or merely one), with some surviving only as edited compilations, monochrome film copies, or off-air audio and home video recordings. A complete run only appears to exist from October 1980. Additionally, some pre-transmission trailers from 1964 were kept, as were sections of 1960s film inserts discovered in early 2008.

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Connections

Referenced in Man About the House: Did You Ever Meet Rommel? (1974)

User Reviews

Verging On Pantomime But Strangely Enjoyable

We've all criticized Crossroads at times. We've all commented on the wooden sets, the intentionally bad acting and the lack of guests at Crossroads Motel. However, it was addictive in some way and was on air from 1964-1988.

Meg Richardson was in charge of the Crossroads Motel for awhile. That woman had one long bad life and everyone else in the show did as well. It seemed odd that people could live such eventful lives but that is soap for you.

One of the shows favourite characters was Benny Hawkins played by Paul Henry. Benny was the motel idiot but we liked him all the same. He was an odd character with his woolly hat but even odder, he once went AWOL from the show for several months without any explanation. The actor who played Benny opened up a pub in Birmingham. I last visited it in 1994 but I'm not sure if it is still there.

There were some rather odd stories on the show which perhaps ensured it's enduring popularity. Bizarre is the only word to describe some of the plots at times but hey, it was a lot better than Brookside ever was.

All in all, Crossroads will always have a place in my heart even if it was never clear whether it was a soap or comedy. It made a comeback in the 21st century but I haven't watched the new show. I don't have the time or inclination (at least currently) to watch the new version but I am sure nothing could ever compare to the original.

I wonder if, in the pilot episode of the new version, they still said, "Crossroads Motel, may I help you?"