The World According to Mrs Bridges! Remembering Upstairs, Downstairs (1971 - 1975)

I have just been viewing the excellent 1970s period drama Upstairs, Downstairs on freeview this morning and it has reminded me just what a truly excellent series this was. I vaguely remember the original broadcasts from the 1970s when I was knee high to a grasshopper and watching them again has just brought those memories flooding back, so much so, I thought it would be good to pay homage to this wonderful series with a series of posts. The first post pays tribute to the wonderful cook, Mrs Bridges payed by the late Angela Baddeley.

Kate Bridges (1858–?) was the cook at 165, Eaton Place throughout the whole series. She was portrayed by Angela Baddeley, who was nominated twice for an Emmy (Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress). Information given on-screen about the marital status of Mrs Bridges is contradictory.

In the first series episode "Why is her door locked?", Mrs Bridges mentions a husband who died fifteen years previously; and in the episode featuring a visit to the house by King Edward VII, Lady Marjorie states their cook is not a French chef but "a temperamental widow from Bristol."

However in the third series finale "The Sudden Storm", Mr Hudson states that there was never a "Mr Bridges", but that the "Mrs" is a courtesy title customarily applied to a cook in a gentleman's household. In the final episode, she and Hudson are married and move to open a seaside boarding house. Kate was still alive and well in 1931 (Rose wrote to 'Mrs Hudson' that year according to the second TV Times UD special).

Joe 90 -Top Secret - Number 13 (1969)

Features are W.I.N. Field Agents Foto-File (readers' photographs), The B.I.G. R.A.T. Tells The Story Of Earthquakes, a competition to win 100 Corgi Commer Mobile Camera Vans, World Intelligence Network (quizzes and jokes),Champions Of Sport - Henry Cooper, Joe's Hobbies (The Story Of Space Travel Told In Stamps No. 13), and Great Britain Eleven No. 3 Centre Back - Mike England.

"Here is a box, a musical box, wound up and ready to play. But this box can hide a secret inside. Can you guess what is in it today?

The legendary Camberwick Green produced by the BBC in 1966 was a British Childrens' Television series, originally seen on BBC One, featuring stop - motion puppets. It was one of the first British television series to be filmed in colour.

The series was written and produced by Gordon Murray and animated by Bob Bura, John Hardwick and Pasquale Ferrari. Music was by Freddie Phillips, and narration and song vocals were provided by the legendary Brian Cant. There are 13 fifteen-minute colour episodes produced by Gordon Murray pictures. The inspiration for the name is believed to have stemmed from the East Sussex village of Wivlesfield Green supported by the nearby villages of Plumpton (Trumpton) and Chailey (Chigley).

Each episode begins with a shot of a Musical Box which rotates while playing a tune. It is accompanied by the following narration:

"Here is a box, a musical box, wound up and ready to play. But this box can hide a secret inside. Can you guess what is in it today?"

The lid of the box then opens and the puppet character that is central to the particular episode emerges. After a brief introduction, the background appears and the story begins.

The series is set in the small, picturesque (and fictitious) village of Camberwick Green, Trumptonshire, which is inhabited by such characters as Police Constable McGarry (Number 452), Mickey Murphy the baker, Dr Mopp (who makes house calls in his vintage car), and the town gossip, Mrs Honeyman, who is always seen carrying her baby. Just outside the village lives Jonathan Bell, owner of a "modern mechanical farm", who has a friendly rivalry with Windy Miller, owner of a clanking old - but nevertheless efficiently functional - Windmill and a firm believer in old-fashioned farming methods. Mr Dagenham, a travelling salesman who drives an open-topped convertible occasionally appears, as do the staff and cadets of Pippin Fort, a nearby Military Academy run by Captain Snort and Sergeant-Major Grout. Almost all the characters have their own theme songs. There is one other character who never appears in the stories: an unnamed Clown or Pierrot who turns a roller caption to display the show's Closing Credits.

Each week the villagers undergo such domestic crises as a shortage of flour; a swarm of bees; a water shortage; and rumours of an unwanted electrical sub-station being built in the village. At the end of each episode the narrator bids farewell to the puppet character who was seen at the beginning, and the latter disappears back into the musical box.

Camberwick Green is notable for having no overt fantasy content (apart from the musical box). For the most part it is simply about ordinary people doing everyday things, and perhaps for that reason it has remained popular to this day. Unfortunately the original masters seem to have been lost; most of the surviving episodes tend to suffer from scratched, wobbly or grainy picture quality and a muffled soundtrack.Camberwick Green is available on DVD along with Trumpton and Chigley, its two sequels in a similar vein.

Camberwick Green was spoofed for a 1988 edition of Spitting Image, as "Gamberwick Greenbelt". The 90-second sketch had a puppet Nicholas Ridley, described as "Old Nicky Ridley, the village idiot", demolishing the village for redevelopment with the aid of a bulldozer.

The character Windy Miller and his famous windmill appeared in September 2005 along with some other Camberwick Green characters in commercials for Quaker Oats on UK television. The puppets and setting are all re-creations because Murray destroyed the originals in the 1970s. The original narrator, Brian Cant, auditioned to do the voiceover for the commercials, before the job was instead given to Charlie Higson.

Episode five of the second series of the BBC's Life on Mars features a recreation of the opening of Camberwick Green, with a puppet of the show's main character, Sam Tyler (John Simm), emerging from the musical box and despairing over his colleague, Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), who can be seen in puppet form "kicking in a nonce" at the end. This later leads to Sam to threaten Hunt, telling him to "Stay out of Camberwick Green!". It emerges that Sam is tripping after being accidentally overdosed in his hospital bed. Again the voice-over was not supplied by Brian Cant, but is delivered in a similar style. It differs from the original by saying: "This is a box, a magical box, playing a magical tune. But inside this box there lies a surprise. Do you know who's in it today?"

The narration was provided by Brian Little, the co-founder of Hot Animation, the company that created the sequence. His recording was supposed to be a temporary guide track to help the animators time the shots, but the producers of Life on Mars were content to retain it for the final version. The one-minute sequence was designed and animated by Paul Couvela, the supervising animator of Bob the Builder

Chippy Minton features in the opening and closing sequences of the 2009 BBC Children in Need charity single Peter Kay's "Animated All Star Band" video when Peter Kay as Roary the Racing Car's Big Chris asks Postman Pat over the phone if Chippy is "ex-directory". Big Chris acts in a 'Bob Geldof' role to recruit characters from children's TV shows, past and present, to star in a Band Aid style video covering a range of songs by the Beatles to Take That. Windy Miller and Miss Lovelace also appear.

The Major Characters

Mickey Murphy the baker

Mickey lives on Camberwick Green with Mrs Murphy and their children Paddy and Mary. His bakers shop sells delicious walnut cakes at 5 shillings each.

Mr Murphy is a master baker,
Pudding pies and pastry maker,
Biscuits buns or birthday cake,
Everything is marvellous that Murphy makes.

Windy Miller

Windy lives in Colly's Mill, a windmill which has its own particular rhythmic sound when turning. Windy is very adept at walking between the turning sails. As well as being a character in Camberwick Green, he also appears in the series Chigley, the fictional neighbouring village to Camberwick Green. Windy is known for brewing his own cider, which makes him very 'sleepy'. He rejects modern ways and prefers to live a self sufficient life. He keeps a cow for milk and free range chickens for eggs. Windy is superstitious and believes in whistling for the wind and that touching a chimney sweep's collar brings good luck.

Windy Miller, Windy Miller sharper than a thorn,
Like a mouse he's spry and nimble when he grinds the corn.
Like a bird he'll watch the wind and listen for the sound,
Which says he has the wind he needs to make the sails go round.

Farmer Jonathan Bell

Farmer Bell runs his farm using modern machinery and practices. He is very proud of his milking machine and forklift loader. In this he is the very opposite of Windy Miller who he often teases about his old-fashioned ways. Despite this they are good friends.

A go ahead farmer is Jonathan Bell
Who works his farm and he works it well
He doesn't hold much with the good old days.
In modern times use modern ways.
Electric mechanical all that is new
Which does the work that men used to do.
He swears by it all and he proves it too
On his modern mechanical farm.

PC McGarry number 452

Police constable McGarry is the local 'bobbie'. He rides around on his motorbike and talks to HQ on the bike's radio.

Here comes the policeman,
The big friendly policeman,
PC McGarry number 452.
Lost dogs, thick fogs,
Don't know what to do.
Then get the policeman,
The big friendly policeman.
PC McGarry number 452. Here comes the policeman,
The big friendly policeman,
PC McGarry number 452.
Lost a key, cat up a tree,
Baby lost a shoe.
Then get the policeman,
A big friendly policeman.
PC McGarry number 452.

Mr Carraway the Fishmonger

Mr Carraway runs the fishmongers shop on Camberwick Green. He enjoys fishing in the river that runs behind his shop.

Fresh fish! fine fresh fish!
Herring, plaice, mackerel turbot,
Whiting, cod, halibut, dab,
Prawn, crabs, crayfish and lobster,
In green parsley and set upon a slab.
Fresh fish, fine fresh fish.

Peter the Postman

Peter Hazel is a postman who empties the postbox and delivers the mail. He travels on foot with the mail in a large sack upon his back.

Peter the postman is a very busy man
He empties the boxes as quickly as he can
He puts all the letters in a great big sack
And whistles as he marches with his load upon his back.

Mr Crockett the garage owner

Mr Crockett operates a petrol station and on the outskirts of Camberwick Green. He also does automotive repairs and runs a breakdown truck.

If your car is needing petrol, if your van is broken down,
If your motorcycle engine starts to stick,
Then go to Crockett's garage, to Mr Crockett's garage.
He will do the work and he'll do it very quick. Fill her up, fill her up, the petrol pumps are working,
Pump them up, pump them up, you know what tyres are.
Hurry up, hurry up, there is no time for shirking,
If you want a very super sort of car.

Doctor Mopp

Doctor Mopp drives a vintage car (reg 1901) and wears a top hat and beard.

If you want a doctor,
Get Doctor Mopp,
For he can stop
A sneeze or a wheeze,
Or a lump or a bump,
A headache or a sprain,
Or rheumaticy pain. So if you're feeling sickly,
Please call him quickly.
He can cure all ills,
With his pale pink medicine,
And sugar coated pills.

Roger Varley the chimney sweep

Roger would travel around on his motorbike & sidecar.

Sweep all,
Here comes Roger Varley,
As black as a crow,
To sweep all your chimneys,
Which stand in a row. Big chimneys, small chimneys,
Low chimneys tall chimneys.
Chimneys so straight and chimneys awry,
With his rod, brush and sack,
And his suit shiny black,
He'll purl and twirl his brush,
Up the flues to the sky. Sweep all.

Mr Dagenham the salesman

Mr Dagenham is a travelling salesman and drives a red sports car. He sells everything from table lamps to forklift loaders. In one episode he tries to sell a helicopter to Farmer Bell.

Our Mr Dagenham, he can sell anything,
Anything, anything money can buy.
A tea set or a jacket,
A pram or tennis raquet,
A telly or a toaster,
A trumpet or a trike,
An overcoat, a motor boat,
A holiday in Africa,
A bathtub or a button,
A bugle or a bike.
Our Mr Dagenham, he can sell anything,
Anything, anything money can buy.

Captain Snort

Captain Snort runs a military academy for boys located in Pippin Fort. Members of the academy all wear red shirts in the style of the British Empire.

Captain Snort is a soldier man,
Scarlet and gold a soldier man.
He'll work a boy as hard as he can,
To turn him into a soldier man.
Captain Snort is a soldier man,
Who lives in Pippin Fort.

Mrs Honeyman

Mrs Honeyman is the Chemist's wife and always appears carrying her baby. She is the local gossip.

Chatter chatter have you heard the latest gossip?
Not a word to anyone...
But do you know that natter natter well my dear
You could have knocked me over with a feather.
I was shocked !

Yesterday Once More - The Carpenters (1973)

"Yesterday Once More", written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis, was a hit song by The Carpenters from their 1973 album, Now & Then. Composed in the key of E, "Yesterday Once More" preceded an "Oldies Medley" on the album, consisting of nine songs from the 1960s. At the end of the song a motorcycle engine transitions into the first song of the medley, "Fun, Fun, Fun". The motorcycle was deleted on the version appearing on The Singles: 1969-1973.

The song peaked at No2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No1 on the easy listening chart, becoming their eighth No1 on that chart in four years. It is the Carpenters' biggest selling record worldwide and their best-selling single in the UK, peaking at No2. Richard Carpenter admitted on a Japanese documentary that it is his favorite of all the songs he's written. He has performed an instrumental version at concerts.

 

According to Cash Box Magazine, on June 2, 1973, "Yesterday Once More" was the highest-debuting single, at No41. By August 4, it had reached No1.

Dionne Warwick, a close friend of The Carpenters, performed it live in Las Vegas the night before Karen Carpenter's untimely death in 1983

The Elvis Monthly - 29th Year (1988)

Elvis Presley: Elvis Monthly celebrated its 29th year in 1988.  Below are the front covers from all that years magazines, issues 336 to 347 inclusive.  Each magazine measures 5" x 7" & has over 50 pages packed with information & debate onThe King with illustrations in colour & monochrome.
 

The Persuaders - Episode Seven - The Old, The New & The Deadly (1971)

A fanatical ex-Nazi, a girl who is trying to clear her father's name of a wartime stigma and the statuette of a bird combine to put Danny's life in peril. There are startling repercussions for the unfortunate Danny Wilde (Tony Curtis) when he spots the glamourous Suzanne Wager (Anna Gael) with her newly-wed husband Frank (Gary Cockrell). He collides with a man named Denton (Michael Segal) whose despatch case falls to the hotel floor and bursts open. A newspaper picture being taken at the time shows him picking up a statuette of a German eagle.

The newspaper photograph is of great interest to an aged Frenchman, Le Comte Marceau (Patrick Troughton) a fanatical ex-Nazi who shifted his own guilt on to Suzanne Wager's father, whose name now has the stigma of having collaborated with the Nazis.

The photograph is Danny's execution warrant. Marceau orders, in the belief that he is the possessor of the statuette: "I want him dead." And one attempt after another is made on Danny's life, each time foiled by the alertness of Brett Sinclair (Roger Moore).

In the meantime, Suzy has been approached by Denton who tells her that he will sell her evidence which will clear her father's name. Suzy rebels at having to ask her husband for so much money, and appeals to Danny for advice. Unfortunately, her husband jealously (and with a thump on Danny's jaw) breaks up the conversation before she has managed to tell him much. The thwarted Marceau then hires another killer, Groski (Derren Nesbitt), who 'phones Danny with the warning that the attempts on his life have not ended but has a proposition to make.

The two men meet up with Brett nearby. It then becomes obvious that the lines are getting crossed. Danny has no idea what Groski is talking about when he says he wishes to buy the statuette. Once again, Brett is able to help Danny out of his latest predicament, and they now know that the statuette is the key to the mystery.

Close examination of the original newspaper photograph shows an address on some headed notepaper that had fallen out of the suitcase. Danny and Brett lose no time in making for the address, and arrive to find that Suzy has been lured there. But they are too late. Denton has been killed and the statuette is missing.

They have only one clue to work on. Brett has spotted a very old Rolls Royce several times. It provides the much-needed common factor. Once they can trace the owner, they can find.

Beggar My Neighbour (1967 - 1968)

The first series that reunited Reg Varney and Peter Jones saw something of a role reversal to the characters they had played in the long running 'The Rag Trade.' First shown as part of the BBC's popular 'Comedy Playhouse' on 24th May 1966, 'Beggar My Neighbour', written by Ken Hoare and Mike Sharland, took the theme of keeping-up-with-the-Jones's (in this case the Butt's) and turned out a first class sitcom that ran for three series. Rose Garvey (June Whitfield) and Lana Butt (Pat Coombs) were married sisters who lived next door each other in Larkworthy Road, Muswell Hill, North London. While Rose's husband Gerald (Jones) was an underpaid junior executive who had to struggle to make ends meet, Lana's husband, (Harry) was an overpaid fitter who enjoyed foreign holidays, flashy cars and all mod-cons. However, Gerald's upbringing had made him something of a snob and he constantly refused to admit that his brother-in-law could afford the things that he couldn't. This led to problems as the Garvey's tried to keep up with the Butt's, especially Lana, who would often put on airs and graces, which in turn would lead even the usually reserved Rose to make exaggerated boasts about their lifestyle, which they would then have to try and live up to.

Although the series was instantly popular with the public, Peter Jones left after the first season saying that he didn't want to get stuck with another long-running role as he had with 'The Rag Trade.' For series two and three Desmond Walter-Ellis played Gerald. The series ran from March 1967 to March 1968 and a short special was shown as part of 'Christmas Night With The Stars' on 25th December 1967. David Croft produced the pilot and series one and two, Eric Fawcett the remainder.

Beggar My Neighbour
Format	Television Sit-com
Starring	Peter Jones June Whitfield Desmond Walter - Ellis Reg Varney Pat Coombs Rosemary Faith
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of episodes	23 + 1 short
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	BBC
Original run	24 May 1966 – 26 March 1968

The ITV Story - Part One

Within a few years of BBC television restarting after the end of the Second World War, there were already suggestions that perhaps the Corporation's monopoly on broadcasting was restricting the type of programmes available to the British public due to the limit that public funding imposed.

Although the Beveridge Committee, set up by the Government to report on the future of broadcasting, as well as the future of the BBC itself, came down firmly in favour of maintaining the BBC's control on what the public did and didn't see on its TV screens, opposition MP Selwyn Lloyd offered his 'Significant Minority Report' to the House of Commons, which argued that the influence on broadcasting should not be vested in any monopoly whether it be privately or publicly owned. The report went on to propose that a British organisation should be created as soon as possible, charged with the development of 'sponsored broadcasting.' However, this was in 1949 and it would be almost three years before the debate would be raised again in earnest.

In December 1951 the BBC's charter was due to expire and as that time neared so questions of the BBC's monopoly were raised yet again. This time though the BBC had lost one of its closest allies because earlier that year the Labour Government under PM Clement Attlee had fallen in a General Election to the Conservatives. Amid heated debate in the House of Commons in which the Labour party strongly opposed any change of policy, the Government granted the BBC a new licence. Although there were now to be modifications in its monopoly position that would, in effect, leave the back door ajar for pressure groups to mount their campaign for commercial television.

Whether that door was left open on purpose is debatable. But a White Paper written by a four-man government committee and published in May 1952 included a paragraph that may have been overlooked by many of the enemies of commercial television. Hidden away was a paragraph that, on closer inspection-and with some hindsight-can now be seen as a blue touch-paper just waiting to be lit. It merely asked for consideration to be made for a provision of some element of competition ‘when the calls on capital resources at present needed for the purposes of greater national importance make this feasible.’

Amongst those people calling for changes in the broadcasting system were business executive Norman Collins, whose company ABDC was backed by Sir Robert Renwick, one of the heads of W. Greenwell and Co., a major city stockbroker, and C.O. Stanley who had founded the electronics company PYE. Collins in fact had been the head of the BBC when he dramatically resigned from the post in 1950 in order to devote his experience towards the setting up of commercial television. It was Collins who lit the touch-paper.

Collins’ controversial decision to quit the BBC over a decision of censorship made headline news. A BBC TV play called Party Matters, written by Val Gielgud poked fun at politicians and even implied (in satirical manner) that socialist MP’s were taking backhanders for political favours. After transmission, Lord Simon, Chairman of the BBC, immediately called for the proposed second showing of the play to be scrapped. The Tory press roared disapprovingly at the ban and a week later Collins walked out of the BBC for the last time.

Collins set up a company called the Associated Broadcasting Development Co. of which he was the Chairman. As fate would have it Collins choice of business partners, although a textbook example of how to put together a television consortium, was to cost him a far bigger place in television history. But for the meantime Collins became a constant thorn in the side of the BBC as he set about his crusade for Independent Television, a term, incidentally, that he thought up himself. Lord Simon may well have lamented a few years later (even if he got his facts wrong) that ‘If we hadn’t fired Collins there would be no commercial television now.’ but the eventual arrival of Independent Television seemed inevitable.

Public opinion too seemed to be in favour of an independent channel as indicated in a Gallup Poll conducted by the News Chronicle, a daily newspaper, which discovered that 50 per cent of television owners favoured just such a service. On July 11th 1952 the House debated the future of broadcasting in Britain and ordered an independent report to make, in due course, recommendations for a second channel.

"As Television has a great and increasing power in influencing men's minds, the Government believes that its control should not remain in the hands of a single authority, however excellent it may be..." Thus read the White Paper issued in November 1953 explaining the Government's decision to provide commercial television. The official document took pains to point out that this was in no way a criticism of the BBC, nor should any be implied as a result of it. However, it did suggest that the BBC had held a monopoly on broadcasting to the British viewing public for too long and that lack of opposition could only make them stagnant. A second programme from the BBC would only go half way to addressing the problem and the much-needed shot in the arm could only come from competition.

Few people disagreed with the report in principle. Where most people's objections came from was in the fact that the report was recommending that the alternative should be provided by commercial television. Paid for by on-screen advertising.

"It is utterly wrong," said MP Hugh Gaitskell, "that what we see in our homes should depend on the advertisers to make profits." It was on this and similar issues that the Television Bill was fought. In these days of multi-channel television it is hard to imagine the amount of opposition or just how much of a stormy passage the bill had in order to give the British public a second channel, whilst in the United States viewers were more than accommodated for with a wide range of choice. Its critics saw it (and therefore likened it to US TV) as nothing short of mass seduction of the innocents by the unscrupulous. They fought it fiercely as debates were raised, not only in Parliament, but also in university lecture halls, community social halls and even working men's clubs up and down the country. And the objectors very nearly got their own way when at one stage the Bill came within six votes of defeat.

The then Assistant Postmaster-General, L.D. Gammans put his case for the Bill: "If we can trust the people of this country to go on a jury, to give them freedom to buy a newspaper, or the right to vote and decide the destiny of their country, then I think they can be trusted to look at a little picture on their television screens." MP Ness Edwards, arguing vehemently against the Bill did not think so: "Does the Government really think that the serious side of television will get a chance if it has to depend on what is paid for by the frivolous side? Do they really think that education, religion and subjects of social importance will be supported by beer, pools and pills?"

And so the row went back and forth, fuelled by a rise in the TV Licence of £1.00 made partly to finance the new venture. MP Hebert Morrison, speaking from the opposition benches stormed over the latest outrage, "Why should I, as an ordinary citizen who does not want commercial television, be forced to contribute to the subsidising of it?"

By the time the Bill had reached its committee stage no fewer than 137 amendments were tabled. Even a number of its supporters were not confident in it passing Parliament and expected the whole Bill to be scrapped. Herbert Morrison claimed that the Bill was such a muddled affair that it had obviously been thought up by twenty or thirty Government back benchers who had "rattled a weak-kneed Government into accepting it." But his amendment, along with the other 136, was rejected and after three months of delays in which the row grew to mammoth proportions and arguments became less evenly tempered, the Bill passed its third reading in the House of Lords. On July 30th 1954, it received Royal Assent and became law.

Radio Times - The Troubleshooters (1969)

This edition of the Radio Times dates back to 1969 and gracing the cover are the stars from the classic 1969 BBC TV series, The Troubleshooters.  The Troubleshooters (titled Mogul for the first season) was a British Television series made by the BBC between 1965 and 1972, created by John Elliot. During its run, the series made the transition from black and white to colour transmissions.........
The series was based around an international oil company – the "Mogul" of the title. The first series was mostly concerned with the internal politics within the Mogul organisation, with episodes revolving around industrial espionage, internal fraud and negligence almost leading to an accident on a North Sea oil rig.

Although Mogul was popular, it did not do as well as hoped for. However, it was renewed for a second series with the format radically changed. The title was renamed The Troubleshooters as the show altered its focus, broadening its horizons by showing the actual workings of the company. The series now focused on the younger, dynamic Mogul field agents - the eponymous "troubleshooters" - like Peter Thornton, who flew around the world to “hotspots” to protect the company’s interests.

With extensive use of BBC “stock” location filming, storylines concentrated on disasters such as explosions and earthquakes, company take-overs, racial and political tensions, the discovery of new oil fields and the negotiation of drilling rights.

As time went on, The Troubleshooters began to experiment with ongoing narratives as storylines arched over several series. Because of the nature of his profession requiring him to be away from home, Peter Thornton found his marriage to the glamorous “Steve” collapsing, whilst Brian Stead was diagnosed with a heart condition, struggling to maintain control of Mogul at the top. Ranged against him was new “troubleshooter” Alec Stewart, a young, ruthless operative keen to progress in the organisation with his eye on Stead’s position. Stead kept sending Stewart out on dangerous assignments in the hope that he would fail, but Stewart was able to work every situation to his advantage. In the latter series, a rival oil company to Mogul was introduced – Zenith.

At times, The Troubleshooters never shied away from portraying Mogul as a faceless, uncaring and profit-driven corporation. Some episodes showcased industrial crisis through the perspective of striking Teeside dockyard workers and foregrounded ecological concerns through storylines based around local opposition to a Mogul refinery in Wales and a chemical offshoot of Mogul’s, which developed a crop spray with deadly side effects. There was also no loyalty or sentimentality amongst the Mogul men – Peter Thornton, sent to the Arctic by Brian Stead to investigate possible oil concessions, nearly freezes to death and considers getting out of the oil business entirely. In another episode, Thornton is sent to Saigon, against the backdrop of the Vietnam War. Alec Stewart is arrested in Algiers as a spy and imprisoned – although eventually released, he receives little trust or support from his colleagues. Brian Stead, returning to Berlin for the first time since 1945 to oversee a natural gas drilling deal, finds his past coming back to haunt him in a nasty plot to discredit him by a rival company.

Brookside's Finest - Barry Grant

Barry Grant was the bad boy of the now defunct Channel 4 Soap Opera Brookside. Barry was portrayed by Paul Usher and was in the series from episode one in 1982 until 1995 with several sporadic guest appearances in 1997, 1998 and the final episode in 2003.

Barry Grant is arguably the most dislikeable and feared soap villain of all time. Because of the rawness of Brookside, Grant would take things a step further than his counterparts in other UK soaps, once shoving a gun up the behind of Calum Finnegan as he attempted to rape his girlfriend (Lindsay Corkhill). Finnegan was eventually locked in a container and ended up in Kenya and subsequently had to have a kidney transplant.

Bobby and Sheila Grant raised their three children Barry, Karen and Damon on a run-down Liverpool council estate. Barry, the eldest, was always the black sheep of the family. Barry was expelled from school at age 15 for attacking a group of bullies who constantly picked on and bullied his best friend Terry Sullivan. Bobby Grant grafted for years in an effort to move away from the rough council estate flats. In 1982 Bobby and Shelia’s dream came true and they were able to buy their first home and the family moved into Brookside Close. In 1988 it is revealed that Barry Grant's real father is in fact Matty Nolan, a family friend of the Grants. Barry Grant was considerably older than his siblings. At the start of the series he was 23, compared to 15 year old Karen and 14 year old Damon.

Barry started out as a young 'scally' who, together with an often reluctant best friend Terry, was always looking for easy ways to make money. Such scams consisted of torching his Jaguar in order to claim off the insurance, stealing copper from building sites, and buying and selling stolen items. Barry was always the apple of his mother Sheila's eye but had a less sturdy relationship with his father Bobby who was eventually revealed to be his stepfather.

Although Barry was usually on the wrong side of the law, he was shown to be the more respectable of the Grant brothers in early episodes. In contrast to Damon's hot-headed recklessness, Barry was calm and responsible and made amends with the Collins after Damon vandalised their house. Barry was hard-working and smart in contrast to Damon. After Barry was stabbed in December 1982 the doctor told him to stay off work, however shortly after Bobby was out-on-strike and the Grants struggled to pay their mortgage. Despite doctors advice Barry went back to work so that his father would not have to suffer the indignity of crossing his own picket line.

In the early episodes Barry strikes up a friendship with the recently widowed Petra Taylor. The two run away for a holiday in the Isle of Man together where Petra miscarries. Barry becomes irritated by Petra's depression after the loss of her husband and unborn baby and steals charity money from Sheila before heading to London. Petra later commits suicide and Marie Jackson blames Barry for her suicide.

After losing his building job after being caught stealing materials Barry and Terry got involved with shady gangster character Tommy McArdle. In his early appearances, McArdle would drop by the close unnanounced to get Barry and Terry to do a job for him, like when he requested they valet his car to rid the back seat of what McArdle described as 'pig's blood'. In a stronger storyline, (and one of Brooksides first sensational ones) under instructions from Tommy McArdle the two provide an alibi for the perpertrators of an armed robbery. Local fireman and neighbour George Jackson is convicted for this crime instead, the key evidence being that he (foolishly) drew a map of the warehouse for McArdle, who used him for his knowledge of the place. In another scam, Barry and Terry enter in a pirate video deal with McCardle, (which also saw Barry briefly involved with Lucy Collins - daughter of residents Paul and Annabelle). This particular job went wrong for Barry, and although he had not tried to cross McArdle it ended in the beating of Barry and Terry within an inch of their lives in the tool hire shop that they ran. Barry typically made a quick recovery, but Terry was seriously hurt and spent a long time in hospital and for a while afterwards was walking with a limp. The McArdle beating one was too much for Barry to try and get revenge on and so sensing he has no friends or future in Liverpool, Barry takes a job as a shop fitter, a job that will take him all around the country.

Barry returns following the rape of his mother. This event finally splits up his parents, and with No.5 on the verge of being repossessed by the bank, Barry moved back in with his mother to try to keep up with the mortgage payments.

Barry got involved with a gangster called Sizzler. Sizzler, a southerner living on The Wirral (and depicted as having a chronic stuttering voice; particularly when words started with a 's') 'owned' Barry, once he found out that not only had he bedded his lady but had soiled his favourite bathrobe in the process. So after agreeing to work off his debt to Sizzler, Barry would do various odd jobs for him, such as when Sizzler wanted to buy a chain of amusement arcades, but the current lady owner refused to sell. Sizzler wanted Barry to kidnap her dog, cut of its head and send it to her in an effort to get her to change her mind. (The episode which ended with Barry on the verge of cutting of the dogs head prompted over 200 complaints to Channel 4). However it was revealed in the next episode that Barry couldn’t go through with it.

Barry envied the lifestyles of Tommy McArdle and Sizzler and realised that crime, does indeed, pay.

Sheila and Barry were eventually evicted from the family home, and the house was repossessed by the bank. Sheila moved in with Billy Corkhill (and later they started a relationship together) while Barry lived rough in a Vokswagen Camper van for a while. While he is homeless he and Sinbad sell toy seals as presents for Christmas 1988. They later however find them to be poisonous and spend Christmas Day trying to steal them back from children to whom they have been sold. At the end of 1989 Barry left the area once again for some work in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Barry returned in August 1990 for the wedding of Terry and Sue. Terry and Sue allowed Barry to lodge in their house during this time. Whilst Barry had been away he had been running a series of illegal warehouse raves. This turned out to be a real money-spinner and he planned to do the same thing in Liverpool. Following a couple of successful warehouse raves in the city (and calling the police half way through the night to generate publicity for the next one) Barry planned the biggest rave yet, which required financial backing which came in the form of two cockney brothers. Together they organised a big rave night which didn’t go according to plan when Barry discovered one of the brothers dealing drugs to kids in the toilets. Barry, never a fan of drugs, decided this meant the brothers should forfeit their share of the profits and made a quick escape with the bag full of notes. The brothers were soon on Barry trail, and after seeing Barry with Sue and her little boy Danny, they assumed it was Barry’s son and so kidnapped him demanding the money back for his safe return. Barry successfully negotiated his release, but the brothers exacted further revenge by locking Barry in an industrial freezer on Christmas Day 1990. Barry made an ‘igloo’ out of frozen turkey boxes and was pulled out semi-conscious by Terry. After a few days in hospital Barry discharged himself, drove to London and planted a shotgun in one of the brothers cars before tipping off the police. Barry returned to Liverpool in high sprits to see in the new year.

Amidst all this Barry still found time to sort out Joey Goddon. Goddon had just been released from prison for the murder of Jimmy and Billy Corkhill's brother, Frankie. Goddon was hell-bent on giving the Corkhill family grief, threatening them, and dishing out general abuse. As the weeks and months went on, the war between the two families was escalating out of control but Goddon’s big mistake was to threaten Barry’s mother, Sheila. Barry drove to Goddon’s house, smashed through his back door and shoved a shotgun in his face, threatening to blow his brains out if he ever went anywhere near the Corkhill family again. During 1991 Barry made friends with a millionaire property developer, and Barry ended up 'acquiring' a new development being built near the Close. The development would consist of 4 shop units and 4 flats above. This was Barry’s big chance to 'go legit'.

Barry was unable to sustain a long-term relationship with women. He could gets girls into bed, but when they found out his true character they soon left him. Barry was jealous of the relationship Terry had with Sue. Barry was adamant that Terry could do better than Sue, and so he sets out to destroy her. After months of being deeply unpleasant to her, Barry turns on the charm and sleeps with her. Sue was wracked with guilt and threatened to tell Terry the truth. So, in October 1991, Barry pushed Sue and her young child Danny from the scaffolding on Brookside parade resulting in both their deaths. Barry has always maintained this event was an accident and he was only trying to put the ‘frighteners’ on her to stop her telling Terry their secret.

Nevertheless, Barry made sure the finger of guilt was firmly pointed towards lawyer Graeme Curtis, a work colleague of Sue’s who had an unhealthy infatuation with her. Graeme was charged and found guilty of the double murder and while in prison either took his own life or was himself murdered for being a child killer. Barry later confessed his crime to a priest.

Meanwhile Barry rented out his shops and flats. One of the flats was rented to a mysterious Asian man who paid well above the market rate for the flat in return for Barry not asking any questions and not keeping records about the tenants. With strong metal doors applied the flat and coming and goings throughout the night, curiosity soon got the better of him and Barry broke in to discover the printing of counterfeit bank notes.

By February 1992 Barry was getting tired of Fran, especially when she began to turn the screw and realised it was Barry who murdered Sue and Danny and not Graham. A desperate Barry took Fran hostage at gunpoint. Knowing he was going on the run, Barry broke into the upstairs flat and helped himself to £25,000 of counterfeit money. Barry was wracked with guilt over what he had done to Sue and Danny, and let Fran go. He took Terry to a deserted beach (suggested as being Wallasey beach) and revealed that he had slept with Sue and murdered her and Danny. Barry gave Terry a loaded shotgun with the command “Do your own justice”. This episode was notable in Brookie history for only containing Barry and Terry in it, at the beach location, with a cliffhanger ending that revealed in the next episode Terry couldn’t bring himself to kill Barry. He decided that he wanted him alive so he would have to live every day knowing what he did and so Barry fled to Spain.

In December 1992, a young lady named Jo Halsaw was opening a nightclub on the parade with Barry Grant as her business partner. Jo gave Terry a package, which contained two flight tickets to Spain and a fist full of pesetas. Terry took Sinbad along for the ride. When they arrived in Spain he met up with Barry, who wanted to know if it was safe for him to return home as he was opening a night club with Jo Halsaw.

After getting the nod from Terry, Barry returned to Liverpool a few days later. The first thing Barry did upon returning was to torch Jimmy Corkhill’s shop, Kowboy Kutz. Jimmy had been squatting in one of Barry’s shop units and could not come up with the back-rent. Jimmy refused to vacate the premises, knowing he had time on his hands for the matter to be resolved in the courts. However Barry decided to smoke him out and destroy his stock. Barry set fire to his stock and immediately called the fire brigade. However, the heating had been cut off in the shop and Jimmy was heating the place via gas bottles, which exploded the entire front of the shop out, much to Barry’s horror.

With Jimmy out of business, Barry felt slightly guilty he had destroyed his living so sent him on a course and gave him a job on the doors of the new nightclub, La Luz. This job turned out to be a change in the fortunes (and character role) of Jimmy, who becamed embroiled in various dodgy plots from this point onwards. Terry asked Barry for £500, and while Barry was trying to question him what is was for Terry just demanded the money. Barry followed him to a house, and was just about to drive off when he discovered Fran emerge carrying Barry’s offspring. Barry demanded access to his son, but Fran wanted to make sure that the boy was never to find out whom his dad was. Terry gave Fran the entire proceeds of Sue’s life insurance policy allowing her to completely disappear. Barry has never been able to track down his son, which was the ultimate revenge from Terry. The son was played by Stephen Powell. Meanwhile Jo Halsaw allowed the La Luz nightclub to become notorious for all the wrong reasons, allowing drugs and prostitution to operate out of the club and therefore the partnership between Barry and Jo never ran smoothly.

Wanting Barry out the partnership, Jo got her hired heavies to force Barry to sign the club completely over to her. Barry planned to torch the club for the insurance payout but was attacked by Jimmy Corkhill when he revealed to him that he had done it before to his shop.

Jo wanted Barry out of her way for good and so invited him to the club to talk about the future. Meanwhile Jo’s hired heavy, wearing Barry’s coat and stealing his car, runs down Jimmy Corkhill. Barry is arrested for attempted murder of Jimmy. Just when it looks like it's all over for Barry, the charges are dropped and he cautiously returns to the club, only to find his friend from Spain, Oscar Dean sitting behind the desk. Oscar has ousted Jo and bought the club himself. He immediately offers Barry a 60-40 partnership and hands the day-to-day management over to him.

Terry finds happiness again with a young Polish woman named Anna Wolska. Anna was an illegal immigrant and worked as a prostitute out of La Luz when Jo had control of the club. Anna was desperate to stay in the UK and was willing to pay a man to marry her. Anna and Terry became very close and Terry offered to marry her to ensure she could remain in the UK, however Anna didn’t want to ruin her good friendship with Terry and so declined. Barry got wind of this arrangement and offered his own deal to Anna – he would marry her if she would have his baby. (Barry was very desperate for a child of his own). Although she agreed the deal initially, it wasn’t long before she regretted it and had generally fallen in love with Terry. Terry and Anna plan a secret wedding and a new life away from Liverpool and she double crosses Barry by pretending the deal is still on but secretly taking the pill. Barry is not a man to cross and when he discovers the pills in her bag he hits her across the face and phones immigration. She was arrested and returned to Poland just before she and Terry could marry.

This event particularly broke Terry which led to his involvement with a religious cult headed by Simon Howe. The cult were squatting in number 5 Brookside Close (The Grants former residence) which Simon would call his ‘church’ and would hold regular meetings. Terry gets deeper and deeper into the cult as Barry tries to get him to see sense. Simon wanted Terry to buy the house so they could have a permanent place of worship, but before this happens Barry Grant buys the house.

Barry soon becomes impatient with Simon as he wants him out of his house, and to make things worse Simon and his followers start preaching about the perils of drinking and partying while handing out leaflets outside Barry’s night club. Barry decides to stop Simon once and for all, and with gun in hand, breaks into the house but is over powered, gagged, tied up and held hostage in one of the bedrooms. Terry starts preaching to him from the bible, but Barry doesn’t want to know. Nobody realises Barry is missing, thinking he has probably gone away on one of his many and mysterious trips ‘down south’.

Eventually Simon decides that since they can't have the house then no one can, and he builds a home-made bomb to destroy the house. They release Barry but the bomb goes off with all three still in the house. Barry and Terry are not seriously injured, but Simon ends up in hospital fighting for his life.

Terry keeps his faith and stays by Simons bedside as his injures heal. When Simon recovers he moves into a flat with Terry. Barry, not happy that Simon has not been charged with causing the explosion, breaks into the flats and attacks Simon, saying “I’ve killed before, and if you don’t disappear you'll be next”. With this Simon goes into hiding behind the Close using a few cardboard boxes for his home.

Later Simon tells Terry that their work is complete and its time to join the other side. They steal Barry’s car and drive into the woods, attaching a hose from the exhaust into the car, so that with both doors and windows shut the fumes will kill them both. However Barry arrives just in time to pull Terry from the fume filled car but leaves Simon behind to die.

Terry ends up with a serious mental disorder and is sectioned under the mental health act and taken to a psychiatric hospital. Barry refuses to let his mate waste away in an institution and illegally smuggles him abroard to have him nursed back to health by Oscar Dean's wife in Spain.

Barry left Brookside close in a hurry towards the end of 1993, when he got word of the whereabouts of Fran and his son. Finding his son was Barry's main personal agenda in life and despite the fact he was currently engaged to be married he didnt plan to stick around. Paul Usher left the show abruptly at this time and so this storyline was a bit out of the blue. All that was made of Barry's departure was a disembodied hand seen packing a suitcase and a rear shot of Barry speeding off out of the close in his Range Rover. For the next few years Barry didn’t return to Liverpool, his presence in the show was still mentioned though and he arranged for his shops, flats and nightclub to be managed by Terry, who eventually sold the club to dodgy Asian businessman Dil Parma. Terry then went on to sell rest of the complex to commercial developers. Barry eventually settled in Blaydon, Tyne and Wear off screen.

Barry returned in 1997 and began a relationship with his step-cousin, Jimmy's daughter Lindsay Corkhill, who herself was later to be involved in the same crime circles as Barry (this led to a much bigger role in the show for Lindsay) but to start with, Barry coincidentally met Jimmy Corkhill at the funeral of someone who owed a debt and after reluctantly agreeing to revisit the close for a drink in Bar Brookie, with Jimmy, he encountered Callum Finnegan, who at the same time was muscling in on Bar Brookie and the Dixons who owned it. Barry also met Lindsay for the first time on that occasion. During this period, November - December 1997, Barry agreed to protect Jacqui Dixon and Bar Brookie from the Finnegans in return for £30,000 cash. This agreement in turn led to a gang war between Barry and Callum Finnegan, culminating in the 'Lost Weekend' episode. Whilst protecting Bar Brookie, He gave Jacqui Dixon an ultimatum to pay by January 1, 1998 or he would torch the place. With little option but to pay Barry for taking care of Callum Finnegan, Jacqui agreed to be a surrogate mother for close resident Suzanna Farnham, (who was unable to conceive and was desperate for another baby). Once the £30,000 had been handed over to Barry and the Finnegans were out of the picture, Barry stuck around until the New Year, when it was revealed he was married and he disappeared to his 'house in the Midlands' - but not until having bedded Lindsay for the last time (on screen).

He stepped in to help when Jacqui Dixon, who now owned Bar Brookie was subjected to a protection racket by the Finnegans - a pair of Scottish gangster brothers (who controlled businesses such as Finnegan Security). Barry had supposedly bedded Jacqui while she was still a schoolgirl and so the two had a bit of history. Anyway, under pressure, and facing financial ruin at the hands of the Finnegans, Jacqui asked Barry for help. He initially didn't want anything to do with it but after a while he demanded thee cash in return for sorting Callum Finnegan. Initially, Barry took a beating at the hands of the Finnegan's heavies in the Bar Brookie toilets but he got his own back shortly after when he enticed Callum Finnegan into the office with an offer of "five grand a week business". Once in the office, Barry beat Finnegan and his heavy with a baseball bat and gave Callum (a suggested) ultiimatum to leave the Dixons alone. Not at all happy with this, Callum Finnegan planned to get revenge. Lindsay was then kidnapped by the Finnegans and held for ransom. This led to Barry tracking down the Finnegan hideout (on behalf of the Corkhills) and eventually finding, beating up and locking Callum Finnegan in a shipping container.

Depicted as living off the proceeds of years of crime and living in a large mansion near Newcastle Upon Tyne, Barry returned in full for Brookside's final episode in 2003 when it was revealed that he and Lindsay were to marry. At the end of the show's penultimate episode he had his heavies bundle Jimmy Corkhill into a car and driven to his mansion, where he held a gun to blindfodled Jimmy's head and in a put on brummy accent asked Jimmy if he could marry his daughter. After all that had calmed down a bit, Jimmy went on to tell Barry about Jack Michaelson. Slightly concerned that a new gangster figure was again threatening the close and the Corkhills in particular, Barry agreed to go back to the close "for old time's sake". So he returned to Brookside Close with Jimmy and Lindsay where he met Tim O'Leary. He also had a brief dialogue with Michaelson, mocking his small time criminal existence. Barry then went over to Jimmy's house - (the infamous) No. 10 Brookside Close - and advised 'Tinhead' with a way of dealing with Michaelson, reciting a story called 'The Stranger's Field'. Michaelson was later lynched from his bedroom window by three unspecified Brookside Close residents.