Grange hill

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

Speaking of the name Rodney Bennett, did you know that the name of the rival boys' school was named after a BBC TV and radio director of the same name? It seems too much of a coincidence for a fictional school to have that name, methinks...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_Bennett

And I suppose that Brookdale seems rather similar to Brookside thanks to Phil Redmond...

[Moonraker]

Re: Grange hill

Use love watching the show. It began a year after I started at secondary school. I stopped watch the show when Zammo departed.
I also enjoyed Tucker's Luck, which was a series following the lives of Tucker Jenkins and friends after leaving school.

[80sChav]

Re: Grange hill

Hankin always reminded me of Charles Hawtrey when he started stopped wearing National Health glasses in the mid 1990s - he looked so much like him!

Interesting how many 1990s characters were in the series a lot longer than their 1980s counterparts - during the Tucker era there were so many changes of teaching staff on screen.

Also, compare 1978 with 1990: 1978 = Rankin vs 1990 = Hankin. Also, 1978 = Munro vs 1990 = Monroe. History repeating itself, methinks.

These are intersting points you raise here about Hankin/Rankin and Munroe/Monro, George

I always liked Mr Knowles to be fair/honest - he was more of a upil'ss friend than Sruffy I think in many way's - though as much as I love all GH - my era only realled began in 1984 onwards and a lot bored me prior to that - even Zammo's early years and i was never big on why people rated tucker, though saying that what Zammo and Jonah? (I think) did going to Rodney Bennett that afternoon was amazing Boy's own stuff I'd love to have done - messing about in lessons and getting a etention but avoiding it cos you never actualy went/go to that School!! Amazing!

80sChav

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

Hankin always reminded me of Charles Hawtrey when he started stopped wearing National Health glasses in the mid 1990s - he looked so much like him!

Interesting how many 1990s characters were in the series a lot longer than their 1980s counterparts - during the Tucker era there were so many changes of teaching staff on screen.

Also, compare 1978 with 1990: 1978 = Rankin vs 1990 = Hankin. Also, 1978 = Munro vs 1990 = Monroe. History repeating itself, methinks.

[80sChav]

Re: Grange hill

I think that she did - she did the sub-Jan Leeming / Moira Stewart newsreader stuff on BBC 2 I believe before she was poached by the other side, although I always think of Diamond as being an ITV presenter - she and Nick Owen (who just like lots of people back then, thought they were a married couple a la Richard and Judy) was to become the East Midlands presenters of Central News when the station was launched in 1982. But the East Midlands technicians went on strike, Bob Warman was seen again in that part of the region, and the East Midlands service launched the following year, around 18 months later. A huge Change (UK) of presenters if you excuse, the pun!

I saw Aran Bell in some 1991 episodes of The Bill (seen on YouTube), and you can see that even as a plainclothes police officer, he does look rather vulnerable to say the least. He appeared in a handful of episodes. I wish that he would have made it to a second series - after all, Scruffy McGuffy and the student teacher Knowles did, and that was a surprise in itself as I thought that he had "one series character" written all over him.

Some teachers' stints in the series are shorter than Calley Donnington's skirts! (circa 1988-1989).

Agreed George yeah - I would never of thought Mr Hankin would have made it past 1 Series and out of himself, Monroe and Mad Max hargreaves he beat off his nearest challenger in Monroe by 8 Series and finished up in 2nd place as the longest surving character super-seeded only by Mr Robson and his 16 years (though he was not on screen in Series 27) he was still "doing the rounds" as it was. Hankin even beat Mrs McClusky into 2nd place - by a Series or 2 (I allways forget if it was 11 or 12 Series she totted up) but Mr Hankin was in it for 12 years and to superseed Mrs M was an amazing achievement character-wise in my book

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

I think that she did - she did the sub-Jan Leeming / Moira Stewart newsreader stuff on BBC 2 I believe before she was poached by the other side, although I always think of Diamond as being an ITV presenter - she and Nick Owen (who just like lots of people back then, thought they were a married couple a la Richard and Judy) was to become the East Midlands presenters of Central News when the station was launched in 1982. But the East Midlands technicians went on strike, Bob Warman was seen again in that part of the region, and the East Midlands service launched the following year, around 18 months later. A huge Change (UK) of presenters if you excuse, the pun!

I saw Aran Bell in some 1991 episodes of The Bill (seen on YouTube), and you can see that even as a plainclothes police officer, he does look rather vulnerable to say the least. He appeared in a handful of episodes. I wish that he would have made it to a second series - after all, Scruffy McGuffy and the student teacher Knowles did, and that was a surprise in itself as I thought that he had "one series character" written all over him.

Some teachers' stints in the series are shorter than Calley Donnington's skirts! (circa 1988-1989).

[80sChav]

Re: Grange hill

Yes, but his name wasn't Selina, was it? It was a nickname of obvious reasons - a homage to Selina Scott who presented Breakfast Time (or did it become Breakfast News by then?).

At the start of the 1989 series, one of the characters said as she was flicking through the TV channels while getting ready for school "I hate Anne Diamond" - probably a way of the BBC slagging off one of their rivals TV-am.

Did'nt anne Diamond begin though on BBC Breakfast I thought then swapped sides George!?

If you thought Mr "Selina Scott" was inept though - try and watch Mixchael Barton from Series 24 and 25 - though particulary in 25 (Mrs Holmes' long lost son), he makes scott look like he is in control!!

80sChav

[80sChav]

Re: Grange hill

And don't forget GCE - Gripper's Cash Enterprise.

An another play on words - GHS (Gonch's Homework Service) too George!

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

And don't forget GCE - Gripper's Cash Enterprise.

[Clare]

Re: Grange hill

I remember Helen calling the new GCSEs, "General Collapse of Secondary Education".

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

They called him Selina!

Yes, but his name wasn't Selina, was it? It was a nickname of obvious reasons - a homage to Selina Scott who presented Breakfast Time (or did it become Breakfast News by then?).

At the start of the 1989 series, one of the characters said as she was flicking through the TV channels while getting ready for school "I hate Anne Diamond" - probably a way of the BBC slagging off one of their rivals TV-am.

[Clare]

Re: Grange hill

... referred to here as Leslie Scott in order to avoid confusion with Mr Phil Scott who was the 1987 science teacher who couldn't keep his class under control..

They called him Selina!

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

Yes, Clare/Claire Scott fancied Mr Hopwood, and her mum found her diary, and her dad went ballistic!

Now that would have made an excellent Adrian Mole storyline!

Great episode where Leslie Scott (Claire's father - referred to here as Leslie Scott in order to avoid confusion with Mr Phil Scott who was the 1987 science teacher who couldn't keep his class under control - ironically, the "humming" thing whoch was started by Gripper in the 1982 series was repeated in his class five years later by Trevor Cleaver in Phil Scott's class). Anyway, Leslie Scott shouted "Hopwood" at the aforementioned woodwork teacher and shouted at him "what the hell are you doing with my daughter?" or words to that affect. Hopwood truthfully says that he doesn't know what Claire's father is going on about - Pogo and Dwayne fetches Baxter for support, asks if Hopwood is alright. Scott senior apologies to Hopwood later. Pre-1985 merger, it certainly took its own punches in storylines.

Of course, the Dwayne Orpington and Lexington thing was nothing like that of course - Lexington was in the previous series and the succeeding one, but not in series 5 in 1982 - ironic considering the sponsored spell / raise £1,200 for a new computer storyline as she would have been useful in those episodes - he was replaced by a Mr Price (who is not to be confused with the Welsh farmer that we get to meet in the following series as a result of Roland "skiving off" on his Wales trip because of his bad ankle.

[80sChav]

Re: Grange hill

Though it is only just out of DYM's remitt - i have been re-annayising Series 25 and can honestly say it even eclipses my (long long standing favourite Series 10 from 1987) and that is no mean feat - though Series 10 has 6 Episodes more and was 15 years before - it was still amazing too

I don't know if though I'll ever get over what happened at the end of Series 25 and never knowing who really died/perished in that Fire as so many long standing 90s cast that was likie a Family either left or never got a true mention of if they died - like take Mr Hankin, who gave 12 years loyal Service/Ray was an on-off regular from 1991 to 1993 too and then from 97 to 2002) after that short 4 year break.

I think it was said in Series 25 60 perished/died in the Fire and Ozzie/Vikki and Lisa and Tom was almost certainly too close to comfort to the Fire upon re-watching the final episode/final few minute. Deverill did survive - as it was mentioned in '03 he should be rotting (or similar) in his own PRF eating porridge (idealy in Jail and for mass Manslaughter I'd hope if there was 60 who passed away) , though of course Mrs Carver-Robso and Mr Robson survived as Jayne gave berth the following Series to the now 16 year old Clara-Robson-Carver. Who else died though - is too too hard to call I feel, but I also feel if Grange Hill never returns as it was (at least from Todd Carty's stance about the issues being brodcast at Tea-time being too strong to broadcast) that the last thing Phil can give us as a final final send off - is a spin-off so we really knew what happened between 25 and 26 wityh the remaining cast of S25 ..... and as it has happened many a time with Hollyoaks though I know it's swearing in GH lingo 0, it is going on for 20 years in 3 years - so please Phil, just give us fans one one last answer, to resolve so many broken hearts if any chance of a GH revival is off - as I now fear it will be!

[George 1978]

Re: Grange hill

I saw recently on the IMDB that Anna Quayle (Mrs Monroe in the early 1990s series) had made a guest appearance on Una Stubbs' team on Give us a Clue back in 1982, and that actually made me think that Quayle was the only person to appear on both GH and GUAC - two programmes that had Chicken Man as their original theme tune! (Although the episodes that she appeared in had long abandoned that tune by then). There may have been one or two others, but I can't think of anyone else at the moment.