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Crossroads - changes in the 1980s


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Old 20-09-2014, 17:45
Matt_1979
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I was eight when Crossroads was axed and I only have memories of the series from around 1986 onwards. I remember, even at the age of eight, that I disliked the change to Crossroads Kings Oak and the new music.

I have recently seen clips from Open Air in 1987 where fans were complaining to the producer that they didn't like Bomber Lancaster and the Grice family, but I can't think why viewers didn't like them - they were all proper Brummies and I don't think there had been many characters with Birmingham accents in Crossroads for a while.

From what I have read, the last changes to Crossroads, with the new name and music, were an attempt to make the series more classier and that the producer wanted to eventually rename the series Kings Oak, but I think this was going too far - why would he want to change the soap so it focused on the whole village? It was taking Crossroads too far from its original concept.
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Old 20-09-2014, 20:20
Spin turn
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The original Crossroads had an amateurish charm, with wonky scenery, naff acting and daft plots. I stopped watching around 1985. I looked at a 1987 episode on youtube and it is barely recognisable. I guess the whole motel concept was very dated and they were trying to move away from that, but in doing the programme lost its individuality and character.
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Old 20-09-2014, 20:41
Matt_1979
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The original Crossroads had an amateurish charm, with wonky scenery, naff acting and daft plots. I stopped watching around 1985. I looked at a 1987 episode on youtube and it is barely recognisable. I guess the whole motel concept was very dated and they were trying to move away from that, but in doing the programme lost its individuality and character.
A good point. When I saw early 80s Crossroads episodes on UK Gold in the late 90s they seemed very different to what I remembered. I agree that the programme lost its individuality and character.

Some scenes in the 1970s episodes I have seen recently on YouTube do seem a bit daft
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Old 21-09-2014, 14:21
BritFlicks1
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ATV became Central Independent in 1982 and they couldn't have been less interested in Crossroads. I always felt sorry for Noele Gordon - all those years on the show then being told she wasn't wanted anymore.
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Old 21-09-2014, 15:08
Face Of Jack
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I was a great fan of 'Crossroads' in the 70s & 80's (bar the final Kings Oak travesty!)
It was VERY popular in its heyday, often beating 'Coronation Street' in the ratings. I agree it lost its way by putting most of the focus on Kings Oak Village instead of the Motel - we had Emmerdale and High Road for all that stuff anyway!
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Old 21-09-2014, 22:48
Old Bloke
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Most motels these days seem to have only one member of staff - a bored receptionist who is hardly ever behind the desk! It wouldn't make for much of a series.
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Old 21-09-2014, 23:01
sally_bowles
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A good point. When I saw early 80s Crossroads episodes on UK Gold in the late 90s they seemed very different to what I remembered. I agree that the programme lost its individuality and character.

Some scenes in the 1970s episodes I have seen recently on YouTube do seem a bit daft
it may look daft now, but the difference was it was loved by millions, it was huge in the midlands and the viewers cared about the characters. it really was at its height in the mid 70's and knocked corrie off the top spot and nolly gordon was the face of crossroads and indeed atv.
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Old 21-09-2014, 23:47
Face Of Jack
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it may look daft now, but the difference was it was loved by millions, it was huge in the midlands and the viewers cared about the characters. it really was at its height in the mid 70's and knocked corrie off the top spot and nolly gordon was the face of crossroads and indeed atv.
Quite true Sally - Noele Gordon was the STAR of the show - as was the Motel!
Young viewers now wont appreciate the soap that it was - it never had murders or rapes every week!! Although it had them every now and again - which were more dramatic! They also had 'disaster' story-lines including a bomb-explosion and Fires, and crazy storylines like psychic landladies, ghosts and murderous husbands coming back from the dead!! It was pure fun!! Think 'Sunset Beach' in the Midlands !!
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Old 22-09-2014, 00:10
sally_bowles
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Quite true Sally - Noele Gordon was the STAR of the show - as was the Motel!
Young viewers now wont appreciate the soap that it was - it never had murders or rapes every week!! Although it had them every now and again - which were more dramatic! They also had 'disaster' story-lines including a bomb-explosion and Fires, and crazy storylines like psychic landladies, ghosts and murderous husbands coming back from the dead!! It was pure fun!! Think 'Sunset Beach' in the Midlands !!
like that jack, sunset beach.

i remember meg and hugh's wedding in 1975 and thousands turned up outside the church to wish them well.
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Old 22-09-2014, 00:42
CPW4EVER
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I recently had something of a Crossroads binge with all of the content available on YouTube. There's lots of really good interview and documentary stuff that's been uploaded. The story of it's final years and attempts at revamp is quite interesting and a good look at some of the convoluted politics involved in a television show. The cast all openly acknowledge that the network wanted rid of the show despite it delivering solid ratings and producer Phillip Bowman said that the head of drama didn't actually want him to improve the show, just change it. He'd actually planned on bringing back Noele Gordon but she sadly passed away before anything was filmed. I was only 4 when the original show went off the air so my only knowledge of the show is what I've read and what I've seen online. I quite like the Kings Oak theme but I'd imagine that die hard fans hated it as it was such a change from the original.
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Old 22-09-2014, 18:13
dd68
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I think they got it right with the 1985 changes, and should have let it progress from there, the late 1986 revamp was one too far
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Old 22-09-2014, 18:22
The_Sleeper
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I had the hots for Miss Diane , back in those good old days, & no my names not BENNY
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Old 22-09-2014, 20:02
Matt_1979
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I was a great fan of 'Crossroads' in the 70s & 80's (bar the final Kings Oak travesty!)
It was VERY popular in its heyday, often beating 'Coronation Street' in the ratings. I agree it lost its way by putting most of the focus on Kings Oak Village instead of the Motel - we had Emmerdale and High Road for all that stuff anyway!
I had heard how popular Crossroads was in the 1970s and I the changes were all a bad idea. I agree with you about the final "Kings Oak" months being a travesty. The opening titles and theme tune were awful and the programme just doesn't seem like Crossroads any more.
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Old 22-09-2014, 20:06
Matt_1979
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I think they got it right with the 1985 changes, and should have let it progress from there, the late 1986 revamp was one too far
I agree. The 1985 titles and revamped theme music worked really well, but William Smethurst changed too many things and the way Miss Diane was killed off was uncecessary. Although Susan Hanson wanted to leave, she didn't want to be killed off, but "Butcher Bill" as he became known said it would be good for the rating if Diane was killed off.

I know Kath Fellowes (formerly Brownlow) and her second husband Stephen were also axed in 1987.

Did the Grice family who I can remember quite well from around 1987 (in the last few months before the "Kings Oak" change) stay with the programme until the axing?
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Old 23-09-2014, 14:02
Markjuk
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I was only 4 when the original show went off the air so my only knowledge of the show is what I've read and what I've seen online. I quite like the Kings Oak theme but I'd imagine that die hard fans hated it as it was such a change from the original.
It went off air on the week of my 10th Birthday!
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Old 23-09-2014, 14:52
Face Of Jack
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The 1985 re-boot was the best era of the 80's.......which only lasted around 18 months!
Philip Bowman turned it round big-style! Suddenly, we had a new-look classy motel - inside and out. A new owner Nicola Freeman with big hair and shoulder pads along with a spoilt brat of a step son and loopy step daughter! A lot more location work - and it also kept the OTT storylines from previous 70's - style (the brain-washing "Inner Light" story anyone???) but they kept them belieavable! It's ratings went up again too from the previous "Purple Odeon Era". Unfortunately Philip got sacked by Central TV (due to personal reasons?!?)
Enter Smethurst the grim reaper.......and he killed Diane off because he didn't like the actress!!
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Old 23-09-2014, 14:58
Markjuk
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The 1985 re-boot was the best era of the 80's.......which only lasted around 18 months!
Philip Bowman turned it round big-style! Suddenly, we had a new-look classy motel - inside and out. A new owner Nicola Freeman with big hair and shoulder pads along with a spoilt brat of a step son and loopy step daughter! A lot more location work - and it also kept the OTT storylines from previous 70's - style (the brain-washing "Inner Light" story anyone???) but they kept them belieavable! It's ratings went up again too from the previous "Purple Odeon Era". Unfortunately Philip got sacked by Central TV (due to personal reasons?!?)
Enter Smethurst the grim reaper.......and he killed Diane off because he didn't like the actress!!
Like this episode from 1985

http://dai.ly/xph2f1
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Old 24-09-2014, 20:32
Matt_1979
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The 1985 re-boot was the best era of the 80's.......which only lasted around 18 months!
Philip Bowman turned it round big-style! Suddenly, we had a new-look classy motel - inside and out. A new owner Nicola Freeman with big hair and shoulder pads along with a spoilt brat of a step son and loopy step daughter! A lot more location work - and it also kept the OTT storylines from previous 70's - style (the brain-washing "Inner Light" story anyone???) but they kept them belieavable! It's ratings went up again too from the previous "Purple Odeon Era". Unfortunately Philip got sacked by Central TV (due to personal reasons?!?)
Enter Smethurst the grim reaper.......and he killed Diane off because he didn't like the actress!!
From what I have seen of the Philip Bowman era, it does seem the best. I have never heard of the "Inner Light" story - this sounds rather interesting.

I didn't realise Butcher Bill Smethurst killed off Diane because he didn't like the actress. He ruined the programme and I don't see the point of the Kings Oak changes.
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Old 24-09-2014, 20:47
dd68
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I actually enjoyed it around this time
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Old 26-09-2014, 08:10
CPW4EVER
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There's one of the Kings Oaks era episodes that I saw on YouTube that really makes me laugh as Smethurst was obviously desperate to drag the show upmarket. The episode is littered with references to somebody having tickets to a "jazz concert" while the details of a rather fancy sounding gourmet menu are rhymed off as someone comments that it will go down with the "Stratford set". It's all so desperately clunky. I saw another Kings Oak episode where Nicola Freeman shows up. What was her story arc? Was she a Bowman creation who Smethurst axed and then brought back?
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Old 26-09-2014, 09:33
anndra_w
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The show had a bit of a revamp around 1985 and I've seen some of these episodes with Nicola Freeman coming to takeover the motel etc. I thought these episodes were good but watching the 1987 Kings Oak episodes and the Lancanster's didn't really work for me. Crossroads needed a strong female character in the lead not a loud mouthed Brummie. Meg was never much of a Brummie and Crossroads was always more of a middle class soap than working class shows like Corrie or EastEnders.
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Old 26-09-2014, 13:41
CPW4EVER
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The show had a bit of a revamp around 1985 and I've seen some of these episodes with Nicola Freeman coming to takeover the motel etc. I thought these episodes were good but watching the 1987 Kings Oak episodes and the Lancanster's didn't really work for me. Crossroads needed a strong female character in the lead not a loud mouthed Brummie. Meg was never much of a Brummie and Crossroads was always more of a middle class soap than working class shows like Corrie or EastEnders.
From the episodes I've seen, I quite liked Lisa Lancaster but she's the only one of that family that I could stand to watch. I read that Smethurst thought that the hotel should be a family business again which is why he brought in the Lancasters and removed Nicola. The Kings Oak episode that I saw had her returning to some big house in the village but I couldn't work out if she'd been off screen for a few years or just a brief break. From what I've seen, I quite like Nicola as a figurehead for the show. Another of Smethurst's bright ideas was to bring back Amy Turtle. I know that she was beloved by many fans but I don't know which is worse in this scene, the acting or the dialogue. http://youtu.be/3qqCRaHGMmA
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