Grange Hill

[Bobtoo]

Not while her who plays Rosie Webster exists she's not.

I don't think I've seen her, but I'll be astounded if she's worse than the guy who plays Dev.

[Jockice]

I don't think I've seen her, but I'll be astounded if she's worse than the guy who plays Dev.

Actually, Maureen Lipman was in it recently and she managed to out-overact Dev. In a bad way. The way the papers had gone on about her when she left the Labour Party for the 17th time shortly before (and which had undoubtedly led to her getting the part), you'd have thought she was the female equivalent of Sir John Gielgud rather than someone basically vaguely remembered for a sitcom nearly four decades ago and an advert a few years after that.

I know, I know. I'm an anti-semite.

[Jockice]

It never had a reputation for bad acting though, did it? I suspect Phil Redmond was probably quite a tough judge.

Apart from Gripper most of the bullies weren't very good. But Gripper was a hard act to top.

[MiddleRabbit]

Most of what I remember has already been noted.  Oddly enough, banal as it was/is, what often springs to mind is when Claire got nits and we learned that nits prefer clean hair.  Didn't come as a surprise to me: I never had nits and I avoided washing my hair as much as possible.

[turnstyle]

The aforementioned fibreglass/asbestos story line stuck with me for YEARS. What a weird thing for my brain to hold onto. I remember some yob bullies stuffed some down a classmates jumper.

I started watching Grange Hill before I started secondary school, because it just followed on from all the the BBC kids programs. It used to scare the shit out of me. There you were, watching some Jamie and His Magic Torch and The Raccoons or whatever, and then BAM - drugs, bullying, death, bad hair, right in your pubescent face.

I was convinced that secondary school was basically a lawless dystopia where kids in leather jackets roamed the halls, punching small urchins in the throat, and making them do 'the drugs'. I had no idea what drugs were, I just knew that they would KILL YOU, and make you steal stuff from your Mum.

[Norton Canes]

The storylines that stick with me most (in that unlike the others I remember them at all) are the ones where a GH contingent would sneak into another school during lesson time and inevitable get collared by one of the school's teachers in a corridor and end up dragged into one of the lessons. There was definitely something unsettling about having to do that.

[pigamus]

Remember when Mrs McClusky turned up in A Touch of Frost?

[jamiefairlie]

The storylines that stick with me most (in that unlike the others I remember them at all) are the ones where a GH contingent would sneak into another school during lesson time and inevitable get collared by one of the school's teachers in a corridor and end up dragged into one of the lessons. There was definitely something unsettling about having to do that.

Jonah and Zammo did that twice in Rodney Bennet, aided by Jonah's cousin Jeremy (he of later drowning fame). Could have been done again later too.

[Phoenix Lazarus]

I remember a funny touch in one of Phil Redmond's characters.  One of the characters-I think either Tucker or a school-friend-
mentions that they're going to watch 'that programme' tonight, 'that one about kids at school....'

[Spoon of Ploff]

Mr Bronson gets a lot of bad press, but lets not forget how he saved the day when Roland was late for his French exam (thanks to that c*nt Zammo nicking his alarm clock to sell for smack or whatever). Bronson practically begging the examiner to cut the kid a break. He gets a moment to feel something like job satisfaction when the examiner congratulates him on being such a good teacher later... only for it to be taken away by yet another selfish little scrote having a go at him about homework or timetables or something.

Danny should have just been the start. You should have slain so many more of them Mr Bronson sir.

Also. While researching this came across the following bit in an interview he gave (which appears on Grange Hill Gold):

I've just accepted a film role as a Transvestite Porno movie Producer who decides to go commercial and make a Hollywood Blockbuster. It's very interesting, but the language!

Imagine him playing that role as Mr Bronson, what he gets up to at the weekend to supplement his income.

[Replies From View]

Remembrance of the Daleks is in Grange Hill canon too, of course.

[Spoon of Ploff]

Remembrance of the Daleks is in Grange Hill canon too, of course.

Originally it was Imelda Davis that got enslaved to the Dalek battle computer. But she scared them too much so they had to let her go.

[Replies From View]

Did you know that Imelda Davis was introduced to Grange Hill in a Christmas Special?

Well she was.

[SteveDave]

Michael Sheard's autobiography was one of the most poorly written books I ever read.

Buying it from a remainder bookshop (that had an adult shop above it) in Newport should've warned me of this.

[Replies From View]

Michael Sheard's autobiography was one of the most poorly written books I ever read.

Buying it from a remainder bookshop (that had an adult shop above it) in Newport should've warned me of this.

Only trust remainder bookshops that have an adult shop below them.

[kalowski]

Michael Sheard's autobiography was one of the most poorly written books I ever read.

Buying it from a remainder bookshop (that had an adult shop above it) in Newport should've warned me of this.

Do you still get those second hand bookstores with an adult section behind the bearded curtain?
Manchester used to be full of them, but a bit of gentrification around by the Printworks seems to have for rid of them.

[Andy147]

I remember a funny touch in one of Phil Redmond's characters.  One of the characters-I think either Tucker or a school-friend-
mentions that they're going to watch 'that programme' tonight, 'that one about kids at school....'

Tucker watches what sounds like Grange Hill in "Forty Days of Tucker J" a couple of times.

[jamiefairlie]

Do you still get those second hand bookstores with an adult section behind the bearded curtain?
Manchester used to be full of them, but a bit of gentrification around by the Printworks seems to have for rid of them.

"bearded curtain" brings lots of images very vividly to mind :-)