Crossroads was a British television soap opera set in a motel near Birmingham. It was first broadcast on ITV between 1964 and 1988.

The programme was made by ATV until the company lost its broadcast franchise at the end of 1981, and thereafter by ATV's successor Central. Very few archive recordings exist because ATV wiped and re-used most of the videotapes. The serial first aired five days a week, until the IBA decreed that the show would go to four airings a week in 1967. In 1979, Crossroads moved to three times a week.

It was subsequently revived as a Carlton Television production (Carlton having bought Central and acquired the rights to all ATV programmes) in 2001. The relaunched series was broadcast at 5PM on weekdays on ITV1, but did not receive the expected ratings and was finally cancelled in May 2003.

The main character in the original series was Meg Richardson, the motel's owner, played by Noele Gordon. Other major characters included charlady Amy Turtle (later satirised by Victoria Wood as "Mrs Overall"), chef Carlos, postman Vince Parker and his wife, waitress Diane. Mrs Richardson's children were Sandy, played by Roger Tonge and Jill, played by Jane Rossington. Mention of the characters cannot overlook the village-idiot Benny - whose trademark was a woolly hat worn all year around, or indeed the revolting shop-keepers - the Grices.

While the show had many fans (most notably Mary Wilson, the wife of former Prime Minister Harold Wilson), the show also had many vocal detractors, who criticized the show on everything from its amateurish actors to its "wobbly sets." However, the show still received high ratings numbers and survived for as long as it did on its large fan base.

During the Falklands War in 1982, British troops serving in the Islands nicknamed locals 'Bennies' after the programme's thick and fashion challenged character. When ordered not to do this by their commanding officers, the troops took to referring to the Islanders as 'Stills', on the grounds that they were 'Still Bennies'.

After Noele Gordon was sacked from the programme, it carried on with many of the same characters (and under the same name) until about 1985, when the show was remodeled slightly and given the new name Crossroads Motel. In 1987, in a final bid to reach defecting viewers, the stories of the villagers surrounding the motel were told, and the show was given yet another name change, as it became known as Crossroads: King's Oak. The show was finally canceled in 1988, with Jill riding off into the sunset with lover John Maddingham. As she left her motel behind for a new life in the West, she was asked what she would name the new motel she would be running. She remarked, "I always thought Crossroads was an awfully good name."

The show returned in 2001 as a Carlton Television production. On its return, the only familiar characters to reappear was the cleaner Doris Luke (Kathy Staff), Jill Richardson and her ex-husband Adam Chance (Tony Adams).

External links

Crossroads tribute website