Fans and stars alike have taken to social media to demand that Brookside returns to screens after last night’s nostalgic crossover with fellow North West soap Hollyoaks.
On Wednesday, Hollyoaks aired a special crossover episode with iconic Brookside characters to celebrate its 30th anniversary, with key stars including Philip Olivier and Suzanne Collins returning for the episode, reprising their roles as as Tim ‘Tinhead’ O’Leary and Nikki Shadwick.
One of the biggest stars to emerge from the blockbuster eighties soap, Sue Johnston, was also back for the one-off special as matriarch Sheila Grant, a part she played from 1982 until 1990 alongside Paul Usher as Sheila’s bad-boy son Barry Grant, and John McArdle as her second husband, Billy Corkhill., and she was one of the biggest names to take to Twitter to call for a more permanent reinstatement:
BBC journalist Katy Lewis was in full agreement:
Many other fans were of a similar mind:
There was even a cameo role for Brookside and Hollyoaks (and Grange Hill) creator Phil Redmond:
Ahead of the soap crossover spectacular, Hollyoaks executive producer Hannah Cheers described the episode as a “love letter” to both soaps and expressed her gratitude to Redmond, who created. She said: “Brookside gave birth to Hollyoaks – it grew up on the same site and eventually took over its sets. For everyone at Lime Pictures [originally Mersey TV], Hollyoaks’ history is deeply rooted in Brookside, and its legacy lives on through our crew and, of course, some of our cast.
“This special feels like both a moving and fitting tribute to our origin story and a chance for fans to revisit much-loved Brookside. These iconic Brookside characters are soap archetypes that helped define British TV; soap archetypes that new generations are still discovering now through Hollyoaks.”
While the soap is normally available to watch early on Channel 4’s streaming platform, this week fans can only watch Hollyoaks when it airs at 7pm on E4.
We’ll give the last word to Johnston, although we don’t really think you need to ask, Sue:
