The Guardian from London, Greater London, England • 73

16 1 ArtsTelevision Close encounters Sieges, kidnappings, the body under the patio, Sheila's rape, that infamous lesbian kiss at its height Brookside was unmissable, says Garefh McLean. But now that is all about to end reader offer Make picture taking easy with this fully automatic camera from Minolta. The Riva Zoom 90 makes all the decisions for you automatically focusing and setting the exposure, as. well as auto-loading, advancing and rewinding the film. The 2.4 zoom (38 90mm range) enables wide-angle vistas to be photographed as well as telephoto close ups.

Features also include an automatic flash with a red eye reduction, a night portrait mode, plus a self-timer. A free 35mm colour film Is included with the camera, as well as a carry case, wrist strap and battery. Measures 120 71 49mm (4 2 declared war on us and we must not be found Simon Howe kidnapped Barry Grant and tried to make Katie Rogers sleep with Terry Sullivan. When that didn't work he detonated a home-made bomb. You may also recall that Mick Johnson was held hostage by his stalker, Jenny, in 1996.

Amid all the desperate sensationalism with which it has become synonymous, it's easy to forget what a brave and brilliant soap Brookside once was. If soaps are the way the nation talks to itself, Brookside spoke of the concerns raised by the emergence of Thatcherism. When it began, Coronation Street was a real and true reflection of life on the backstreets of Manchester. Brookside did the same for Liverpool. In Bobby and Sheila Grant, it had Old Labour, working-class credentials.

In Billy and Doreen Corkhill, the aspiring lower-middle-class were represented. The conflicts between the two families were being played out all over the country. The issues being raised were rearing up everywhere. With the flight of Coronation Street into a rosy, cosy universe, Brookside was one of the few depictions of working-class life on television. It's been said that Brookside and EastEnders which Brookside effectively made possible are the heirs of the socially relevant television drama of the 60s.

zoom Minolta Riva Zoom 90 Camera, just 64.99, saving 35 on rrp quote TG685 Qty Orand Total Reader Offers or debit my MastercardVisa account Expiry Date GuarrJanD a rjthorarjprrAaJ organisations do you rjuyTnoObsarwrtD TQ688 happen. And probably will. Phil Redmond, the soap's creator, said that Brookside died on February 17 1998. That night, he dined in a London restaurant with Michael Jackson, Channel 4's then chief executive and the man blamed by Redmond for shunting the soap about the schedule. "We spent 10 minutes trying to get a table that Michael was happy with," Redmond said.

"I thought to myself, 'If they take 10 minutes to find a table rather than discuss what we are going to do with the programme, I'm on to a loser He was. These days, there's a nasty character in Brookside called Jack Michaelson (do you see what they did there?) who will meet a grisly end just before the show does on November 4. Not before time, you might say. The last siege wasn't, after all, the first one. In 1985, Pat Hancock, Sandra Maghie and Kate Moses were held at gunpoint in number seven.

Pat and Sandra were eventually released but the gunman killed Kate and then himself. Between then and now, it's not as if it's been an everyday tale of suburban folks. Number Five, remember, was taken over by a religious cult headed by the least charismatic charismatic ever. Intent on spreading his version of the Word forces of darkness have If past performance is any kind of measure, Brookside will go out with a bang. Quite possibly a nuclear one.

A dirty bomb at the garage, perhaps. Planted by Merseyside fundamentalists fighting for a free Birkenhead, it will make Manor Park a no-go area for decades to come. ItH be Threads all over again. After 21 years, the (net) curtains are indeed falling on Brookside. A year ago, after it gave the show a l.5m relaunch to commemmorate its two decades in existence, Channel 4 announced it was to evict the Close residents from their thrice-weekly primetime location and shunt them into a Saturday teatime omnibus.

Not long after this proclamation, a police helicopter surveying a siege in which practically everyone was held hostage by drug-crazed armed robbers crashed. Not long after that, Brookside was again moved, this time to a late-night midweek slot. There was much deliberation or at least the appearance of deliberation at Channel 4 over its fate. "No one wants to kill off a soap opera) so we're, looking at different options," John Yorke, the channel's head of drama said in June, shortly before killing it off. Now, Brookside can be seen on Tuesday nights at around a quarter to midnight.

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