| Damon and Debbie | |
|---|---|
 Damon presents Debbie with some roses | |
| Created by | Phil Redmond |
| Written by | Frank Cottrell-Boyce |
| Directed by | Bob Carlton |
| Starring | Simon O'Brien Gillian Kearney |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 3 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Colin McKeown |
| Running time | 50 mins |
| Original release | |
| Network | Channel 4 |
| Release | 4 November (1987-11-04) – 18 November 1987 (1987-11-18) |
| Related | |
| Brookside | |
Damon and Debbie is a three-part spin-off from theChannel 4 soap operaBrookside first broadcast in November 1987. AMersey Television production, it was written byFrank Cottrell-Boyce, directed byBob Carlton, and produced by Colin McKeown. The series is credited as the first 'soap bubble'.[1][2]
The series followed teen sweethearts Damon Grant (Simon O'Brien) and Debbie McGrath (Gillian Kearney) as they absconded toYork to escape their disapproving parents inLiverpool who objected to the relationship because of the class divide. It ended with the death of Damon, who had been a regular character inBrookside since its launch in 1982.
Damon and Debbie was developed in response to several factors, according toBrookside creatorPhil Redmond.[3] Firstly, the producers were keen to develop further "high-octane storylines" having seen the audience and media response to 1985's siege storyline, in which nurses Pat, Sandra and Kate were held hostage in their home, concluding in the latter's murder. ActorSimon O'Brien, who had playedDamon Grant since the show's first episode in 1982, said he not only wished to leave the show, but requested that his character be killed off. Additionally the intention was to celebrateBrookside's fifth anniversary in November 1987, and the production team and executives were keen to mark the occasion.[3]
The Grant family had recently featured in major storylines, particularly the rape ofSheila Grant (played bySue Johnston), and Damon was used to illustrate the problems of theThatcher ministry'sYouth Training Scheme (YTS), which saw Damon, who expected to be employed by a firm for whom he had worked for low wages, but being told that the company were simply going to replace him with further cheap labour at the end of his service in the scheme. Following both of these storylines, executive producer Phil Redmond suggests, Damon's departure would have to be "something a bit special".[4]
The producers developed the idea of a 'soap bubble', a term which Redmond credits to Channel 4 executiveDavid Rose,[5] so that the multi-stranded narrative ofBrookside would continue during the standard episodes, with two characters co-existing in a separate production.Damon and Debbie is generally recognised as the first instance of a UK soap opera expanding its narrative world in such a way.[6] According to Annie Leask ofThe Sunday Mirror, the spin-off was a result of the characters' popularity with the viewing public.[7]
The character of Debbie McGrath (Gillian Kearney) was introduced intoBrookside as Damon Grant's girlfriend. Her being younger than Damon caused friction between the parents of both characters, alongside a class-divide, a plot-line which saw one critic refer to it as like "Romeo and Juliet in trackies".[8] When their parents objected to them dating, the couple decided to elope fromLiverpool toYork, an adventure which was depicted inDamon and Debbie.
Filming took place over six weeks.[9] The scenes in which Debbie attends an open day were filmed on 19 September 1987 at theUniversity of York. The same corridor was used several times for the scenes in which Damon tries to find her, with the furniture rearranged to make it appear different each time, and a stunt double called Jason Housecroft was used for scenes of Damon running away from the camera down the corridor. The computer graphic ("Damon loves Debbie") that Debbie programs within a few minutes was programmed by Charles Forsyth.[10]
The three-part series was broadcast late on Wednesday evenings onChannel 4 in November 1987, with anomnibus edition screened over the Christmas period of that year.
| No. | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Carlton | Frank Cottrell Boyce | 4 November 1987 (1987-11-04) | |
Having run away from their parents in Liverpool, Damon and Debbie squat on a boat moored on theRiver Ouse in York. They have chosen York because it is the home of one of the universities Debbie wishes to attend. Their aims are for Debbie to go to university whilst Damon begins a painter/decorator business. In the meantime, Damon works in the Dick Turpin-themed Burger Bar in Coney Street,[11] managed by Lettuce (Siobhan Maher). One day, while Debbie attends an open day at theUniversity of York, the boat's owner returns and sails away with all of their belongings, including her medication. Meanwhile, in Liverpool, Debbie's family, who are hostile towards Damon, begin the hunt for them after discovering a University of York prospectus in her bedroom. | ||||
| 2 | Bob Carlton | Frank Cottrell Boyce | 11 November 1987 (1987-11-11) | |
The couple visitMorecambe withGothpapadum-packer Jenny (Michelle Holmes), whom Debbie had met at the open day, and her husband, computer programmer Kirk (Ian Ormsby-Knox). They then move toBradford, where Damon works as a groundsman at theValley Parade football ground (reflecting, in aninterior monologue, upon thefire there a year earlier). In Bradford, they stay with friends Patrick (Lyndam Gregory) and Apala (Seeta Indrani). In a montage they are seen visiting what was then theNational Museum of Photography, Film and Television. Throughout the episode, Debbie, who has kept herdiabetes secret from Damon, tries to locate a pharmacy to obtaininsulin, having left her own supply on the boat in York. When she finds her medical bag and injects herself with her medicine, Damon wrongly concludes that she is adrug addict, and he leaves the house. | ||||
| 3 | Bob Carlton | Frank Cottrell Boyce | 18 November 1987 (1987-11-18) | |
Debbie's uncles continue their search for the couple, finally tracking them down after they return to York. The series concludes when, after a mock marriage in a hotel room, Damon is stabbed by an unknown assailant on a dark riverbank and dies in Debbie's arms. | ||||
Following the broadcast ofDamon and Debbie, the storyline returned toBrookside. Police are seen arriving to break the news toSheila Grant (Sue Johnston) in episode 529, broadcast on 23 November 1987.[12] Debbie returned toBrookside, and Damon's funeral was featured in the episode ofBrookside broadcast on 1 December. Crosby actor Jonathan Comer, the extra who played the part of Damon's killer, began to receive threatening phone calls and hate mail shortly after the episode was broadcast.[13]
The music played over the opening and closing credits was written by Steve Wright, who had also written theBrookside theme. Dani Ali performed "Talk to Me", a song written for the show's closing credits, on episodes one and three, with a recording by English singer-songwriterAnnabel Lamb accompanying the credits of episode two. Both versions of the song were releases on the Ariola label throughBMG; Ali's version as the A-side, with Lamb's version on side B (titled "Her Song").[14] The single peaked at no. 110 on the UK Singles Chart.[15] The title was also the closing spoken line of dialogue in all three episodes.