TV classics - Dream Team

IN OCTOBER 1997, Sky One and Hewland International came together to produce a football drama that no-one can live upto.  For ten years, viewers were gripped by ‘Dream Team,’ a series focusing on the events of a fictional club in the West Midlands, Harchester United.  For the first time ever, viewers got to see the makings of a football club and what really happens behind the cameras.  The show ended in June 2007, after 419 episodes full of murder, explosions, shootings, affairs, gambling addictions, pregnancy, battles for controls, match-fixing, bribery and murder trials.  Yep, Dream Team pretty much covered every base possible.  You wouldn’t want to be around this football club, because ten years of drama at Harchester United feels like the drama of an average family in their lifetime put together!

LOGO: HUFC emblem

     Dream Team began on Tuesday 15 October 1997, initially making two 30 minute episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.  The first series focused on the youth team, but for the following nine series, attention switched to the senior squad.  From series four (2000) onwards, the show moved into a successful one-hour Sunday evening slot.  At the height of its peak, Dream Team was Sky One’s most watched programme, with nearly two million (good figures) for a Sky show tuning into the series four finale, which culminated in the murder of unpopular chairman Prashant Dattani (Ramon Tinkram).

      The match action was used with permission from the FA Premier League and use of the Sky Sports archives, with a lot of the filming taking place at Millwall’s New Den ground.  The show proved the fronting ground for a lot of talented actors and actresses.  Jamie Lomas and Ricky Whittle became Hollyoaks icons, Rob Kazinsky likewise in EastEnders.  Duncan Pow is a hit with the Holby City fans, Stefan Dennis was the owner for a season in his break from playing evil Paul Robinson in Neighbours and Chucky Venice went into a similar show; Footballers Wives, after his Dream Team experience.  There were also a series of guest appearances from familiar football faces including Dennis Wise, Andy Gray, Harry Redknapp, Neil Warnock, Richard Keys and Alan Curbishley.

     The football might have been reality, but the off-field sagas that gripped the show were spectacular enough.  In series five, Harchester's first-team squad was travelling to the airport for the UEFA Cup final against AC Milan when it crashed off the M1.  Three first-team squad members were killed.  The following year, goalkeeper Jamie Parker (Jim Alexander) held the first-team hostage in 'The Siege,' in some of Dream Team's finest and grittiest scenes to be filmed.  After a tense stand-off with police, Parker was eventually gunned down to his death.

      The two most popular characters in the history of Dream Team were Lynda Block and Karl Fletcher.  Played by Alison King (now better known for playing Carla Connor in Coronation Street) and Terry Kiely, they were stalwarts in the show from its early beginnings.  Kiely’s character, Karl Fletcher was in the show from the first series and became instantly known for his ‘playboy’ lifestyle.  His character was a goal machine, helping Harchester to FA Cup success in 1998.  After an unhappy stint in Spain, playing for Real Mallorca, Fletch returned to Harchester and was accused of the murder of Dattani at the start of series five.  At the resulting trial, he was found guilty of his murder, before Lynda came clean at the last moment to reveal it was her who had struck the final blow.  Rather than be angry with her, Fletch and Lynda went onto have a steamy affair, but Sam Irving (Stefan Dennis) found out and called off the nuptials between him and Lynda at the altar.  With Lynda in jail, serving time for Dattani’s murder, Fletch went onto marry physiotherapist Abi O’Leary (Rachel Brady), and looked set to settle down at long last.  However, a crippling tax bill and a power struggle against manager Patrick Doyle (Shaun Scott) led to Fletch departing at the end of the sixth series for Saudi Arabia, in a bid to solve his money troubles.  He eventually divorced Abi, after she had a fling with French footballer Marcel Sabatier.  In series eight, Fletch returned to Harchester unexpectedly, but was struggling for fitness and was never deranged manager Don Barker’s favourite person.  In a showdown for supremacy, Barker murdered Fletcher in the changing room against a coat rail in the penultimate episode of series eight. 

     Lynda Block arrived in series two, as the wife of Chairman Jerry Block.  She got bored with Jerry quickly, and was soon having a sizzling affair with Latino player-manager Luis Amor Rodriguez (Martin Crunes) in one of Dream Team’s greatest ever storylines.  When Jerry’s dodgy dealings were exposed in series three, Lynda took over as chairwoman, but broke up with Luis when he went to play in Argentina for Boca Juniors.  So, Lynda continued her likings in Harchester managers, and went onto bed Ray Wyatt (Mark Moraghan), destroying his marriage.  However, series four was a power struggle for Lynda, with regular run-ins with the unpopular Dattani and a financial crisis that in the end saw her lose control of the club.  To compound matters, her affair with Ray was exposed to the press and sleazy local journalist Paul Hankin.  The resulting stress caused her to lose the baby she and Ray had been expecting.  In the final episode, Lynda’s patience finally snapped and she killed Dattani and ended up in jail at the end of the following series.  Series five was more of the same, with Lynda serving her time in prison after the breakup of her potential marriage to Sam Irving, as she was carrying on with Fletch.  She was released on a technicality three years later, on the day of Harchester’s darkest moment.

     The match-fixing scandal in the 2003-2004 campaign, caused by controversial chief executive Pilar Hernandez (Marem Hernandez) and bitter ex-player Stuart Naysmith (Terence Maynard) led to a chain of events which ultimately conspired to the death of the HUFC squad in Cardiff.  UEFA relegated Harchester United to the Coca Cola Championship and sweeping changes for the pre-season saw the feisty Don Barker (Jon Morrison) come in as the club’s new manager.  From the outset, Barker did things his own way and wouldn’t take any prisoners.  Clyde Connolly (Timothy Smith) couldn’t take it and jumped off the stadium after a Champions League match and Barker eventually lost his job over a sex scandal.  Having taken a position as West Ham’s director of football, Barker’s ultimate aim was to finish off Harchester.  He killed Fletch, revealed the secret of an affair between Ryan Naysmith (Ricky Whittle) and Chelsea Wright (Karen Ferrari) which drove nutty Viv Wright (Phillip Brodie) into a fit before the Championship playoff final.  After Harchester beat West Ham 1-0 to secure their place back in the Premiership, Barker wasn’t going to take it lying down.  So, he drove his cordoned off BMW, with petrol cans and Fletch’s body in the boot into the Harchester team coach.  The coach exploded, killing all but three of the first-team squad.

     Sadly, despite a new look and new characters, the glory days of Dream Team had come to an end.  Storylines either got boring or more sensationalised and in April 2006, it was decided that the show would be axed after a tenth and final series.  The tenth series focused on a storyline which evolved around the ‘Dragonslayer,’ a mysterious individual, exposing the secrets of the club.  The show bowed out with the offices of the Dragons Lair, Harchester’s ground going up in flames thanks to a dropped cigarette.  It was a disappointing conclusion, as no-one knew whether the ground exploded, killing thousands or Harchester won the Premier League title on the last day of the season.

     Dream Team certainly had its day and was quality football drama.  It has every right to be called a ‘TV Classic,’ especially if you liked the match action, attractive women and dramatic cliff-hangers.  Although a campaign for the ten series on DVD to be released has failed, the fictional legacy of Harchester United remains in the blood of many fans of the show.  There may be no revival, but the memories will remain forever.

More information on Harchester United can be found at http://www.harchester.net/ and http://www.harchester.tv/, where the latter continues the story where the TV drama ended for approximately another season and a half.

Theresa Pulls The Trigger - Calvin's Killer Is Finally Revealed

Push came to shove and once again, a TV show has produced the total unpredictable when it comes to solving the famous ‘Whodunit!’ mysteries.  Tonight (or last night, if you watched First Look on E4) saw Hollyoaks conclude their latest storyline, which saw the ex-bent copper, Calvin Valentine murdered on his wedding day.

Valentine, played by Ricky Whittle, has been jerking everyone off of recent, which meant he has as many suspects who wanted to do away with him, as a typical ASDA shopping list.  

As he enjoyed his first dance with his new wife, Carmel, the unidentified assailant shoots Calvin down to an expected demise, though shock death in Carmel’s eyes.  After months of speculation and intrigue as the big day approached, as a ‘Flash-forward’ episode was shown before Christmas, tonight the identity of the killer was revealed as the gorgeous Theresa McQueen (Jorgie Porter).

Other suspects had their motives, stronger than Theresa’s.  Jake Dean for a chequered history with Calvin, stringing back four years and Jacqui McQueen after finding out the kind of person Calvin was on his wedding day.  Sasha Valentine has a stronger motive than many, having discovered that her brother had left her lover, Warren Fox to die in the Loft explosion last May.  Of course, Malachy Fisher has a big incentive, as he had known for months about Calvin’s steamy affair with his cheating wife, Mercedes.  However, all these would probably have ended up being too obvious, and a weak reputation, possibly to do with biological genes, or character personality.

However, Theresa is made of stronger stuff, as she now proven by pulling the trigger and giving Carmel (Gemma Merna) the most unpleasant wedding present of all-time.  Viewers may have seen Theresa and Calvin enjoy a passionate night in The Loft before Easter.  In this cliffhanging episode, Calvin meets Theresa in the nail salon, Evissa, where she confesses to him that she is pregnant, with his baby.  Unsurprisingly, Calvin doesn’t take the news very well, and offers Theresa money to abort the baby, which makes her very angry.  When Carmel comes into the salon, and starts interrogating the pair, Theresa reveals her pregnancy, but Calvin covers up who the father is, saying it was ‘a random stranger she met at a club.’  The final curtain is when Theresa finds out from Mercedes that she had an affair with Calvin. 

As Calvin and Carmel dance the night away, infront of many angry wedding guests, the gun which Malachy had been carrying almost goes on a pass-the-parcel routine.  Just when Mercedes considers doing away with her former lover, Theresa snatches the gun out of her hand and almost instantly pulls it, with a stunned Mercedes and Jacqui by her side. 

The repercussions for this story are set to be huge.  The McQueen family is what is keeping Hollyoaks alive, after too many far-fetched storylines of recent months.  Fortunately, new executive producer Paul Marquess has kept the family together, so there are no plans for this crazy bunch to be among the 10-15 characters that have already been given the chop by Marquess.  So, expect a lot more secrets, lies and deceit from the McQueen sisters, and Theresa now has a dark secret to hide.  I wouldn’t want to be her when Carmel eventually discovers the truth.

As for Ricky Whittle, his death marks the end of four years on the Channel 4 show.  Last year’s Strictly Come Dancing runner-up has the potential to go many places now his Hollyoaks career is over.  Calvin may have gone, but Ricky hasn’t for sure.  Like Gemma Atkinson, Gary Lucy, Elize du Toit, Chris Fountain and Darren Jefferies before him, he should be able to carve out a very successful acting career for the future….

Always expect the unexpected…..

Hollyoaks - The Conclusion Is Drawing Near To Who Shot Calvin Valentine!

This Friday, Channel 4’s teen soap drama, Hollyoaks will reveal the mystery assailant behind the shooting of former copper, Calvin Valentine.  Starting this week, the conclusion to this dramatic storyline reaches its conclusion, as Calvin gets ready to marry the love of his life, Carmel McQueen for the second time.  However, although the wedding ceremony goes ahead without a hitch, Calvin’s ‘Till death do us part’ vows come sooner than expected, when he is shot during his first dance in marriage.

Valentine, played by 2009 Strictly Come Dancing runner-up, Ricky Whittle has a long line of suspects, all vying for his blood for various reasons.  Regular viewers of the show will have seen UK soap’s first ever flash-forward episode on Monday 21^st December 2009, when Calvin was gunned down in this episode.  However, his murderer remains in the closet, until this Friday.  The December episode was show then, rather than the traditional May 2010 slot and was thought of by ex-executive producer of the show, Lucy Allan.  It is probably her high point of a rocky year for the Chester-based drama, which has plummeted in award gatherings and TV ratings since Bryan Kirkwood’s departure from Lime Pictures last year.  For five months, the storyline has unravelled as Calvin’s suspects have been getting bigger and bigger, with larger grudges to settle than ever before.  And there is a major list of people who could pull the trigger on the former good lad of the show, now turned the villain of the piece.  

Here are some of the possible frontrunners.

Malachy Fisher – Back in December, Malachy caught Calvin sleeping with his wife, Mercedes Fisher.  Their marriage may be on the rocks, but Malachy has kept this secret to himself for months, and now, as Calvin’s best man at the wedding, will he reveal all or gun down his rival to keep a grip on his failing marriage.

Mercedes Fisher – Mercedes is hurting with rage and fury.  She doesn’t know that Malachy has this secret, and has been playing with fire for months.  For someone who saw her first marriage, to Russ Owen end in 2007 under similar circumstances, you would have thought she would have learnt her lesson.  She wants Calvin badly, but Calvin insists their fling was no more than fun, and is hell-bent on marrying Carmel.  Can Mercedes stand back and let her sister marry a cheat?

Jake Dean – Jake Dean and Calvin Valentine have a chequered history, stretching back as far as 2006, when Jake killed Calvin’s mum in a hit-and-run incident.  Calvin may have saved Jake in the Dog in the Pond Explosion that same year, but their past has never been forgotten.  When Holly Cunningham went missing earlier this year, Jake was accused of snatching her and Calvin took great pleasure in dismissing him from his job at The Loft nightclub.  Now Jake is out to settle the score.  With actor Kevin Sacre leaving the show, he must be a leading frontrunner. 

Spencer Fox – The illiterate Spencer Fox trusted Calvin, but his poor heart was ripped to pieces, when first Calvin shopped him into the cops for his role in Holly’s disappearance, then Calvin’s role in his brother’s death, was revealed.  Due to his disabilities, there is no doubt that Spencer could handle a murder weapon without understanding the full consequences of his actions.

Lauren Valentine – Lauren’s criminal boyfriend, Gaz Bennett was recently put in jail.  Now, Lauren wants revenge and she won’t let family loyalty getting in the way for Gaz’s downfall.  However, I would have to say, she would be a distant outsider.

Sasha Valentine – Sasha Valentine has a very strong motive for doing the deed on her brother.  Not only did Calvin despise her relationship with the former bad lad of the village, Warren Fox, she found out that Calvin left Warren to die on this week in May 2009, when Claire Cunningham blew up The Loft nightclub.  Sasha has never forgiven Calvin for his actions on that fateful night, and like Lauren, she will not care whether Calvin’s related or not.

Kris Fisher – Like Kevin Sacre, Gerard McCarthy who plays the Irish cross-dresser is leaving the show in the coming months, which might make him a frontrunner.  Kris also caught Mercedes sleeping with Calvin ages ago, and is annoyed that his brother, Malachy seems willing to let Calvin and Mercedes getaway with their affair.  So, will he carry out the deed, to protect his brother from more hurt and turmoil?

Jacqui McQueen – Jacqui is stunned to the core when Mercedes reveals her fling with Calvin to her on the day of the wedding.  Suddenly, Jacqui’s mood has changed and a confrontation with Calvin only spices up her blood.  Plus, she is seen with the gun that Calvin bought to protect himself from anonymous death threats.  Similar to Mercedes, will she step aside and allow Carmel to marry a love rat?  After all, the McQueen sisters stick together, through thick and thin.

Theresa McQueen – Theresa was another McQueen sister to experiment with Calvin’s underwear, when they had a night of passion in the nightclub only one month ago.  Calvin insisted it was a one-off, and Theresa is hurting, because she has her eyes on Calvin.  Can she stand back and see Calvin marry someone else, who is biologically related and not her.

The Rest – Well, Tony Hutchinson could pull the trigger, due to his conditional love for Theresa.  Then there’s Zak Ramsay, who is lost and confused with everything in his life, following the tragic death of his brother, Caleb in Afghanistan.  I wouldn’t trust Darren Osbourne near a weapon too; he has a colourful history with almost every villain in the village.  Long shots may even include the likes of Leo Valentine, India Langsford, Rhys Ashworth, Myra McQueen, or even little Tom Cunningham.

Personally, these sorts of mysteries never seem to be the obvious suspect, so don’t be surprised to see it be an unlikely assailant.  If you wanted me to put my money on, I would back either Jake Dean or Kris Fisher, but it could be anyone?

Everybody is a suspect!  Don’t miss the drama of Hollyoaks, this Friday at 6.30pm on Channel 4.

Hollyoaks - Drastic Changes Taking Place, Is It On The Slide Already Though!

This week, new Hollyoaks producer Paul Marquess has really being stamping his authority on the Channel 4 soap, but is it too late already.  The soap drama has already been on the decline for a good while now, and many will see this latest move as an act of pure desperation…

Marquess’s previous work includes Brookside, The Bill and Footballers Wives and on each occasion, he has been known to produce a dramatic overhaul of each show, with varying fortunes.  The cast members of Hollyoaks must have been trembling with fear in recent weeks, fearing for their future and now for many, that niggling thought is now a horrific reality.  Marquess claims that the show needed ‘a decent shake-up,’ and that is no disgrace, because realistically, it does.  However, his claims that loads of contracts up for renewal haven’t been renewed sound a tad far-fetched.  To axe 17 members in quick succession sounds really mad.  For many Hollyoaks fans, there will be plenty of tears to be shared over the coming months.

Already this year, fans have said very tameful and undramatic goodbyes to Mike Barnes (Tony Hirst), Zoe Carpenter (Zoe Lister) and Hannah Ashworth (Emma Rigby).  Hollyoaks has suffered massively from the loss of iconic actors/actresses such as Chris Fountain, Matt Littler, Gemma Bissix, Roxanne McKee and Darren Jefferies.  The core of the show has been ripped apart in the last two years, as many have wanted to pursue their careers elsewhere, which is understandable.  However, the replacements have not been up to scratch.  Combine that with producer Bryan Kirkwood’s departure after The Loft Fire last May, in which Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas) was killed and the show has lacked the stability and inspiration to be driven forward since then.  Lucy Allan’s Kirkwood’s long-term deputy stepped into the breach, but most storylines have been unrealistic and dire.  Hollyoaks non-linear week last September which saw bad boy Gaz Bennett attacked was so dismal and although the Flash-forward episode last Christmas was a success, there hasn’t been enough to convince everyone that Hollyoaks has been able to continue in the right direction. 

Strictly Come Dancing runner-up Ricky Whittle, a.k.a Calvin Valentine has already quit.  He was the victim of the Flash-forward episode, as his character was shot on his wedding day.  Gerard McCarthy, who plays the cross-dressing Kris Fisher is also set to leave, and rekindle his love with the West End.  The others who have had their contracts terminated are the following:

Neville Ashworth (Jim Millea)

Suzanne Ashworth (Suzanne Hall)

Josh Ashworth (Sonny Flood)

Sasha Valentine (Natalie Emmanuel)

Leo Valentine (Brian Bovell)

Lauren Valentine (Dominique Jackson)

Loretta Jones (Melissa Walton)

Jake Dean (Kevin Sacre)

Newt (Nico Mirallengro)

Zak Ramsay (Kent Riley)

Spencer Gray (Darren Langford)

Dave Colburn (Elliot James Langridge)

Des Townsend (Kris Deedigan)

However, the plus point is that the phenomenal McQueen family remain untouched and Marquess has already promised at least two new families to enter the show, with the promise they will add to the show’s supposed strong core.  It’s a brave new world out there, but this move seems to be just desperate.  Can Hollyoaks stay strong or go into total obscurity, the next year is crucial to see if this gambled transformation actually works?