Jump to content

Bad Girls (TV series)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 82.33.116.73 (talk) at 22:44, 24 August 2007. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Bad Girls
Bad Girls title screen.
Created byMaureen Chadwick,
Ann McManus
Starringsee below
Country of origin United Kingdom
No. of series8
No. of episodes107 (list of episodes)
Production
ProducerShed Productions
Running time60 / 90 minutes
Original release
NetworkITV
Release1 June 1999 –

20 December 2006

Bad Girls was a British television drama series that was broadcast on ITV from 1999 to 2006. It was produced by Shed Productions, the company which later produced Footballers' Wives and Waterloo Road . It was set in the fictional women's prison of Larkhall, and featured a mixture of serious and light storylines focusing on the prisoners and staff of G Wing. The earlier series were rather gritty; by a couple of series in, more far-fetched storylines began to be introduced. By the last couple of series, the show very much used its by-then often over-the-top storylines as a selling point.

On 11 January 2007, Channel Five's sister channel Five Life won the rights to air Bad Girls along with fellow popular, axed ITV series Footballers' Wives. They have now finished showing the fourth series, and they plan to air the fifth series later in the year, ITV3 has also finished its repeat run of Series 1 - 3 and currently have no plans to repeat any more episodes.


Series

The first series of Bad Girls was shown on ITV in 1999, lasting 10 episodes. There have been eight series in total, ranging from 10 to 16 episodes. Christmas specials were produced in 2005 and 2006. All series have been shown on ITV, at 9pm, the days varied between Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The 100th episode, part of Series 8, was shown on Thursday 3 August 2006 at 9pm.

The earlier series have been repeated on Monday nights (formerly Tuesday nights) on ITV's sister channel ITV3 but recently ended with the final episode of the third series and there are no plans for anymore repeats at this time. But you can catch more Bad Girls repeats on digital channel Five Life who have acquired the rights to Series 4 onwards.

Shed recently closed a deal with US channel FX, for them to create their own version of Bad Girls. A script has been looked at, and the first season of the American version of Bad Girls is likely to air in 2008. It is still unknown if the American version will remake the UK version (with the same storylines and characters), or if they'll start afresh, with new ideas. This at least means that Bad Girls has not been completely axed globally.


Bad Girls around the world

 Australia

Seven Network only aired two series, they don't have plans to air the show again

UK.TV they have aired the first four series and have plans to air the fifth series later in the year

 Belgium

VTM has aired the first two series and is airing the third in the summer of 2007.

 Canada

OUTtv will begin to air the series on November 7, 2007.

 Estonia

Kanal 2 has aired all eight series

 France

AB1 has aired only series 1-6, series 7 & 8 are planned for broadcasting later in the year

 Finland

Nelonen = TV4 Aired through series 1-7. In summer 2007 series 8 will be aired.

 Ireland

TV3 has aired all eight series

 New Zealand

TV One has aired all eight series

 Sweden

TV4 (Sweden) only aired the first two series and a third series was planned but the show was axed due to low interest.

 South Africa

M-NET has aired all eight series

 United Kingdom

ITV1 has aired all eight series (repeats on ITV2 has aired all eight series, ITV3 has aired the first three series

Five Life has aired the fourth series and the fifth series is due to start later in the year, they also may plan to show the following series 6 - 8 during 2008/2009

 United States

BBC America has only aired the first two series, although they only shown 10 episodes out of the 13 episodes series 2.

LOGO is currently airing the second series after airing the first series, and has plans to broadcast all eight series.

Cast

Note that this list is not complete

Major Prisoners

Minor Prisoners

Officers

Others

Plot description

Series 1

From the beginning, Bad Girls dealt with controversial subject matter. Early episodes of the first series included particularly shocking moments such as a pregnant prisoner miscarrying in her cell, another prisoner being viciously strip-searched by fellow inmates for concealed drugs and another inmate committing suicide. The central story arc of the first three series revolved around the developing romantic relationship between Nikki Wade, a prisoner serving twelve years for murder, and Helen Stewart, the Wing Governor who spent much of series one engaged to her boyfriend. The story depicted this same-sex relationship naturally, with the same amount of complexity and explicitness as in the heterosexual relationships depicted. Many viewers regarded the subtlety and emotional resonance of the portrayal of the relationship as one of its strongest assets.[citation needed] For this reason, Bad Girls has attracted a significant following within the lesbian community.

Other storylines to feature prominently in series one included the pregnancy of a young drug addict Zandra Plackett, the tragic story of teenage prisoner Rachel Hicks and her bullying by the other inmates, and the illicit relationship between Jim Fenner, the male senior officer and Shell Dockley, the resident bully and drug dealer, serving life for murder. Produced by Brian Park.

Series 2

Nikki and Helen's relationship deepens with Helen resigning from the Wing Governor's post and working as a new liaison officer for prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, encouraging Nikki to continue her education and appeal against her sentence. Shell's background was examined in some detail, with harrowing scenes describing childhood abuse. Zandra's tragic story finally comes to a close when she dies from a brain tumor. For light relief, Yvonne Atkins, the gangster's moll, set up "Babes Behind Bars", a sex-hotline staffed by the prisoners with smuggled in mobile phones, playing such characters as "Whiplash Wanda", "Saucy Sonia" and "Vicky the virgin bride". Series two ended on a double cliffhanger, with Nikki escaping from Larkhall to be with Helen, leaving Helen to agonise over whether to contact the police, and Shell luring Fenner to her cell for sex, where she tries to kill him by stabbing him with a broken bottle. Produced by Brian Park.

Series 3

This series picks up from where it left off at the end of Series 2. Jim and Shell are in bed together and Nikki, dressed in her nurse's outfit, is at Helen's house after escaping. Shell stabs Jim with a broken bottle that she had brought back from Sylvia's party.

The third series saw a high turnover of short-term characters and storylines, but also chronicled the spectacular escape of Shell and young Denny Blood to the Costa Del Sol in Spain, Yvonne's top dog status being challenged by Maxi Purvis, the head of the "Peckham Boot Gang", prison officer Di Barker's struggles as a home carer for her invalid mother and an upbeat finale of Helen and Nikki finally committing to their relationship together when Nikki's appeal was successful and she was released from prison. Produced by Claire Phillips.

Series 4

From series four onwards the storylines got darker and more fast-paced, but began to become more over-the-top,[citation needed] such as Jim Fenner being sexually harassed by the new gay Governing Governor, Neil Grayling. However, some more serious storylines included domestic violence within the relationship of Di Barker and Barry Pearce and teenage junkie Buki Lester's battle for the right to see her disabled son, Lennox. The fourth series ended with the prison library being obliterated as part of an escape plan by the devious Snowball Merriman, resulting in a fire that left Governor Grayling and several inmates trapped and fighting for their lives. Produced by Claire Phillips.

Series 5

The fifth series of Bad Girls took viewers to a dark, disturbing place, with numerous deaths, but some balance was provided by the brief return of Shell Dockley to G-Wing and the arrival of the Costa Cons - Bev Tull and Phyl Oswyn. The ongoing feud between warder Jim Fenner with his enemies - Wing Governor Karen Betts and top dog Yvonne Atkins - also reached its height by the end of series five, with evil appearing to triumph over good, as Fenner ruthlessly disposes of both Karen by framing her for a hit and run, and then Yvonne in a shocking end-of-series finale in which he leaves her to die in Larkhall's old hanging cell. Series five in many ways marks the end of an era for Bad Girls with several long-term prisoners and one prison officer making their last appearances. Produced by David Crean. This season is also important to both Julies, when Julie Saunders battles with breast cancer.

Series 6

Series six continued the Fenner storyline, with the evil officer experiencing a mental breakdown after recent events and getting his come-uppance at the hands of Karen Betts and Neil Grayling, who join forces to finally defeat Fenner for good. Some dynamic additions to the cast were also made - in the form of sassy Wing Governor Frances Myers and amoral prisoner Natalie Buxton - to take the series in a new direction. The sixth series also features a crossover with Shed Productions' other hit series, Footballers' Wives, with the glamorous Tanya Turner imprisoned at Larkhall for three episodes. Karen Betts re-appears for a few episodes in this series. This series also saw the relationship between prison officer Selena Geeson and Kris Yates. Produced by Cameron Roach.

Series 7

Fenner is now locked up in prison for the hit-and-run which occurred in series 5, but due to the devotedness of new wife Di, the lucky prison officer was allowed to see daylight again, and to return to his job on G-Wing (and even be promoted to Wing Governor!). But it's not long before everyone at Larkhall wants Fenner dead, and he is brutally stabbed in the bowels of the prison with a sharpened ice dagger. The increasingly mentally unstable Julie Johnston later reveals that she committed the crime to exact vengeance against him for all his past crimes, though it is Fenner's widow (Di Barker) who is arrested, charged and remanded in custody for the offence. Meanwhile, Natalie Buxton has taken over as G-Wing's new top dog and rules the women with a rod of iron, only to be challenged by newcomer Pat Kerrigan. More humorous storylines included officer Sylvia Hollamby's inheritance from her late aunt and her subsequent marriage to grasping Dr. Malcolm Nicholson, out to get his hands on her new fortune, and the Costa Cons escaping from Larkhall and returning to their old stamping ground in Spain. With the departure of Fenner, Sylvia Hollamby and the two Julies are the only remaining original characters. Produced by Rachel Snell.

Series 8

This final series of Bad Girls saw the long brewing rivarly between current "Top Dog" Pat Kerrigan and her bitter predecessor Natalie Buxton finally reaching boiling point. A battle to the death occurred, in which Pat triumphed. She spent the second half of the series hiding and then disposing of Natalie's corpse, with the always helpful Julies at her side. Other major storylines in this series involved the blossoming romance (and subsequent pregnancy) of inmate Janine and new officer Donny Kimber as well as Lou Stoke (the new wing governor) romantic involvement with the new medical officer who was secretly collecting information for research to produce a revealling documentary of life behind bars. The series, and Bad Girls, ended with another Christmas Special, this time a take-off on Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" starring Sylvia Hollamby as Scrooge and Natalie as the ghost guiding her.

Bad Girls: The Musical

See also: Bad Girls: The Musical

A musical comedy adaptation, based on the characters and storylines of series 1, including the events of the death of inmate, Rachel Hicks, and the relationship between Wing Governor Helen Stewart and lifer, Nikki Wade. The musical originates with the same creative staff which worked on the television program. Maureen Chadwick and Ann McManus, of Shed Productions, are the book writers of the musical, and Kath Gotts, composer for Bad Girls series 2 - 4, is the composer-lyricist. The first full production of the musical premiered at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in May - June 2006. A West End production is planned for the fall of 2007.

Criticism

Bad Girls endured much criticism over its storylines and characters during its run. Many real-life prison officers have argued that whilst bullying, drug use and prostitution are unfortunate and inevitable parts of prison life, they are never as bad as the show portrays them. [citation needed] Two incidents in the series' run (the death of Maxi Purvis and the death of Jim Fenner) have seen senior officers demoted for a lack of supervision and organisation. The prison advice bureau has argued that under normal circumstances these officers would be sacked immediately rather than have their rank reduced. [citation needed] The antics of "The Costa Cons", with their frequent (successful) escape attempts and smuggling of drugs and alcohol into the prison is also highly unlikely. [citation needed]

Recurring elements

Weapons
The bar of soap in a sock has been seen twice. It was first seen when Maxi Purvis and Al MacKensie beat up Tina Purvis in her cell in Series 3. Next seen when Natalie Buxton and Janine Nebeski beat up Arun Parmar in the library in Series 7.

Weapons II
The razor blade (often embedded into a toothbrush handle) makes frequent appearances. It was first seen when season two newcomer Renee Williams removes it from her mouth after her induction to the prison. She tries using it on Yvonne Atkins in one of the bathrooms but Nikki intervenes. Next seen when Al MacKensie threatens Shaz Wiley in Series 3. Next seen when Maxi Purvis uses one in her fight with Shaz in Series 4. Shell returned in series 5 with a razor blade and threatened Snowball Merriman with it. Next seen with Arun Parmar shaving in Series 7. Most recently in Series 8 Pat Kerrigan used one to force Natalie Buxton to take a handful of pills.

Homosexuality in the Hollamby Bloodline
Ironic considering Sylvia's disgust with any homosexual behaviour. First hinted at after Bobby Hollamby's death in Series 5 when we learn from Sylvia that their son, Bobby-Darren "lives with a pal". Series 7 fleshes it out completely when we learn Sylvia's Aunt was a lesbian and Bobby-Darren is still not married. He later became sexually involved with Governor Neil Grayling but with the abrupt death of Neil at the start of Series 8 this subplot has probably ended. In the 2006 Christmas Special, Sylvia became annoyed at her son Bobby-D for getting with a new man.

Letters to Mrs Fenner
Twice we've seen letters written to Jim Fenner's wife telling of his affairs and twice they've helped bring about the failure of those marriages. Shell Dockley wrote to Marilyn Fenner at the end of Series 1. Natalie Buxton wrote to Mrs Di Fenner in Series 7.

Top Dogs
There has always been a 'top dog' of G-Wing and every top dog has eventually fallen from grace in some (usually violent) manner. First, Shell Dockley who was ultimately sent to a secure prison hospital, but was not before Yvonne Atkins knocked her off her perch at the end of the first series then became top dog herself slowly as her character progressed during the second series. Yvonne always seemed reluctant to be 'top dog' like fellow respected inmate Nikki Wade. However all the inmates respected her and many feared her if they crossed her. Throughout this period, Shell Dockley still claimed to be top dog despite her repeated downfalls. Shell won her status back by stabbing Jim Fenner at the end of series 2, but even Shell never challenged Yvonne and for the most part kept out of her way. Yvonne was eventually locked by Fenner into a disuesed cell deep under the prison. She either died of starvation and dehydration or she suffocated due to lack of oxygen beneath the prison (as Fenner stated: "Don't bother screaming, you might want to save on the oxygen). Her death was probably the most gruesome. At the beginning of the next series, her heavily rotting body was found by Kris Yates. In series 3 and 4, Maxi Purvis contested Yvonne's authority, but when she loses a fight with Shaz, she choked herself to death by swallowing toilet paper. Phyl Oswyn briefly laid claim to the title in the early episodes of series six, following Yvonne's death, in particular heading the trade of drugs within the prison, but she was quickly put in line by the arrival of no-nonsense, ball-breaking Wing Governor Frances Myers. The next conventional 'Top Dog' was Natalie Buxton. Like Shell Dockley, Natalie was manipulative and used her position more to exploit the others rather than help them. She was knocked off her perch by Pat Kerrigan, who beat up Natalie during a fight to secure fragile inmate Arun's safety within the prison. Although most of Natalie's gang stuck by her after this, everyone turned their back on Natalie when Pat set up a scam to trick Natalie into revealing her crimes of selling children as sex slaves. Natalie had always vehemently denied these crimes, and for the most part she was believed by her fellow inmates. After Pat played back a tape to the wing containing Natalie's confession, Natalie was jeered at and ostracised. Now, Pat Kerrigan appears to be in hold of the title, although she is clearly reluctant to accept it. In series 8, Natalie and Pat battled again, and Pat killed Natalie by slamming a rock into her head. With the help of the Julies, Pat eventually managed to dispose of Natalie's quickly decomposing corpse, shoving it down a manhole in the laundry room.

Luck
Jim Fenner has had a lot of this. Helen Stewart described it as 'the luck of the devil'. Interestingly Fenner's brand of cigarette, revealed in Series 7 is 'Lucky Strike'.

£50,000
This large sum of money is used throughout Bad Girls. After Sylvia falls down a flight of stairs, Yvonne suggests a lawyer, claiming a friend received £50,000 as compensation for an accident. At the end of series four, Snowball and Richie try to cheat Yvonne out of £50,000, and in series five, Sylvia and Bobby end up in debt by £50,000. Finally, towards the end of series 7, the amount of money set for Di's bail is £50,000.

Russian Mafia
When Phyl and Bev are convicted in series 5, they claim that it was the fault of the Russian Mafia. Two series later, Phyl and Bev got their own back by stealing diamonds from the same party.

The curse of the Dorm Over the eight series, the four bed dorm was the location for the demise of some of the prisoners. The first inmate to die was Rachel Hicks, who hanged herself in Series 1. She was later followed by Zandra Plackett who died of a brain tumour. Other inmates who suffered the curse of the dorm included Renee Williams, who died from an allergic reaction to nuts put in her food by Yvonne; Shaz Wylie, who died in the fire at the end of Series 4; Al McKenzie, who was accidentally poisoned in Series 6; and the last victim, Ashlee Wilcox in Series 8, who died from legionnaires' disease. All of these characters lived at least some of their time at Larkhall in the dorm, and all of them other than Renee and Shaz actually died in the dorm. Ironically all of them at some point had slept in the same bed as Rachel Hicks did.

DVD releases

Main article: Bad Girls DVD Sets

Series 1-8 of Bad Girls are available on DVD in the UK (Region 2). Series 1-7 are available on DVD in Australia (Region 4) with series 8 scheduled for release in September 2007. Series 1 was released on DVD in the United States on 7 June 2005.

Bad Girls: Series One Uncut
File:Bad Girls 1.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 10 Episodes
  • 4-Disc Set
  • 4:3 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: No
  • English (Stereo)
  • Documentary: Bad Girls in Oxford
  • Commentary Track: Episode 10
  • Cast Interviews:
    • Simone Lahbib (Helen)
    • Mandana Jones (Nikki)
    • Debra Stephenson (Shell)
    • Jack Ellis (Jim)
    • Alicya Eyo (Denny)
    • Helen Fraser (Sylvia)
    • Victoria Alcock (Julie S)
    • Kikia Mirylees (Julie J)
  • Outtakes
  • Fan Featurette: Bad Girls Book Signing
  • Photo Library
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
18 June 2001 24 March 2003 7 June 2005
Bad Girls: Series Two Uncut
File:Bad Girls 2.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 13 Episodes
  • 4-Disc Set
  • 4:3 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: No
  • English (Stereo)
  • Gallery 1: Behind The Scenes
  • Gallery 2: The National TV Awards
  • Bad Girls In South Africa: Documentary
  • Outtakes
  • Deleted Scenes
  • Cast Biographies
  • Producer Biographies
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
1 October 2001 26 May 2003
Bad Girls: Series Three Uncut
File:Bad Girls 1.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 16 Episodes
  • 6-Disc Set
  • 4:3 Aspect ratio
  • Subtitles: No
  • English (Stereo)
  • Interactive Map Of Larkhall Prison
  • Outtakes
  • Prison File: Behind The Scenes, Subsidiary Character Profiles and Interviews:
    • Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Crystal)
    • Victoria Bush (Tina)
    • Pauline Campbell (Al)
    • Jack Ellis (Jim)
    • Claire King (Karen)
    • Simone Lahbib (Helen)
    • Nathan Constance (Josh)
    • Helen Fraser (Sylvia)
    • Lara Cazalet (Zandra R.I.P)
    • Kiki Mirylees (Julie J)
    • Lindsey Fawcett (Shaz)
    • Mandana Jones (Nikki)
    • Tracey Wilkinson (Di)
    • Linda Henry (Yvonne)
  • Audio CD: features music from Series 3
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
25 March 2002 8 September 2003
Bad Girls: Series Four Uncut
File:Bad Girls 4.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 16 Episodes
  • 5-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: No
  • English (Stereo)
  • Series One - Feature Length Version
  • Outtakes
  • Tour of The New Exterior Set - With Jack Ellis (Jim)
  • International Promo Trailer
  • Fan Event With Simone and Mandana (Helen and Nikki) (2000)
  • Gallery
  • PC Wallpapers
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
9 June 2003 22 April 2004
Bad Girls: Series Five Uncut
File:Bad Girls 5.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 16 Episodes
  • 4-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: English
  • English (Stereo)
  • Outtakes
  • Photo Gallery
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
23 August 2004 7 March 2005
Bad Girls: Series Six Uncut
File:Bad Girls 6.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 12 Episodes
  • 3-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: English
  • English (Stereo)
  • Outtakes
  • The King In Larkhall
  • Cast Interviews:
    • Tristan Sturrock (Colin)
    • Antonia Okonma (Darlene)
    • Amanda Barrie (Bev)
    • James Gaddas (Neil)
  • Tanya Turner - Ultimate Bad Girl
  • Bad Girls The Musical
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
25 June 2005 4 July 2005
Bad Girls: Series Seven
File:Bad Girls 7.jpg Set Details Special Features
  • 13 Episodes
  • 4-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: English
  • English (Stereo)
  • Photo Gallery
  • Christmas Special
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
7 August 2006 18 September 2006
Bad Girls: Series Eight
Set Details Special Features
  • 11 Episodes
  • 3-Disc Set
  • 16:9 Aspect Ratio
  • Subtitles: English
  • English (Stereo)
  • Photo Gallery
  • Christmas Special
Release Dates
 United Kingdom  Australia  United States
26 December 2006 3 September 2007
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bad_Girls_(TV_series)&oldid=153441300"