Sex, Chips & Rock n' Roll

infobox television
show_name = Sex, Chips & Rock n' Roll
format = Drama
runtime = 50 minutes
num_episodes = 6
creator = Debbie Horsfield
starring = Gillian Kearney
Emma Cooke
Sue Johnston
Phil Daniels
Joseph McFadden
David Threlfall
country = UK
network = BBC 1
first_aired = 5 September 1999
last_aired = 10 October 1999 |

"Sex, Chips & Rock n' Roll" is a six-part television mini-series which was written and created by Debbie Horsfield and directed by John Woods. It was produced by Wall to Wall for BBC One.

Originally shown in 1999, it was later adapted into a stage musical which appeared at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre in 2005.

ynopsis

Set in Manchester in 1965, the story focusses on twin sisters, Ellie and Arden Brookes, living with their father, Howard, and grandmother Irma, and working in the family run chip shop. Arden is confident and considered the 'pretty' one, Ellie the quiet and clever one. Irma is the 'moral guardian' of the family, a woman who is hiding a terrible secret and who effectively controls her son and grand-daughter's lives.

Irma encourages a family friend Norman Kershawe in his pursuit of Ellie and he proposes to her on the girls' 18th birthday. Ellie is shocked that he would pick her over Arden and says yes....but Arden is jealous and also wants to find a way out of her grandmother's house to freedom.

A band called the Ice Cubes moves to town and the young lads in the band pursue the girls. Two of the lads toss a coin for which of them to chase ' heads the pretty one, tails the clever one' and Dallas gets Arden although he really liked Ellie. Arden has sex in the back of the band's van with Dallas, the band's guitarist. Arden can see that Dallas admires her sister so she tells Ellie she is pregnant to warn her off him. This also forces Dallas to marry Arden and take her with him to London with the band. What they don't know is that Ellie is also preganant by Dallas from a one night stand she had with him. She only marries Norman because she didn't want to ruin her sister's happiness and she needs a father for her child but she runs away after the wedding and joins Arden and Dallas in London. Ellie collaborates with Dallas on a record, which becomes a huge hit. However, things do not go smoothly between Arden and Dallas and she later admits to faking the pregancy.

Howard discovers his mother's secret; she was never married to the man whose photo occupies pride of place on the piano. She only met him once, had a one night stand and became pregnant. Disgusted with her hypocrisy, Howard finally breaks free from his mother and joins the Ice Cubes as roadie although the pair reconcile in the end.

Norman searches for Ellie and discovers her in London. He then takes her back home unaware she is due to give birth. Norman arranges for the baby to be adopted by a childless couple and is prepared to forget about what happened and live with Ellie as his wife. Ellie gives birth to a daughter, Iona, whom she names after a beach place that is pictured on a postcard that Dallas had given her. Bolstered by having confessed the secret of Howard's illegitimacy, Irma scuppers the adoption by helping Ellie run away again. It is only when a stunned Dallas is handed the birth certficate that he realises where Ellie is....at the island of Iona and he follows her there. The series ends with Ellie and Dallas meeting on the beach and holding their daughter in their arms.

Main cast

* Ellie Brookes - Gillian Kearney
* Arden Brookes - Emma Cooke
* Irma Brookes - Sue Johnston
* Larry Valentine - Phil Daniels
* The Wolf (Justin DeVere Montague) - James Callis
* Tex Tunnicliffe - Julian Kerridge
* Dallas McCabe - Joseph McFadden
* Norman Kershawe - David Threlfall
* Alphonse - Brian Poyser
* Howard Brookes - Nicholas Farrell
* Hayley - Michelle Abrahams
* Clifford - Jim Hooper

DVDs and CDs

*" [http://www.find-dvd.co.uk/AV9151.htm Sex, Chips & Rock n' Roll] " — released on DVD (Region 2) in the UK on 27 December 2001.
* [http://www.find-cd.co.uk/cds/B00002MG14-original-soundtrack-sex-chips-rock-n-roll-ost.htm "52 hits from the '60s and original songs from the BBC series"] — soundtrack CD released in the UK on 1 October 1999

External links

*imdb title|id=0212695|title=Sex, Chips & Rock n' Roll
* [http://www.royalexchange.co.uk/play.asp?id=94 RoyalExchange.co.uk] — official webpage detailing the stage production.
* [http://www.royalexchange.co.uk/edu_feature_detail.asp?eiID=68 RoyalExchange.co.uk] — brief interview with Debbie Horsfield.