BROOKSIDE fans were thrilled last month when news broke that the show is returning to our TV screens for the first time in 20 years.
Episodes of the iconic soap are now available to watch on Scottish TV channel STV.
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Brookside, which first aired in November 1982, gave us TV’s first pre-watershed lesbian kiss and kickstarted the careers of some of the nation’s best-loved stars including Anna Friel and Sue Johnston.
The Channel 4 soap was set in Liverpool and filmed on an actual close built especially for the show.
Aside from that kiss between Beth Jordache and Margaret Clemence, it had some iconic storylines before it came to an end in November 2003 – including the incestuous love affair between brother and sister Nat and Georgia Simpson.
While many of its stars have continued to act, some have endured more drama in their personal lives. Here we reveal what members of the Brookside cast are up to now.
Michael Starke
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Now 65, Michael Starke played Thomas ‘Sinbad’ Sweeney for 16 years.
Parts in Casualty, The Royal, Hollyoaks and pantomimes followed, and he played policeman Arthur in the film The 51st State, starring Robert Carlyle and Samuel L Jackson.
Michael spent a year on Coronation Street as kebab shop owner Jerry Morton, but slammed show bosses when his on-screen family was unceremoniously axed.
Having heard the news after he was called back from a holiday celebrating his 20th wedding anniversary, he raged: “The TV world can be faceless. I don’t know the individuals responsible but things could have been handled better.”
Michael shares two daughters – both of which are actors – with wife Lynn Francis, an actress-turned-playwright.
Last year eagle-eyed fans spotted him in BBC drama The Responder.
Dean Sullivan
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Dean Sullivan, 67, was the longest serving cast member on Brookside, which is impressive considering he was originally only supposed to be in six episodes as recurring character Jimmy Corkhill.
Jimmy famously found Trevor Jordache’s body under the patio with Eddie Banks, and he also battled drug addiction during the show’s run.
Since Brookside ended, Dean starred in sitcom Terry Across the Mersey and hosted a daily radio show.
In 2019, Dean revealed he has battled prostate cancer but thankfully has been given the all-clear.
However, he must administer hormone injections every six months for three years in order to prevent the cancer from returning.
Dean recently told Metro he isn’t ruling out a revival, adding: “I think it could work even more so these days because one of the big initial storylines, the Grants were a true working-class family. I think there would be a massive appetite for it.”
Brian Regan
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Brian Regan, 65, played Terry Sullivan all the way from the show’s beginning in 1982 to 1997.
But his acting career petered out after that, and he plunged into a life of drug dealing and addiction.
In 2012 he was sentenced to four years and 10 months in prison for lying to police over his role in the murder of Iranian doorman Bahman Faraji in Aigburth, and for selling drugs.
Brian was cleared of murder but convicted of perverting the course of justice after it emerged he lied to police when he was first arrested.
In 2013, it was reported Brian was a marked man in prison amid fears of a revenge attack from those close to a murder gang he helped convict.
The dad-of-three had been attacked and threatened to the extent he sat in HMP Liverpool with protective VP (Vulnerable Prisoner) status, spending his time in solitary confinement for his own safety.
Elizabeth Avis
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Elizabeth Avis played Laura Stevens in Brookside from 2002 to 2003.
And while she’s out of the limelight now, the 38-year-old was charged with affray, after spitting out of a car window during a road rage dispute just four years after leaving the show.
Elizabeth, who was with her mum, also called Elizabeth, became embroiled in a fight with the passengers of a car next to them – and Elizabeth Snr. ended up punching one of the others.
Elizabeth Snr. was picked out of an identity parade, while the Brookside actress’ saliva was later found on the front passenger window, linking her to the incident.
They both pleaded guilty to affray.
The actress was given a two-year conditional discharge and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £200.
But her mum was sentenced to eight months jail, suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 150 hours unpaid work, and pay costs of £200.
Annie Miles
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Annie Miles, 64, played Terry’s wife Sue Sullivan in Brookside from 1987 before her character met an untimely death in 1991.
She later became a familiar face on Channel 5 as Maria Simons, the restaurant manager in Family Affairs, from 1997 to 2000.
Annie now lives away from the limelight in London with her husband Bobby Aitken and two children Ellie and Finlay.
Ray Quinn
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Ray Quinn, 34, is probably best known as being runner-up to Leona Lewis on The X Factor in 2006.
But he was in Brookside prior to that from 2000 to 2003, as little Anthony Murray.
He went on to release a swing album after the X Factor, and became a popular face on TV, boosted by his winning run on Dancing on Ice in 2009.
Ray returned to his soap roots in 2018 to 2019 when he joined the cast of Hollyoaks before releasing a second album.
However the coronavirus pandemic halted all of his gigs and so Ray decided to work as a Hermes delivery driver, before becoming a carpet fitter.
In his personal life, Ray married Emma Stephens in 2012 but they divorced in 2015. They share son Harry together.
Ray, who resides in Liverpool, is now engaged to Emily Ashleigh and the couple welcomed a baby girl, Summer, in September last year.
Gillian Kearney
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Gillian Kearney is best known for playing Debbie McGrath in Brookside from 1986 to 1989 and in the spin-off mini-series Damon and Debbie.
After she left, she went on to star in Casualty, Silent Witness, Shameless and Emmerdale as bonkers Emma Barton.
Gillian left the Dales in 2017, and has since turned her hand to directing, earning her first credit in 2019 with women’s prison drama Clink.
She is also set to play Mum in upcoming film The Naughty Boys this year.
Now 50, Gillian has one son, John Gerard Foo, with her long-time partner Eddie Foo after the pair got together in 2009.
Jennifer Ellison
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From 1998, Jennifer Ellison played Emily Shadwick in Brookside, until she fell out of a window and died in 2003.
Jen then embarked on a music career, releasing Baby I Don’t Care, which reached No. 6 in the UK charts.
The following year, after being propelled back into the spotlight when she won Hell’s Kitchen, Jen released her second single Bye Bye Boy, which peaked at No. 13. She also started appearing in lads’ mags.
Riding the waves of her popularity, she even starred in the 2004 film adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera.
She competed in the 2012 series of Dancing on Ice and appeared in several theatre shows across the UK.
The mum-of-three, 39, who has long battled with weight issues, appeared on ITV’s Lorraine in 2015, where she vowed “never to yo-yo diet again” after revealing she’d reached 14st.
Jennifer tied the knot with her husband Rob Tickle in 2009. They share three children Bobby, 12, Harry, seven, and Charlie, six.
She was a judge on Dance Mums UK and has her own dance studios – Jelli Studios – which produced Boogie Storm who appeared in the Britain’s Got Talent final.
In November 2021 she revealed she’d been rushed to hospital with a mystery illness, just 12 weeks after she impaled herself with a fishing hook and required an A&E dash.
She appeared on Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins last year but didn’t make it to the end. She broke down in tears claiming the show triggered memories of her violent past with her ex Tony Richardson, who was involved in the world of crime.
Ricky Tomlinson
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After playing Bobby Grant in Brookside from 1982 to 1988, Ricky Tomlinson went on to become a well-known comedian, starring in The Royle Family and a number of films.
Most recently, Ricky and his Royle Family co-star Ralf Little presented a travel series called Ricky & Ralf’s Very Northern Road Trip for Gold.
Ricky, now 83, has suffered two heart attacks and, in 2013, underwent huge heart surgery after having a quadruple bypass.
Ever since, he has campaigned for men to get free checks to combat the rise in heart disease.
In 1962, Ricky married Marlene, with whom he has three children; son Clifton, who died aged 33 in 2004 after a battle with drug and alcohol abuse, son Gareth and daughter Kate.
He and Marlene split in 1986. In 1993 he met social worker Rita Cummiskey, whom he married 10 years later, and she now works as his manager.
Anna Friel
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While Anna Friel, 46, didn’t star in Brookside for long, her character Beth Jordace played a part in two of the show’s most iconic storylines.
The first was the murder of her dad Trevor, with Beth stabbing him before helping her mum bury him under the patio in their garden. The second was Beth’s lesbian kiss.
Since leaving Brookside, Anna has starred in a number of dramas including Pushing Daisies and Marcella, for which she won an Emmy Award.
Off-screen, Anna’s love life has caught the attention of the media, particularly when former boyfriend Darren Day revealed on Celebrity Big Brother that Robbie Williams had tried to steal her away from him during their relationship.
While she didn’t succumb to the ex-Take That star’s charms while with Darren, Anna and Robbie did briefly date following their break up.
In 2001, Anna began a relationship with actor David Thewlis, after the pair met on a flight to Cannes. Later that year she collapsed and was rushed to hospital needing emergency surgery and two blood transfusions for a ruptured ovarian cyst.
It was discovered that she suffers from endometriosis and would have difficulty conceiving. She did later manage to became pregnant and gave birth to daughter Gracie Ellen Mary Friel on July 9th, 2005 at Portland Hospital, London.
In December 2010, Anna and David separated, and she went on to date actor Rhys Ifans in 2014 for three years.
She went on to date army officer Mark Jaworski for a few years up until lockdown, but is currently single.