Saturday Magazine - 31.08.2019

Words by: Tricia Martin

W

ant to watch

something as big and

bold as Benidorm,

which sadly came to

an end last year? Then look no further than, er, Scarborough. That’s

where Benidorm creator Derren Litten has relocated with this big,

bold – and frequently brash – new comedy.

Sure, the sun might not always shine – after all, it is set in England!

• but Claire Sweeney’s man-eater Hayley brings the heat, comedian
  Jason Manford the laughs (and a surprisingly good singing voice) as
  Mike, and Stephanie Cole, at 77, delivers one of her best roles yet as
  a sharp-tongued pensioner.
  ‘My intention is for it to be the first comedy soap,’ says Derren.
  At the heart of the seaside community are Mike and Karen
  (Catherine Tyldesley), who’re back together after his bid to make it as
  a singer scuppered their relationship. Karen wed someone else but,
  when that marriage failed, was
  drawn back to her true love.
  Now Mike is supposedly building
  bridges with Karen as they belt
  out standards at The Ship pub’s
  karaoke night, where writer
  Derren pops up as the landlord.
  But as we meet the couple,
  their reunion could be doomed


• Karen has just caught Mike
  locking lips with Hayley.
  To make matters worse,
  Hayley’s gangster boyfriend
  Tony Peroni (Benidorm stalwart
  Jake Canuso) has just got out of prison and is looking for Mike...
  ‘A lot of couples will be able to see themselves in Karen and Mike,’
  says former Coronation Street actress Catherine.
  ‘I’ve been reading the scripts with my husband at home and
  said, “Oh god, that’s us!”. It’s very relatable – and extremely funny.
  The storylines will get viewers hooked.’

‘It’s extremely

funny... a lot of

couples will see

themselves in

Karen and Mike’

Benidorm’s creator is back with a hilarious

new seaside saga of love, lies and karaoke

WHO’S WHO IN SCARBOROUGH

Creator Derren

plays The Ship

pub’s landlord

CATHERINE

TYLDESLEY

MIKE (Jason Manford)

Mike’s running the local

amusement arcade and

trying to get his life back

on track.

KAREN

(Catherine

Tyldesley)

The hairdresser has

a divorce behind her

and doubts about

the future.

GERALDINE

(Maggie

Ollerenshaw)

Owner of the hair

salon, where locals

trade gossip under

the dryers.

MARION (Stephanie Cole)

Karen’s mum. She’s getting

forgetful but she’s not short of

opinions. ‘She’s quite cutting,’

says Stephanie.

Wish you were here

SCARBOROUGH

Fri 9.30pm BBC One

NEW

HO’S WHO

6 SATURDAY MAGAZINE