How do you think the character developed? I dont get over to see him much, but Ive met his wife and I was invited to their wedding. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Alison Bettles, now 51, played Fay Lucas from 1982 to 1987 in six series of the show. I was acting. The most popular faces from the early days of pioneering children's drama Grange Hill are reunited. Ive written an episode about it. The storylines focused on hard-hitting issues for its time - including teenage pregnancy to alcoholism and drug addictions. Find out more about how we use your personal data in our privacy policy and cookie policy. You can do it.". When I met her many, many years later, I asked her if she remembered me. 'Finally got hitched!' The optical illusion will leave you stumped as it's asking people to spot the ghost hiding inside the room. I was just a normal child attending school. Thats what the whole episode was about. When I first heard about it, I was 15 or 16 and I thought this is a bit too much for a childrens show. Got a story? At the time it was Anthonys baby, to cover that whole story and he just supervised it so well. Roland attempted to fit in with the school and took part in a sports event where he was given support by older pupil Benny Green, who had also warned Gripper off from picking on Roland. Headmistress Bridget McClusky, played by Gwyneth Powell, was one of the longest standing characters in the show appearing on screen between 1981 and 1991. The love that he had for the show was amazing. I find it bizarre that some people dont look back on their time at Grange Hill fondly. Gordon 'Jonah' Jones, was a student at Grange Hill, from 1982 to 1983, played by Lee Sparke. I came up with a story that bit me on the arse. If you would like to customise your choices, click 'Manage privacy settings'. The star has had quite a change in career, and is now a corporate events manager. The pair left the show in the early 1980s just four years after joining but remained friends throughout their careers. He was found lying face down in bed andreports suggested his body may have lain undiscovered for a month. His character became inspirational to young viewers as the character always defended himself when getting bullied. as the character 'Otto' in 1993. During the '90s she turned her back on acting and opened shoe shops called Paola in Knightsbridge and Chelsea before starting her own PR company. At the end of the day, it had 15 million people watching at its peak. (1991). The actor - who played Roly for six years - became one of the most inspiring characters during his time on the programme. We keep saying we are going to meet up; we will do some time this month. 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It should have been a huge thing. We started with the clothes and she was quite fashion conscious and chic. Set at a comprehensive school in a fictional north London suburb, Grange Hill was one of the longest running and most influential shows in British TV history. There was no storyline I didnt enjoy doing, but theres one thing I hate, and I cringe about it now. Do you have a story for The Sun Showbiz team? They smothered him and basically spoilt him. Lee MacDonald, 52, was the star of one of Grange Hill's most hard-hitting storylines when his character Zammo became addicted to heroin. As Benny Green, Terry Sue-Patt was the first character to ever be seen on the show and became one of the most popular characters. Roland wouldnt dance and they made him dance to that song. Roland made friends with a couple of bullies, and was caught red handed stealing Annette Firman's bike. But after his departure from the square, he played away from type portraying the villainous PC Gabriel Kent in The Bill. Im alright with it as long as people arent rude. "A teacher put me up for the role and said 'Go on. Fans loved how despite horrific bullying, the youngster always stood up for himself and discovered he had a talent for foreign languages. But the BBC turned it down and I feel theyve let the public down. You had the four main characters who were involved in the storyline; Lee (Zammo), Melissa (Jackie), Mmoloki (Kevin) and myself. He was a very sad character. He also appeared on Soccer AM and Celebrity Juice. Can you guess who all of these characters are supposed to be? However the route is sabotaged by Mandy Firth and Sarah Wilks who hide one of the control markers, causing Mr Baxter and Roland to get lost. Thirty years on, Roland and Zammo reveal all. He said The old Roland wouldnt, but hes now going to give it a try. Gripper wrote on the board that Roland is a headcase and that he goes to the shrink, which prompted Roland to bunk off school yet again. leaving it . Roly even had a knack for foreign languages. Now I know I get more pleasure from writing than acting. The long-running series was created by Phil Redmon, who also created Channel 4's Brookside as well as Hollyoaks. The Grange Hill cast then and now: Erkan Mustafa who played Roland 'Roly' Browning (Image: HullLive) Erkan, now 50, played one of the most popular stars of the show.. His character Roly. Certain characters develop over time and by the time I left Roland was doing a lot of fund-raising, he was trying to help Zammo ; he came out of his shell. Actor and writer Erkan Mustafa starred in the BBC1 series, Grange Hill, for six years from 1982 to 1987. The star also hosted a Grange Hill cast reunion in a nightclub in Leicester Square back in 2009. Even today, I was shopping in my local supermarket and someone was saying Do you know who that is? and I was saying Who? Luke 'Gonch' Gardener stepped into the shoes of Pogo Patterson as Grange Hill's ginger entrepreneur, joining the cast in 1985. Just general courtesy, an excuse me, sorry to disturb you is all it needs. Lee MacDonald played. That got certain individuals backs up. Simon Vaughan who played Freddie in the show is a TV producer, so we already had a producer on the team. Who was the black girl in Grange Hill? Erkan, who is now also a writer and director, also appeared in several episodes of Blackadder, where he played one of the "enormous orphans" in the Christmas Carol episode. Looking back, you live and learn. So the fact that he cant remember much about the visit wasnt to do with being high, but a more prosaic reason. You come up with conversations and it just spurred me on. Check out our exclusive Jonathan Lambeth aka Danny Kendall interview - now online! Grange Hill was a children's television show that began in 1978 on BBC1 and ran all the way up until 2008. Erkan Mustafa speaks exclusively to Grange Hill Gold about playing one of Grange Hills most iconic characters, and the legacy of Roland Browning . His relationships include Fabienne. Roland attempted to stand up to Gripper by fighting him in the bathroom, but was not capable enough to overpower him and Gripper floored Roland. Especially being asked for an autograph when Im eating. Grange Hill ran for 30 years until 2008 and covered major issues from drug use to teen pregnancy, HIV and knife crime. I didnt know he was going; and he didnt know I was going. The actor - who played underdog Roly for six years - became one of the BBC show's most beloved characters. Grange Hill (TV Series 1978-2008) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. 'I was told by lots of people she was a great fillip to young women teachers who started applying for headships.'. We ask about each others lives. Lee was disgusted with the plans and didn't sign up for the new series. The inspiring actor turned the once bullied youth into someone people looked up too. I cant tolerate rudeness in people. Gripper had picked on Roland during the series, making him give him money and humiliating him. Mrs McClusky was Grange Hill's headteacher and she was in charge between 1981 and 1991. At the time I already knew it was happening, so there was no surprise element. Id already performed Just Say No at School Disco, three or four months prior to that. Thats snowballed into quite a lot of people going to be attending. We didnt grow up too far apart; about a 5 minute walk from each other. Thoughts with his family RIP xxx.'. The actor was found guilty by a jury at London's Snaresbrook Crown Court in 1999 of one count of supplying 2.036 grammes of cocaine to Fake Sheikh Mazher Mahmood, as well as a similar charge involving 11.9 grammes of cannabis resin. Originally, viewers felt sorry for Roland, as he was a victim of bullying at the hands of Gripper Stebson. So thats really good ; Ive spoken to her on the phone a couple of times. Im going to be seeing Simone for the first time in about 20 years, this month, and its just going to be amazing. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. I say that to everybody in life! They even had the same name for the restaurant that Id wrote! . Ive come out with great experiences. Get the biggest TV headlines, recaps and insider knowledge straight to your inbox. What really happened when Grange Hill met Nancy Reagan at the White House The young. Looking at it now, we were the chosen ones; we were lucky to get it. Lee Macdonald and I get on really well now. He had issues. He said Sit down and watch this. Roland's best friends are Zammo McGuire, Jonah Jones and Kevin Baylon and his friends are Fay Lucas, Janet St. Clair, Annette Firman, Jimmy Flynn, Belinda Zowkowski, Julie Marchant, Diane Cooney, Jackie Wright, Banksy Banks, Julian Fairbrother and Cheryl Webb. As well as continuing to act on stage and screen, he's also delved into producing and directing and made a memorable appearance on Dancing On Ice in 2009 because of his lack of flair. Roland Browning / . My friend had got me down there Djing. Just say no! . After leaving the school drama in 1987, he went on to act in two series of Chef! Gripper began picking on a new kid at Grange Hill named Roland Browning, mostly because Roland was overweight and shy with no friends. Just like any group that you grow up with, there will always be people who have personality clashes and people you dont get on with. Episode 1 - It's the first day of a new term at Grange Hill. Grange Hill creator Sir Philip Redmond explained the sudden name change for the show (Picture: PA) . A lot of fan-mail that I received was from people who had been bullied and people felt really sorry for the character, saying he should stand up for himself.