Grange Hill at 40 celebrated in new Liverpool exhibition

It was a fixture in the lives of generations of British schoolchildren who would rush home to watch the exploits of Tucker, Roland, Zammo et al.

Unbelievably, Grange Hill is now the big 4-0.

And to celebrate the landmark anniversary a new mini-exhibition dedicated to the BBC series, created by Phil Redmond, is being staged at the Museum of Liverpool.

Memorabilia on show includes original hand-written scripts, displayed resting on top of an ironing board in just the way Redmond, the series creator, writer and producer, worked on them in the show’s early days.

The original 1950s typewriter which he used to type scripts up, items of uniform worn in the show and various pieces of Grange Hill memorabilia – books, annuals, on-set photographs and vinyl records – will also fascinate visitors.

Grange Hill ran from 1978 to 2008, and during its 30-year screen career it tackled a number of hard-hitting subjects including bullying, teenage pregnancy, AIDS, knife crime, homelessness and mental health.

A drug addiction storyline gave rise to the Just Say No hit single which reached number five in the charts in 1986, while a spin-off series, Tucker’s Luck, starred original Grange Hill cast member Todd Carty.

The new display explores the programme’s direct link to Liverpool through Redmond, who based the early shows on his own school days, and also covers the impact and influence of the often explosive storylines on generations of children who are now grown up.

Phil Redmond said: “Despite being a reminder of the greying hair and expanding waistline, it’s fantastic to have this display and recall those early days when I was trying to build a career as a television writer.

The old typewriter Phil Redmond used to type his scripts

“It’s also humbling to have it in the Museum of Liverpool, not least because the aim of the museum is to tell stories, not just of Liverpool, but how its people helped shape British history.”

Curator Clare Ahmad said: “Grange Hill was a ground-breaking, award-winning series, which had a major influence on children's TV. We’re delighted to be celebrating the 40th anniversary with this spotlight display, which we hope will bring back fond memories of the programme and its most memorable characters.”

40 Years of Grange Hill is at the Museum of Liverpool until February 24 2019.