Jimmy Corkhill

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For the son of Jimmy Corkhill, see Little Jimmy Corkhill.

Jimmy Corkhill
Brookside character
Jimmy Corkhill Jr
William Corkhill
DaughtersLindsey Corkhill
GrandsonsJimmy Grant
GranddaughtersKylie Corkhill
NephewsRod Corkhill
NiecesTracy Corkhill
First cousinsDon Corkhill

Jimmy Corkhill is a fictional character from Brookside, played by Dean Sullivan, who joined the series in 1986. Jimmy originally appeared on a recurring basis appearing alongside his brother, Billy (John McArdle), before becoming a regular character, featured in major storylines, and remained in the show until its end 17 years later. He is cited as one of the show's most popular characters, and was the longest-featured character. Jimmy has often been cited as a lovable rogue by television critics.

Casting

Jimmy is played by Dean Sullivan. He later became the longest-serving cast member in the soap's history.[1] Sullivan was initially only contracted to appear in six episodes as a recurring character, but due to his popularity he was taken on full-time and remained for seventeen years.[2] When the soap was cancelled, Sullivan said he felt bereaved and it was like losing an old friend.[1]

Jimmy is often described as a rogue.[3]

Storylines

Jimmy first appears in Brookside when his brother Billy moves in and is in the process of building the extension to No.10. His first scene in the

close features Billy and Paul Collins (Jim Wiggins
), another close resident, who is the architect responsible for designing the extension.

Jimmy comes and goes for a couple of years as a sporadic character while the Corkhill family are introduced. His first major storyline involves an insurance "job" on Billy's house. For a year or so, Billy has been in dire financial straits, and Jimmy talks him into what he thinks a surefire winner. When Billy's son, Rod (Jason Hope), graduates from police college, Jimmy does the insurance job (in daylight) and completely trashes the Corkhill’s house in the process to make it look a bit more convincing to the police and the insurance company. When Billy returns from the graduation later that day, he is mortified at the amount of damage Jimmy had done to his house, and it temporarily puts a strain on their relationship.

In the early-to-mid 1990s, Jimmy became an integral part of the storylines. He first suffers from a drug addiction, which nearly destroys his marriage to

Frank Rogers (Peter Christian
) to swerve off a road and crash. Frank is badly injured, and dies just after arriving at the hospital. Jimmy drives some of the relatives to hospital, and when they arrive he learns that Frank had just died and that Tony Dixon (Mark Lennock) is in serious condition.

Within a month of the crash, Tony is diagnosed as being in a

Ron (Vince Earl
) is determined to help him recover. Jimmy helps fundraise to help the Dixon family find a cure, but Tony dies in February 1994. At Ron's request, Jimmy becomes a pallbearer at Tony's funeral, but he cracks under guilt at the graveside and confesses that he caused the crash.

Jimmy's drug problem worsens as he is racked with guilt over the crash, and when Jackie catches him taking drugs in their bathroom just before Christmas 1993, he confesses the crash to her and that drugs are his way of coping with the guilt. She tells no one else about his confession, and tries to talk Jimmy into believing that the crash was not all his fault, as it had already been revealed that Frank had been over the drink-drive limit when the crash happened.

Jimmy starts taking ecstasy in 1994, and Sullivan reportedly suggested the storyline should have ended with Jimmy dying to warn young viewers about the dangers of taking drugs.[4]

In January 1995, Jimmy and Eddie Banks (Paul Broughton) find the body of

Mandy (Sandra Maitland) and daughter Beth (Anna Friel
), after years of physical and psychological abuse, and rape. They bury him under the patio.

In 1995, Jimmy turns up to the

D-Day
commemorations dressed in a Gestapo uniform, which is poorly received in the close. He is also accompanied on frequent occasions by his dog Cracker. Jimmy ends up selling drugs instead of taking them. With the money, he buys 10 Brookside Close and moves into the neighbourhood. However, rival dealers target the house in a drive-by shooting, which kills Jackie's cat, and Jimmy decides to quit before anyone got hurt. Jimmy's son-in-law (and partner in crime) Gary Stanlow (Andrew Fillis) is ordered to dispose of the remaining drugs, but he chooses to sell one final stash to one of Jimmy's regular customers, Australian soap star Shane Cochrane. Jimmy is horrified when Gary admits what he had done, as the heroin was uncut, and tries desperately to reach Shane in time, but is too late to stop him fatally overdosing.

A short time after, Jimmy's son

Ray Hilton (Kenneth Cope
) hear about this and try to convince him not to kill himself. The police are also informed and rush onto the scene. Jimmy jumps off the roof, but is saved just in time by one of the policemen. After this, he is advised to go to his general practitioner and he put on anti-depressants.

In 2001, he separates from Jackie. After the siege, neighbour Nikki Shadwick (Suzanne Collins) sees Jimmy as a father figure, but her feelings turn to infatuation, and the two sleep together.

Jimmy goes to live with his son-in-law Barry Grant (Paul Usher) and daughter in their mansion in Blaydon, Tyne and Wear.

Reception

In 2000, Jimmy and Jackie Corkhill received the best on-screen partnership award at the

British Soap Awards.[5] Sullivan was nominated in the category of "Best Actor" at the 2002 award ceremony.[6] In 2003 Sullivan received the Special Achievement Award at the British Soap Awards for his portrayal of the character.[7] Jimmy was selected as one of the "top 100 British soap characters" by industry experts for a poll to be run by What's on TV, with readers able to vote for their favourite character to discover "Who is Soap's greatest Legend?"[8] Virgin Media included Jimmy in their "80s finest" segment and stated: "Jimmy Corkhill arrived on Brookside Close as a wheeler-dealer, but over his 17 years on the show he also showed us the horrors of drugs, and showcased a lot of scary-faced mental illness acting."[9] The Press branded him as one of the serial's most popular characters.[10] Jimmy became noted for wearing a trademark denim shirt, which was won in a competition after the serial stopped airing.[11] Rachel Murphy of the Daily Mirror branded Jimmy a "lovable nutter" and also stated: "Jimmy has ducked and dived through a hilarious and heart-breaking catalogue of crime, drug abuse, mental illness and tragedy".[1] In 2004 Northwest Regional Development Agency branded Jimmy a "lovable rogue" type,[12] a label which Click Liverpool also attributed to the character.[13] In addition, the BBC have stated he is a "much-loved rogue".[3]

The Northern Echo praised the character, stating: "In criminal and activist Jimmy Corkhill, Dean Sullivan has created one of the soap's most memorable characters. He remains one of the few links with the Brookie heyday when it was regularly in the news. After nearly 20 years, he's closely identified by the public with the character, which was originally only scheduled to appear in six episodes."[2]

In popular culture

Jimmy was parodied in a segment of

Vic Reeves.[14]

References

  1. ^
    The Free Library
    ). Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Breaking up Close companions". The Northern Echo. (Newsquest). 16 June 2003. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Brookside homes to be auctioned". bbc.co.uk. (BBC). 16 December 2008. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
  4. ^ Metro.co.uk, Amy Duncan for (28 January 2016). "Where are the stars of Brookside now and who could return?". Metro. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  5. ^ "EastEnders cleans up soap awards". BBC. 27 May 2000. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  6. ^ Welsh, James (16 May 2002). "British Soap Awards 2002: Nominations". Digital Spy. (Hachette Filipacchi UK). Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
  7. CBBC. (BBC
    ). 11 May 2003. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  8. IPC Media. Archived from the original
    on 5 December 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  9. ^ "Whatever happened to the stars of 80s TV? - Jimmy Corkhill (Brookside)". Virginmedia.com. (Virgin Media Inc.). Archived from the original on 1 April 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  10. ^ "Win Jimmy Corkhill's denim shirt". The Guardian. (Guardian Media Group). 3 November 2003. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  11. ^ Faragher, Emma (25 March 2004). "Dean Sullivan pays tribute to businesses of the region". Northwest Regional Development Agency. Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
  12. ^ Kennedy, Paul (16 July 2010). "Brookside stars back campaign for a Best of Brookie DVD". Click Liverpool. (Click Creative). Archived from the original on 19 January 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2010.
  13. ^ Reeves, Vic (2007). Shooting Stars - Brookside (FLV) (Television production). Channel 4. Retrieved 2 August 2010.[dead YouTube link]
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