Early Doors

Early Doors is a BBC sitcom written by Craig Cash and Phil Mealey who also appear in the series playing best friends Joe and Duffy. The setting is The Grapes, a small public house in Manchester, where daily life revolves around the issues of love, loneliness and blocked urinals. A number of the landmarks referred to in the series are in Stockport, such as the McVities factory. The show centres on pub landlord Ken (John Henshaw), especially his preoccupation with his daughter Melanie (Christine Bottomley), who is preparing to meet her real father, and his nervous relationship with barmaid Tanya (Susan Cookson). Ken's wife left him for his best friend. The series reflects more than a little of the Northern humour displayed in The Royle Family (co-written by Cash). In a similar style to The Royle Family, every scene unfolds within the spatial context of The Grapes and it is also set in the Greater Manchester area. Two series of the show were produced between 2003 and 2004.