Bob Smeaton

Set in working class Newcastle, the Stott family fight their private battles against the backdrop of the conflict of World War II. Helen Stott, over thirty and with a limp, is resigned to being left on the shelf until she meets and falls in love with Norman, a serviceman from London. In contrast, her younger sister Joyce has quite a way with men, and finds herself a little too popular with the troops, especially when her husband pops up on leave from his regiment.

Lily Whitmore is the heir to a crumbling factory that she's determined to restore to its former glory. Unfortunately, Lily must instead turn her attention to the conniving Lionel Filmore who's determined to marry into the family no matter what.

Quayside was a soap opera, based around the lives of young people living on the Newcastle Quayside produced by Zenith North Television and aired in 1997 on Tyne Tees Television in the North East England and Yorkshire Television in Yorkshire. Tyne Tees Television produced this soap opera as a venture into it becoming a regional soap opera alongside the larger soaps such as Coronation Street and EastEnders despite Tyne Tees not actually having a licence commitment to regional drama. Directed and produced by Matthew Robinson it starred Joe Caffrey, Emma Louise Webb and other North East actors, many of whom had appeared or went on to appear in Byker Grove and other local programmes. Despite receiving 40% of the audience share when it started, ratings began to fall primarily due to its position in the schedules. It aired once-weekly at 7.30pm, a slot which is traditionally dedicated to local programming and resulted being alongside EastEnders on BBC One.