''Waterloo Road'' is a British television drama series set in a

comprehensive school A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

of the same name, first broadcast on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

on 9 March 2006, and concluding its original run on 9 March 2015. In September 2021, the show was recommissioned for an eleventh series, with production returning to the

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

area.

Premise

''Waterloo Road'' is set in a failing

of the same name and focuses on the professional and personal lives of the students and staff. Ann McManus, the show's cocreator, devised the series in response to the BBC requesting a drama pertinent to "ordinary people in Britain today". She used the programme to explore many topical issues that occur within Britain, applying them to an educational setting.

Production

Development

The first series of ''Waterloo Road'' contained eight episodes and was first broadcast from 9 March to 27 April 2006 on BBC One. The show was renewed for a second series that was twelve episodes long, airing from 18 January to 26 April 2007. Series 3 to 6 each contained twenty episodes. The third series aired between 11 October 2007 and 13 March 2008, and the fourth series between 7 January and 20 May 2009. Series 5 was the first to be recorded in HD, and began airing on Wednesday 28 October 2009 (the previous Sunday for

BBC One Scotland BBC One Scotland is a Scottish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by BBC Scotland. It is the Scottish variation of the UK-wide BBC One network and is broadcast from Pacific Quay in Glasgow. History The BBC Television Service sta ...

). The final episode aired on 15 July 2010. The show was filmed and set in the English town of

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

from the first series until the end of seventh series, and the Scottish town of

Greenock Greenock (; ; , ) is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The town is the administrative centre of Inverclyde Council. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms ...

from the beginning of eighth series until the end of its original run, the tenth series. The first episode was broadcast on BBC One on 9 March 2006, and the final episode of the original run was broadcast on

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...

on 9 March 2015. Production was meant to move locations in 2009, with storylines in the fourth and fifth series designed to coincide with that move. However, these plans did not go ahead, so the show remained in Rochdale until series 7. The filming of the fifth and sixth series was back-to-back, from 2009 to 2010. The sixth series ran from 1 September 2010 to 6 April 2011. Greenock-Academy-2012-05-20-east

The seventh series began airing on 4 May 2011 and ended on 25 April 2012. The series lasted for 30 episodes. As part of a BBC initiative to produce more shows out of England, in August 2011 the show was commissioned for fifty episodes, constituting the eighth and ninth series, in a new location in

, Scotland. The Rochdale site was demolished in 2013 and is now a housing estate. For most of the eighth series, the school was a non-fee charging

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

, as opposed to a comprehensive school as it was for the first seven series. The eighth series, again 30 episodes long, started on 23 August 2012 and concluded on 4 July 2013. Starting on 5 September the same year, the ninth series ran until 12 March 2014.

Cancellation and return

On 2 April 2014, the BBC announced that series 10 would be the show's last. The final scenes were recorded on 22 August 2014, and the series premiered on 15 October. On 11 December, it was announced that the last ten episodes of the show would be aired first on

, with a repeat on BBC One later in the evening. The final episode was the show's 200th and aired on 9 March 2015, exactly nine years after the first episode. In the story, the school remains open following a lengthy battle against a school merger. In September 2019, the entire series was made available on

BBC iPlayer BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available Over-the-top media service, over-the-top on a wide range of devices, including Mobile phone, mobile phones and Tablet computer ...

. On 23 September 2021, the BBC announced that it had commissioned 22 new episodes with ''Waterloo Road'' returning to BBC One. The series' production returned to Greater Manchester, with the school set being at the former St Ambrose Barlow Roman Catholic High School in Swinton. Filming commenced in February 2022, and the eleventh series of 7 episodes aired between 3 January and 14 February 2023. Series 12, containing seven more episodes aired on BBC one between 16 May and 27 June 2023. Series 13 was confirmed by a trailer attached to the final episode of series 12. On 21 August 2023 it was announced by the BBC that series 14 and 15 had been commissioned, with the three forthcoming series to contain eight episodes each. Filming for series 14 commenced in autumn 2023 with the new Greater Manchester Academy setting for Waterloo Road filmed in a former Manchester College campus. In August 2024, the BBC announced that the show had been recommissioned for series 16 and 17, with the show's future secured until 2026. It was also confirmed that Series 14 would premiere in September 2024, and Series 15 would premiere in early 2025. Filming for series 16 and series 17 commenced in Summer 2024.

Cast

The show utilises an

ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that comprises many principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast to the po ...

led by the school's staff members. The longest-running cast members were

Philip Martin Brown Philip Martin Brown (born 9 July 1956) is an English actor. He is known for his long-running portrayal of English teacher Grantly Budgen in the hit BBC One school-based drama series '' Waterloo Road'', which he played from 2006 to 2013. He is ...

(Grantly Budgen, series 1–9),

Jason Done Jason Done (born 5 April 1973), in Walkden, Lancashire, is an English actor who appeared as Mordred in the 1998 TV miniseries ''Merlin'', opposite Sam Neill. He is best known for his role as Stephen Snow in ITV drama '' Where The Heart Is'' ...

(Tom Clarkson, series 1–8) and

Chelsee Healey Chelsea Jade Healey (born 6 August 1988) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the roles of Janeece Bryant in the BBC school-based drama series '' Waterloo Road'' (2006–2012, 2023), Honey Wright in the BBC medical drama series ...

(Janeece Bryant, series 1–4 and 6–8, 11). The original teaching characters consisted of Headteacher Jack Rimmer (

Jason Merrells Jason Scott Merrells is an English actor, known for his roles in ''Casualty'', '' Queer as Folk'', ''Cutting It'', '' Waterloo Road'' and ''Emmerdale''. Early life and education Merrells was born in Epping, Essex. His brother Simon Merrells ...

); Deputy Headteacher Andrew Treneman ( Jamie Glover); Art teacher and Head of Pastoral Care Kim Campbell (

Angela Griffin Angela Mellissa Griffin (born 19 July 1976) is an English actress, television presenter and director who has been active on British television since the early 1990s. She is best known for portraying the roles of Fiona Middleton in the ITV soa ...

); Head of English Grantly Budgen (

); English teachers Lorna Dickey ( Camilla Power) and Tom Clarkson (

); Head of French Steph Haydock ( Denise Welch); and Head of Drama Izzie Redpath (

Jill Halfpenny Jill Halfpenny (born 15 July 1975) is an English actress who first garnered attention playing Nicola Dobson in the coming-of-age BBC drama series '' Byker Grove'' (1989–1992). She became more widely known for her roles as Rebecca Hopkins on ...

). The student characters included Donte Charles (

Adam Thomas Adam Gordon Thomas (born 11 August 1988) is an English actor, known for his roles as Donte Charles in the BBC One school-based drama series ''Waterloo Road (TV series), Waterloo Road'' (2006–2009, 2023–present) and Adam Barton (Emmerdale), ...

), Chlo Grainger ( Katie Griffiths), Janeece Bryant (

), Yasmin Deardon ( Rhea Bailey), Mika Grainger ( Lauren Drummond) and Lewis Seddon (Craig Fitzpatrick). Series 2 introduced pupil Brett Aspinall ( Tom Payne), his father and sponsor governor Roger Aspinall ( Nick Sidi) and school secretary Davina Shackleton ( Christine Tremarco). Other new pupils included Leigh-Ann Galloway ( Holly Matthews). Series 3 introduced new deputy head Eddie Lawson (

Neil Morrissey Neil Anthony Morrissey (born 4 July 1962) is an English actor, businessman, narrator, and television presenter. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Rocky in ''Boon (TV series), Boon'', and Tony in ''Men Behaving Badly''. Other notable acti ...

) and, in the seventh episode, new Headteacher Rachel Mason (

Eva Pope Eva Rebecca Pope (born 16 November 1967) is an English actress, best known for her portrayal of longest-serving headmistress Rachel Mason in '' Waterloo Road'', and appearances in ''Coronation Street'', '' Dream Team'', '' Bad Girls'' and '' H ...

). Other staff arrivals include NQT English teacher Jasmine Koreshi ( Shabana Bakhsh) and Head of Music and Drama Matt Wilding (

Chris Geere Christopher William Geere (born 18 March 1981) is an English actor. He is known for playing the lead role of Jimmy Shive-Overly in the FX and FXX dark comedy series ''You're the Worst'' (2014), Roger Clifford in the 2019 film '' Detective Pik ...

). Pupils introduced in the third series include Aleesha Dillon (Lauren Thomas), Danielle Harker ( Lucy Dixon), Karla Bentham ( Jessica Baglow), Paul Langley (Thomas Milner), Bolton Smilie (Tachia Newall) and Michaela White ( Zaraah Abrahams). Series 4 introduced the Kelly family, consisting of mother Rose Kelly ( Elaine Symons) and her five children: Marley ( Luke Bailey), Earl ( Reece Noi), Sambuca ( Holly Kenny), Denzil (Reece Douglas), and baby Prince. The series features new Head of PE Rob Cleaver ( Elyes Gabel), who is sacked when it transpires he is giving Bolton pills to help him win an important match. Rachel's sister Melissa Ryan (

Katy Carmichael Katy Jane Carmichael (born 5 March 1970) is an English actress, director and producer. She is most known for her roles as Twist Morgan in the Channel 4 sitcom ''Spaced'', Lucy Barlow in the ITV soap ''Coronation Street'', and Melissa Ryan in ...

) and nephew Phillip (

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...

) are also introduced. Series 5 introduced Executive Head Max Tyler ( Tom Chambers), Deputy Headteacher Christopher Mead ( William Ash), Head of Food Technology Ruby Fry (

Elizabeth Berrington Elizabeth Berrington (born 3 August 1970) is an English actress and graduate of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art; she is best known for her roles as Ruby Fry in '' Waterloo Road'', Paula Kosh in '' Stella'', Mel Debrou in '' Moving Wa ...

), newly-qualified English teacher Helen Hopewell (

Vinette Robinson Vinette Robinson (born 1981) is a British actress. She won a British Independent Film Award for her performance in the film ''Boiling Point'' (2021), a role she reprised in its spinoff series. On television, she is known for her roles in the B ...

) and Head of Modern Languages Jo Lipsett ( Sarah-Jane Potts). New pupils included Emily James ( Shannon Flynn) and her sister Lindsay James ( Jenna-Louise Coleman), Siobhan Mailey ( Phoebe Dynevor), Ros McCain (

Sophie McShera Sophie McShera (born 17 May 1985) is an English actress known for her roles as Ros McCain in the fifth series of the BBC television series '' Waterloo Road'', as Daisy Mason in the ITV television series ''Downton Abbey'', and as Drizella T ...

), Luke Pendle (Richie Jeeves), Amy Porter ( Ayesha Gwilt), Josh Stevenson ( William Rush) and Finn Sharkey ( Jack McMullen). In series 6, Amanda Burton joined the cast as new Headteacher Karen Fisher. Karen's family included children Jess ( Linzey Cocker) and Harry (

Ceallach Spellman Ceallach John Spellman ( ; born 31 August 1995) is an English actor, writer and presenter best known for playing Matthew Williams in the revival of ITV drama ''Cold Feet'', Harry Fisher in the BBC One school-based drama '' Waterloo Road'' from ...

) and her husband and supply teacher Charlie ( Ian Puleston-Davies).

Lucien Laviscount Lucien Leon Laviscount (; born 9 June 1992) is an English actor. He appeared in teen drama ''Grange Hill'' in 2007. He later appeared in ITV's ''Coronation Street'' (2009) and BBC One's '' Waterloo Road'' (2010–11). In 2015, Laviscount playe ...

was cast as rebellious teenager Jonah Kirby and

also reprised her role as Janeece Bryant as the new school secretary. On 21 December 2009, the arrival of new pupils Bex Fisher ( Tina O'Brien) and Kyle Stack ( George Sampson) was announced; Kyle joined in episode 11. Also introduced in episode 11 were pupils Nate Gurney (Scott Haining), Ronan Burley ( Ben-Ryan Davies), Ruth Kirby ( Anna Jobarteh). Other additions included Ronan Burley's father ( Martin Kemp), Head of Spanish Francesca "Cesca" Monotya ( Karen David), Head of Pastoral Care Adanna Lawal ( Sharlene Whyte) and Geography teacher and father of Jonah and Ruth, Marcus Kirby ( Wil Johnson). Series 7 introduced new Headteacher Michael Byrne (

Alec Newman Mark Alexander Newman (born 27 November 1974) is a Scottish actor best known for portraying Paul Atreides in the Sci Fi Channel's 2000 miniseries adaptation of Frank Herbert's ''Dune''. He played Adam Smasher in '' Cyberpunk 2077'' and '' Cyb ...

), science teacher and Deputy Headteacher Sian Diamond ( Jaye Jacobs), school site manager Rob Scotcher (

Robson Green Robson Golightly Green (born 18 December 1964) is an English actor, singer-songwriter and television presenter. His first major TV role was as hospital porter Jimmy Powell in BBC drama series '' Casualty'' in 1989. He then went on to portray F ...

), maths teacher Daniel Chalk (

Mark Benton Mark Benton (born 16 November 1965) is an English actor and television presenter known for his roles as Eddie in '' Early Doors'', Howard in '' Northern Lights'', Martin Pond in '' Barbara'' and the eponymous Frank Hathaway in '' Shakespeare & H ...

), new Head of English Linda Radleigh (

Sarah Hadland Sarah Hadland (born 15 May 1971) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Stevie Sutton in BBC One's BAFTA-nominated comedy television series '' Miranda'' (2009–2015) and Trish in '' The Job Lot'' (2013–2015). Hadland appear ...

), school canteen worker Maggie Croft (

Melanie Hill Melanie Jane Hill is a British actress, known for playing Hazel Redfern in ''Auf Wiedersehen, Pet'' (1985–1986), Aveline in ''Bread'' (1989–1991), Rita Dolan in Kay Mellor drama '' Playing the Field'' (1998–2002), Maggie Budgen in the BB ...

), school benefactor Lorraine Donnagan ( Daniela Denby-Ashe) and pupil Jodie "Scout" Allen ( Katie McGlynn). Guest stars in the seventh series included: Gemma Atkinson, Dominique Jackson, Alicya Eyo,

Margi Clarke Margi Clarke (born 25 May 1954) is an English actress and radio and television presenter. She had a leading role in the film '' Letter to Brezhnev'' (1985), a low-budget film which had an international release. Later, Clarke played Jackie Dob ...

, Jodie Prenger, Lisa Riley, Tupele Dorgu, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Kai Owen and

Jane Asher Jane Asher (born 5 April 1946)''The International Who's Who of Women'', 3rd edition, ed. Elizabeth Sleeman, Europa Publications, 2002, p. 29 is an English actress and author. She achieved early fame as a child actress and through her associatio ...

. Series 8 marked the start of Waterloo Road in Greenock, and introduced English teacher Christine Mulgrew (

Laurie Brett Laurie Brett (born 28 March 1969) is a Scottish actress, best known for her roles as Jane Beale in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'' and Christine Mulgrew in the BBC One drama series '' Waterloo Road''. Early and personal life Brett was b ...

), History teacher Audrey McFall ( Georgie Glen), Languages teacher George Windsor (

Angus Deayton Gordon Angus Deayton (; born 6 January 1956) is an English actor, writer, musician, comedian and broadcaster. Deayton was the original presenter of two successful British comedy panel shows, ''Have I Got News for You'' (1990–2002) and ''Woul ...

), and Deputy Headteacher Simon Lowsley (

Richard Mylan Richard Mylan (born 24 November 1972) is a Welsh actor and former dancer. He is best known for his roles in ''The Bill'', ''Bad Girls (TV series), Bad Girls'' and ''Grownups (2006 TV series), Grownups'' as Chris. Early life Mylan was born in Sw ...

). Series 9 introduced new science teacher Sue Spark ( Vanessa Hehir), and new PE teacher Hector Reid (Leon Ockenden). Series 10 introduced an extensive set of new characters, including new headmaster Vaughan Fitzgerald ( Neil Pearson), his partner and Art teacher Allie Westbrook (

Nicola Stephenson Nicola Stephenson (born 5 July 1971) is an English actress. She played the roles of Margaret Clemence in '' Brookside'', Julie Fitzjohn in '' Holby City'', Sarah Williams in '' The Chase'', Allie Westbrook in '' Waterloo Road'', and Tess Harr ...

), his ex-wife and Geography teacher Olga Fitzgerald ( Pooky Quesnel), and Olga and Vaughan's children Justin Fitzgerald ( Max Bowden) and Leo Fitzgerald (Zebb Dempster). Other new staff introductions included Deputy Headteacher Lorna Hutchinson ( Laura Aikman), GPD Teacher Guy Braxton ( Regé-Jean Page), Science teacher Marco D'Olivera (Stefano Braschi). New pupils Kenzie Calhoun (

Charlotte Beaumont Charlotte Beaumont (born 28 July 1995) is an English actress known for portraying Chloe Latimer in the ITV crime drama ''Broadchurch ''Broadchurch'' is a British crime drama television series broadcast on ITV for three series between 20 ...

), Scott Fairchild (Andrew Still), Carrie Norton ( Tahirah Sharif), Bonnie Kincaid ( Holly Jack), Dale Jackson (Finlay MacMillan) and Abdul Bukhari ( Armin Karima), alongside existing pupils Rhiannon Salt (Rebecca Craven), Lenny Brown (Joe Slater), Lisa Brown (Caitlin Gillespie), Darren Hughes (Mark Beswick), Shaznay Montrose (Je'Taime Morgan Hanley), .

, Katie Griffiths and

reprised their roles in series 11 as Donte Charles, Chlo Charles and Kim Campbell respectively, with Campbell now as the Headteacher. Staff members included Lindon King (Vincent Jerome), Joe Casey ( James Baxter), Wendy Whitwell (Jo Coffey), Valerie Chambers ( Shauna Shim), Neil Guthrie (

Neil Fitzmaurice Neil Simon Fitzmaurice (born 20 August 1969) is an English actor, comedian, and writer. He is best known for his role as Jeff, the love rival of protagonist Mark Corrigan, in the Channel 4 sitcom ''Peep Show (British TV series), Peep Show''. He ...

), Coral Walker (

Rachel Leskovac Rachel Leskovac (born 5 June 1976) is an English actress and singer. She is known for portraying the roles of Kelly Yorke in the BBC One medical drama series ''Holby City'' (2003–2004), Natasha Blakeman in the ITV (TV network), ITV soap opera ...

), Amy Spratt (Katherine Pearce), Nicky Walters (

Kym Marsh Kimberley Gail Marsh (previously Ryder, Lomas and Ratcliff; born 13 June 1976) is an English actress, television presenter and singer. In 2001, she won a place in the band Hear'Say as a result of appearing on the reality television series ''Pop ...

), Jamilah Omar (Sonia Ibrahim) and Mike Rutherford (Ryan Clayton). New senior pupils included Danny Lewis (Adam Abbou), Samia Choudhry (Priyasasha Kumari), Preston Walters (Noah Valentine), Kai Sharif (Adam Ali), Kelly Jo Rafferty (Alicia Forde), Dean Weever (Francesco Piacentini-Smith), Noel McManus (Liam Scholes), and Caz Williams (Lucy Eleanor Begg). Junior pupils included Izzy Charles (Scarlett Thomas), Tonya Walters (Summer Violet Bird), Verity King (Ava Flannery), Dwayne Jackson (Thapelo Ray), Zayne Jackson (Inathi Rozani), Shola Aku (Chiamaka (ChiChi) Ulebor) and Norrulah Ashimi (Sahil Ismailkhil). Series 13 introduced new students Libby Guthrie (Hattie Dynevor), Schumacher 'Schuey' Weever (Zak Sutcliffe), Stacey 'Stace' Neville ( Tillie Amartey), Portia Weever (Maisie Robinson), Molly 'Mog' Richardson (Aabay Noor Ali), Jess Clarke (Zanele Nyoni), and Declan Harding (Teddy Wallwork). Series 14 introduced Jason Manford as Steve Savage, Waterloo Road's new Headteacher, and Saira Choudhry as Nisha Chandra, Head of Maths. New students included Billy Savage (Olly Rhodes), Boz Osbourne (Nathan Wood), Aleena Qureshi (Sonya Nisa), Lois Taylor-Brown ( Miya Ocego), Luca Smith ( Danny Murphy), and Jared Jones (Matthew Khan). Series 15 introduced Lindsey Coulson as Dame Stella Drake, the new Headteacher of Waterloo Road, and Lauren Patel as new early career teacher Jas Sharma. New students included Agnes Eccleston ( Niamh Blackshaw), Cat Guthrie (Lucy Chambers), and Ashton Stone (Cory McClane).

Transmissions and ratings

The final episode of series 3 attracted 6 million viewers. The final episode of series 4 and 5 each attracted 4.5 million viewers. The finale of series 10 aired on 9 March 2015, nine years after the first episode aired on 9 March 2006.

Awards and nominations

International broadcasts

DVD releases

Series one and two were released by 2entertain, while series three to eight were released by Acorn DVD. Series eleven onwards were released by Dazzler Media.

Online

All episodes of the original series were made available on

on 19 September 2019. The popularity of the original show on iPlayer among younger audiences contributed to the show's recomissioning in 2021. As part of the show's return in 2023,

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

commissioned a podcast series alongside the return of the programme. The podcast was hosted by cast members

(Donte Charles) and Priyasasha Kumari (Samia Choudhury), and released exclusively on

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is an Over-the-top media service, over-the-top audio streaming media, streaming and download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, Streaming media, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide ...

. Since the revival of the series, each series has been released as a boxset on

prior to transmission on

References

External links

Official website – web archive
*

at

Shed Media Warner Bros. Television Studios UK (formerly Shed Media Group and later Warner Bros. Television Productions UK) is a British creator and distributor of television content. The Group produces long-running television brands in drama, factual, doc ...

(web archive) * * {{National Television Award for Outstanding Drama Series 2006 British television series debuts 2000s British LGBTQ-related drama television series 2000s high school television series 2010s British LGBTQ-related drama television series 2010s high school television series 2020s British LGBTQ-related drama television series 2020s high school television series Television shows about alcohol abuse BBC Scotland television shows BBC television dramas British high school television series British television series revived after cancellation Child abuse in television Domestic violence in television British English-language television shows Gay-related television shows Lesbian-related television shows Television shows about murder Television shows about rape Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Television shows set in Greater Manchester Television shows about teenage pregnancy Television series about families Television shows set in Scotland Youth culture in the United Kingdom Fictional schools British television series about teenagers