Crossroads - When Was My "Golden Era"?

Golden Crossroads Motel days of 1982 - Sharon Metcalfe (Carolyn Jones), Sid Hooper (Stan Stennett) and Joe MacDonald (Carl Andrews) discuss a problem in the garage office; Barbara Hunter (Sue Lloyd) enjoys a nice cuppa; Doris Luke (Kathy Staff) and Kath Brownlow (Pamela Vezey) take a break from their duties to enjoy a bit of gossip. 

Christine has written to say: 

I think it's generally accepted that the golden era of Crossroads was the 1970s, possibly up until 1981. Do you agree with that? 

Well, the short answer is "no", Christine! This is just my personal opinion - but I have been enchanted by the 1960s episodes recently made available by Network DVD. I'm too young to remember the 1960s, but I hunger for more and enjoyed the episodes as much as any from the 1970s or 1980s.

Reg Watson was a master of the soap opera art, and I remember his light touch, occasional social issues and thrilling cliff hangers very fondly indeed. It's a crime the vast majority of episodes from his era no longer exist - and no objective judgement can be made of Crossroads eras without them. 

So these are my personal views.

I watched Crossroads basically because my mother did, and my first story-line memories are from when I was a small boy at the start of the 1970s. I never really consciously became a fan, the show simply became a part of my life, and I enjoyed it immensely. I enjoyed each and every era I viewed - the 1980s every bit as much as the 1970s. 

There were some periods in both decades when my interest flagged slightly - but the show was as much a part of my life as the sun coming up each morning. 

When I left home in 1983, I didn't make a conscious decision to continue watching Crossroads - I simply did it because it was so much a part of my life.

Often, I'd be getting ready for a night out on the town - trendy young dude that I then was - but I'd always be listening to the show, following all the plots, and I'd never leave my flat until after the final cliffhanger scene! 

Whatever the era - Watson, Barton, Bowman or Smethurst, I was there and loving it! I think that's because Crossroads was always such a friendly show - it had a good "vibe" (he wrote, sounding rather 1960s!) - and that was true right from the first episode - meeting Meg Richardson and her family and staff - to the final days when I enjoyed the friendship between bumbling Benny (Paul Henry) and posh but likable twit Charlie Mycroft (Graham Seed) and Daniel Freeman (Philip Goodhew) making witty comments that so reflected the late 1980s: "Even my car phone's got it's own Filofax!". 

Golden era? For me, the Crossroads saga was one long golden era!