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Yuppie Daniel endured much at the motel - Growler and Mrs Tardebigge included.
Daniel, played with great skill by Philip Goodhew, was basically a selfish little swine.
He was the son of the late Herbie Freeman and the step-son of Nicola. He had a twin sister, Joanna.
And he had obviously been spoilt rotten.
What mattered to Daniel was Daniel.
He first turned up at the motel after the sell-out to MIH in 1985, and caused Nicola much angst - by calling her "Queen of the Bunny Girls" one night in the Rally Bar whilst in a drunken rage - and by telling Jill Chance that Nicola and Adam were having an affair.
What a ratbag!
But Daniel had been denied access to his heritage - a very large sum of money indeed - as one of the dying acts of his father, who loved the boy dearly, but knew him well. Daniel was not very mature for his age. And he wouldn't get the dosh until he was thirty.
And because of this, Daniel was not a happy bunny.
He fell for Tracey Hobbs whilst he was working at the new motel leisure centre, and was shattered to discover that she was Nicola's long lost daughter.
He told Nicola exactly what he thought of her. And, judging by what he said, it seemed that a fair amount of jealousy went into the mix when it came to his feelings towards his stepmother. When Nicola had originally entered Herbie Freeman's life, Daniel had obviously sensed competition for his father's affection - and resented it.
And, even after his father's death, he still resented her. He told Nicola that Herbie had always loved his own mother much more than he had loved her.
Not that Daniel had it all his own way.
For a start, working at the leisure centre and clashing with Adam Chance were not exactly what Daniel was used to. And then there was sharing a staff chalet - first with barman Barry Hart and then with chumpish Charlie Mycroft.
Charlie was particularly difficult. Daniel thought he should have carte blanche to "entertain" ladies in the chalet whenever he chose - all night if he wanted. Surely, Charlie should make himself absent on such occasions? But with Charlie's toy dog, "Growler", guarding Charlie's pillow and Charlie being a clean living "early to bed early to rise" type of chappie, Daniel grew increasingly fed up. At one point, he plotted with his girlfriend, Fiona, and deposited "Growler" in the leisure centre swimming pool. Of course, Charlie was horrified, but fortunately "Growler" recovered.
Daniel later left Crossroads, but returned in April 1988 - a yuppie in the making. "Even my car phone's got its own Filofax!" he chortled.
And he definitely had the last smirk over Adam when it turned out he was representing the Three Crowns company, Jill and Adam's competition for buying Crossroads.
A joy to dislike - that was Daniel. But his story wasn't without some depth and he didn't have all the luck with the ladies. Mrs Tardebigge, the cleaner, who first appeared at the motel in late 1986, thought Daniel adorable and wasted no opportunity to demonstrate that fact.
Poor lad...
Further to Tim's recent e-mail regarding Growler, Charlie Mycroft's mascot toy Scottie dog (well, we think that's what he was!), the guardian of his pillow, we've found this 1987 screen cap of the aforementioned loveable canine.
So, there you are, Tim - Growler - just for you!
Of course, Debbie Lancaster, AKA "Debbie Dreadful", was a bit taken aback by Growler. She met him on her very first visit to the motel, and much preferred Daniel Freeman.
There's no accounting for taste.
So, here we are at the reception desk with a hugely shoulder-padded Jill and a "Growler" loving Charlie, and it's time to catch up on a few e-mails...
Tim writes:
I loved your post on Charlie Mycroft. I was brought up on the Archers in the 1980's and was a great fan of Graham Seed. My mother never watched Crossroads and as it was pre-web days, I never knew Mr Seed featured in that programme. What did his toy dog "Growler" look like?
What a question, Tim! I have some episodes featuring said "Growler" somewhere. He was a small, black toy dog if I remember rightly. I'll try and get some screen caps up at some point - but there might be some footage on YouTube - do check. I was very happy to include Mr Mycroft in my Top 50 Favourite Crossroads Characters listings. If only the show had continued!
Monica writes:
I'm puzzled about Chris Hunter. David Hunter wasn't his biological father, was he?
No, Tina, he wasn't. This all came out in the early '80s when Iris Scott took some cassettes from Lloyd Munroe's cottage, thinking they contained music, then discovered they were tapes of Rosemary Hunter's therapy sessions with Lloyd. In 1984, Iris used the information to try and blackmail Jill and Adam Chance into keeping her boyfriend Gary in employment at Chimneys. This led Jill to say: "You really are a bitch, Iris!" Although aware of the facts regarding Chris's true parentage, David always regarded him as his son anyway.
Chris Hunter, played by Stephen Hoye.
And finally, from "Tish" (?!).
Loving the blog. Any chance of a mention of a certain Mrs Hope in your Top 50?
Ah, keep viewing, Tish!
1987: Charlie faces the joyful prospect of becoming Assistant General Manager at Crossroads - there's only one drawback: first he must go on the Red Ox training scheme...
Charlie Mycroft, played by Graham Seed, arrived at the Crossroads Motel in late 1986. Apparently one of Major International Hotels' star staff members, when the news broke that the motel was being sold to Tommy "Bomber" Lancaster, Charlie expected another placement to quickly arrive. But it didn't. "Bomber" liked Charlie and thought the ex-public schoolboy would add a touch of class to his establishment, so Charlie ended up staying on.
He was something of a buffoon, and the despair of his staff chalet mate - that up and coming yuppie-type Daniel Freeman. When Growler, Charlie's childhood companion toy dog, which guarded his pillow constantly, disappeared and was found in the swimming pool at the motel's new leisure centre, Charlie suspected Daniel and his girlfriend, Fiona, of doing the dastardly dunking. And he was right.
Daniel was not an easy chalet mate to have, and expected Charlie to absent himself whenever he wanted to entertain a lady there.
Despite his naivety and not-exactly-high intelligence levels, Charlie was a kind hearted soul and could be very charming, winning many friends amongst the motel staff. He and Benny Hawkins enjoyed reading their comics together in the staff room, and Charlie did his very best to find Benny's dog, Moses, when he went missing in 1987. He was an "absolute whizz" at organising activities for residents.
When last seen in 1988, romance for Charlie was blossoming with Crossroads secretary Anne-Marie Wade.
Charlie bore similarities to the character of Nigel Pargetter, who had first appeared in BBC Radio 4's The Archers serial in 1983. This was hardly surprising as Crossroads producer William Smethurst had created both characters and they were played by the same actor. Charlie's great kindness, trusting nature and not-exactly-high IQ make him an absolute must for a place in our Top 50 listing.
Charlie could quite easily have been a silly, unbelievable character, but Graham Seed played him with such integrity that I quickly found myself entering Charlie's world and liking him tremendously. Charlie was such a "people person" - so concerned for all those around him. He was even deeply moved when daft teenager Beverley Grice got engaged to her boyfriend Ranjit - although she only did it for the glamour of the situation, which included the thrill of wearing the ring!
I would have counted myself blessed to have had Charlie as a pal.
The spirit of true friendship was strong in late 1980s Crossroads. What a shame 21st Century soaps cannot make the same boast.
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