Our Crossroads Favourites: Valerie Pollard

Valerie in 1982: 'Birmingham? Darling, where on earth's that?'

Valerie Pollard, played by Heather Chasen, only appeared intermittently in Crossroads from 1982 to 1985, but she certainly left her mark on the motel - and our affections.

We adored Valerie.

Naughty but capable of being very nice, Valerie popped a button off Adam Chance's shirt upon her arrival in April 1982 - and bore him away to his boat for a night of 'lurve'.

This resulted in the breaking of Adam's engagement to Jill Chance - and the departure of Adam on the midnight plane to Paris - to avoid the wrath of Val's husband, J Henry Pollard.

Val had only done it to get up her hubby's nose.

Valerie, of course, was a millionaire's wife, leading an elegant beach bum life abroad with a host of 'pneumatic young men' - as her husband put it.

And when J Henry imprisoned her in a grotty motel in the English Midlands, well, darling, you surely couldn't expect her to take that lying down, could you?

The motel bored Valerie so much she once ordered a Pussyfoot Special in the bar.

While Valerie and J Henry were at loggerheads, they actually DID care about each other. J Henry even told her how to spell 'grotesque' - 'q-u-e, not k'.

Poor Miranda, the couple's daughter, dodged the bullets flying between her parents.

Valerie once told Miranda she thought J Henry was the only member of the family who really knew how to love - and she didn't mean sleeping around.

What was so wonderful about Valerie was that you didn't know what to expect from her. Here was a rich super bitch who was also kind and considerate enough to give pregnant motel waitress Glenda Banks a lift home to save her catching the bus, and hand-hold distressed Kate Hamilton as she awaited a court appearance.

But she was also willing to falsely accuse motel restaurant manager (and her husband's spy) Paul Ross of sexual assault. Fortunately, David Hunter saw right through that - and Valerie just reacted as though she had been caught out in a piece of trivial mischief.

She also sent her own daughter an anonymous letter in an attempt to stop Miranda's romantic pursuit of Mr Paul - which caused much angst and resulted in police bribery.

Valerie lit up the screen. Her bitchery, her languidness, her kindness - she was fascinating and very witty to boot.

A Crossroads legend to us at the blog, she made Joan Collins of Dynasty look like Hilda Ogden after a bout of flu and sixty fags.

Fabulous.

Now, we're off to the bar to toy with the peanuts - and perhaps even order a Pussyfoot Special. Unless, of course, you'd like to show us your boat...

Our Crossroads Favourites: Miranda Pollard

It was the '80s and money was no object for Miranda Pollard. But her life could be stormy...

Miranda Pollard, played by Claire Faulconbridge, first arrived at the Crossroads Motel in 1980. She was romantically involved with Adam Chance. 

Miranda's father, J Henry Pollard, was a millionaire businessman who soon arrived in King's Oak too. Oh dear! Miranda's parents would later prove that a millionaire's daughter's lot in life is not always a happy one...

Miranda flitted in and out of King's Oak in the early-to-mid 1980s. When her mother, Valerie Pollard, first arrived at the motel in 1982, we saw just what a nightmare marriage Miranda originated from. Poor girl!

However, Miranda did not always help herself. She was determined to have her way and enjoy a weekend in Paris with Paul Ross, restaurant manager and her father's secret spy at the motel, but her mother found out and sent her an anonymous letter, claiming that she was also a former lover of Mr Ross. Miranda informed the police about the letter, unaware of who the author was, and it fell to her father to bribe the investigating police officer, Sergeant Annette Halls, thus ensuring the trail of evidence did not lead back to Valerie.

Miranda was dispatched, but soon returned, insisting that her father give her a place on the board of the motel, or never see her again. She had already proved herself a competent secretary and J Henry cobbled together a minor role for Miranda which kept her happy (ish).

Despite her frightfully rich background, Miranda was not a snob and was a popular member of the motel staff. In 1984, she became romantically involved with Dr Lawrence Wilcox of the King's Oak group practice, but quickly turned her attentions to Douglas Brady, brother of Barbara Hunter. This, of course, did not work out. Knowing Douglas, how could it? 

In 1985, Miranda was raped. Her mother Valerie visited King's Oak one last time and left with her daughter. Miranda was not seen at the motel again.

I remember Miranda as a glamorous member of the motel team, who (like so many soap heroines) made unwise choices in romance, but was generally likeable and dependable, despite an occasional flicker of a spoilt little rich kid mentality. This served to make the character more interesting. The rape was an exit story-line I found genuinely shocking. I was sorry to see her leave.

1982: Heather Chasen As Valerie Pollard...

1982 - a new arrival at the Crossroads Motel... 

In the wake of Noele Gordon's departure from the Crossroads serial, Jack Barton, producer, made it plain that the show couldn't revolve around a single character in the future. 

 And so, at the motel, we had Barbara (Sue Lloyd) and David Hunter (Ronald Allen) running things with Jill Harvey (Jane Rossington) and Adam Chance (Tony Adams). Not a particularly cosy set-up as David and Adam did not get along, and David could not shake off his suspicions that Adam's interest in Jill was not entirely honourable. 

 The closest we came to a Meg-style linchpin in this new set-up was Barbara - but she had other fish to fry, like writing best selling novels, and refused to be tied totally to the motel. 

  Elsewhere, we had the Brownlows - lovable, motherly Kath (Pamela Vezey), grumpy Arthur (Peter Hill), frumpy Glenda (Lynette McMorrough) and her newish husband, Kevin Banks (David Moran) - the couple had married in 1981. 

 The not-so-cosy boarding house belonging to Mavis Hooper (Charmian Eyre) had been introduced in 1981- Mrs Overall, who was first seen in Acorn Antiques in 1985, was Mavis's "lookey likey". 

 With waitress Diane Hunter (Susan Hanson) cleaner and kitchen help Doris Luke (Kathy Staff) and the Crossroads Garage staff - including Sharon Metcalfe (Carolyn Jones), Benny Hawkins (Paul Henry) and Joe MacDonald (Carl Andrews), the motel marched on post-Meg. 

 And then came a stroke of genius on the part of the writers and production team. 

 Businessman J Henry Pollard (Michael Turner) had first appeared in the Crossroads saga in 1980, along with his daughter, Miranda (Claire Faulconbridge). 

 In April 1982, we finally got to meet Mrs Pollard. Mrs Valerie Pollard, J Henry's wife, who apparently loathed him dearly and had been forced to travel from her home in Bermuda to England when J Henry suddenly cut her funding. 

 Val, played by the very excellent Heather Chasen, enjoyed the good life - luxurious accommodation, travel-on-a-whim, wonderful food, lots of beach romeos... 

 And then, suddenly, there she was trapped at the Crossroads Motel, where she would stay, her ever-loving hubby informed her, and become a good and loving wife. Otherwise, J Henry would divorce her and she could rest assured that, with his best lawyers on the case, she wouldn't be getting any wonderful divorce settlement. She would get nothing. 

Valerie hit back - and hit back hard, seducing and bedding Adam Chance on his boat. Jill was devastated and Adam left the motel. 

What a bitch was Valerie... But she wasn't only a bitch. Languid and witty, she was also capable of good deeds... And, of course, under the veneer of vehement dislike, she actually cared for J Henry very much indeed... 

 And he cared for her. 

With daughter Miranda on-and-off the scene, the Pollards were a complicated family. J Henry was not keen on showing his feelings, Valerie could be devious and Miranda was often headstrong and immature. But they livened up Crossroads no end! 

I hadn't been particularly impressed by the father/daughter J Henry/Miranda set-up we'd been treated to (on occasion, the characters were not permanent regulars) since 1980. But with Val on the scene from 1982 onwards, the Pollard "thing" really got some zing! 

And, with her huge wardrobe of swish clothes, plus her tendency to toy with the peanuts and her "Pussyfoot Special" at the bar, Valerie was a very stylish person indeed. 

Although the character only appeared (intermittently) from 1982-1985, the memory lingers...

From the Sun - £10 telly-view reader's letter, 29/5/1982: 

Heather Chasen has brought a refreshing touch of good acting to "Crossroads". Her haughty but not over-acted Valerie Pollard makes the show worth watching for a change. Mrs DL, Norfolk.