Alderley Falls

Meander Falls was a British Soap Opera that aired on BBC One from 1975 - 1991 and from 2004 - 2012 as well as on Channel 4 from 1992 - 2000. Set in the fictional town of Meander Falls in the south of England, the show predominantly revolved around the Worthing family, headed up by iconic matriarch Lavina Worthing. It aired in a half hour slot 3 days a week for it's entire original BBC One tenure and was broadcast twice a week in an hour long slot on Channel 4. The show took a new format when it was rebooted by the BBC in 2004, airing once a week for one hour for 13 weeks a year, following the drama series pattern and not the recurring serial format. Lavina Worthing was portrayed by Carolyn Wilson for the show's entire run.

Background and Creation
Married couple Alison & Tony Cox had been working for the BBC since the early 50s and had been behind the creation of many famous comedies and dramas at the broadcaster for nearly 25 years. To mark the occasion Head of Commissioning invited the Coxs to produce a weekly serial for the BBC's flagship network, BBC One in a similar style to that of BBC Radio's The Archers, a programme which Alison had previously contributed too in the early 60s.

Meander Falls was formally commissioned on August 9th 1975 and production began the following month following the construction of the set. Famed stage actress Carolyn Wilson, 42 at the time, was cast in the leading role of matriarch Lavina Worthing. Todd Jones was cast as her cheating treacherous husband Walter Worthing. Their three children were added to the cast accordingly, 19 year old Winston Tucker was cast as Lee Worthing, Jessica Frame was cast as 14 year old Sandra Worthing and 12 year old Conor Francis was cast as Andrew Worthing.

After three weeks of focusing mainly on the Worthing family, other characters and families were introduced, notable families included the Italian Petrillo family, consisting of the widowed Mariella Petrillo and her five grown sons Marco, 30, Gino, 28, Avici, 24, Pero, 19, and Cristof, 16, and the working class Johnson family, consisting of pub owner Frank Johnson, his second wife Nancy and their three children, Rebecca, 22, Sadie, 16, and Chloe, 14. Several other characters were added too, including sibling pensioners Doris and Chrissie Crawford, corner shop owners Anjel and Pati Hunjab and homeless musician Dan Martin.