The Liver Birds

The Liver Birds, co-written by Carla Lane and Myra Taylor, was the distaff answer to the popular Geordie series, The Likely Lads. The series charted the ups and downs of two dolly-birds sharing a flat on Huskisson Street, on Merseyside. The series concentrated on the problems encountered by the two young single women when dealing with boyfriends, work, parents and each other. Dressed in the best 1970's fashions, the girls Sandra Hutchinson (Nerys Hughes) and Beryl Hennessey (Polly James) desperately trawled parties, looking for romance. Beryl was the more common one, whilst Sandra was soft-spoken and refined. This was mainly due to the influence of her snobbish and overbearing mother played by Mollie Sugden. The title originated in the name given to two sculpted birds perched atop the Royal Liver Building at Pier Head in the city of Liverpool. The original series ran on the BBC from 1969 to 1979 and was revived in 1996. This time Beryl and Sandra were now both coping with the aftermath of their failed marriages. The series was much less successful the second time around though.