Submit Response is a weblog by Jack Mottram, a Jimmy Corkhill Is Real
For some reason, I read Jimmy Corkhill’s weblog. Given the number of folk from outside the UK who visit the site, I should explain that Jimmy is a fictional character in the soap opera Brookside (once the best soap on the box, now a shadow of its former self, dumped in a scheduling graveyard and ripe for cancellation).
Jimmy’s site is a loving homage to the homepage, right down to the misplaced <div> tags on the My Pictures page and fevered rantings, in this case about No. 10, Jimmy’s house, site of both Little Jimmy’s smack overdose and Trevor Jordache’s murder and subsequent burial under the patio after years of spousal abuse and incestuous raping. The website, which is occasionally referred to on the television programme, is a mix of postings about Jimmy’s trials and tribulations on screen, and general, webloggy musings on, say, Liverpool being named European City of Culture.
As far as I know, this is a first. I’ve never seen a weblog maintained by a fictional character from another medium, although I suppose fraudulent personae, like Kaycee Nicole, or picaresque fiction in a weblog format, like Flight Risk come close, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a fanfic blog out there where ‘Mulder’ posts about his tempestuous affair with Scully.
The Brookside team have always been good at this sort of reality bend - characters discuss the action in Meadowcroft Park, a soap only broadcast in Brookside-world, named after Brookside’s own working title, and should any of the characters take a trip to Chester, you can be sure of seeing a character from sister soap Hollyoaks stroll past in the background.
Unfortunately, the Mersey TV employee who writes as Jimmy doesn’t update all that often, and the writing falls short of catching Jimmy’s voice, but the blog-soap crossover does an amazing job of extending the character beyond the confines of the soap. It’s not hard to imagine the process carried further, with Jimmy flaming folk on alt.society.mental-health when he’s forgotten to take his lithium, or setting up a CaféPress store selling Millenium Arch commemorative mugs. With a little effort, Jimmy Corkhill could be as real as you or I, as far as any of us are on the internet. Since Brookside’s producers are unlikely to raise their game in this respect, I’ve half a mind to begin a Neoist metafiction project, posting around the web as Jimmy Corkhill, giving his homepage whenever an url is requested.
bloody hell - now i’m wondering whether you are real.
ps for those who know a house in france the pictures above the fireplace painted by julie jones were bought in a gallery in liverpool. as i put my red dots on the labels jimmy corkill came up to reception and said ’ if that bloke can’t come up with the money put me down for them.’ tough tittie jimmy.
Posted by bobby at 9pm on 03.07.03
THE CORKHILL
Posted by Ryan Hopcutt at 2am on 10.07.03
Um, yes. What exactly are you saying, Ryan?
Posted by Jack Mottram at 1pm on 10.07.03
i think jimmy corkhill is amazing he has enspired me a lot he is my idol i love jimmy
Posted by gavin jenkins at 2pm on 04.11.03
I THAUGHT JIMMY WAS AMAZING IN LAST NIGHTS EPISODE OF BROOKSIDE, WELL DONE JIMMY, IF ONLY I WAS AT THE ANGEL OF THE NORTH WHEN TOOK A PISS, I WOULD OF HELD YOUR PENIS FOR YOU
Posted by GAVIN JENKINS at 4pm on 05.11.03
I think JimmyCorkhill.com is great as it brings the life of a fictional character off the screens now that Brookside has ended now onto a website which people can read and get to know more about Jimmy and what he writes about.
Id also recomend looking at http://www.Brookside.com as you can buy brooksidesgreat dvd Unfinished business which is a high-octane feature-lenth special that reveals what happens when deadly enemies finally get to settle the score.It is not a battle just for revenge-it’s a battle for survival.
Posted by Dan at 3pm on 29.12.03
Let me tell you more about brooksides dvd ‘Unfinished business’Priced at a reasnoable £12.99 at http://www.Brookside.com.
It about when driven into hiding after the death of Tim O’Leary’s wife Emily aka Jenifer Aniston,drug dealer Terry Gibson hatches a plan to deliver both Tim and his friend Steve into his clutches.Using a Liverpool escort agency and Tim and Steves limousine business,he lures them to a remote Welsh farm to exact revenge.But Tim and Steve are not going to make it easy for the pyscopathic kiler…It’s time to take care of Unfinished business.it feature also a Hollyoaks actress.
Posted by Dan at 3pm on 29.12.03
Let me tell you more about brooksides dvd ‘Unfinished business’Priced at a reasnoable £12.99 at http://www.Brookside.com.
It about when driven into hiding after the death of Tim O’Leary’s wife Emily aka Jenifer Aniston,drug dealer Terry Gibson hatches a plan to deliver both Tim and his friend Steve into his clutches.Using a Liverpool escort agency and Tim and Steves limousine business,he lures them to a remote Welsh farm to exact revenge.But Tim and Steve are not going to make it easy for the pyscopathic kiler…It’s time to take care of Unfinished business.It feature also a Hollyoaks actress.
Posted by Dan at 3pm on 29.12.03
Jimmy Corkhill is one of the best tv characters ever.
Everyone takes the piss out of Brookside and Jimmy coz he had a mental illness but I think the actor was a stalwart of British tv.
Yeah Brookside got rubbish towards the end but Jimmy carried on delivering a brilliant performance.
Posted by Alison at 1pm on 04.01.04
I Fuckin Love the corkers, i miss him loads
Posted by Marcus Bright at 11pm on 29.02.04
I Fuckin Love the corkers, i miss him loads
Posted by Marcus Bright at 11pm on 29.02.04
Corkers is a weener, Dicko is better
Posted by Disco Pete at 4pm on 17.03.04
seriously THE CORKHILL is propa bo i tell thee, dont you all agree that ron dicko is much better than Corkhill with his egg in the nest
Posted by Ryan Hopcutt at 10pm on 24.03.04
I think Jimmy Corkhill is an inspiration to us all. He has overcome alot in his life such as his son dying, having an ugly nagging wife, having to except that his daughter is the really annoying Claire Sweeney, he’s had drug related problems and to top it all off he has had mental problems. He overcame all of these and he is a better person than alot of us will ever be.
if anyone wants to contact me about Jimmy my e-mail is Martine_Waite@hotmail.com
Posted by Martine Waite at 9am on 17.11.04
jimmy could i have your altograth
plese hear my
addres is John Gunter
1 butt close
Glastonbury somerset
ba6 9hy
Posted by John at 3pm on 22.04.05
Corkhill is a legend. I’ll never forget his Staffordshire Bull Terrier, “Cracker”, he was a legend too! A real-life Jimmy Corkhill is actually living in Newport, South Wales. He goes by the name of Scott Falvey, & is a proper Scally…
Posted by Richard Pollard at 11am on 12.10.05
i think that jimmy corkhill was the best he had everything happening to him oh and dicko is a moaning git
Posted by mike beddard at 10pm on 31.10.05
I love you Jimmy Corkhill. Ever since i was a tiny little girl i watched you religiously. And it broke my heart when Brookside went off air. Although i do still have all the old episodes that i watch daily. They have provided me with ours of pleasure. Especially my Brookside dvd’s, because i can pause them, and zoom in on your beautiful, rugged face as i do things to myself. I even called my son Cracker, after Jimmy’s late dog.
Jimmy, if your reading this, get in touch. I love you with all my heart and soul, for eternity. You are my soulmate.
Posted by Gen Crackerpuff at 5pm on 02.11.05
your a ledgand i wouldnt mind a piece of you
Posted by eddie tierney at 11am on 10.11.05
i have just watched the last episode of brookside on catch up tv i still dont understand why they dropped it best show on tv what is dean sullivan doing now cant they replay it all from the start instead of some of the crap we have to watch
Posted by betsy at 11am on 05.08.07
I was just wondering if their would be any chance in bringing brookside back. I really loved the soap and it was a real shame when they axed it.
Posted by marie at 8pm on 02.11.07
Jimmy was last seen working in Maplin Electronics @ Lakeside Thurrock after seemingly visited Australia for a few years. The mental illness is still prodominent and he can be seen reciting the phrase “i told you” on a number of occassins
Posted by Malcolm at 2am on 10.02.08
OMG. i could hardly belive my ears when i locked into http://www.remanissradio.net and to my surprise, jimmy corkhill on the decks spinning old skool hardcore saturdays 12-2 pm.
He has blessed the tv for many many years, but this!! wow. Move over slipmatt here comes the corker!!!!!
And yeah the above comment left by malcolm i can vouch for. I too have been given false information by him in maplins Lakeside.
Unfornately he suffers from an accute form of turretts desiese forcing him to say words like “mother board” and “i told you”
Posted by DJ Carl Cox at 1pm on 10.02.08
Hi this is my first time to write here but i dont know why they never re screened brookside which is a real shame as they replaced that program with holly oaks which is no where near as good as that program was maybe they might read this and take the program out of the archives and re show it again for the older generation who used to watch it
Posted by beetle juice at 1am on 31.03.08
Hi there just watched the last episode on 4od and just couldn’t believe what ive missed all these years since brookside finished tv is crap now compared to then just wish it was re-run for us lot hope the tv bosses read these blogs
Posted by andrew gates at 9am on 05.04.08
I went to an Abba concert well Bjorn again lol at Tatton Park and too my suprise Jimmy the Mad Corkhill was seated five foot from us….he as with a huge group of friends mostly Gay cos yeah the great Jimmy is of course Gay and good on him we all have the right to be what we want, I think it wa his sisters birthday……anyway he got so pissed that he did not know where he was bless him and his hangers on did not seem to care, he looked lost and was talkign away to himself bless….he was with some people who started fighting, the girl was punching another girl for flirting with her bloke it was awful and carried on for about an hour before security asked them to leave, but Jimmy had left before the final fight!!!! He looked lost and not his usual comical self……He was my heroe in Brookside as he dealt with all the ashit that most of us cannot….come back Jimmy…..loose the driftwood…..your wicked xxxxxps Cracker was Fab!
Posted by Jules at 10am on 06.08.08
I seen the great jimmy corkhill in some pub in liverpool with a bunch of gay dudes yes old jim is indeed gay.
Posted by danny coin at 1am on 16.09.09