Nolly<\/a> as his \u201crevenge\u201d for losing the chance to write for soap opera Crossroads in its twilight years.<\/p>\nThe three-part series stars Helena Bonham Carter as Noele \u2018Nolly\u2019 Gordon, who became famous up and down the country for her 18-year portrayal of Crossroads Motel owner Meg Mortimer.<\/p>\n
When she was abruptly sacked in 1981, it made front-page news and provoked an outcry from devoted fans, including Davies himself, who \u201cloved\u201d the show and followed the developments avidly as they unfolded.<\/p>\n
At a launch event for Nolly, Davies spoke about how he nearly joined the Crossroads writers\u2019 room himself at the age of 23, but alas, his dream of writing for the show was snatched away at the last moment.<\/p>
He began: \u201cThe producer of Crossroads, William Smethurst, did an interview in The Guardian, where he said: \u2018We\u2019re looking for new writers because we can\u2019t get anyone to write this, because people think it\u2019s rubbish.\u2019 [That was] an actual interview.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought, \u2018I can do that, I can write rubbish!\u2019 But I genuinely loved it\u2026 and I applied for a job and I visited the set \u2013 and I got very, very close. I wrote a trial script for them \u2013 and then the programme was axed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Davies went on to explain that he was given no advance warning of the Crossroads cancellation, instead finding out the same way everybody else did.<\/p>