Tanned toned bodies, glamorous models and posh nightclubs could be making their way north – as Manchester’s answer to the hit TV show TOWIE.
TV bosses are making a new fly-on-the-wall drama, following residents and community leaders as they go about their lives for the next six months.
And it is more likely to be a few pints in the Embassy, sun-starved bodies and your typical northern lass that feature in the Harpurhey version.
Called The Estate, the documentary will air on digital channel BBC3 in the summer. It will be made by Dragonfly TV, the company behind reality shows One Born Every Minute, The Hotel and Kill It, Cook It, Eat It.
The show will focus on the ward as a whole, but will concentrate on the estate around the Shiredale pub.
Cameras will follow around 20 residents, including the Rev Mike McGurk, vicar at Christ Church on Rochdale Road.
Filmmakers have already been to Sunday service at the church and Mike says he is keen to show the area in a positive light. He said: "I am a member of the Harpurhey community and it’s part of the role of the parish priest to be involved in that community.
"The indices of deprivation and the statistics don’t lie – there is a lot of poverty here and it is one of the most deprived parts of the country.
"But one of the things I’m keen to show is that there is a lot of hope in this community.
"There are great people who live in this estate and as a church that’s been here for 183 years, there’s a lot we can do to show the area in a positive light."
Councillor Pat Karney, ward councillor for Harpurhey, said: "This show will put Harpurhey on the map.
"We get a lot of negative press, but I think this will prove that this area is full of good, honest people.
"We all know this but I think it will prove to the rest of the country what we already know.
"So forget Essex – the only way is Harpurhey."
Dragonfly TV were unavailable for comment.
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Please, god no.
Frozen planet gave me regained faith in the BBC. This has just removed that and more. I'm cancelling my TV license.
i was born in harper hey num 3 carridgdebrook st and my school was christ church it was facing queens park i have many happy memories off harper hey i had 4 brothers my dad always said we could Wright a book about us it as changed but so as most places still peeps have lived there most there life's as for me i only have ever lived down the road and over the years watched all the changes but it was a nice place to live very close community my mum and gran worked in all the pubs up and down Rochdale rd x
The place is a dump, that's why i moved away from the area
"Full of good, honest people". Which Harpurhey is that?
Why bother - just watch Shameless...
lets see if they follow "real" people from harpurhey or the skinny,orange,young people who wouldn't know real life if it jumped up and bit them on thier bum,can guarantee it wont be the every day ordinary people,,,,watch this space
Furniture left on the street, gangs of youths drinking and fighting, high unemployment and crime. How on Earth will this show the place in a good light??
It's bad enough we have Shameless, this is just enforcing the stereotype.
Don't diss uss. There is lots of classy well-edjacated pepull in Harps.
oh dear a mobile version of Jeremy Kyle.
Moved from harpurhey because of threats, abuse and lack of support from all, including northwards housing and greater manchester police isn't there more decent areas to do a ducumentaries on?
Whats this I smell? More self promotion by Karnage?
Oh dear - sounds to me like a mix between Shameless and, well...a few Bernard Manning-like bods growling and marching around like drugged-up gigglers. I'm sure when most think of Harpurhey, they don't think of the weird Mondeo Man/odd sunscreen'd folk/Tory voting bods of Essex of old...or the equally weird T.O.W.I.E. monied dullards of today.
Harpurhey and the above pictured street, in my opinion is the worst street and area in the whole of the western world, and some of the eastern that I have ever come across. It is nothing whatsoever associated with poverty, it's also an attitude and a chosen way of life for the majority of the local population, which was not always the case in that area.
Sounds more like a show called The Scheme set in Scotland - forget TOWIE this will be further car crash tv exploiting the less well off
Can't wait!
I have lived in Harpurhey all my life (59) years, Christ Church School was not facing Queens Park, it was further up Rochdale Road, facing Burgess Street School. As for the people living in Harpurhey I bet you can count on one hand how many were born there.
As for the Shiredale Estate that was only built when the old Harpurhey houses were
pulled down. The oldest estate in Harpurhey is KINGSBRIDGE ESTATE and thats a
fact.
i am sure this will turn out to be a poison chalace withoiut wanting to pre empt the quality and content it is either going to be car crash TV highlighting disfunctionality or paint drying time either way i doubt if the participants will come out of it well,
I have grown and lived round here all my life and now work in educating our future population!!!
Something else for the middle class to tut at, a disgrace that even in today's day and age those with nothing are mocked and looked down on by those with something. Preying on the weak, not very classy BBC :(
I couldn't think of anything worse.......Karney has to be involved with this somewhere. I live here and its like hell just another way of making the area look worse than it is already. Can Manchester City Council stoop any lower. If could get out I would be gone tomorrow......
I couldn't think of anything worse.......Karney has to be involved with this somewhere. I live here and its like hell just another way of making the area look worse than it is already. Can Manchester City Council stoop any lower? If I could get out I would be gone tomorrow......
Point of order Mr MEN Editor:
The Only Way Is Essex isn't a fly on the wall documentary - it's scripted.
Dear god what will this do to the house prices!!!??
Hilarious. OMG what a dump and the people. Like the other comment you would be hard pressed to find a born and bred manc in any area now. I took my son to Harperhey market and he was frightened out of his life. Kids and adults shouting and swearing at each other, secrutity guards grappling some shoplifter to the floor from "The" Asda. Oh what a joy. Proper shameless area.
Have to drive though this wasteland every day, thank God I'm only passing through!!