If anybody fluffed their lines, missed their cue or the set wobbled it would be kept in

Jane Rossington

The soap returned to UK screens on Monday for what has been a widely anticipated revival.

In its heyday Crossroads attracted an audience of 18 million viewers but was both maligned and revered by fans and critics alike.

Once a shabby motel, Crossroads has been upgraded to a four star hotel complete with executive suites and a health spa.

New face: James Mckenzie Robinson as Ray Dobbs

More famous than its characters and its melodramatic storylines were its wobbly sets and fluffed lines.

The show was axed in 1988 after more than 24 years but Carlton Television has taken the brave step of breathing life into the old soap.

It will go out in the lunchtime and teatime slots vacated by Aussie soap Home and Away, which was poached by Channel 5.

Just three characters have survived the wilderness years.

Jill Richardson, Adam Chance and Doris Luke are being reprised, played by original actors Jane Rossington, Tony Adams and Kathy Staff.

Wobbly walls

Sherrie Hewson joins the cast as housekeeper Virginia Raven, after leaving Coronation Street in October 1997.

The show closed in 1988

Reliving the nightmare of the shaky sets and shaky acting, Rossington said: "Although it was not live, we would film it as though it was live because of the hectic schedule.

"We would record the first half in one take and the same of the second part.

"So if anybody fluffed their lines, missed their cue or the set wobbled it would be kept in."

A bigger investment means the five-night-a-week show should be a slicker product and missing its wobbly walls, say producers.

There will also be a younger cast, with many characters in their 20s or under, to appeal to a youth audience.