In thinking the people who write "skins" have a fantasy idea about what kids that age are like

[bananapeel]

I mean , FFS, I know quite a few kids that age (including my own) and also teach at a HE college. The students in skins are not the norm.

The most exciting it gets for my 17 year old is doing his evening run to the petrol station for sweets and hanging out in game and hmv.

Agree at assumptions made about working class people, as if they are somehow devoid of all normal human and moral feeling.

The thing about Shameless is the first couple of seasons was written by Paul Abbott, who wrote it as a way to exorcise his bringing up - which was so chaotic and Shameless-like, it caused him to have a breakdown when he was fifteen (or so). So you know, as far as he was concerned - people did live like that.

When I was seventeen, I had a boyfriend in Manchester whose family COULD have been written into Shameless. Everything was spot on. Least, from the first couple of seasons. So it's not a far cry from some people.

Then, yeah, it got stupid and silly. But I never saw Kev and Veronica's sex antics as base and brutal - I always thought it was great a married couple fancied each other so much! Ditto with Fiona and Steve in the first season - they had a shag in the kitchen after meeting each other as potential one night stand...it's not exactly rose petals in the bed, is it!

I dunno. TBH, I think you'd have to be a fool to actually think Shameless is a documentary style representation of "poor" people. I mean - who would actually think it is??

I love Mickey Maguire best too, Bup. He plays that part so well.

I agree Shameless lost its way a bit - for me it was circa the whole Libby Croker as Frank's love interest nonsense. I've got the last season series-linked but not got round to watching it yet, likewise this season...

The first season if skins was brilliant too. To a 30 y/o.

*of

(Thoroughly enjoyed Bananapeel's Liam story up thread...)

yy dukes.

Wow - to me skins means SKINHEADS. Oh god - am I missing something here. Should I be worried - I do remember those bad old days in the '80s.
Oh the thing about 'shameless' - I think it's universal - my dh's home village in Italy is like that.

i went off it when Sheila started to come to the fore. shite character. (although oddly better in the american one, presumably cos of joan cusack's general marvyness).

The current series is nothing like real life. The very first series i watched as a teenager and it was closer to resembling real life , in a slightly exaggerated way , similar to a soap. All the partying and taking drugs and shagging was pretty similar anyway. I had very erm enjoyable teenage years.