Long before British star David Morrissey donned his eye patch and was terrifying audiences in AMC’s hit horror series The Walking Dead, and even before David Tennant landed his career-defining job in Doctor Who, the pair starred together BBC One’s Blackpool.

The comedic, and often surreal, show starred a whole host of British talent in its short life and to this day the series has amassed somewhat of a cult following; scooping a heap of awards and accolades along the way.

Blackpool was a humorous musical drama filled with unforgettable characters and even more unforgettable song and dance sequences. Often likened to the works of the late great Dennis Potter, the show ran for just 6 episodes but was resurrected a couple of years later for a special one-off TV movie called Viva Blackpool.

The original series was a fun yarn full of mystery and intrigue which won over audiences from the very first episode, topped off with some excellent performances from the main players and the supporting cast.

David Morrissey assumed the role of Ripley Holden, an entrepreneur looking to make it big in the popular, if not dilapidated, Lancashire seaside town.

It was Holden’s ambition to create a casino hotel in the style of a lavish Las Vegas venue to help revive the town’s trade. A casino that would feature all the typical highlights you would expect such as various poker, slot, blackjack and roulette games that would make him rich. Unfortunately for Holden his dreams of an extravagant opening for his new amusement arcade are soon cut short when the body of young man is discovered on the premises.

The grisly discovery triggered a whole host of problems for the entrepreneur and things really began to stack up against him when the tax man came calling demanding payment of a sizeable bill, planning permission for his new dream casino hotel was denied, and then he discovery that his daughter, played by Georgia Taylor, became involved with a man more than twice her age.

Holden’s run of misery didn’t end there and on top of it all evidence had been discovered at the crime scene linking him with the murder.

David Tennant starred as DI Peter Carlisle who was hot on the case trying to solve the murder. Cutting It star Sarah Parish, Thomas Morrison, Kevin Doyle, as well as Cold Feet actor John Thomson and The League of Gentlemen funny man Steve Pemberton also featured in the show, where everyone was now a suspect.

For those interested who never managed to catch Blackpool first time round, it would be unfair to reveal much more. For such a star-studded and talented cast it’s a shame it didn’t run for much longer, but the series is available on DVD and, for many, the show will never be forgotten.