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was wondering where i'd seen the girl out of "bed-knobs & broomsticks" before,looked it up here,had loads of small roles might have seen,then i saw "gems",after finishing YTS in 1984 was on dole for 3 years or so,watched a load of telly then,i think gems was on in the day,found it a bit boring really(like a programme about "underworld" in coronation street)& yet i got drawn into it,wondering what was going to happen to the characters next week etc,so overall i have to admit i enjoyed it!(although i always thought that the young girl out of "bed-knobs & broomsticks" character in "gems" was played by Rita from johnny Briggs the children's TV series,at least now i know better)

Gems was a daytime serial networked by ITV, and broadcast 3 times a week Wednesday-Friday. It ran for three series, and was set in a small fashion house in London's Covent Garden. 'Gems' was a company ran by two brothers, Stephen and Alan Stone, who, despite being business partners had little in common, and therefore friction arose. Stephen was a designer with a roving eye for women, while Alan, who looked after the financial affairs was happily married with two children, however, in the second series Alan's wife was killed in a car crash, whilst doing some work for the company, and much of the latter half of the second season saw Alan trying to come to terms with his wife's death, and trying to look after their two young children alone. As Alan's involvement in the company became distracted, there were financial difficulties which forced them to seek an outside partner. The relationship was not a harmonious one, as their new partner was a financier and involved in big business, and Stephen distrusted the new partners motives.

The third and final series was something of an anti-climax and ended with the company being sold and Stephen deciding to go and live and work abroad.

The programme was well acted and produced, and was quite pacey and fast moving. Strangely, UK Gold, a satellite channel in the UK has never repeated this series, though it was made by Thames TV, for whom UK Gold hold the rights. The cast were not well-known, with the possible exception of GINA MAHER, an attractive girl who appeared in several comedy series in the late 80s/early 90s.

I remember watching this series very well. I first saw it one afternoon late in 1984, and it was surprisingly glossy and stylish for a daytime soap (compared to Sons & Daughter, anything would be). The actor Steven Mann who played 'Stephen', also appeared in one of my other fave short-lived series, called Campaign. The first two series were excellent, featuring highly believable actors, but the final one was a lack-lustre affair. By then, I was glad to see it go. Ho Hum.