NO wonder Frank is smiling.
So much to say about the new series of Shameless, which contains shocks, surprises, departures and arrivals.
Not all of which can be revealed just yet.
You can read yesterday’s first MEN feature on Shameless series six here.
Plus check out a pic gallery here.
The feature includes quotes from Rebecca Ryan (Debbie) and Gerard Kearns (Ian) – two of 15 interviews I was lucky enough to carry out on set in Manchester.
The first episode on Channel 4 at 10pm next Tuesday sees Debbie turning 16 with a big party in The Jockey.
“She gets all dressed up and excited,” Rebecca told me.

But things don’t go to plan.
Here are a few more extracts from the interview that couldn’t be fitted into the feature.
One of the new characters this series is auxiliary nurse Maxine, played by Joanna Higson, who becomes Debbie’s best mate and clubbing partner.
“She’s fitted right in. She’s older than me, she’s in her twenties. But we just got on really well,” said Rebecca.
Filming scenes in a new interior set depicting a Manchester night club can be a little strange.
“At first it’s alright because they play a bit of music at the start to get us all into it.

“And then as soon as they say ‘action’, they’ll cut the music, so they can get the sound.
“And you just carry on dancing. It’s a bit funny doing that. But you just have a good time with it and make up your own stuff.
“It’s all packed in there when you’re doing it, so it’s got a bit more atmosphere.
“But it’s a bit weird when they turn off the music and you have to try and go with it.”
Rebecca made her stage debut last year in Scarborough at London’s Royal Court Theatre
“That was just the best thing that I’ve ever done, ever. I absolutely loved it. I’d never done anything like that before.
“Especially being so close to the audience, because of the way they had it set out. The audience would be literally right next to you. It was a bit daunting but it was so brilliant.”
Would she like to do more stage work?
“Yeah, definitely, because it’s a lot different from television or anything that I’ve done before.
“I just love television but you’ve got more of a safety net. If you do it wrong or you make a mistake, it’s kind of OK because you can do it again and again until you get ir right.
“But with the theatre, if you do it wrong you can’t let it show. It’s that buzz that you get. It just has to be done right. You get more of a buzz from doing that. I’d like to do more stuff like that.”
What about her time in London – with the Royal Court situated in Chelsea’s Sloane Square, at one end of the King’s Road?
“When I first went down, the first week or so, I was like, ‘Oh, I want to go home now. I much prefer Manchester.’
“But the longer I stayed down there, the more I just wanted to stay there. I didn’t want to come home at all then after that. When it was time to come home, I just wanted to stay.”
Does she see herself ever living there?
“Yeah. I’d like to live there. I loved the whole feeling of it. It’s just different.
“Every time I was on a dinner break, I’d just walk down the King’s Road. I loved it.”
That’s not to say Rebecca isn’t still having a good time on Shameless.
“You just enjoy coming into work. We’re actually like a family – like brothers and sisters for real.
“We’ll come in and mess about and fight and argue and have a laugh.
“So you’re coming in to see your own second family. You don’t really see it as work.”
Rebecca is 18 in April – what did she do for her own 16th birthday?
“I went to Blackpool Pleasure Beach with a few mates for the day. It was really good. Better than The Jockey!”
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