SOME doubted it would work.
But the expansion of Shameless to 16 episodes a year proved a success.
Now the cameras are back on the Chatsworth estate to film series six of the award-winning Channel 4 drama.
Due on screen in 2009, the Gallaghers, Maguires and the rest of the estate’s characters will again feature in 16 episodes.
A Shameless spokesman says: “This series promises benefit fraud, brothels, stints in jail and stings gone wrong, with fake suicides, cold turkey, joyriding, lesbian romps, lingerie parties, revenge and a trip to the seaside to boot – all life affirming events in the world of this Manchester estate.
“Debbie (Rebecca Ryan) hits sweet sixteen and the Gallaghers are going to celebrate the only way they know how – a party!
“Frank (David Threlfall) suffers post natal depression with baby number nine – while Monica (Annabel Apsion) is busy re-decorating the house and regaining her womanhood.
“Micky Maguire (Ciaran Griffiths) goes to college and discovers a talent for porn, plus his ‘Madchester’ tours in his pink limo get him and brother Shane (Nicky Evans) into trouble.

REGULAR readers will know that covering TV awards is not in any way to be confused with glamour.
The British Soap Awards were recorded yesterday at BBC TV Centre in west London.
It was still sunny as I went through security and down to a windowless basement room just after 4pm.
Walking through the corridors, we were overtaken by a group of Olivers in High School Musical sports gear.
Sat in the press bunker, you could also hear the distant strain of the I’d Do Anything orchestra in a nearby studio.
By the time the awards had finished and the last interviews were done, the clock was ticking towards 11pm.
ITV1 will screen the British Soap Awards at 8pm this Wednesday and did a good job of bringing some of the winners and award presenters down to talk to us.

CORONATION Street star Michelle Keegan was still shaking when she came off stage after being voted Best Newcomer.
Clutching a glass of champagne in her left hand, the overwhelmed young actress said: “I just can’t believe it.
“It’s happened so fast. It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster.”
Having interviewed Michelle last week for Friday’s MEN awards preview, I was particularly pleased to see her win.
Although her character – teen rebel Tina McIntyre – has been on screen for just four months, Michelle has made a big impression.
“I didn’t expect to win. I thought the nomination would be it. It was just amazing being up for the nomination. So I had no expectations to win. It’s amazing,” she added, finally managing a sip of her bubbly.

A rover returned and there was barely a dry eye in the house.
Coronation Street’s Vera Duckworth always said she was related to the Queen.
Prince Charles dispelled any doubts when he confirmed Vera’s status as soap royalty last night.
Actress Liz Dawn, 68, was the undoubted star of the 10th British Soap Awards, where I was backstage to report for the MEN.
Many from the casts of Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale, Hollyoaks and Doctors were close to tears as she received a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Even Steve McFadden – Albert Square’s tough guy Phil Mitchell – appeared to have something in his eye.
Kevin Kennedy, who played Vera’s lodger Curly Watts for so many years, read out the citation.
Dressed in black, Liz sat in the audience at BBC TV Centre in London between husband Don and former co-star Antony Cotton.

SHE’S already revealed her ambition to pull pints behind the bar of the Rovers Return.
Now Jodie Prenger has had a taste of a real life Queen Vic, alongside EastEnder Barbara Windsor.
The I’d Do Anything star also told me yesterday exactly what happened when boyfriend Steve proposed, just minutes after she sang live on TV.
As you’ll see on tonight’s show, the remaining seven contenders met up with Barbara and judge Denise Van Outen for their latest Nancy mission.
The venue? A pub in London’s East End, where their acting skills were put to the test in scenes from Blood Brothers and Lionel Bart’s Fings Ain’t Wot They Used T’Be.
“It was brilliant, really good fun,” Jodie told me.
A few weeks back, viewers saw her produce a ring on screen and announce her engagement.

SOME of us blog on the world wide web.
Others go out into the wide world and make a difference.
Former MEN reporter Simon Spinks sounded a touch tired when I spoke to him on the phone in Kathmandu.
But then he had just come back from hosting the world’s highest teddy bears’ picnic – 18,000 feet up at Everest base camp.
The Olympic torch relay is due to make its ascent to the summit any day now for what the Chinese authorities view as the ultimate photo opportunity.
Until that happens, all other attempts on the Everest peak have been banned, to head off any high altitude pro-Tibet protests.
So Simon and his group – complete with furry friends – brought a smile to the faces of dozens of frustrated climbers, while also providing an alternative vision of international unity.

THE summer is almost here, so it must be time to film a Christmas TV special.
As first revealed in this blog last November, Robson Green and Mark Benton are reuniting for a film, now called Clash of the Santas.
The two-hour film, to be screened this Christmas, has just gone into production in Manchester, Lancashire and the Peak District.
It marks a welcome return north for Robson and Mark after Manchester filmed Northern Lights went south to become City Lights.
And it brings them full circle to the time of year which inspired their original comedy drama – Christmas Lights.
This festive adventure sees Colin, played by Robson, and Howie, played by Mark, heading to Lithuania to take part in a Santa convention.
Rochdale’s Nicola Stephenson also returns as Colin’s wife Jackie, waiting at home for her husband to make it back for Christmas Day with his children.
Sian Reeves co-stars as Pauline, Howie’s estranged wife, who is planning a French Christmas with new man Jean Luc.

JOHN Simm’s face said it all when Life On Mars lost out for the second year in a row.
The Street is an exceptional television series, which deserves every award it gets.
Even so, I still believe the small panel of Bafta judges which decided the fate of Best Drama Series got it wrong this year.
Harry Hill’s TV Burp was named Best Entertainment Programme.
No complaint with that decision.
But it must have been particularly galling for the Life On Mars team to watch one of the clips which secured Harry that particular award.
“My name is Sam Tyler. I had an accident and I woke up as an oven-ready chicken.
“Am I mad, in a coma or back in time?”

LIFE is the name of the game…and sometimes strange things happen when you play your cards right.
Having received his Bafta Fellowship – the last award of the night – Bruce Forsyth was rushed down to talk to the press.
But when he arrived, Cranford star Dame Eileen Atkins was still taking questions on the press stage after her Best Actress win.
Clutching his award, Bruce, 80, didn’t seem to mind the wait.
All became clear as Eileen, 73, finally left the stage and embraced him.
“I was at school with Bruce,” she laughed.
So the two final winners just happened to have both gone to The Latymer School in Edmonton, north London all those decades ago.
Obviously, not in the same year – but they clearly knew each other from those days.
Didn’t they do well?

HEROES aims to conquer the world in series three, about to start filming in Hollywood.
That was the message from series creator Tim Kring in the press room at last night’s Bafta TV Awards.
He also made some interesting comments about both series two – which starts in the UK this week – and the long-term future of Heroes.
Having collected the Bafta mask for International programme, Tim came in to talk to us, along with Adrian Pasdar and Milo Ventimiglia, who play screen brothers Nathan and Peter Petrelli.
Producer and screenwriter Tim said the Heroes’ team really appreciated the British Academy TV honour.
“It’s pretty amazing. We make this show in such a little bubble.
“We work in these dingy sound stages in the middle of Hollywood and to be able to come out of our collective cave every once in a while to see how people are responding to it, is really, truly amazing.