Billy Corkhill

Billy Corkhill
Billy Corkhill in 1986
Brookside character
Portrayed by	John McArdle
Duration	1985–90
First appearance	27 August 1985
Last appearance	21 September 1990
Created by	Phil Redmond
Classification	Former; regular
Mother Margaret Corkhill Brothers Jimmy Corkhill Frankie Corkhill Wife Doreen Brogan (1967-90) Sheila Grant (1990—) Sons Rod Corkhill Daughters Tracy Corkhill Nephews Jimmy Corkhill Jr. William Corkhill Nieces Lindsey Corkhill First cousins Don Corkhill

William "Billy" Corkhill is a fictional character in the Channel 4 soap opera Brookside played by John McArdle from 1985 to 1990.

The Corkhills family (Billy, Doreen, Rod and Tracy) arrive at No.10 in 1985 replacing the Jackson family. The introduction of the Corkhill family in 1985 is considered to be the beginning of Brookside's heyday and that year the soap achieved an audience 8 million viewers for one episode, the highest it had achieved to date.

The Corkhill's tenure on Brookside Close was not to be a happy one. Billy Corkhill and his family were blighted with financial worries. These came to a head in 1986. In 1986, Tracy Corkhill started an affair with one of her teachers, believing him to have taken advantage of his daughter, Billy assaulted the teacher and was sentenced to three months in prison. His sentence was reduced on appeal, however Billy lost his job. Billy is later sacked from another job and the family's debts mount up. Later in the year the family's utilities are cut off and their television repossessed.

Billy's brother Jimmy offers to stage a burglary at their home to solve their financial problems. While the family (and most of the close) are away at son Rod's Police graduation ceremony, Jimmy breaks into their house and stages a burglary, also burgling Paul Collins' house as well to make it a bit more convincing. When the family returns though, Billy is shocked to see how Jimmy has ransacked and vandalised the place,with aerosol spraycans and then stashing all the gear in the loft. Doreen later finds out the burglary was staged but the Collins' don't ever find out about it being an insurance job and while the Corkhills' insurance money pays out, it does not last for long.

Later in the year the building society bring repossession proceedings against the Corkhill's. A hole appears in the middle of Brookside Close and the neighbours drive over Billy's lawn to go around the hole. Billy sees this as them seeing him as a 'doleite' and a 'non-person', hence they don't mind driving over his lawn. Billy sinks deeper and deeper into self-pity worry and depression. Doreen admits to Billy that she slept with her Dentist boss David Howman in an attempt to relieve the family of their financial worries. On hearing this Billy reaches the end of his tether and in one of Brookside's most famous scenes, repeatedly drives around Brookside Close in his car churning up the neighbours gardens screaming "I'm only a doleite - you can have my wife for a fiver" in reference to Howman.