HM Prison Holloway was a closed category prison for adult women and young offenders in Holloway, London, England, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. It was the largest women's prison in western Europe, until its closure in 2016.
Bad Girls is a British television drama series that was broadcast on ITV from 1 June 1999 until 20 December 2006. It was created by Maureen Chadwick and Ann McManus of Shed Productions, who initiated the idea of developing a series primarily focusing on the inmates and staff of the fictional women's prison, Larkhall, located in the South London region. Following the success of previous series Within These Walls and the Australian-imported Prisoner: Cell Block H, both of which screened on ITV, Bad Girls was commissioned by the network and was viewed as a realistic, modern portrayal of life in a women's prison. The series featured a large ensemble cast, including Linda Henry, Claire King, Simone Lahbib, Mandana Jones, Debra Stephenson, Jack Ellis, Alicya Eyo, Helen Fraser, Kika Mirylees, Victoria Alcock, James Gaddas, Victoria Bush, Dannielle Brent and Liz May Brice.
The Old Maitland Gaol, also known as Maitland Correctional Centre, is a heritage-listed former Australian prison located in East Maitland, New South Wales. Its construction was started in 1844 and prisoners first entered the gaol in 1848. By the time of its closure, on 31 January 1998, it had become the longest continuously-run gaol in Australia. It has since been turned into a museum and is a popular tourist attraction. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.
Shirley Bellinger, played by Kathryn Erbe in the HBO series Oz, is a fictional character who was first presented in the related book OZ: Behind These Walls: The Journal of Augustus Hill. She is based on child murderer Susan Smith.
Thomas Edward Silverstein was an American criminal who spent the last 42 years of his life in prison after being convicted of four separate murders while imprisoned for armed robbery, one of which was overturned. Silverstein spent the last 36 years of his life in solitary confinement for killing corrections officer Merle Clutts at the Marion Penitentiary in Illinois. Prison authorities described him as a brutal killer and a former leader of the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang. Silverstein maintained that the dehumanizing conditions inside the prison system contributed to the three murders he committed. He was the longest-held prisoner in solitary confinement within the Bureau of Prisons at the time of his death. Correctional officers refused to talk to Silverstein out of respect for Clutts.
James Graham "Jim" Fenner is a fictional character in the British television series Bad Girls, portrayed by Jack Ellis. The character was a prominent feature on the show for seven series, and played the role of a prison officer, temporary prison governor and a villainous figure who schemed and made life for inmates difficult. He was at one point imprisoned for death by dangerous driving but was released when his wife, Di Barker, falsified evidence to clear his name. He returned to his job at Larkhall as G-Wing Governor, and shortly before his death was promoted to Acting Governing Governor. Ellis left Bad Girls at the end of the seventh series when his character was murdered by inmate Julie Johnston.
Bad Girls: The Musical is a stage musical based on the ITV prison drama series Bad Girls, with a book by Maureen Chadwick and Ann McManus, and music and lyrics by Kath Gotts.
Michelle "Shell" Dockley is a fictional character from the award-winning prison drama series Bad Girls. She is portrayed by British actress Debra Stephenson. Shell was one of the lead characters in the series. Shell appeared from the first episode in Series 1 until the last episode of Series 3, and returned for the first four episodes of Series 5. Dockley is the most feared inmate of the prison's ‘G Wing’, and commits several crimes, including smuggling drugs into the prison, stabbing prison officer Jim Fenner, and planning for Denny to set Snowball Merriman's hair on fire.
Sylvia Violet Hollamby is one of the longest-running characters in the award-winning prison drama series Bad Girls. Portrayed by Helen Fraser from the first episode in 1999 until the last in 2006, Hollamby was the longest-serving prison officer on the show with convicts Julie Johnston and Julie Saunders being the only other characters to remain for all eight series.
Natalie Buxton is a fictional character in the prison drama series, Bad Girls, portrayed by Dannielle Brent during the last three series. She mainly featured in an antagonistic role and was killed off towards the end of the final series. She subsequently returned as a ghost in the 2006 Christmas Special, which was also the series finale. The role was originally offered to Danniella Westbrook.
HM Prison Winchester is a Category B men's prison, located in Winchester, Hampshire, England. The prison is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service.
Bad Girls returned to ITV with its third series on 20 March 2001 and ended on 3 July 2001. It consists of 16 episodes.
The fourth series of Bad Girls was broadcast on ITV from 28 February 2002, concluded on 13 June 2002 and featured 16 episodes.
The fifth series of Bad Girls was broadcast on ITV from 8 May 2003 and concluded on 21 August 2003, it was the third and final series to feature 16 episodes.
Joan Ferguson is a fictional character in the Australian television series Wentworth, who serves as the main antagonist from season two to season five. Joan is portrayed by actress Pamela Rabe. Her storylines centre on rivalries with Will Jackson, Bea Smith and most staff and inmates. She is introduced in Season 2 as the new Governor of Wentworth Prison following Erica Davidson being fired but becomes a prisoner in Season 4 and remained until the end of the fifth season. The character was presumed dead between the sixth and seventh season, when she was revealed to be alive in the latter. She returned in the eight and final season.
The sixth series of British drama series Bad Girls premiered on 14 April 2004. It consists of twelve episodes. The first four episodes were broadcast on Wednesday nights, with episode five moved to Monday and episodes six to eight broadcast over consecutive nights beginning the following Monday. After a 12-week hiatus, due to UEFA Euro 2004, the remaining four episodes of the series were screened Monday nights and concluded on 23 August 2004.
