The Beiderbecke Trilogy - The Beiderbecke Affair

The central characters Plater created for The Beiderbecke Affair – Trevor Chaplin and Jill Swinburne – were virtually identical to that of Neville Keaton and Judy Threadgold from Get Lost!. Both were teachers of woodwork and English respectively and Trevor was a fan of football and jazz music (especially Bix Beiderbecke) and Jill was an environmental activist just like Neville and Judy. Since Neville's surname had been Keaton, Plater named his new male character Chaplin (after Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin respectively). Similarly, since Judy Threadgold had been named in homage to Sunderland A.F.C. goalkeeper Harry Threadgold so Jill Swinburne was named after Newcastle United F.C. goalkeeper Tom Swinburne. However, despite the on-paper similarities, inevitably, the two new lead performers brought their own acting styles to the central characters, making Trevor and Jill entirely memorable and original in their own right.

In coming up with a name for the serial, Plater decided that, since it would be Trevor's pursuit of a rare set of Bix Beiderbecke records that would kickstart the plot, he would use the title The Beiderbecke Affair. The individual episodes got their titles from the first line of the script of each episode e.g. “What I don't understand is this...” (episode 1), “We are on the brink of a new era, if only...” (episode 6).

The Beiderbecke Affair was broadcast in six parts in January and February 1985 and averaged 12 million viewers over its run.