History Main / BadGirls

* ''Film/BadGirls'', the western film.
* ''Series/BadGirls'', the television programme.

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* ''Film/BadGirls'', the western?
* ''Series/BadGirls'', the programme?
* The BadGirlComic subgenre?

[[redirect:Series/BadGirls]]

[[quoteright:348:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bg_7482.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:348:Season 2]]

There are bad girls, and then there are the girls of Larkhall women's prison. This highly acclaimed, original and controversial drama explores the never-ending drama that occurs between the prisoners and the men and women who are paid to lock them up. Never shying from the darker side of prison life, Bad Girls celebrates the warmth, compassion and defiant sense of humour that can sometimes triumph even behind bars...

Bad Girls was a British {{Prison}} drama that ran from 1999 to 2006. Set in the fictional prison HMP Larkhall, it focused not only on the lives of the female prisoners, but also on the prison staff. The storyline concentrated on G-Wing, as opposed to the entire prison, but D-Wing has been mentioned on several occasions and a few episodes showed scenes from a men's prison.

The series was critically acclaimed and controversial at times, but ITV axed the series in 2006.

For those who have never heard of the show, it is similar in concept to {{Oz}} from the states, with both shows sharing a no-holds-bared approach to homosexuality and violence, although it would be unfair to say that Bad Girls is just a British version as it maintains its own style and originality, but parallels can certainly be drawn.

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!!This game series provides examples of :
* AbusiveParents: The backstory or {{FreudianExcuse}} for many of the characters
* AntiHero: Yvonne Atkins
* AssholeVictim: Renee Williams and [[spoiler:Jim Fenner]]
* AxCrazy: Shell Dockley, full stop. Also Mad Tessa and Podger Pam.
** Natalie Buxton surely also qualifies. She has a tendency to bite if you make her mad. Just ask Pat Kerrigan and Bev Tull.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Natalie Buxton. She is introduced as a meek, timid, pleasant woman who is in jail merely for getting behind on payments. It turns out she's a violent, bullying peadophile. Don't let her slim, small frame fool you either. She took down Darlene Cake!
** Snowball Merriman. Introduced as a friendly, classy, glamorous American woman. Turns out she's a pornstar from Wigan who isn't above a bit of murder and blowing up the prison!
* BlondeIsEvil: Shell Dockley, Natalie Buxton, Snowball Merriman and [[spoiler:Caroline Lewis]].
* BritishBrevity: Averted. The first series ran for ten episodes and later series' would run for as many as nineteen.
* ButchLesbian: Denny Blood, Al Mackenzie.
* CharacterDevelopment: Many characters are developed through the series. In series 1, Shell Dockley is introduced as the archetypal bully, while series 2 follows her deconstruction and insight into her character.
* ClintSquint: Yvonne Atkins has one frightening stare.
* ClosetKey: Nikki was apparently one of these for Helen.
* {{Crossover}}: With FootballersWives.
* CoolPeopleRebelAgainstAuthority
* DeadpanSnarker: Plenty.
* DrivenToSuicide: Several characters notably [[spoiler: Rachel Hicks, Maxi Purvis, Snowball Merriman and Bobby Hollamby]]
* EarnYourHappyEnding: After all the hell prison puts her through, Nikki Wade finally wins her appeal and is released. On top of that, she ends up with Helen Stewart.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: While Fenner is in no way above rape, murder (though, he does feel guilty over it) or corruption, child molestation is a BerserkButton for him. He even has a VillainousBSOD when [[spoiler: his fellow inmates]] send him pictures of child pornography.
* EvilGloating: Fenner loves to do this.
* EvilVersusEvil: Shell vs Fenner and Shell vs Snowball
* FascistButInefficient: Bodybag
* FoeYay: Between Fenner and Grayling.
* GirlsBehindBars: Played with, deconstructed and reconstructed seventeen ways to Sunday.
* GreatEscape: Nikki Wade just might be the only prisoner in history who has to be broken ''back into'' prison after breaking herself ''out.'' Lucky everyone was so distracted by that little riot that was going on at the time...
* HighTurnoverRate: The G-Wing Governor's job, probably one of the most lethal desk jobs in the history of TV. Helen Stewart resigns over her relationship with Nikki Wade. Karen Betts is forced to resign twice (The second time, Fenner was gunning for the job). Jim Fenner resigns once and is [[spoiler: killed]] the second time he holds the job. Sylvia Hollamby holds the job for about a day and loses it due to a disastrous riot. Di Barker is removed by Grayling and replaced by a former undercover cop. Grayling is demoted to the position and dies over it. It's a wonder anybody wants the job at all.
* HappilyFailedSuicide: [[spoiler: Monica Lindsay]]
* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: The Two Julies
* LesYay: And plenty of it.
* LipstickLesbian: Nikki Wade, Helen Stuart, Cassie Tyler, Roisin Connor and Selena Geeson
* ManslaughterProvocation: What Nikki, Kris and Pat Kerrigan are all in prison for...
* MeaningfulName: A vicious prison bully called Denny Blood. Though this became somewhat void as she softened throughout the series
* MiscarriageOfJustice: Many of the main characters in the series are victims to this. Though, even the ones who aren't will tell you otherwise...
* MoralityPet: Monica Lindsey's mentally handicapped son, Spencer.
* NiceGuy: Dominic Mac Allister and Josh Mitchell
* ObstructiveBureaucrat: Simon Stubblefield, the Governing Governor, is this in spades.
* OneSteveLimit: Averted by the Julies. Played for laughs in that they are also HeterosexualLifePartners who finish each other's sentences.
* ParentalFavoritism: Tina and Maxi's father
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Fenner (again) and Bodybag
* PrisonRape: Not rape but the decrutching Zandra is subjected to is clearly sexual assault
* PutOnABus: Nikki ''literally'' gets put on a prison bus in the Series 1 finale, as Helen is made to think she's been behind some rather nasty goings-on in G-Wing. Everything gets sorted out once the real schemer is found, but Nikki is understandably quite hurt by the experience.
* RapeAsBackstory: A FreudianExcuse for several female villains though this is TruthInTelevision as a lot of women in prison have been sexually abused. At least one major character is in jail for killing their attacker.
* RapeAsDrama: When [[spoiler:Fenner]] rapes [[spoiler:Karen]]
* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: Or at least ''Child Sexual Abuse is a special kind of evil''. Characters such as Natalie Buxton and [[spoiler: Caroline Lewis]] are depicted as 100% evil and are never shown any sympathy compared to murderous characters like Shell Dockley and Maxi Purvis who are generally shown as evil but occasionally given PetTheDog and FreudianExcuse moments
* ReallyGetsAround: Fenner with the prisoners although he does this by either taking advantage of the vulnerable or swapping sexual favors
* StraightGay: Neil Grayling. He even marries Di Barker to try and keep his sexual orientation a secret.
** Seems to be a recurring theme for the G-Wing Governors...
* StalkerWithACrush: Di Barker
* SuddenlySexuality: Helen Stuart and Roisin Connor
* SympatheticCriminal: Many
* TheVamp: Snowball Merriman, Natalie Buxton and Shell Dockley. Maxi Purvis also had elements of this
* TookALevelInBadass: Shaz, after she learns martial arts.
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Maxi Purvis does this with Yvonne
** Darlene does this with Natalie in the Series 6 finale.

* RapeAsBackstory: A FreudianExcuse for several female villains though this is TruthInTelevision as a lot of women in prison have been sexually abused.

* DriventoSuicide: Several characters notably [[spoiler: Rachel Hicks, Maxi Purvis, Snowball Merriman and Bobby Hollamby]]

* HookerwithaHeartofGold: The Two Julies

* RapeAsBackstory: A {{FreudianExcuse}} for several female villains though this is {{TruthInTelevision}} as a lot of women in prison have been sexually abused.

* RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil: Or at least ''Child Sexual Abuse is a special kind of evil''. Characters such as Natalie Buxton and [[spoiler: Caroline Lewis]] are depicted as 100% evil and are never shown any sympathy compared to murderous characters like Shell Dockley and Maxi Purvis who are generally shown as evil but occasionally given {{PettheDog}} and {{FreudianExcuse}} moments

* SuddenSexuality: Helen Stuart and Roisin Connor

* AntiHero: Yvonne Aitkens

* AxCrazy: Shell Dockley, full stop. Also Mad Tessa and Podger Pam
* BlondeIsEvil: Shell Dockley, Natalie Buxton, Snowball Merriman and [[spoiler:Caroline Lewis]]

* LawfulEvil: Fenner.

* CompleteMonster: Natalie Buxton, Jim Fenner fit this trope to a tee. Shell Dockley is arguably this, she helps drive [[spoiler:Rachel Hicks]] to suicide and later traumatises Bodybag and her husband. Sylvia Hollamby skirts the line when she moves Dockley to the muppet wing and sets her up to be attacked by Podger Pam, and puts her in a cell with "Mad" Tessa Spall.

* JerkassWoobie: Many of the jerkass characters have {{Woobie}} moments at some time in the series; Denny Blood, Shell Dockley, Buki Lester, Maxi Purvis, Snowball Merriman, Di Barker and Al Mackenzie being the most obvious examples.

* NightmareFuel: [[spoiler: When Yvonne gets trapped in the hanging cell and left to die.]]

* The Woobie: Rachel Hicks, Monica and her son Spencer, Zandra Plackett and Lorna Rose in her last episode

* ButchLesbian: Denny Blood, Al Mackenzie, Shaz Wylie and possibly Nikki Wade though you could argue that she is more androgynous than butch
* CharacterDevelopment: Denny

* CompleteMonster: Natalie Buxton and Jim Fenner (most of the time anyway)

* DeadpanSnarker: Plenty. Fenner and Atkins stand out though.
* DepravedBisexual: Shell Dockley

* EarnYourHappyEnding: After all the hell prison puts her through, Nikki Wade finally gets her charge reduced and released. On top of that, she ends up with Helen Stewart.

* EvilGloating: Fenner does a lot of this

* HighTurnoverRate: The G-Wing Governor's job, probably one of the most lethal desk jobs in the history of TV. Helen Stewart resigns over her relationship with Nikki Wade. Karen Betts is forced to resign twice (The second time, Fenner was gunning for the job). Jim Fenner resigns once and is killed the second time he holds the job (ironically after a promotion from the job). Sylvia Hollamby holds the job for about a day and loses it due to a disatrous riot. Di Barker is removed by Grayling and replaced by a former undercover cop. Grayling is demoted to the position and dies over it. It's a wonder anybody wants the job at all.
* JerkassWoobie: Many of the jerkass characters have {{Woobie}} moments at some time in the series; Denny Blood, Shell Dockley, Buki Lester, Maxi Purvis, Snowball Merriman, Di Barker and Al Mackenzie being the most obvious examples

* LipstickLesbian: Helen Stuart, Cassie Tyler, Roisin Connor and Selena Geeson
* ManslaughterProvocation: What Nikki, Kris and Pat are all in prison for

* MiscarriageOfJustice: Monica Lindsay

* AxCrazy: Shell Dockley, full stop.

* TookALevelInBadass: Shaz, after she learns martial arts.

* HighTurnoverRate: The G-Wing Governor's job. Probably one of the most lethal desk jobs in the history of tv. Helen Stewart resigns over her relationship with Nikki Wade. Karen Betts is forced to resign twice (The second time, Fenner was gunning for the job). Jim Fenner resigns once and is killed the second time he holds the job (ironically after a promotion from the job). Sylvia Hollanby holds the job for about a day and loses it due to a disatrous riot. Di Barker is removed by Grayling and replaced by a former undercover cop. Grayling is demoted to the position and dies over it. It's a wonder anybody wants the job at all.
* LesYay: And plenty of it

* AdaptationDisplacement: There's a stage musical version. Seriously.

* CompleteMonster: Danielle Buxton.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Jim Fenner.

* JerkassWoobie: Sylvia. Probably the least sympathetic of the guards to begin with, but she gets a few {{TearJerker}}s. Her first husband commits suicide due to financial pressure and her second tries to murder her for money.

* MagnificentBastard: Fenner. When he's not having sex with prisoners, he's pimping them out or killing off anyone who's a threat to him.

The series was critically acclaimed and controversial at times, but ITV axed the series in 2006.