I’m still annoyed by Waterloo Road’s biggest plot hole and it may never be answered
Waterloo Road's most divisive chapter has been lost to time
Waterloo Road still hasn’t acknowledged a gaping plot hole – and as the school terms pass by, it looks like it may never be addressed.
In fairness, the BBC drama has a long list of abandoned storylines and things that don’t make sense.
For example, what happened to Miss Koreshi, the school’s former English teacher, who ‘left for pastures new’ (aka, vanished without explanation). Also, why on Earth was there a kid called Barry Barry?
However, while these are fair complaints, they pale in comparison to the show’s most baffling decision to date.
What happened to Waterloo Road Scotland?
Waterloo Road season 8 marked the show’s infamous move from Rochdale to Scotland; specifically, Greenock.
This came after the season 7 finale ended with a lorry barreling towards former headteacher Michael Byrne and the pupils who moved beyond the (Hadrian’s) wall.
In the world of the show, this came after the school was shut down, with the council deciding transform the building into luxury apartments. In real life, it came as a result of a £25 million investment into Scotland’s BBC programming.
This is also where the show’s original run came to an end (and where Tom Clarkson died!), with Waterloo Road narrowly evading a merger with another school (Havelock High… like anyone cares) and staying open on its own terms.
That was in 2015. Eight years later, the BBC revived the series, with production returning to Greater Manchester. Why? Nobody knows.
Waterloo Road could easily address Scottish past
Waterloo Road has been back on our screens for three years. However, its Scottish history hasn’t been mentioned once, nor has anyone mentioned any of the characters from the show’s three-season stint in Scotland.
Is Christine Mulgrew still working as a teacher? Is Maggie Budgen still alive? Is the school still open?
All it would take is one comment from someone like Kim, should she ever return on-screen, “Since the closure of the Scotland school,” or anything that would confirm its fate.
We know that the actual building (Greenock Academy) was demolished in 2015. Even if Waterloo Road wanted to go back, it couldn’t – but the fact it hasn’t acknowledged one of its most seismic chapters is straight-up bizarre.
Given the revival’s school is also called Waterloo Road, does this mean the Scottish campus shut? Maybe, but that’s the problem: it’s a total mystery.
It’s almost like… it never happened. To be frank, it was the worst-reviewed stretch of the entire series, so that may be why they’re hoping people forget it.
But they won’t. Let’s hope the show drops an Easter egg that gives us some indication of what happened in Scotland.
Read more: Waterloo Road series 17 ending explained: Darius’ fate revealed, and if there’ll be a series 18
