[Scarlett.]

It was one of the most iconic streets in Britain with millions tuning in to watch the lives of its residents.

Now more than 25 years after its television debut on Channel 4, Brookside Close has been sold for a bargain basement price of £735,000 at auction.

Overgrown and in need of refurbishment, the 13 red-brick houses in the Liverpool suburb of West Derby were sold to construction boss from the local area, who asked the Daily Mail not to name him.

The buyer, who battled an anonymous phone bidder to take the lot, paid more than the £550,000 to £600,000 guide price but still only paid a third of the original £2 million asking price.

He told the Daily Mail: 'I am excited about this but to me its just this is just a good business deal. I haven't decided what I am going to do but it is most likely that I will redevelop them and rent them out or sell them.

'I think for most people it is interesting that these are the Brookside houses but at the end of the day they are just houses.

'I used to watch the programme but its not why I bought it. I bought them because they seem like a sound investment.'

The Close was the setting for some of the most memorable moments in soap history, with the star plot being Number 10 where evil wife-beater Trevor Jordache was buried under the patio by his wife Mandy and daughter Beth played by Anna Friel.

The street also housed a religious cult and saw six catastrophic fires and explosions.

The programme also depicted the first incestuous relationship between a brother and sister and pre-watershed lesbian kiss on television.

The story of the residents of Brookside Close was devised by Grange Hill creator Phil Redmond and first screened on Channel 4's launch night in November 1982.

The show, which ran for more than 21 years, started the careers of a host of stars including Anna Friel, Ricky Tomlinson, Amanda Burton and Claire Sweeney.

In its heyday eight million tuned in to watch the soap but as storylines grew more sensationalist audiences fell away.

In its final few years it could only attract around 1 million viewers, with 2 million tuning in for the last ever episode.

The cul-de-sac has lain empty since 2003 when the Channel 4 programme finished.

Developers bought it two years later and refurbished the houses hoping to sell all 13 for as much as £2 million.

The unnamed developers were placed into receivership after filing for bankruptcy and the site has fallen into disrepair.

Grass and weeds have grown unchecked and the iconic Brookside Close street sign has fallen of its post.

Gary Murphy, partner at the properties auctioneers Allsop, said: 'These houses still need a lot of work. Some of them aren't habitable yet. This is a bit of television history but it can be difficult to achieve additional value from that.'

Brookside Close was originally bought by Mersey Television in 1982 as part of a scheme to cover the costs of the show and to provide a more realistic set than some of their rival soaps.

Six of the houses were on-screen as sets and the remaining seven were used to house the administration, post-production, canteen, make-up and technical facilities for cast and crew.

Daily Mail

[Magic]

Me.