Brickies (BBC, 2022-23) S01 and S02 (1080p, soft English subtitles)
Life on the building site - banter, fallouts and friendships. The bricklayers are building their lives brick by brick. But under pressure, who's going to thrive with all the drama?
Series 1
E01
In this episode, three groups of brickies are on a housing development in Stoke-on-Trent. The brickies are under pressure to get the job done, but with a national shortage of materials, nothing is guaranteed. Jeorgia, from Wales, hopes to realise her dream of buying a sporty new car, but is dealing with the stress of working away from her home and family for the first time in her life. The site’s newest apprentice, Tom T, hopes to prove himself as he gets to grips with life in the real working world. And things take a turn for Tom C - the site’s labourer - when he unexpectedly finds himself out of a home and searching for somewhere to live.
E02
The brickies are back in Stoke-on-Trent where things are falling behind schedule and a national mortar shortage threatens to grind production to a halt. Local bricklayer Patch has been drafted in to give the build an extra push. A young father of two, Patch has earmarked a forthcoming family holiday for the moment he hopes to finally ‘pop the question’ to his long-term girlfriend. After a falling-out at home, labourer Tom C is still searching for somewhere to stay. His workmates are there for him as he works through his options. He arranges to meet his ex- girlfriend as he looks to get things back on track. Meanwhile, after years of building homes for other people, Kuda is finally ready to buy his first dream house.
E03 Newcomer Molly is used to working on smaller private jobs but she's now hitting the big time on a new housing development in Northampton. Describing herself as 'the only brickie you'll ever meet with hair extensions and fake eyelashes', she's larger than life. It's the battle of the apprentices as the site's young brickies, Lucas and Zac, go head-to-head and trade insults. Their rivalry begins at work but is settled on the foot golf pitch. Hard-working Kuda is hoping to hear back on his mission to buy his first house. The big boss visits the site and brings news - but it's not what Kuda is expecting.
E04 The brickies are back in Northampton for the second week on a new affordable housing development. With the Euro football championships underway, excitement on site is growing about the biggest match of the tournament so far: England versus Germany. The brickies have planned a big night out to watch the game. In the meantime, Molly realises her career aspirations will only be reached if she can overcome her fear of driving. Apprentice Lucas experiences some on-site struggles. When brickies’ foreman Jack catches up with him, shared personal revelations put everything into perspective. The night of the England match comes, and the brickies go large, but they pay for it the next morning. With the news of a site inspection from the boss, their hangovers are put to the test. The mood is helped when Molly returns with a big surprise from the local newsagent.
E05 The brickies head to a village in Derbyshire, where a retaining wall is needed to protect a housing development from possible land slips and flooding. Multi-talented Lauren is drafted in to help give things a push, but she isn’t impressed by some of the attitudes on site. With dreams of becoming a property millionaire, Lauren is keen to gain skills in bricklaying. Lucas experiences setbacks on and off-site as he confesses that his relationship is on the rocks. After struggling to get to grips with a new method of bricklaying, he pulls on the boxing gloves and enjoys sparring with Lauren. Jeorgia is happy to have her dad working alongside her, but when an anticipated delivery of bricks fails to materialise, production on-site is at risk of stalling. Labourer Tom C believes he can save the day with an ingenious solution - one that only he can provide.
E06 The brickies are back to where it all began, on-site in Stoke-on-Trent, where houses, apartments and a new sports and social club are being built. This is their biggest challenge, as the giant gable ends of the new club are built. Kuda tells the story of a dramatic knife attack he experienced. Later, his long-running struggle to buy his first house reaches its conclusion. Meanwhile, Tom C reflects on the challenges he’s faced over the past weeks. He also gets the chance to develop his career opportunities by taking his first ever forklift lesson. With the final visit of the big boss looming and roofing contractors booked in, staffing setbacks hit the site, and the build looks in jeopardy. Jack hopes to motivate the brickies with the promise of beers at a newly finished bar in his back garden.
Series 2
E01 It’s the start of a hot summer, and the brickies are back on the trowel, building affordable houses on a fresh site in Mansfield. Familiar faces and new starters muck in together as the gangs go deep into the earth to lay the foundations and get this large-scale development off the ground.
E02 With progress on the big building site in Mansfield falling behind schedule and a warning from the boss ringing in their ears, the brickies fight to complete the foundations by the end of the week. After reaching crisis point, Lucas makes a decision on his future, and labourer Lauren returns in the hope of saving the day.
E03 The brickies are tasked with completing the gable ends of executive houses on a development in Leicester. These upmarket properties are a far cry from what they usually work on, and their hefty price tags are accompanied by an array of building challenges to overcome. Jeorgia takes inspiration from the designs of these impressive homes as she starts the ball rolling on a project to build her own house. She and boyfriend Connor are still living in the same caravan in which we saw them last year but are getting itchy for something more. The only problem is the likely need for planning permission… but foreman Jack has a cunning plan. We get to know apprentice brickie and amateur boxer Charlie. Charlie is undefeated in his boxing career to date, and a regional title fight is his next target. But just when he is stepping up his training, something knocks him for six - and leaves everything hanging in the balance. Big boss Ian pays the site a visit and is not impressed by what he sees. He lets Jack know his feelings in no uncertain terms and leaves with a stark warning ringing in the ears of the brickies’ foreman.
E04 After a telling-off from the boss, the brickies’ foreman, Jack, is determined to crack the whip and get progress back on track on the executive houses in Leicester. But an early blow is dealt when it transpires the brickies will have to manage without Jeorgia, who has badly injured her foot. It looks like apprentice Leah will need to step up in her absence and, with a review of her progress coming up, she hopes to be able to make a good impression on Jack. Charlie returns from A&E with positive news on his situation, and Jack offers the group a trip out go-karting - but on condition that they get the houses finished on time. With this incentive before them, the brickies get to work on the gable ends, but the complex nature of the job proves especially tricky. Kuda and apprentices Lucas and Tom have to take some work down and start again. Leah is offered the chance to lay the last brick on a gable end. As the week draws to a close, the promise of letting off steam on the racetrack takes over the brickies' thoughts.
E05 The brickies are back in Stoke-on-Trent, where they have a chance to see some of the work they did last year and get to work on another pair of semi-detached houses.
New starter Elliott is a labourer who makes a quick impression on-site, joining in with the banter and developing a friendly rivalry with Lucas, who is less than impressed by his new colleague’s pastime as a drum and bass DJ. Apprentice Leah experiences some struggles with her bricklaying. When foreman Jack comes over for an inspection, her emotions get the better of her and she removes herself from the thick of it. It’s left to Elliott and the returning Jeorgia to bring her back round. A statue of a Derby County legend is soon to be unveiled at the nearby football stadium. Lifelong fan Jack chooses two apprentices to help build the plinth on which the statue will sit. It’s a huge honour for Jack, but when he inspects their work something doesn’t sit quite right. Meanwhile, boxer Charlie is nearing the moment of truth as his much-anticipated title fight is finally upon us. He’s back training hard and feels better than ever - but how will it go on fight night when he’s in the ring and there’s a Midlands regional belt at stake?
E06 A big inspection from the boss looms, Jeorgia and her dad head to the tattoo parlour, while the brickies join DJ Elliott for the gig of a lifetime.
First broadcast: 2022-23
Duration: 30 minutes per episode
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