The 50th Anniversary

The 50th Anniversary was a live episode of the British sitcom Brierbush Road which was first broadcast on December 31st, 2013 on E4.

To celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, episodes had been broadcast every day during the week 26-31 December 2013 under the advertisement banner "Four Birthdays and a Funeral ". An episode broadcast the preceding night showed a gas explosion in local bar The Wellbourne, causing three neighbouring buildings to collapse. The live episode continued to depict the aftermath of the accident, such as the rescue attempts and deaths of the character Archer Harrison.

The episode attracted an average of 47 million viewers, peaking at 47.9 million, the show's highest audience for three years. Critical reception was mainly positive.

The special anniversary was marked with a storyline in which the residents had to deal with a tragic accident and its aftermath. In the storyline, The Wellbourne explodes during Justin Cockburn's stag party. As a result, three neighbouring houses collapse. They are Cassie's flat, the Brady household and Homeroom Coffee. Archer Harrison, and an unnamed bus driver, are killed as a result of the disaster. Brendan Brady and his children got out un-hurt, as did Madison, Cassie, Seth and Heather. Chelsea and Archer were trapped in the rubble and Archer died shortly after, while Chelsea was rescued.