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Private Notes
For tourists, Bangkok is an overwhelming city, but beyond the tourist trail is another world that has made Asia’s hottest city the destination for go-getting Brits. 40,000 Brits have set up home in Bangkok - a city of opportunity, where a nobody can become a somebody - where the spirit of enterprise is strong.
They’ve risked it all in moving here, and for most Brits the pros outweigh the cons – they’re suddenly big fish in a small pond – they’re achieving things they never could back home. However, alongside all the highs, we’ll be seeing a few lows as well.
Over the course of the series, we follow a colourful ensemble of Brits. People like Michael Byrne, originally from Aston Under-Lyne, who was playing for non-league Northwich Victoria before becoming the first Brit to play in the Thai Premier Football league. He now has a salary and star status he could only dream about back home, but can he hold his form and stop other foreign players stealing his place - and the limelight?
Starry eyed British dancer Leigh Barwell’s quest for fame fizzled in the UK, but in Bangkok, she’s got a successful dance troupe, and a hectic showbiz schedule. But finding decent western dancers is hard - the budgets are small and the list of client demands big.
For high flying businessman Gary, Bangkok allows him to lead a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget – he works hard, parties hard - he’s got a sharp dress sense and an even sharper tongue!
In this episode, dancer Leigh Barwell decides to leave her dance troupe behind and go solo at a grand corporate awards night. However, it turns out that trying to dazzle a big room– even in her handmade LED-lit costume – is much harder than she thought it would be with a crowd of half interested business men making up the audience.
Leigh and wannabe actor Byron are also on a set of a local movie this week. When one of Leigh’s dancing girls steals the limelight, her boss is not happy. Bryon also has cause for disappointment when it looks likely that his role in the film might be given to a younger rival.
Meanwhile, footballer Mike Byrne’s place in the Thai Premier League is starting to look less secure.
Though he is proud to be the first Brit to play in the league, there is fierce competition among foreign players for team places and he finds himself on the subs’ bench. He is relieved when he is finally waved onto the pitch and has a shot at goal, with partner Emma and son Lucas rooting for him on the sidelines. Will he be back in the squad for good?
Natalie, meanwhile, is fresh off the boat and finding it hard to cope with the shock of Bangkok. Her children are turning their noses up at the local food – soft shell turtles and chewy crocodile – and with imported food prices well over her budget, Natalie is beginning to struggle.
In the final episode of the series, Leigh and her dance troupe, The Dance Legends, have their biggest gig yet, performing at an Indian wedding in front of hundreds of guests. Leigh knows success here could lead to many more lucrative bookings, but she feels that the show is under-rehearsed. With her only pair of high heels breaking moments before she takes to the stage, she fears the critical eye of a bossy wedding organiser. Can she pull it off?
Leigh’s boyfriend, wannabe actor Byron, gets the chance to appear in two scenes in the blockbuster movie ‘Only God Forgives’. In one scene he is being hideously tortured, but in the other he has some lines with Kristin Scott Thomas! It could be the opportunity of a lifetime for Byron – but only if the scenes do not end up on the cutting room floor.
High-flying businessman and socialite Gary attends The Blue Ball, an exclusive expat party where he has his eye on the ‘best dressed’ prize. Meanwhile, Gary’s new live-in maid Tong Nyak faces the ultimate test – cooking for him and his dinner party guests. Will she live up to his exacting standards?
Chirpy Londoner Billy is building his dream bar in Bangkok. He is desperately trying to get it finished, but his laid-back Thai workforce have other ideas. At the moment Billy’s vision is still just a pile of rubble and his backer is getting more agitated by the day.
New arrival Natalie is still finding it hard to cope with the shock of Bangkok. At floating seafood market Taling Chan, she is served a fish called Tim for lunch and bursts into tears because she misses her Manchester mates. Finally, she meets fellow Brit Julia and together they head for Bangkok’s notorious red-light district.
