SOME of the North-west’s favourite actresses are together for the new Tuesday night series Age Before Beauty – and the result is another cracking piece of drama from the BBC.

The six-part series revolves around an unusual crew who manage a family-owned beauty salon in Manchester’s Northern Quarter.

It stars Sue Johnston as the eccentric grandmother and Bury’s Lisa Riley along with Polly Walker and Kelly Harrison. James Murray and Robson Green are the husbands involved.

The plot is all about relationships and adverse rivalries, all while trying to keep the salon open and in business. In many ways, the real “star” is Manchester city centre itself as there are plenty of different venues included – from picturesque parks to atmospheric pubs and recognisable landmarks in between.

The series is written by talented Debbie Horsfield, from Eccles, who wrote TV’s Poldark and the brilliant and gritty series Cutting It. It’s full of telling and often funny lines and you can love and hate the characters as each twist and turn reveals itself.