Shameless – Series 3

Now, nobody’s saying that Chatsworth Estate is the Garden of Eden, but it has been a good home to Frank Gallagher and his family. With Fiona and Steve gone, all parental responsibility falls on thirteen-year old Debbie. It’s New Year’s Eve, and while everyone is ringing in 2006 in the pub, Deb is approached by a primary school teacher. Her younger brother Liam is about to be expelled for denouncing god in his Roman Catholic school. Deb worries a home-visit by the teacher will lead to intervention from social services that will tear the family apart. Naturally, she cannot count on her father, so she shaves off Liam’s hair, and tells the teacher he has cancer. Danger averted. But the sad news spreads fast, and soon the local pub is running a charity collection for Liam, a news paper reporter gets involved – and meanwhile, the Gallagher kids have to pile up the lies to avoid telling the truth. Frank is upset to learn in the pub that his son has cancer. Even his ex-wife shows up, threatening to take Liam with her. Then Frank overdoses on liquor, cocaine and horse tranquillizers. It would be sad if it weren’t so funny! Alter in the season, one of the most hilarious scenes happens when Frank is rendered completely sober by a new drug. He appears reflective and even quite intelligent, wondering why Sheila would add to her problems by marrying a mess like him.

Lip is still shagging around, but meanwhile tries to be a good father to Mandy Maguire’s baby. Except that the Maguires are a fearsome Irish criminal family, who refuse to accept him. He earns something of their respect, though, by standing up to them. But they use any excuse to ban him from seeing his baby girl. Ian continues exploring his homosexuality after breaking up with Kash Karib, the owner of the local grocery store. Carl still hasn’t had a girlfriend. All he can do is spy and eavesdrop – and telling Lip’s girlfriend she got the crabs because Lip’s sleeping around! But he finally gets his way with a girl after he shows her his weed plantation in the attic. I wish we would get to see more of that sexy fox, Karen, Sheila’s daughter. She’s pretending to be a lesbo, just to get a job at The Jockey. Sheila is ecstatic to find out her daughter is gay. She invites Karen and Jez over – leading Frank to suggest all three women to do a floor show. But in the end, Karen admits to Jez she’s straight.

Neighbor Kevin gets a serious tip for a horse-racing bet, but Frank screws it up by telling just about everyone on the estate (including a bookie), and so ruining the odds. Kev’s sister begs for a place to stay, she’s finally found what she’s good at and just needs a room. Frank offers her one at Sheila’s only to find out she’s prostituting herself, to Sheila’s great delight. On his 35th birthday, Kev’s mother commits suicide – and if that wasn’t bad enough, his estranged wife Roxy attends the funeral fresh on parole. Veronica is seething with jealousy. Instead of consoling Kev, Vee threatens to leave him. Veronica’s brother Marty is dating a woman Sue, who lodges with the Gallaghers but refuses to contribute to the already tight financial situation. Later we learn she’s seriously in debt for about £12,000. Veronica’s mother Carol is promiscuously maintaining affairs, until she brings home a nudist with a penchant for freaky sex. Yet she gets enraged when she discovers her late husband had an affair with her best friend Lillian some thirty years ago.

In the season finale, Frank and Sheila finally get married, but not before some troubling events ensue. Sheila tells Frank that she has been married before, not only to Eddie Jackson (Karen’s father), but also to some bloke named Sheldon. Veronica then learns that Sheila buried Sheldon in the backyard, (because she couldn’t attend a funeral due to her agoraphobia), with his gold jewelry still on him. Always desperate for money, Vee and Frank dig up the body only to discover Sheldon was stabbed to death with fondue forks! Frank freaks out in a paranoid panic that Sheila is going to kill him next, while Vee is told the gold is all fake. Sheila admits she killed Sheldon because he used to beat her and burn her with his gold medallions. She fears Frank no longer wants to marry her and turns herself in to the police. Meanwhile Frank learns the truth from Kev and Vee, and also finds out that Sheila has opened a joint account in their name. He rushes to the police station to keep her from turning herself in, and asks her to marry him again. When Kev congratulates him at the wedding, Frank shrugs that the marriage isn’t legal anyway, because his ex Monica still hasn’t signed the divorce papers!