Saturday 30 April 2016

Coronation Street Chit-Chat news catch-up, April 2016

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog April 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Here we go with Coronation Street chit-chat, a catch-up of some of the shorter news stories that haven't made it into their own blog post. 

Current Corrie cast members
Debbie Rush (Anna Windass) celebrates her 50th birthday with the Corrie cast. Read it here.
Brooke Vincent (Sophie Webser) dating Manchester City footy player. Read it here.
Cherylee Houston (Izzy Armstrong) storyline about pot smoking for pain relief cited in court case. Read it here.
Lucy Fallon (Bethany Platt) branded a 'spoiled, cheating diva' by an ex-boyfrend. Read it here.
Paula Lane (Kylie Platt) talks about being pregnant with her second child. Read it here

Ex Corrie cast members
Julie Hesmondhalgh (Hayley Cropper) joining new series of Broadchurch. Read it here.
Katie Redford, who was axed from the role of Bethany Platt after she lied about her age - lands a role in Keeping up Appearances prequel. Read it here.

Other
Former Corrie director writes a novel, donates profits to Alzheimers Society. Read it here.
Saturdays pop group member Rochelle Humes has her pic taken in the Rovers. Read it here.
 



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Top 25 Favourite Corrie Females - No. 15

(This post was originally posted by Llifon on the Coronation Street Blog in March 2016, reposted with permission.)

15. ALMA HALLIWELL (181 VOTES)

Duration: 1981-1982, 1988-2001
Played by: Amanda Barrie
2012 character poll position (women): 15

Introduced as the wife of café owner Jim Sedgewick and later takes over the café when they divorce in 1982. After immigrating to Florida, she returns to Weatherfield in 1988 and takes a more hands-on role in the business. She forms a business partnership with Gail Tilsley in 1989 and over the years they become close friends.

Upon her return, she begins an on/off relationship with Mike Baldwin. After being dumped by him for Jackie Ingram in 1990 and briefly dating his nemesis Ken Barlow, Alma and Mike marry in 1992. The marriage was popular with fans as Alma’s sympathetic and liberal-minded persona clashed with Mike’s capitalism and greed. The Baldwins were married until Mike had an affair with Julia Stone in 1999.

In 1997 Alma was kidnapped by Don Brennan in an act of revenge against Mike for ruining every aspect of his life – job, business and love life. Don drove his taxi into the canal but both Alma and he survived. 

As well as Gail, Alma formed a close friendship with Gail’s mum Audrey Roberts. They enjoyed socialising over a gin and tonic in the Rovers and shopping in Manchester, but to the annoyance of their respected hubbies Mike and Alf. Both confided in each other about their problems although the friendship was tested when Alma rev
ealed that she’d made a pass at Audrey’s son Stephen in 1996.

Alma sold her share of the café in 1996 to Roy Cropper and got a job on the tills in Firman’s Freezers, much to Mike’s chagrin. She was eventually promoted. She was involved in an armed siege in 2000 but escaped unhurt.

In 2001 Alma received the devastating that she had terminal cervical cancer. Now living with Audrey, she is nursed and care for by her friends and ex Mike is also by her side. She opts to die at home and she passes away surrounded by friends Audrey, Gail, Ken, Curly and Mike.

Were you a fan of Alma?



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Friday 29 April 2016

Corrie's Becky to star in Doctor Who spin-off


(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog April 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Katherine Kelly, who played Becky McDonald in Coronation Street, is going to be starring in a Doctor Who spin-off called Class.

Katherine has been cast as a teacher in Class.

Award-winning Class creator Patrick Ness said: "How lucky we are to get Katherine Kelly! She's been stunning in Happy Valley, The Night Manager and Mr Selfridge, just wait until you see her here."

Class is the latest of several Doctor Who spin-off shows aimed at younger audiences, including Totally Doctor Who and The Sarah Jane Adventures.

The eight-part series will be shown on BBC Three later this year.


See also: Doctor Who Tardis lands on Coronation Street




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Conversation Street Podcast 195

Gemma and Michael's podcast for the episodes in Canada that aired (up to last night's Canadian Corrie) can be heard here.

This week's podcast covers Maria's return with a silly secret. We also saw Gary contacting a man with a silly beard for a drugs deal and getting arrested. Nick's showing some signs of his old brain injury. Tyrone is gathering metal instead of wool and Chesney is off to Portugal leaving an insecure Sinead on the sofa. Stuart Blackburn's time as producer is profiled and there's the news and feedback, as always.


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Battleaxe Wanted - Who Can Match Ena Sharples?


(This post was originally posted by Ruth Owen on the Coronation Street Blog in April 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)


A true battleaxe must be no younger than late middle age. She must be forceful, even fearsome. She must speak her mind and not be in any way hesitant in doing so. She must be fiercely judgemental and willing to share those judgements, irrespective of the damage they might cause. She must also gossip fulsomely, even though there may be no foundation at all to the content of the gossip.

A true battleaxe will tell people to their face exactly what their wrongdoings are and will not care who hears, nor will she be concerned about how this might affect her own reputation. She will believe that what she is doing is right, absolutely right - and that everyone else is wrong. She will also suggest that she knows more about her neighbours than she actually does.

The archetypal, original battleaxe is of course the inimitable Ena Sharples. Since Ena, there has not yet been any one to match her. What's more I would go as far as to say that there never will be.

It is important to recognise that Ena, despite her bluster and her gossip, stirred affection in her audience. Maybe that is because she was vulnerable. She did not have a good relationship with her daughter Vera, largely because she was only too quick to inform Vera of her faults. The rift began to heal when Vera was diagnosed with a brain tumour and was in debt. Ena was reduced to stealing two tins of salmon and nursed her daughter until she died in Ena's bed. Who can not have some feelings for a woman such as this?.

Those who have attempted to take the battle axe crown don't really pass muster. Ivy Tilsley, though she had battle axe credentials, was too young. Blanche Hunt was close and Maud Grimes was also close. Sylvia, Roy's mum was another possibility but maybe we blame her too much for some of the difficulties Roy may have experienced, especially when growing up.

So what about potential battle axes? At one point. Gail might have been a contender but has become a bit too simpering of late. Yasmeen is a possibility but on second thoughts, she is not sufficiently gossipy. Sally? Well, she is a battle axe in the making, but has a way to go to achieve full battleaxe status. As yet, she's too young to take the on the battleaxe mantle, but in a couple of decades, she'll be there. We only have to wait until 2036.

Ruth - twitter @ruth1722



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Thursday 28 April 2016

Coronation Street Blog Interview: Samia Ghadie

(This post was originally posted by Emma Hynes on the Coronation Street Blog in April 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Maria makes her return to Corrie next week after a six month absence, but has arrived back from Cyprus with more than a fridge magnet; a new husband by the name of Pablo. I travelled from Ireland to ITV in Manchester to meet Samia Ghadie and hear all about what’s to come. To avoid spoilers, look away now!

Samia is excited to be back, but was she surprised at the storyline? “To be fair, Maria’s done loads of stupid stuff over the years” she told me, “so nothing is too surprising. But yeah, it’s kind of up there isn’t it, coming back with a gay husband from Argentina.”

So there we have it Corrie fans, but what’s all this about?

“The whole reason Maria’s married him is because he’s in love with Ash, his boyfriend who we don’t meet, and he needs a visa to get into the country, so actually what she’s done is illegal, but she’s done it out of the goodness of her heart so they can be together.”

Luke is naturally furious at the news that she’s married. How does he find out?

“He comes in the restaurant to surprise her with a big bouquet of flowers and she’s there having lunch with Pablo and obviously at first he doesn’t know that he’s gay, so to him, he thinks that she’s got a boyfriend back from Cyprus, and then I introduce Pablo to him as my husband and so he’s a bit puzzled to say the least.”

Poor Luke! Why has Maria kept this a secret from him? 

“She knew he wouldn’t be too happy, and I think alcohol played a part. She was drunk when they got married and so she wasn’t really thinking straight.”

So how does Maria try to make it up to Luke once he knows the whole story? 

Samia immediately starts laughing and tells me “I think I must have upset one of the writers, seriously. One of Audrey’s clients, Debs, is in the Weatherfield amateur dramatics so Audrey’s been telling her how to do her hair like a lion and she brings the costume in. It’s basically an excuse to get me in a lion outfit and make me look stupid. She is trying to say sorry to Luke by saying ‘I’ve made you look stupid by coming back with a gay husband, so I’m gonna make myself look stupid’.”




So, as far as Maria is concerned, is Luke the man for her?

“Yeah, I think so. But Maria is always thinking that whoever she’s with is the man for her, she always throws herself into it. I think she’s been with him quite a while now, and he knows Liam, and so she’s broken down that barrier of letting him have a relationship with her son, so yeah, she’s probably quite serious about him.” Since we spoke, the official Corrie site has revealed that  Luke gets down on one knee, but we'll have to wait and see if Maria accepts.


Who does Samia think was the perfect partner for Maria?

“Samia would say Tyrone, because I adore Alan, and he really is like a brother to me, and I love working with Al, but I’d say probably Liam was the real love of her life, he really broke her heart, and then obviously he died. Anyone who Maria gets involved with either leaves the show or dies” she laughs, “so I’ve warned Dean not to stay with me.”

I asked Samia how other characters on the Street react at the news of what she’s done. “Audrey’s the most judgemental ‘cos Audrey’s like Maria’s surrogate Mum” she tells me, “so she’s really not happy with her about it. Kirk’s reaction is quite funny. I think he says ‘what is it with you and the gays?’ She’s had a gay boyfriend and now she’s got a gay husband.”

Samia seems to be a big fan of Pablo and hopes the viewers warm to him, revealing “I actually texted the writer who wrote the episode saying ‘please can we keep [him] ‘cos he’s just hysterical'. My cheeks were hurting when I got home from laughing that night. He’s brilliant.”

Having made her Corrie debut in 2000, what has kept her with the show all these years?

“I just genuinely love Corrie, I love the show and the people here” she says. “I know it’s so cheesy and all of us say it, but it is like a second family. Especially ‘cos a lot of us have actually grown up together. There’s not many jobs where you’re actually still working with your closest friends that you’ve had from twenty odd years ago. It’s a really special place.” She confesses to having had itchy feet a few years ago, but not now. “It’s quite unique to be able to see a character through…it’s been really interesting to go through her life” she observes, adding that she still feels challenged, especially when tricky storylines come her way.

Talking wedding plans, family life and Dancing on Ice, Samia is a very entertaining and enthusiastic interviewee, and I laughed as much as she did as she regaled me with her perilous hairdressing mishaps including almost cutting Kate Ford’s fringe off during a scene, and nearly beheading Barbara Knox with an old-fashioned drier.

There is no mention of there being any consequences for what Maria has done, and while I'm not condoning her actions, could they herald a new era for her character where she doesn’t play it quite so safe? Here’s hoping.

By Emma Hynes
www.emmahynes.wordpress.com
Twitter: @ELHynes




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Corrie Canada sneak previews May 2 - 6

Without further ado here is a brief sneak preview of what you'll see on  next week's Corrie in Canada.

Harry is christened. Gail celebrates her birthday. Nick worries about his health. Alya is impressed by Gary's kindness towards Izzy. Michelle goes out with Will when she thinks Steve is going to miss her birthday but he returns to surprise her. Will Michelle do something she'll be very sorry for? Caz comes home, injured, to Kate, with an ultimatum and a warning to Sophie. Todd tries to get Eileen to let him move home. Phelan tries to woo Sally to get some influence in the Frescho redevelopment and engineers a local disaster to gain himself some work. Todd keeps an eye on Phelan. Luke rescues Bethany. Alex's partying dismays Cathy. Liz's secret is out.



For more detail and photos check out the Moosejaw Mercury at Corrie.net.






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Top 25 Favourite Corrie Females - No. 16

(This post was originally posted by Llifon on the Coronation Street Blog in March 2016, reposted with permission.)

16. BETTY WILLIAMS (175 VOTES)

Duration: 1969-2011
Played by: Betty Driver
2012 character poll position (women): 6

Introduced as the sister of Maggie Clegg who ran the corner shop, Betty was soon hired by Jack Walker as a barmaid at the Rovers – a job she held for 43 years!

Known for her matronly manner, no nonsense Betty initially clashed with landlady Annie Walker but they both grew to respect each other. Betty also didn’t approve of Bet Lynch at first but over the years they became lifelong and best mates.

Unlike other classic Corrie women, Betty led a quiet life. Until 1974 she was married to policeman Cyril Turpin. She was heartbroken when he died of a heart attack. 21 years later she was startled to meet up with old flame Billy Williams. After a whirlwind romance they married. But the marriage only lasted until Billy’s death in 1997. 

The only scandal that she faced was in 1974 when it was discovered that she was indeed Gordon Clegg’s mother and not his aunt as everyone had been led to believe. But after the revelation, they formed a close relationship and Betty would often visit Gordon and his family in Wimbledon. 

Famed for her hotpot, Betty’s dish was often scrutinised by the likes of Alec Gilroy, Vera Duckworth and Vernon Tomlin but it is still being served even after Betty’s death through Sean Tully. She also walked out many times from the Rovers due to numerous reasons – accused of stealing, accused of being too old and just clashing with various bosses.

Betty holds two Rovers records: the longest serving barmaid and the oldest barmaid. She pulled her last pint when she was 91. While she had only worked part-time since the mid-80s, her presence was known. Betty passed away in 2012 and her memory lives on as her photo is displayed in the Rovers, as if she’s still keeping watch on the goings-on in the pub. 

A fan of Betty?



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Wednesday 27 April 2016

Audrey Roberts Chitty Bang Bang Mashup

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog April 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Martyn Hett, creator of The Audrey Roberts Noise, has gone and done it again.

In last night's Coronation Street, writer Jonathan Harvey had Audrey in salon saying "Chitty Chitty Chat Chat" 

There's only one thing you can do with a line of dialogue like that... and Martin's gone and done it.

Have a look at it below via the wonders of YouTube and follow Martyn on twitter @martynhett




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Top 5 sham marriages on Coronation Street

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog April 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Maria and Pablo's sham marriage was exposed this week on Coronation Street. It's time, then, to take a look at my personal top five Corrie couplings that weren't all that they seemed.



1. Graeme Proctor marries Xin Chiang 

Graeme married Xin after he found out her visa has expired and she would have to leave the country if it wasn't renewed. Tina suggested Graeme marry Xin so she can stay in the country and Graeme reluctantly agreed.


2. Steve McDonald marries Karen Phillips 


Janice Battersby bet £10 that Karen wouldn’t be able to get engaged, so Karen persuaded Steve to propose to her in front of all the Rovers' regulars. Janice then upped the stakes from a few pounds to two days wages, on the condition that Steve and Karen got wed. Neither Karen nor Steve would back out - but each thought that the other would. They were as surprised as the other guests when they both turned up at the Register Office - and even more surprised when they both said "I do"! Their first marriage ended in divorce and they married again a few years later.

3. Roy Cropper marries Tracy Barlow

Tracy and Bev Unwin laid a penny bet that Tracy wouldn't be able to get Roy into bed.  Tracy drugged Roy and he woke up the next morning in Tracy's bed. Poor Roy believed Tracy when she told him they'd had es-ee-ex and that she was pregnant with his child. She was pregnant, but it was Steve's baby.  But Roy didn't know that and thinking the baby was his, he felt he had to do the right thing by Tracy and marry the mother of his unborn child. They divorced when Roy found out the truth.

4. Emily Bishop marries Arnold Swain

When Emily married Arnold Swain she didn't know he was already married to his wife, Margaret. When she did find out, she threw Arnold out but he came back, obsessed with Emily and trapped her in the house. He wanted both of them to die together in a suicide pact but good old Emily had more sense than that, called the cops in and Arnold was taken away.

5.Peter Barlow marries Shelley Unwin

Another wedding, another bigamist. Peter Barlow married Shelley Unwin when he was already wed to Lucy the florist (who became Simon's mum).

Any more sham marriages you can recall from Corrie's past?



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Liam Bairstow: "Amazing to be considered a role model"

Liam Bairstow, who plays Alex in Coronation Street, was interviewed by one of his biggest fans on BBC Radio 5 Live.

Grace Stockdale was invited to meet actor Liam, cast as Corrie's first ever actor with Down’s Syndrome last year.

And Grace, who also has Down’s Syndrome, got the chance to grill him about his experiences on the long-running show so far for BBC Radio 5 live.

It was conducted during Down’s Syndrome Awareness Week, aimed at improving understanding of the condition which affects around 750 babies in the UK each year.

Liam said:  “Being an actor on the biggest soap, it has been a huge honour to work with everyone here. I’ve got loads of people supporting me. My advice to others would be don’t be nervous, because it takes guts to be on TV.”

You can listen to - and watch - the interview here.




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Monday 25 April 2016

The Invisible Man

(This post was originally posted by Scott Willison on the Coronation Street Blog January 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

There's been a flurry of Corrie actors taking time off from the show so they can do theatre.  Roy and Sophie and Les Dennis (still can't get used to calling him Michael, sorry) will all swap the cobbles for the boards in 2016.  The one that really shocked me was Oliver Farnworth, who plays Andy, because basically, I'd forgotten he was still in the show.

Andy arrived with great fanfare in 2014, though of course, he was Gavin then.  Les Dennis had a long-lost son and, after much scouring of the internet and interrogation of elderly relatives, he discovered that Gavin lived in an apartment building in the city.  Les shoved a note under the door and, sure enough, a few days later his handsome progeny was on the doorstep.

In retrospect, that should have been a giveaway; with all the will in the world it's hard to imagine Oliver Farnworth sharing DNA with Les Dennis.  Still, we went with it, and after a fishing trip together, "Gavin" asked dad for some money to pay the rent.  We, the viewers, were then let into a little secret: Gavin was actually Andy.

"Oh!" we all thought.  "Now it's clear!  He's a conman!"  Except things went peculiar around that point.  Les Dennis developed a heart condition - I mean the character did, the actor's health is fine as far as I can tell, but I've already forgotten what his name in the programme is - and Andy/Gavin developed a conscience and started caring about his fake dad.  He stopped asking him for money, and started going with him to the hospital.  It all became a bit odd.


Further oddness followed when Andy/Gavin got a job at the Bistro as a cocktail waiter.  The thing is, it had been established that Gavin was an experienced barman - Les Dennis had visited his former place of employment in the city - so did that mean Andy was lying on his CV?  Was Andy a proper barman as well?  It started to get muddled, and at this point I began to think that the writers wished they'd never started the whole charade in the first place.  A simple long-con by a dodgy geezer had become a perfectly nice man deciding to assume his friends' identity because... he thought it would be funny?  To make Les Dennis feel better?  It all became confusing.

Gavin's return - the real Gavin - ramped it up into farce levels.  Not a good farce, like early Frasier, but a slightly over-frenetic, desperate farce, like later Frasier.  Gavin turned out to be a wrong 'un, tried to blackmail Andy, threatened Gail on her latest wedding day, and then vanished with a load of cash.  He then died in a car crash, conveniently; I suspect at this point the writers hoped they could just pretend Andy was Les Dennis' son until the end of time, but no, we had the reveal still to come.

Somewhere along the line, Steph had been dragged into his web of deceit, and became his unwilling accomplice and then, his very willing girlfriend.  Steph is bubbly, fun, and a joy whenever she's on screen, which makes up for some of Andy's deficiencies.  He is astonishingly good looking (we're still waiting for that topless scene, producers) but he's not got much character at all.  Andy seems like a thoroughly nice man, which is acceptable, but doesn't really make for good drama.  It also seems to directly contradict all that "pretending you're an elderly man's long lost son" business as well.

So it was revealed that Gavin was actually Andrew Carver, and I had a moment of giddiness because that's the name of the rapey pop star in the underappreciated movie classic Showgirls.  Les Dennis felt betrayed and split up from Gail.  There were a few episodes of angst.  And then... nothing.  Everyone just got on with their lives.  Les Dennis forgave Andy to the extent that he actually moved in with him.  Nick refused to sack him from the Bistro even though he'd obtained the job under false credentials and Andy had directly caused Nick's mother to have her shortest marriage yet (quite an achievement for Gail).  Everyone carried on.


There were a couple of moments where Andy popped up again - he was there on a night out with Steph, Kate and Sophie, though I sort of imagine he was just there to hold the girls' handbags while they went dancing, and he had a brief moment of alpha male punchiness when Steph's ex blackmailed her - but most of the time he's just been behind the bar in the Bistro, aiming his puppy dog eyes at the camera.

I'm sad to see Roy taking time off, because I love him when he's onscreen, but it's tempered with satisfaction that he'll be back.  Andy though?  If he'd just vanished, would we have noticed?  Perhaps, while he's away at the Royal Court, the writers will find a personality for him hidden somewhere.  Or at least persuade him to go shirtless.  Either way I'd be a lot happier.

@Merseytart





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Corrie Canada weeky awards for April 18 - 22


The future? Leanne and Robert. I've always said they'd be good together. I want this to happen.

Judgemental award: Maybe Liz's radar is right, but she's really being overly hard on Michelle, don't you think?

Throwback award: Leanne's going back to using Battersby.

Phrase of Doom award: Sean "What could possibly go wrong" (Aggh)

Fool for Love: Robert. Tracy can't help herself, she's going to screw up sooner than later.

Cold Feet award: Kate is definitely having wedding wobblers and Caz got the hump and dumped her.

Suck Up award: Tracy is really trying to get back in Robert's good books but didn't want to muck in at the Bistro when asked. She did, though, and is the street's latest scrubber ;)

Bazinga award: Aidan reeled Sally in well and truly. Feel ill? Want to go home early? No problem, I'll cancel your council meeting for you!

Lines of the week:
Mary "Sally's about as laid back as a rockhopper penguin"
Tracy "There are a million slappers in this world, why did you have to go and sleep with that one?"
Carla "Any tips on how to be Mrs. Tilsley?" Leanne "No, I'm more about how not to do it"
Amy to Tracy "Treat 'em mean and keep 'em keen not working anymore?" (nope, apparently not)
Tracy "This is going to take way more than a push up bra and a couple of vodkas"
Sally to Beth "That's why I'm a community figurehead, and you're not"
Kirk "You only get married once" Kate "That's the idea. As long as it's a life decision not a life sentence" Kirk "With Beth, it's both. We're like two parts of a pantomime horse. She's the head end and I'm the other end" (not many men would brag about being a horse's ass! Gotta love Kirky)
Tracy "When did you become so mean?" Amy "Learnt from the best!" (And Tracy never even flinched)
Eva "I've got the musical ability of a fruit salad"
Eva on Liz's impersonation of Amy's mother "Where's your cloven hooves and your homicidal tendencies?"
Gerald's wife "Do you enjoy scallops, Sally?" Sally "Oh yeah, I love potatoes"



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Top 25 Favourite Corrie Females - No. 17

(This post was originally posted by Llifon on the Coronation Street Blog in March 2016, reposted with permission.)

17. RAQUEL WATTS (173 VOTES)

Duration: 1991-1996, 2000
Played by: Sarah Lancashire
2012 character poll position (women): 23

Introduced as an assistant at Bettabuys supermarket, working alongside the likes of Curly Watts, Reg Holdsworth, Vera Duckworth and Ivy Brennan.

She was later hired as a barmaid at the Rovers and formed a close friendship with landlady Bet Gilroy and fellow barmaid Betty Turpin. She also dabbled in modelling.

Soon enough, Raquel was in a relationship with Des Barnes. She was heartbroken when ex-wife Steph turned up as he hoped for a reconciliation. Time and time again Des and Raquel would rekindle their relationship, only for Des for dump her when he got a better offer. 

After failed relationships with Gordon Blinkhorn and Wayne Farrell, she married friend and confidante Curly in 1995. But the aching truth was that she didn’t love him. She still loved Des, for all his faults. 

She confessed to Curly her real feelings, but he forgave her. They had a happy marriage until she left him – not for Des, but for a job in Malaysia. She made a brief return in 2000 to let Curly know that they had a daughter called Alice. Raquel was by then living in Paris.

Ditzy Raquel’s notable scenes during her tenure include having French lessons with Ken Barlow in the Rovers backroom and having a conversation about football with Alma Baldwin and Denise Osbourne in the Rovers bar. She is undoubtedly a classic Corrie character.

A fan of Raquel?



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Sunday 24 April 2016

Which Coronation Street legends would you like to return?

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog March 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

There was much hoo-hah over the recent Easter weekend in the tabloids over incoming Coronation Street producer Kate Oates.  We've already blogged about her plans for cast and storylines here.

And now the tabloids are saying that Kate Oates plans to bring back some Coronation Street legends - including Bet and Curly.

Speaking to the Daily Star, she said: "I think Corrie has a strong cast but also a strong history and it's nice to mix and match. I'm looking forward to seeing what the writers are interested in doing and matching their ideas with mine."

Kevin Kennedy who played Curly Watts on Corrie, took to twitter to say this about his rumoured return:
Now then, as regular readers will know, I'm a huge fan of Emily's nephew Geoffrey, aka Spider Nugent. He'd definitely be on my list of top five characters I'd love to see return, along with Toyah Battersby too.

Who would you like to see again back on Coronation Street?



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Sunday Comments April 24

You may remember that Tracy told Robert she knew he slept with Carla. Today we head into the fallout when he can't deny it though he's sorry and reminds her they had broken up at the time. Back at home, Tracy and Robert have it out. He's insisting he loves Tracy and regrets it all but they weren't together. Ah. But then Tracy slips and ends up telling him that she's known for a very long time, since the night of the Bistro robbery. He realizes she went after Carla for revenge because Tracy always gets something out of it but is horrified that she blackmailed Carla to get him the Bistro and get out of town. He's using words like extortion, she's using words like persuasion.

Tracy does things in the name of love but Robert isn't sure she wouldn't turn on him either. Oh i really didn't want him to forgive her. Please dump her, please! Then when she told him she might be pregnant, he wouldn't believe her until he saw the negative test for herself. He was relieved and he was pretty nasty to Tracy and you know she had that coming for all her pity party words. It didn't matter how much she begged or tried to talk him round, he knew she did it for herself and it looks like he's dumped her!

And Oh, it was wonderful to see Tracy getting the hump from Robert and not in a good way. It was also interesting to see Robert and Leanne's obvious chemistry. I have always said they would be a good couple. Please make this happen! Why did Carla go sniffing around Tracy? Now Tracy has nothing to lose and is threatening to tell Nick everything. Carla really needs to tell him herself. Not really fair for Robert to give Carla a hard time for going along with Tracy's blackmail and i guess Carla figures if she can get Robert to go back to Tracy, Tracy will keep her mouth shut and Robert might insist on it.

Ah well, between Carla and Beth, Robert decided he still wants to be with Tracy. More fool him. It's her last chance. Will she tell Nick and screw it all up? He ordered her not to. But you know, since Carla doesn't know that, Tracy can still use that to wind up Carla. But if I was Carla, I'd go to Robert and tell him. In the interest of the show, though, Carla, who has lost her backbone, won't say anything. Tracy is now in suck up mode but it's only on her terms. When Robert needed help, she wasn't too keen to help in the Bistro, was she? She did, though, when Amy made her feel guilty, and ended up scrubbing pots!

Ok. Why did Liz have to take Amy to her music club if it was in the community centre? Anyway, the little lad, Sam's father seems to have taken a shine to Liz but assumes Liz is Amy's mother. Little white lies. How on earth would anyone think Liz was Amy's mother? Liz was happy to let the man, Chris, think what he thought, though. Admitting you're a granny when you're Liz does hurt a bit. Amy picked up on Chris' interest and wondered if Liz fancied him back. Mind you, this Chris is apparently the boy, Sam's dad. I have a feeling both of them are shading the truth a bit.

Liz seemed to go all week a bit oblivious that this Chris fancies her though she kind of fancied him, too. I think she was pushing it aside but when he arrived with flowers, how could she ignore the obvious? She's still keeping the lie with Eva and Mary's approval though Michelle, who didn't know what was going on, nearly let the secret out. Now that Amy knows Chris thinks Liz is Amy's mother, she does what any daughter of Tracy does, blackmail for a bit of cash to keep schtum, milk it for all it's financial worth.

Kate and Sophie do seem to be good mates but Tim has twigged that Sophie has feelings for Kate. The hen night is impending but Kate overheard a few doubtful remarks and they're probably the same ones she herself is having. Kate keeps going to Sophie for support and friendship and Caz doesn't like what she sees and she marked Sophie's cards. Meanwhile, Kate is wobbling under all the fuss, between wedding planning and the hen do, she seems to be out of sorts instead of excited like most brides. Kate finally told Caz she wanted to postpone the wedding and of course Caz thinks it's because of Sophie but Kate was having doubts long before she was mates with Sophie.

Caz really does suspect Sophie is the cause of Kate's wobble and she sounds a bit aggressive about it. Sophie decided to speak to Kate after she heard about the hen party cancellation (and after Caz and Kate had had a bust up). One thing leads to another and in traditional soap plotlines, Sophie and Kate kiss with Caz walking in on it. Sophie gets disappointed in the end, though, with Kate turning back to Caz and made it sound like Sophie did all the chasing. She kind of did, in that she started the kiss, but Kate certainly jumped right into it, as well. But Caz wasn't so forgiving. She seems to have dumped Kate and jumped in a taxi. Kate says her life is in pieces because of Sophie. That's true but it's not Sophie's fault, it's because Kate does fancy Sophie and she admitted it to Aidan.

I guess that meeting with Mr. Hanlon went well because the factory has a new order and is poised to spring from the ashes yet again. Eva will be back at her machine as well. I don't suppose she gave a thought to leaving Liz in the lurch. Nice little mother-daughter chat between Sally and Sophie. I really like that Tim and Sophie are close, he being a bit of a father figure but without the authority Kevin would have. It's nice, really. They do have mutual respect and affection. Oh i Laughed when Sally tried to get the afternoon off and Aidan thoroughly reeled her in with a pretense about feeling ill then insisting he would cancel her meeting. Busted! Kind of nice that Leanne and Carla got a bit friendly after all the angst between them. They have Nick in common and Leanne was very gracious that Carla just might be the better wife for him.

Liz really went a bit over the top with her attitude towards Michelle regarding Will and Michelle told Will she had to back out of their wedding but Saskia wasn't having any of it and Michelle couldn't find anyone else to take over. Liz might be certain that Michelle and Will might be rekindling something but she didn't pick up that another bloke was making flirting noises towards her. Sean was trying to help and Michelle accepted, because then Sean can do most of the dealing with the couple. Looks like the first crisis came with the florist so Tracy may get the nod, against better judgement. Michelle is really finding it lonely without Steve. Aidan's remarks about long distance relationships not working hit home, too.

Jason has the new fence well under way but Sally thinks her garden looks smaller than it used to but a smirking Yasmeen has twigged Sally's radar. The two of them trade insults until Sally goes for Tim's sledgehammer but is diverted from that and threatens a higher power instead. Yasmeen doesn't seem contrite at all. Tim does try to reign Sally in but isn't always very successful and doesn't seem to be able to hold her back this time either.

Sally was a bit flippant with Tim but he really tried hard and made a romantic meal that she missed due to her council responsibilities. She didn't seem to be overly anxious to make up with him because her duties are more of a priority. She certainly bigged herself up with the other councillor and put a huge gloss on Tim and their/Her ambitions. But when he overheard her pretentious bigging up of his jobs and their lifestyle, he realized she wasn't really accepting of him as and who he is. She'd better be careful or she'll lose him. She's definitely lost his respect this week.

Sarah is starting the sleepless nights you get with a new baby and David is not in the least sympathetic. At least Bethany offered to take the baby out for a walk to give her a break but Sarah still doesn't really want to let the baby out of her sight in case anything happens. She also wants to have the baby christened, for protection against the evil world so she really is going over the top with this over protective thing and Billy knows that part of her problem is the shadow of Callum.


Nick is back from Devon and is ready for the leisure life, hanging out in track suits (sorry, leisure wear) and sleeping hours on end. He has no plans to do a thing! He's hanging around various businesses and gazing at the photos on his phone of the restaurants he looked at while away and discussing them with all and sundry. One of the ones he looked at was taken off the market and he was sorely disappointed. People were teasing him all day about his leisure wear and then, when the bullies spotted Bethany with the baby they had another go but this time, Uncle Nick defended her and went ballistic.

Everyone's talking about a new reality show about washing up. I can't think of anything that would make me watch that. Fiz and Tyrone need to clear some old stuff out of the house. Turns out that Tyrone still has an old toaster belonging to Jack and Vera! Cathy gave him the idea that scrap metal would be worth money. Izzy's still struggling and doesn't feel like she has a choice. Gary will get her more pot but it'll be their secret. Chesney and Sinead are back on screen. He's missing his little boy and feeling a bit blue. But Sinead has a chance to do another modeling job so she's decided to do it for the extra money to send Ches to Portugal.

Maria's home! Luke is picking her up at the airport. She's been away months. Luke can't seem to get on the internet at Number 9. Surely he has data on the phone to check the flight terminal. He should know never to trust Kirk, even with welcome home gifts! And oh, Ozzie makes an appearance in Maria's honour (albeit with Kirk walking him). But Maria's phone is ringing and she's very furtive about answering it and looking guilty when he asks if there's anything to declare. Why is that?



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Saturday 23 April 2016

Mr Men and Little Miss on Coronation Street


(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog March 2016, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Paul Lanagan, who runs the Corrie Art website and twitter has created these fun Mr Men and Little Miss drawings, which he's posted to twitter today.  With Paul's permission, we are able to share these with Coronation Street fans here on the Coronation Street Blog.









Deirdre: A Life on Coronation Street - official ITV tribute to a soap icon. Available here.


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