No more nasty Norris?

(This post was originally posted by Chewy on the Coronation Street Blog in January 2013.)

A year or so I wrote a blog post about how it seemed that Norris had gone from being a comedic busybody to a nasty piece of work.

I've noticed lately that we finally seem to be seeing the nicer part of Norris again. Especially concerning Roy and Hayley.

The Norris of 2012 would have likely made some dig in the Rovers when the news had broken about Hayley's death, but he came across as genuinely sad about her passing.

Tonight we saw him questioning Dennis how he usually does, but this time he came across as concerned for Rita, instead of just trying to cause trouble between Rita and Dennis.

With Dennis soon leaving, I'm hoping we get to see some more of the classic Norris and Rita scenes.



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Conversation Street podcast 79

Gemma and Michael's podcast for the episodes in Canada that aired up to last night can be heard here. Don't worry, they don't do spoilers so you won't hear anything you don't want to!

Michael and Gemma discuss the sad passing of Hayley Cropper, the new lodgers at Number 5 and Number 8, the end of Nick and Leanne's marraige. The character profile is Katy Harris who also chose to end her life, but for very different reasons.





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Sneak previews for Canadian Corrie Feb. 10 - 14

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

Fiz finds out the truth. Roy is not prepared for the funeral. Hayley is laid to rest. Roy goes walkabout. Nick is in a surly slump. Gail rants against Leanne. Tim lives the lie. Sophie keeps trying to help Maddie. Chesney and Sinead acquire houseguests. Dev and Kal make a deal. Tracy finds time for Amy.

For more details and photos, visit the Moosejaw Mercury at Corrie.net



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Julie Hesmondhalgh on life after Hayley Cropper

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog January 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

There's a good interview with Julie Hesmondhalgh, who plays Hayley Cropper on Coronation Street.  Julie talks about the response to Hayley's demise on Corrie, what it means to her, and also about what she's going to be doing once she leaves the show.

Julie will be on stage at the Royal Exchange on the opening night of her next play, the drama Blindsided.
It tells the story of a young woman whose life is devastated after falling in love with a man in Stockport in the 1970s.

After that, Julie will return to Black Roses for a tour and a run at London's Southbank Centre later in the spring.

Read the full interview here.

There is also a really good article from the Guarding with an interview with Julie H. as well:

There's an absolutely fantastic interview in today's Guardian with Julie Hesmondhalgh, who plays the soon-to-be-departed Hayley Cropper.

Julie talks about Hayley's right to die storyline and how she got the job as pre-op transsexual Hayley back in 1998.

Julie says: "I remember going to the audition in a leopardskin coat because I thought she was going to be another Bet Lynch. When I got to the office, everybody was laughing. The idea was that Roy was going on a series of disastrous dates and I would be the third, a pre-op transsexual. But I didn't laugh. I thought: 'This isn't a joke, Hayley won't be a funny character.'"

She got the part and went off to Manchester's leftwing Front Line Books for remedial reading on transgender issues. But, when Hayley finally hit our screens, transgender pressure groups complained. "They said: 'How could a young upstart who isn't transgender play the part seriously?'"

Hesmondhalgh's sympathetic portrayal of Hayley silenced those objections because she revolutionised attitudes to transgender people – and not just among Corrie's viewers. The upstart became the hero: significantly, she is now a patron of two transgender pressure groups, Trans Media Watch and Press for Change. 

Read our exclusive blog interview with the Press for Change consultant who helped Coronation Street develop the role of Hayley Cropper.

Julie denies Hayley's death will promote or normalise suicide. "The idea that it will promote copycat suicides pisses me off more than anything. Hundreds of murders are shown every day on TV and nobody's saying that normalises murder. But this story – that has been seeded for months and everybody knows is going to happen – is supposed to make people in Hayley's condition commit suicide? Rubbish! Nobody's going to be tuning in on Monday night to copy her. It's insulting to those who are in Hayley's predicament to say otherwise."

The Samaritans gave guidance to Coronation Street on the Hayley storyline. "Our role was to help them to cover this as safely as possible, not to approve their decision to run the story at all," says Rachel Kirby-Rider, director of fundraising and communications.

A major concern for the Samaritans was that Coronation Street did not give details of how Hayley obtained the drugs to kill herself, or what they were. "There is extensive research that demonstrates that inappropriate portrayal, or reporting, of suicide can lead to imitative or 'copycat' behaviour among vulnerable people," adds Kirby-Rider.

Julie is now preparing to appear in two plays at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre. She says; "I got a text from David (Neilson) today saying he's just going back to work, and part of me envies him because I loved working on Coronation Street. I'm so proud of what we achieved."

Read the full interview here.


See also: Exclusive! Celebrity Corrie Blogger - Julie Hesmondhalgh
See also: Hayley Ann Cropper - This is Your Life



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Commemorative beer created for Hayley Cropper - Red Anorak Ale

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog January 2014, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Hayley's departure from Coronation Street next week has been commemorated with a brand new ale.

Silverdale-based Best of British Beer produced the Red Anorak Ale to mark the death of Coronation Street’s Hayley Cropper.

The Red Anorak Ale was produced in time for Julie’s offical leaving party last year.

Director Gill Sherwin said: “We’ve been greatly helped by working with some very talented beer producers, and we’ve ventured into creating some collaboration beers with a number of them, including the Lymestone Brewery from Stone.”


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Hayley's final farewell to Coronation Street

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog January 2014, reposted to this blog with permission.)

One of the most talked about storylines in Coronation Street history came to a moving conclusion this week in Canada when Hayley Cropper decided it is time to end her life.

With devoted husband Roy at her side Hayley prepares to bring her suffering to an end before the treatment for cancer renders her incapable of doing so.

Determined not to implicate Roy in her suicide Hayley has planned everything and even his last minute pleas for her to change her mind do not soften her resolve.

When Anna Windass, Fiz Stape and Carla Connor arrive at the flat they find a devastated Roy struggling to come to terms with the death of his soulmate.

Ever since Hayley told Roy of her plans to take her death into her own hands the nation has been divided by her decision and the storyline has also reignited the Right to Die debate.

And in coming weeks the two sides of the debate will be shown on the soap as Roy struggles to deal with the fact that Hayley took her own life against his wishes. Fiz will also voice her dismay at the decision when she discovers the truth.

Coronation Street Producer Stuart Blackburn explained the decision to explore this difficult and controversial issue.

Coronation Street Producer Stuart Blackburn said: “Hayley has been through such a lot in her life and is very concerned about losing control as the disease progresses.

“The palliative care Hayley receives is superb but she is scared and fears that pain relief could cause confusion and a loss of clarity. She feels taking control is the right thing for her to do.
She is concerned that she might regress back to being her former male self, Harold. She has already had one such nightmare. So she came to the decision that she wanted to die in peace, to die with her clarity of thought still intact and most of all to die as Hayley - the identity she has spent her whole life fighting to be.

“Once she knew that she has a very short time left to live she set about getting her life in order so that she could take control of her final moments before the illness renders her incapable of doing so.

“This is a very sensitive issue and we will be exploring the effects of her decision on husband Roy who has a huge emotional and moral dilemma over her choice to die this way.

“Not everyone will feel Hayley’s decision is the right one and we fully respect this, for that reason we will be exploring both sides of the debate on screen.”

Actress Julie Hesmondhalgh said that she could understand Hayley’s decision: “I’m a member of the British Humanist Association so I have quite strong views in favour of it, obviously with all the constraints that have to be carefully laid out to make sure it’s not abused. I think everybody who is in favour of that bill will be at pains to say that as it is so easily exploited and misused in the wrong hands. When you see the cases that have gone through, it’s hard not to be in favour of it. When you see people whose minds are extremely keen and alert but whose bodies have gone, it’s heart breaking. I wouldn’t want to live in that pain and anguish, or see my family and friends go through it. I’ve always really understood Hayley’s decision.”


See also: A very special screening, Hayley's farewell



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Exclusive: "Corrie's Hayley changed my life"

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog January 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Here at the Coronation Street Blog, we are privileged to bring you an exclusive article from the real-life lady who helped the Corrie writers with the character of Hayley Cropper.

Working with Press for Change, the lobbying and educational organisation, which campaigns to achieve equal civil rights and liberties for all transsexual people in the UK, she was the advisor to Coronation Street for 18 months from April 1998, three months after Hayley first appeared on screen.

We are absolutely honoured to hear from the woman whose help and advice has propelled Hayley to become one of Corrie’s best loved female characters. After 16 years of Hayley on our screens, the real-life transsexual advisor to Coronation Street on Hayley's character, gives us an insight into how it feels to say goodbye to Hayley Cropper...

____
"It's been incredibly hard saying goodbye to lovely Hayley Cropper, but all good things come to an end, apparently. When Julie told me last year that she was leaving Corrie, I felt excited for her, and for her future career... but so sad that Hayley would inevitably have to die.

To me, after 16 years, Hayley had become like a younger sister; genetically linked but off having a life of her own, created and nurtured by the fabulous writers at Coronation Street, and played with such enthusiasm and heart by the lovely Julie Hesmondhalgh.

Although my little part in Hayley's life only lasted about 18 months, I never quite cut the cord, as it were, emotionally. I felt Hayley's highs and lows along with the nation, and was always hoping for the best for her. When she got married the first time, in 1999, I was drying my tears in the Corrie studio. In 2010, I did the same at Tatton Hall, and now here I am now sobbing my heart out, watching her dwindle and die, pale and jaundiced.

Julie's commitment to the role meant that she lost a lot of weight towards the end, and by gum it showed. This has not been a sugar-coated view of death, but a hard painful road of increasing pain and deterioration as pancreatic cancer took her away, bit by bit, with alarming speed. This story has gripped the nation, and put Corrie top of the ratings for months now, and is something that all concerned can be justly proud of. The worst parts for me were the little things... Seeing Roy cry for the first time at the hospital as he could only say two words to Fiz had me howling; Roy's face at his birthday party in the Rovers; Hayley's brave front crumbling as she said "I don't want to leave life"; Roy picking her up in the cafe when she broke down; and then the final moments, gulping down the bitter pharmaceutical cocktail that would end her life.... and then passing away in Roy’s arms.

Hayley Patterson (as was) changed my life. Through an introduction to the story team via Press for Change’s Christine Burns, my eyes were opened to a wider world, of TV drama, and the big city on my occasional trips to Granada Studios. A year or so later, I would move permanently to Manchester, my adopted home town, where I live to this day. I found my first real love at the same time, and although we split 18 months later, I felt I was growing up, just as Hayley was onscreen.

Sadly I have, to date, not found "my Roy"; the one thing Hayley had over me.... a partner to love her, unconditionally and completely.

But this was never just about Hayley alone; the past 16 years have been about Roy-and-Hayley. The couple so in love, and so perfect together, that the nation took them to their hearts almost from day one. The onscreen partnership of Julie Hesmondhalgh and David Neilson won awards in 1999 and 2004, and they became the moral centre of the Street. Never conventional, always believable. David's performances over the years, both tender and comic (especially over the last 12 months), have never been less than gold standard. I look forward to seeing Roy try to piece his life back together without his soulmate in the months to come. I'm keeping more Kleenex handy.

So to my lovely friend, Julie, who took the big step, and out into the wider acting world. Even before I had ANYTHING to do with Corrie, I loved her portrayal of the shy, loving trans woman that resembled me so much back in the 90's. When we first met, I think we were both relieved that we just clicked and became close friends from that point. Even when Corrie has written slightly dubious storylines for Roy and Hayley, such as Tracy Barlow's framing of Roy, or going on the run with Wayne Hayes, or Hayley's "long-lost son", Julie has always managed to sell it to me, just by being fantastic. She has always supported me in all my creative endeavours (and my occasional emotional meltdowns!), and I will continue to support Julie in hers, as she branches out into the waiting world of theatre, TV and film... and I couldn't be more delighted for her.

Goodbye Hayley, it’s been a privilege.



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Hayley Cropper, RIP

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Hayley's death - I'm in floods of tears

I've just finished tonight episode, ending with Hayley's death.

All I can say is that it was full of love, pain, dignity and grief.

Perfection from David Neilson and Julie Hesmondhalgh. It will break your heart and impress you in equal parts. If they don't win awards for this, there is no justice. That is all.

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A very special Corrie screening: Hayley's farewell

(This post was originally posted by Graeme N on the Coronation Street Blog in January 2014, reposted with permission.)

Last Friday I made a very special trip to Coronation Street's new home at Media City in Salford. As I sat on the train up from London I had mixed emotions. I'm always thrilled to visit Manchester, home of my favourite television programme, however this time, the joy was tempered with both sadness and trepidation. I was making the journey to see a preview of Julie Hesmondhalgh's final scenes as the legendary Hayley Cropper.

I first met Julie Hesmondhalgh back in November and she was everything you would hope she would be, funny, warm, kind and considerate with a real refreshing honesty. Without a doubt Coronation Street will miss both Hayley and Julie. However I do believe Hayley's exit storyline has been beautifully and truthfully played out and is a fitting tribute to nearly sixteen years of wonderful onscreen moments.

Corrie's producer Stuart Blackburn introduced the afternoon to the assembled journalists by describing the Croppers' storyline as a true love story. Roy and Hayley's love story has had a beginning, a middle and sadly now it must come to an end. We all knew this was coming but believe me the end when it comes still takes your breath away. This blog isn't a review of the episodes for I think each and every viewer must be allowed their own moment when the episodes are aired. Every Corrie viewer will have their own particular moment that resonates and there are so many to choose from.

We saw both Hayley's final episodes and quite honestly, David Neilson and Julie Hesmondhalgh blew me away. It was very Roy and Hayley but it was on a different level again. Afterwards Debbie Rush said that for her, it was up there with Hilda opening up Stan's glasses case after he'd died and I totally agree. It was beautifully written and played really sensitively without avoiding the difficult subject. At the end, everyone sat in the dark for several minutes without saying a word, which is probably the best reaction they could hope for.

I think it was Roy who affected me the most - I don't think I've seen Roy properly cry before so seeing him show that much raw emotion really got to me. Jennie McAlpine said that Roy and Hayley had been such a success because while they had started off as the odd couple in the show, by the end they were the most normal, realistic characters in Corrie and I think she's right.
Several of the journalists present commented in the interviews that followed that they had never attended a media event quite like it before. Each interview session, with Julie Hesmondhalgh, Debbie Rush and Jennie McAlpine was thoughtful, considered and fairly muted. Julie has been sent the episodes the night before due to her current rehearsals for her new play, however Debbie and Jennie were watching the episodes with us for the first time and despite their heavy involvement with the story onscreen, they were both very genuinely moved by what they had seen. Jennie said she was watching Roy and Hayley, not her friends David and Julie and I think that was such an accolade to two of Coronation Street's finest actors.

If David Neilson and Julie Hesmondhalgh do not win all the awards going for these beautiful, moving performances, I'll want to know the reason why.

Prepare yourself for some blindingly good acting, writing and directing when Hayley's story comes to an end later this month. It really is Coronation Street at it's storytelling peak.

Altogether, a day I will never forget.



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Corrie Canada weekly awards for Jan. 27 - 31

We be jammin' award: wonderful stuff, Emily vs Carla!

Gwok thingy award: Eva really thinks Jason can help her pick out the perfect outfit for the birthday party?

Butterfly net award: Todd was snide to Marcus at the bus stop but it sailed right over Maria's pretty little head. Eva's too.

Got your number award: I'm pretty sure Eileen knows very well that Todd is causing trouble with Marcus. and he admitted it. "Sean's not a challenge". There it is, right there. Slimy Git!!

Deja Vu award: Dev used the same complimentary line on Stella that Kal used on Liz.

True friends award: Hayley wanted her hair done. The whole salon was determined to give her a full, free makeover

Weather fail: Hayley was on the street in her wheely. The passing car lights clearly showed it was raining, you could hear the water in puddles, but nobody seemed to be getting wet stood outside the pub.

Eagle Ears award: Hayley thinks you can hear the trains at Picadilly station in Weatherfield when it's quiet. Trust me, if Weatherfield is Salford, you can't hear the trains at Picadilly. Victoria station, possibly.

Puddle duck award: There is no way that taxi was going fast enough to splash a puddle six feet high over Dev and Stella.

Lines of the Week: Dev to Nick "Looking good, Mr. T" Nick "if a sweaty bloke floats your boat!"
Eva about Marcus "He's straight" Todd "So's spaghetti til you boil it"
Leanne "You can't have rainbows without a bit of rain"
Hayley to Roy "You'd make an absolutely rubbish spy"
Emily "It isn't a competition, Mary" Mary "And yet you have elbowed me in the ribcage four times!"
Izzy "My condition is no bearing on whether we jump into bed with a gangster"
Stella about Leanne "she's just having a hard time at home" Nick "Which I fully understand, because I can't stand living with me either"
Stella "I look good in black" (yes she seems to be less beige these days but still not colourful)
Katy about Anna "Sometimes she sets the bar low"
Dev "this is NOT a date!!" (you're acting like it is)
Tracy "And who are you? Ps and Qs police?"
Hayley to Tracy "Your mother's ashamed of you. Your daughter barely knows you. Your own kidney would reject you if it could but here you are still buzzing around like the queen bee passing judgement."
Hayley "I'm embracing my inner cow today"

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Sunday Comments February 2

Happy Birthday, Todd! He's dejected at how low his life has sunk. Not even anyone he knew in London remembered his birthday? If he treated them like he treated Jules and Alex, why would they? What's a boy to do? Stir a little trouble maybe? He was snide to Marcus at the bus stop, though it sailed right over Maria's head. He sure doesn't think Marcus is going to hold fast to the straight side of the street and it looks like he's going to make sure of it.

He made a point of stripping to change his shirt right beside Marcus but did you see that Eileen seemed to notice and I don't think she approved. Plus, Todd is most definitely making the moves on Marcus and again, Eileen caught him and his way of "backing Marcus up" and agreeing that he made the first move not Marcus was half hearted and could be taken as glossing over the facts. I think Eileen has his number, though. Marcus managed to get out of the night on the town with everyone.

Sean bought a 100 pound shirt for Todd! Very clearly they can all now tell that Sean fancies Todd and all the girls are behind it. After the party, Sean was delighted to have some private face time with Todd and more or less bared his soul and feelings. That left the door open for Todd to let him down though at least he did it gently. Aww poor Sean. and Todd admitted it, Sean isn't a challenge. Marcus is. It's not about unrequited love or fancying someone is it? It's about the challenge of turning Marcus away from Maria.  

Julie's still wobbling but putting a brave face on it. Tony's late for the party and Eileen's worried Tony is going to end up hurting Jason again. Tony has changed his ways over one missed phone call? I'm as skeptical as Eileen. I do like that Jason is protective of her and he's wary of his father. Probably best even if Tony turns out to be sincere. Instead of hanging out with the younger crowd, Tony ended up feeling sorry for himself in the pub where Liz soothes his feelings. 

Eva sure threw a monkeywrench into things, worrying about what to wear and insulting Jenna along the way with her comment about Jenna's  functional unfeminine clothes. Well she works in a cafe, she's not going to look like she's on the runway is she? Eileen is still sure Tony is up to something and Jason is not feeling warm and fuzzy either. Eileen knows, no matter what Todd protests, that he's playing games with Marcus. He took the opportunity to apologize to Marcus but it was still a pointed one. Todd is very good at hitting the nail on the head, implying that the main attraction for Marcus was having the whole family, not just Maria. He's right and he knows it.
 
Maria and Marcus are excited, they have a house in mind and a good chance of getting it but Todd's over the shoulder looks at Marcus seem to be having the intended effect. They've put an offer in but it was too low and they didn't get it.

I think Hayley is spending a lot more time in bed these days. Now it's time for a wheelchair if she wants to go out. It'll save her strength but it didn't sit well with her (see what i did there?) Hayley is allowing her medication to be increased. And she is still keeping her pain from Roy who feels guilty. It's clear she's struggling. 

Roy's still feeding her strawberries and she really probably only wanted them the once. Still, his heart's in the right place and Kirk and Tyrone returned home with 500 boxes of strawberries. Talk about overkill!  So what if the supplier was going to freeze the lot. I can see why they had to take them all. Again, storyline dictated so there could be the Great Jam Off in the cafe I guess. It was Emily vs Carla vs Mary. There might have been carnage! But thanks to Hayley the Diplomat, there wasn't, even if Mary's jam had a kick.

The last of this week's episodes shows Hayley weak and fractious. And then she decided she had to have her hair done. It's for her own peace of mind. So she insists on going out to the salon, waiting until Roy is out of the way because he'd object. Everyone in the salon are determined that she get the full meal deal, too. Roy was horrified but found her surrounded by friends and smiling.

Hayley's fears seem to be true. She started having nightmares about childhood, Harold, fears and confusion. She's giving Roy panic attacks by choosing her funeral clothes and telling him it won't be long now. And why on earth would Roy leave the wheelchair down in the salon in the way? He could carry it downstairs if she wants to use it and she does. She's decided she wants to say her goodbyes.

And boy her final words to Tracy were wonderfully bitchy! She's had the chance to see Chesney and Sinead, then Carla who managed to keep up well but she knew there was something. She knew it might be the last time she saw Hayley. Roy knows her time is very soon over. And she told him. Tomorrow. 

The builder storyline is starting to ramp up. Owen is tempted, you can tell. Gary doesn't think it's such a good idea. Phelan thinks Owen could end up with about 200,000 at the end of it all. It's a nice amount but not spectacular. Why is Phelan so keen on Owen doing the job? There must be an agenda there somewhere. Anna isn't trusting the deal. I think Owen is overestimating the profits. The future of two families is at stake? with only a profit in his pocked of 200K? I'm dubious. So if Anna says ok, it's ok, have a go. 

80 thousand is a lot of money. Owen got bad news from the bank. They weren't going for the plan. Too risky. Anna's not sad. The deal is off, at least at the moment. Except Gary went to Pat behind Owen's back to get an extension. Gary doesn't see the problem paying double the interest. I wonder if the loan shark heavies come along with that. I know it's a good deal, they'll make money but they won't be millionaires out of it either.

Anna's worried sick that Owen is going to get in over his head with the project but Katy think her father should go for it. Gary reckons he will have Owen's back but what on earth would he be able to do? Katy sees it from a more naive point of view but perhaps Anna is overly skeptical. Should Owen take the chance? You never know, do you. Well he did, so we're off.  Anna's worried but she'll support him. Owen is probably right. This job might not make his fortune but it will up his company's profile and it will gain him in the long run.

At least Owen doubled his interest in the project to 20%. I hope everything is in writing and double checked. That wife of Phelan's is a bit of a nightmare.

Nick's sticking with his workout routines but it looks very much like Dev was a one hit wonder. He can find lots of excuses, can't he? Nick and Leanne appear to be walking on eggshells. She's worried about him losing his temper but he knows she's watching him and that doesn't help any. He knows everyone's watching him.

Simon wants to come home and can't understand why not. It seems to him that Nick is much better but there's other issues. Leanne is really under pressure. So is Nick. Stella wants to defend her chick, wants her to be happy and can clearly see she isn't. Gloria and Eva looking glum in the pub with her isn't really going to cheer her up. Eva's solution? fix her hair. Nick's solution is that he should leave Leanne, which is what Stella thinks, too but it seemed like Nick more or less put her on the spot to agree with him and it makes it sound like Stella was interfering.

Leanne and Nick are still arguing and she's still narked at her mother. Can't blame her. From her point of view, Stella interfered and that's Nick's fault. Kal cheered her up but going back to the Bistro put Stella back in a mood with everyone else's accusations and that sent her to the shop to accept Dev's date after all. That made Dev panic. Quite funny actually, seeing him half shaven and in a tizzy.

Maybe a holiday is just what Nick and Leanne need.

Dev has an invite to a Retailers' do. I think he's about to ask Stella to go with him. He might have if Kal hadn't teased him. He is even getting back to his workouts now Stella said she noticed a difference. Dev thinks that by making an appearance at the ball, he's showing people that life goes on. It's a fancy occasion, it's awkward to go alone and he doesn't think it's appropriate to ask Stella. In the meantime, Kal wants to open a local, small gym. Dev really wasn't listening and talked himself into asking Stella to the ball after all and got rejected.

It was satisfying seeing the cab feud with Tracy and Rob. Steve is the wrong person to to put in the middle of an argument with Tracy. She'll lose every time. I can't believe it took Tracy and Rob so long to get a cab that they got drenched. I'd have taken the bus if it was going to be a wait like that but then Tracy wouldn't be caught dead i suppose. She didn't really dress for the occasion like Stella did, either. 

Dev and Stella had a good time after all but Tracy found Stella's coat check token and walkd off wearing Stella's little fur thingy.  And there's no way that car was going fast enough to splash a puddle that high over Stella and Dev.

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Happy Australia Day! The Coronation Street connections

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog January 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Sunday January 26th 2014 was Australia Day.  Happy Australia Day to all of the Coronation Street fans down under.

From 50 years of Corrie in 50 days: Coronation Street has been shown in Australia since 1963 and by 1966 it was more popular there than in the UK.

Channel 9 sent an invitation for a party from Coronation Street to visit fans in Australia. Granada accepted the invitation and a group was put together consisting of Doris Speed (Annie Walker), Arthur Leslie (Jack Walker) and Pat Phoenix (Elsie Tanner) from the cast along with producer/writer H.V. Kershaw and Norman Frisby from the press office.

The group visited Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide and they were mobbed everywhere they went. They visited several local Coronation Streets, presented awards, appeared on numerous chat shows and even performed a sketch specially written by Kershaw. Driving back to the airport in Adelaide, Doris and Pat wept as 50,000 people turned out to wave them farewell.

While Corrie has many Canadian connections, the links with Australia are less obvious.  Here are some we can think of, and do please let us know if you know of any more.

Norris' brother Ramsay Clegg was sent to Australia as a child.

And David Barlow emigrated out there after marrying Irma Ogden, only for David to die in a car crash.

And of course, we've even got a Kylie on Coronation Street.

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Conversation Street podcast 78

Gemma and Michael's podcast for the episodes in Canada that aired up to last night can be heard here. Don't worry, they don't do spoilers so you won't hear anything you don't want to!

Michael and Gemma bring us closer to Hayley's death, Todd's games with Marcus, Dev and Stella at the ball. Hayley is of course this week's character profile.




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Dev and Stella - Yay or Nay?

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog January 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

There's a bit of love or lust in the air for Dev and Stella after Dev asked Stella to go to the retailers' ball with him this week.

So, Corrie fans, what do yout think?

Dev and Stella - Yay or Nay?

  

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