Fan Review: Coronation Street Cast vs Fans Quiz

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog August 2017, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Michael and Lucy Fallon

Michael from our friends over at the Coronation Street podcast Conversation Street took part in the Coronation Street Cast vs Fans Quiz in Manchester this week.   Here, Michael shares his experience with fans.

Visit the Conversation Street podcast and follow them on Twitter.

On Thursday night at the Black Dog Ballroom in Manchester's Northern Quarter, a room packed full of crazy Corrie fans took on the combined force of some of the Street's finest minds in a quiz that tested knowledge of Coronation Street, LGBT history and Mancunian pop culture.  Considering I made the nine-hour coach journey from Southampton to take part in the event, which was put on to raise money for Manchester Pride, I consider myself to be among the craziest of these fans - but boy, was it worth it!

Some of the Corrie cast team

I turned up at the venue around half seven, walking past the bar and generally looking nervous as I hadn't come with anyone and didn't really know what was going on. Fortunately, the staff at Black Dog were very welcoming and, after handing me a drink, showed me to a table in the quiz room, where I became the final member of the team already assembled there. A bunch of Corrie fans who'd travelled from all over the country to get to the event, 'Team Phelan Lucky', as we named ourselves, got on like a house on fire, and together raced through the picture round of the quiz that was left out on tables before the event started. The round consisted of ten Corrie characters of the past 57 years, who we had to name and say how they died. From easy ones like the recently departed Kylie Platt to characters that tested the hardcore (I was proud of myself for instantly naming Dennis Stringer!), we finished the picture round feeling pretty confident.

Lucy Fallon arrives

It was after this round that I had a proper look at the cast that had turned up for the event. Sitting at a long table at the front of the room and dressed to impress was 'Team Cobbled Together': Dolly-Rose Campbell (along with her real-life canine mascot!); newcomer and self-confessed Corrie fan Nicola Thorp; recent returnee Georgia Taylor; 2017's rising star Lucy Fallon; the gorgeous Julia Goulding; gone-but-not-forgotten Hayley Tamaddon; Shelley King (a personal favourite of mine);  a boisterous Sue Cleaver and the brilliantly bearded Dan Brocklebank. Apprehensively, not really sure if it was the done thing, I snapped a few candid photos of the team, none of which turned out too well in the gloom of the venue.

The "Phelan Lucky" team

Never mind: Onto the first question round! After welcoming us officially to the quiz, one of the organisers began to read out twenty Corrie-related questions. Like the picture round, there was a mixture of hard and easy ones, and Team Phelan Lucky racked our brains to get them all answered. A lot of them we knew we had right (Jenny Bradley was the one to save Jack from the tram tracks last year; Samir Rachid was Deirdre's Moroccan husband, for example) whilst others we had to have a bit of a guess (there was some heated debate on the table about whether Corrie was originally commissioned for 12 or 13 episodes!). My personal shame was not remembering the details about why Fred Elliott lost the black pudding contest in France - when I found out the answer later, I was kicking myself!

After the Corrie round was over, everyone had a little break and a chat. It was at this point that some of the braver members of my team decided to go up and get some pictures with the cast at the front. Nobody had said we could, and we'd all been promised a group photo with them after the quiz, but in the end, I thought: "Why not?" Reasoning with myself that it was for the sake of the podcast and the Coronation Street Blog, I strode up to the front table and asked Lucy Fallon for a picture. She graciously accepted and posed for the camera, and I started to move along the rest of the line of actors. I'm very pleased to report that every single one who I spoke to was an utter delight - if they were feeling peeved by being bugged by a bunch of rabid fans, they definitely weren't showing it!

I was also chuffed to hear that some of them had listened to the podcast on occasion too: Hayley Tamaddon thanked me for our glowing review of Chicago, which she was touring with in the role of Roxie Hart last year, and Nicola Thorp and Georgia Taylor's eyes lit up when I said where I was from. "Sorry we moan about Toyah banging on about her IVF so much..." I told Georgia, sheepishly. She laughed it off: "I don't write the lines, love!" I also managed to get a little chat with Shelley King before she ducked out and went home early.

Michael with Shelley King (Yasmeen Nazir)

Letting her know what big fans of Yasmeen we are on the podcast, but that we think she needs more scenes, she smiled and assured me that we'll be seeing quite a bit more of her soon. The impromptu meet and greet ended abruptly, one of the organisers chasing us away and announcing over the mic that they don't have time to do individual photos with the cast - we need to get on with the quiz! Team Phelan Lucky returned to our seats, smiling smugly about our ballsiness.

The next two rounds had questions about LGBT and Mancunian culture - definitely not my strongest subjects, but fortunately, the rest of my team were much more knowledgeable than me and we muddled our way through, albeit with a few more guesses this time! As we pondered the location of the first Pride and the name of Take That's debut single, we were brought a couple of large pizzas by the Black Dog staff - delicious, and just what we needed to nourish our little grey cells!

By the end of the quiz, we were still feeling fairly confident, although we realised that our performance in the last two rounds might have cost us a place in the prizewinning top three. We swapped papers with a nearby group and tallied up their scores. Hmm, they got full marks in the Corrie question round, and... of course! Fred lost the black pudding contest because he bribed the judges! Now we were feeling a little less self-assured. At least we wiped the floor with them in the picture round though...

After a little bit of arguing with the judges about when Sarah-Louise became pregnant (they said 2000; we said 1999 - in the end, they gave points for either answer!), we handed in our papers and had an agonising wait while the winners were decided.

To cut a long story short - alas! - we didn't come in the top three, but were still proud of finishing in fifth place (there must have been around 15 teams there in all). Our rival team from earlier just got ahead of us with a few more points, while the cast team came a respectable couple of places behind us. The victors, though? A duo with the team name 'Yes We Ken!' - quite fitting, we think, for the worthy winners, who earned themselves a VIP tour of the Coronation Street set.

Michael and Nicola Thorpe

The night ended with speeches from Corrie Pride organiser Woody Wade, and Sue Cleaver, who thanked us all for coming and offered some congratulatory words to the winners. This was followed by a massive singalong, as 'Come On Eileen' was blasted through the speakers - another opportunity, of course, for Sue to take centre stage and dance along! The atmosphere was absolutely buzzing - everyone was having the time of their lives, and it was a shame when, around ten o'clock, things started to draw to a close. Each team was called up to have a group photo with the cast, and after having a very quick word with Dan and Sue - neither of whom I'd had a chance to say hello to earlier - I said my goodbyes to the rest of Team Phelan Lucky and left.

Was I crazy for taking that nine-hour journey at five in the morning for just a couple of hours of fun? Maybe some of you think so, but I don't mind! I had a ball at the quiz, met some great new people, and did a bit of networking for the podcast which, incidentally, celebrated its fifth anniversary this weekend. A fantastic night, and I'm champing at the bit to go back next year!

Visit the Conversation Street podcast and follow them on Twitter.

---

Tvor @tvordlj on Twitter

Corrie fans! Have lunch with Bill Roache in 2017

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

Bill Roache will be appearing at a special luncheon for Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People.

Bill, better known as Ken Barlow in Coronation Street, is a patron of the charity and will be the guest speaker at the lunch on March 22.

Tickets are now on sale and it is hoped the event will raise thousands of pounds for the hospice, which cares for children and young people with life-limiting and terminal illnesses including those from Rutland.

As well as a three course meal, guests will be able to purchase from unique stalls and the event is expected to be a sell-out so people are advised to get their tickets early. The luncheon takes place at the Leicester Tigers Stadium. Tickets cost £39 which includes the meal.

To book a place, visit www.rainbows.co.uk/lunchwithbill, or call 0800 952 113 or e-mail fundraising@rainbows.co.uk.



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For P.E.I. Corrie fans - A Corrie Themed Pub night in Georgetown

There's going to be a Coronation Street theme pub night in Georgetown, PEI on January 31 at the King's Playhouse.

Date: Saturday, January 31st, 7pm

Tickets are $5 at the door or reserve in advance by calling (902) 652 2053

Quizzes, merchandise prizes, and some of your favourite British tunes live at the piano.

Come as you are or have a little fun and dress up as one of your favourite Corrie Street characters!

British Pub Food for sale including Betty's Hot Pot.

Facebook group for PEI Corrie Fans.

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An Evening With Jimmi Harkishin

It was a rainly night in Halifax, Nova Scotia but at the Westin Hotel Commonwealth Room, there was a bum on every single seat in the house. Jimmi Harkishin aka Dev Alahan on Coronation Street was in town and they were all there to see him. I was unable to be there but I sent my lieutenant Denise to report back about the night and provide a few photos. With her help, here's how the evening went:

Jimmi had arrived on Sunday and did some touring around our fair city.  He visited a few museums, traveled across the harbour to Dartmouth on the ferry for dinner at the Wooden Monkey.  Recognized by the ferry Captain, Jimmi was permitted to "steer" and was given the honorary post of "Ship's Captain".  He was also inducted into the "Order of Good Cheer".  Sounds like a lot of fun and Jimmi certainly said how much he enjoyed his time here and hanging out with us Canadians.

On Tuesday night, the Commonwealth room at the Westin looked great decorated with various street terrace houses, store fronts and the Rovers itself.  A large screen was set up to play various scenes featuring the star; Jimmi Harkishin who plays street romeo Dev Alahan!  Let's see, Dev has romanced:  Amy, Geena, Dierdre, Sunita, Natalie, Tracey and Mad Maya.

Dawn Sloane performed the moderator duties and even produced a short movie and skit that was played out later with audience participation. Tom and Amy from CBC opened the show once again and introduced a pop quiz.

Then Jimmi arrived onstage in formal attire, handsome in a dark suit complete with tie and waistcoat.  Given the intensity of the lights, and how nervous he was,  after the break, that outfit was ditched for a plaid shirt and jeans.

The first half of the show was an informal chat between Dawn and Jimmi. There was some reminiscing about "Dev's" time on Coronation street.  Since 1999 when Dev first appeared, all his woman have been, and I quote Jimmi, "Every woman I meet is a homicidal maniac"!

He was born in Versailles, outside of Paris and he is a middle child with an older and younger brother.  One is a social worker and one is a systems analyst.  Jimmi always wanted to be an actor, however, his parents wanted him to get a "real" job, like a doctor or shop keeper.  After 7 years on Corrie, his Dad saw him in a scene in the corner shop and commented he always knew Jimmi would end up in a corner shop! After graduation Jimmi, spent 5 years in theatre and plays the clarinette and saxophone but we were not treated to any solos tonight.

His comments related to Corrie:
 - What do you think of Peter and Tina?  He thinks it should be Peter and Dev!
 - Will Dev find love or remarry ? -  Jimmi sings "all by myself" with some cheek.  Maybe Dev and Mary ?
 - His favorite love?  Ken of course, with a nice imitation of Deidre's voice.
- Dev is a bruised romantic in Jimmi's estimation and is unlikely to feel "rosy" happy, because it's a soap.

A short video entitled "Short Snappers" was played where Jimmi had to select his preference. 

• Bistro or Rovers?  Well Rovers. 
• Most conniving? Todd 
• Baddest Boy? Rob
• Rekindled romance? Deirdre 
• Most likely to cause trouble? Lloyd
• Who would you like to see come back?  Fred Elliot  I second that, I say I second that!
• What advice would you give Liz about Tony?  Don't do it! (I think we can all agree on that!)

After the break it was time for a raffle. The Downeast Streeters traditionally offers a raffle for breakfast for two with the star, providing the star agrees. They always have done. This year's winner was our own fearless volunteer Darlene who won breakfast with our star.  Congratulations Darlene!! Darlene has volunteered at all the events and has contributed to many pings over the years as well.

Second Half of the show after the raffle included questions from the audience.  Jimmi was very engaging speaking to the question authors and many times roamed among the audience.  He even sang happy birthday and performed a wonderful on stage script written by Dawn.  A lucky lady from the audience was selected to be the "lady in the bar". Jimmi walks in and decides she is the one he must "have".  Funny stuff and all enjoyed.

A brief sample of audience questions:

• Jimmi's Favorite stories - The gentle ones like the "gym one".
• Who do you want your next love interest to be? - Michelle Keegan (Tina, but he was kidding), really...Sally or Leanne.
• Which Corrie actor is least like a character - Dev is nothing like Norris!
• Is it real alcohol at the Rovers ? - Nope, Dev's scotch is apple juice.
• Family? - Jimmi has 4 children ranging in age from 27 to 17.

Jimmi and the Downeast Streeter committee

Before we knew it our time was up.  Standing ovation and thunderous applause :)

Jimmi graciously signed autographs and engaged everyone with a big smile for photos.

Thanks to the Downeast Streeters and Jimmi Harkishin for a great event.

And thank you Denise for your great report! Another success for the Downeast Streeters and another treat for Halifax Corrie fans. Jimmi will be in Toronto this weekend for the British Isles Show.

 The "Walk of Fame"

 The merchandise table

MC Dawn and committee member, Jackie

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Jimmi Harkishin appears in Halifax tonight

Jimmi Harkishin has arrived in Halifax and is looking forward to meeding Corrie fans at the Downeast Streeters' show at the Halifax Westin tonight. 

Jimmi has been playing Dev Alahan on the show for over 15 years now and spoke with the Chronicle Herald about Being Dev Alahan. (There's a slight spoiler at the end of that article but nothing about any specific storyline)

Jimmi describes Dev as a "bruised romantic" and he enjoys playing his character. “It’s fun to play. I don’t buy into cheap notions of machismo and our hero.”

As do most of the actors, Jimmi feels it's a real privilege to be on Coronation Street. He also remembers that infamous scene where Dev and Deirdre Barlow ended up under the sheets together, a total suprise but one that was a delight to film.

“People loved that storyline. She’s brilliant, highly professional, word-perfect; there’s an ease in her. She’s effortless and knows her character inside and out, and doesn’t go through hoops the way I do sometimes. When it became so popular, it was nothing to do with me and all about her in the best possible way.”

Jimmi was born in Paris and currently lives in London, commuting to Manchester. He loves movies and is doing more cooking these days, especially Italian and Indian dishes.

There may still be some tickets left for tonight's event. Tickets are $33 plus fees through Ticket Atlantic and the event is at the Halifax Westin Hotel in the Commonwealth Room at 7:00. He will be in Toronto at the British Isles Show over the weekend.

Later this week the Bluenose Blog will be back to tell you all about the evening from one of the guests attending the show tonight, with a few of her photos.  

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Meet Jimmi Harkishin (Dev)

This just in from the Downeast Streeters:

The Downeast Streeters proudly present...
An Evening with Jimmi Harkishin
Coronation Street’s “Dev Alahan”
Tuesday, April 8th, 2014 at 7:00 pm
Doors open at 6:30 pm
Westin Nova Scotian Hotel, Halifax, NS
Tickets go on sale Wednesday, March 5th at 11:00 am
at all Ticket Atlantic outlets and online at www.ticketatlantic.com $29.50 plus service fees
Click here for a list of all Ticket Atlantic outlets:
http://www.ticketatlantic.com/en/home/customerservice/superstoreoutlets.aspx

This means that Jimmi will be the guest at the British Isles Show  in Toronto (Mississauga) from April 11 - 13. Their website isn't updated as of this morning but there will be more information there asap. 


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Video: Marc Baylis plays Stanley Kowalski

Here's one last bit of fun from the Evening with Marc Baylis last week.   See our full write-up of Marc's visit here and read our exclusive interview with him here.

During one conversation, Marc admitted he'd like to portray the Stanley Kowalski character from A Streetcar Named Desire. Dawn told him that he should try the classic "STELLA!!!!" line on set.

Here's a clip of that conversation:

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An Evening with Marc Baylis

Marc Baylis wowed Coronation Street fans in Halifax at the Westin Hotel last night in a production from the Downeast Streeters Non Profit Society. As always, a top show! Marc might have been a bit nervous before stepping out on to the stage but he soon relaxed and spent the better part of two hours answering questions prepared by host Dawn Sloane and submitted by fans in the audience. He joked, laughed, charmed and kept the audience of nearly 300 enthralled. In the end, he thanked the fans for their hospitality and support which made his job easier.

He is a very personable man, well spoken, professional, funny, genuine and humble, with none of Rob Donovan's brashness and cockiness. He's also very good looking with a big, wide smile. He chatted about his pre-Corrie days in drama school and work in films and in theatre but the focus was on Coronation Street and his experiences there.

He likes to tell the story of how he'd promised his Nan that he'd do his best to get a part on Coronation Street as it was what she'd love to see him in and he also mentioned that he glibly told his girlfriend on New Year's Day that he would be in Corrie that year. That was the  year he made it to the cobbles!

He is thrilled to be working with Alison King, Chris Gascoyne and Kate Ford and all four of them are good friends. He's also great mates with Lisa George (Beth) and meeting and working with David Neilson is another of his dreams come true. There was a lot of joking about him playing Stanley Kowalski some day and using the tag line "STELLAAAAA" in the show. Marc says he just might do that on set, between takes at least.

Marc also said some of his favourite work to date was the storyline over the stolen Silk, when Carla busted him and a lot of their past history was thrown out in their faces. He and Ali were really excited to play that and he thinks that if that storyline hadn't happened, Rob might not have developed much further. He is sure there will be more layers to Rob and Carla's relationship yet to be discovered.

I really enjoyed the evening and got to meet Marc up close and personal, both in the autograph signing line and later, with the Downeast Streeters organizing committee when we all hung out together for a little while post-show. I used to be a committee member and still maintain their website and participate in the pings regularly. I also have volunteered for every event they've ever put on even when I wasn't on the committee. I have to say all the events were great but this was one of the most enjoyable guests yet.

There are so many more things to tell about, and it's best left up to you to read a full report here.
A full photo album is here. 

Marc and host Dawn Sloane

Me and Marc

"STEELLLAAAAAA!!!!"

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Blog Exclusive: Interview with Marc Baylis

Tonight in Halifax, the Downeast Streeters are welcoming actor Marc Baylis for An Evening With... Marc plays Carla Connor's brother Rob Donovan who's been creating havoc on the cobbles pretty much since his arrival. He's currently keeping company with Tracy Barlow and running a business with her. He and Carla are on the outs but that will probably change.

I was able to interview Marc by email via the chair of the Downeast Streeters Non-Profit Society (Thanks, Connie!) and I must say, it makes me look forward even more to seeing him tonight and hearing all he has to say. With no further ado, here's the interview:


Hi Marc, I am a contributing editor for the very popular Coronation Street Blog and it's sister blog, the Bluenose Corrie Blog. I live here in Canada.  The fans in Halifax are very excited to see you when you are here in November. I understand you have some family here? Presumably you've visited before. What do you think of Canada and in particular, Canadian winters?

I've only been over in the summer before whilst seeing my family and absolutely fell in love with the country. The main thing I found was how friendly everyone is. I've not braved a winter as yet but believe me... I've brought my thermals!!!! 

Do you read the various Corrie blogs and social media fan sites?

I have read the blog and especially when I was preparing to start filming on the street. With the shows rich and lengthy history it was impossible for me to know EVERYTHING so I used as many resources as possible for research. It came in very handy to say the least. With regards to social media, I tend to stay away as no matter how many positive comments you may have with regards to the performance there will always be some negatives. It's the nature of being in such a popular show. The negatives can unfortunately be the comments that can stick in actors' minds and therefore throw you off the job in hand. And if we don't concentrate on the job in hand then there will be less positive comments... Vicious circle.. Ha ha!!

I've enjoyed your portrayal of Rob Donovan and find the dynamic between Rob and his sister, Carla very interesting. There's a lot of history there and we've already seen some of the sibling rivalry, the hurt, the regret, the resentment and the underlying caring. Is the show going to pursue that some more?

Its great to hear that you find the dynamics interesting. Alison and I are having a lot of fun playing them and without a doubt there is still a lot more to be revealed and unravelled when it comes to their history. This will be discovered from particular circumstances that arise over the coming months where we get to see them being closer than since the 'Silk' situation.

Rob seems to be in much the same position as Tracy's ex, Charlie Stubbs, who also could recognize Tracy for who and what she is but who was also one to avoid committment and step-parenthood. Rob is much nicer than Charlie, of course, but if he doesn't want that committment, do you think he could fear for his own life as well?

I think that Rob's arrogance steers him away from being fearful of history repeating itself. Also, there is a lot of trust in the relationship stemming from them both feeling at times in their lives as outsiders, or, in prison term 'Insiders'. Forgive the pun!!!! This has helped to create a  natural bond which enhances their love of fun and danger in life which can be troublesome for the other residents of the street.

Changing the subject away from the show... when you were first finding your feet as an actor, was there someone that mentored you or inspired you?

I have been fortunate to have a few mentors at crucial stages through my life who I can't thank enough for their investment in my aspirations. I think that no matter who we are, or where we come from, we all need support and encouragement. There are a lot of fine actors out there that inspire me... The dream I guess is to work with them.

Actors find it difficult to get that first break. What was yours and do you have any advice for people trying to get into the business?

One reason that we find it so difficult to find that first break is that there are so many actors and so few opportunities. From a personal perspective I have always looked on every job as an achievement and a break. From a viewer's or public point of view then Coronation Street is without a doubt my  first break. However, without any of my previous work I may not have even landed the role of Rob. Thankfully... I did. So I guess my advice for any budding actors would be that if you work hard and be professional then more opportunities will come your way and then it's up to you to take them. Oh.. Also.... Please... have a sense of humour!!!!!

Thanks very much for taking the time to answer my questions! I'll be posting the interview on both the Coronation Street Blog and the Canadian timeline sister site, the Bluenose Corrie Blog, most likely the day of your appearance here in Halifax! I will be there and look forward to meeting you in person!


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Updated details: Meet Marc Baylis in Halifax, NS

Here are the time, date, location and ticket details for the Marc Bayliss (Rob Donovan) event in Halifax:

Date: Tuesday, November 12, 7:00 p.m. Doors open at 6:00

Location: Atlantic Room, Westin Hotel, Halifax

Tickets: There will only be 300 tickets available to this event! They will cost $29.50 plus service fees through Ticket Atlantic either online or through the Ticket Atlantic Superstore Outlet locations. The event will be listed there soon. Tickets go on sale Tuesday, September 10 at 11:00 a.m.

   

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Ottawa Corrie fans - Mark Nov. 9 on your calendar

Here's a heads up for fans in Canada's capital region. There is going to be a Corrie fan get together on November 9 if enough people are interested. (Is he new here? ;)

Here's the updated details:
Saturday, November 9 at 1 p.m.
The Exchange Pub and Restaurant (basement)
Unit 100, Rideau Centre, Ottawa
Phone 613-234-5544

Contact Andre Proulx at Black Swan Events to register your attendance

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Corrie fans - Meet Marc Baylis (Rob Donovan) in Halifax and Toronto

The Downeast Streeters are very happy to announce that they will be working with George Martin Productions and the British Isles Show in Toronto to bring  you An Evening With Marc Baylis in Halifax on Tuesday November 12.

This is a pre-boarding announcement, so to speak, as there are no further details available yet. This event will be restricted to 300 lucky fans with an affordable ticket price. Location and details will be announced in the weeks to come. Check the Downeast Streeters website for updates and we will blog it here as well when we get the information. Circle November 12 on your calendars!

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For  Greater Toronto Area fans, you can meet Marc at the British Isles show between November 15 and 17th, several appearances daily. The show will be held at the International Centre, Hall 6, 6900 Airport Road, Mississauga, Ontario. Tickets to the show are $15.00 for an adult.

How the meet-and-greet with the Corrie star generally works is fans line up for autographs and a photo with the star. He will sign for about an hour or so at each appearance and the queues can be rather long so you want to get there early if you want to shake hands and get Marc's autograph. The show itself has other mainstage acts and performances and there are lots of vendor booths to buy goods from the British Isles.

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Corrie get together in Courtenay, BC this weekend

I know it's short notice but I've only just seen this notice.  There is a get together for Corrie fans in Courtenay, British Columbia on Sunday, April 7 at Monte Cristo on the River, 975 Comox Rd., Courtenay. Registration 2: 00 pm, meeting starts 2: 30 pm.

the cost is $3.00 cash at the door. For more information call Wendy at 250-897-3697. Email: cvcorriefanclub@shaw.ca There may be limited seating available.

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Coronation Street fun night in Canada

The Sparta House tea-room in Sparta, Ontario in Canada, is hosting two Coronation Street fun nights on April 26th and 27th. 

There's a three course meal including Roy's Rolls, Betty's Hotpot and Manchester Sponge. And there's prizes for the best Corrie look-a-like plus fun trivia, and more.

Find out more at the Sparta Houe website.

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Corriefest pics and review - Coronation Street fan convention

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

To Manchester for two very special Coronation Street events held at the award-winning pub, The Lass o'Gowrie.

First up were two episodes of Coronation Street from 1977 acted out live in front of us in the pub by a wonderful team of actors. The audience followed the action around the pub watching two full half-hour performances as Annie Walker had her delusions of grandeur crushed underfoot when she found out the monogrammed (or mammogrammed as Hilda Ogden called it) carpet with AW on it was nothing more than an offcut from the Alhambra Weatherfield bingo hall.  

For a full review of the Coronation Street 1977 Live! plays, do please have a look here.

Picture from Coronation Street 1977 Live! copyright Elspeth Mary Moore - see many more here.

It's not too late to see these plays as they run for another couple of days.  Buy tickets and find out more here.

CORRIEFEST

Well, if that wasn't exciting enough, the next day we set off back to the Lass o'Gowrie pub bright and early in the morning for a 10am start for Corriefest - the UK's Coronation Street fan convention.  Also turning up early for the event were fellow bloggers and podcasters from Conversation Street, Coronation Street actor Dave Dutton - the man who's had 11 roles on Corrie - and our friends and guest bloggers Nikki and John.   We all trooped off for a coffee and then returned to the pub to take our seats for one of the best days I've ever had as a Coronation Street fan.

With a packed pub and a sell-out event, I was really lucky to sit right at the very front of the action. I felt a bit like the class nerd but got over my embarassment and decided to wear my Corrie anorak with pride and make the most of sitting in the best seat in the house.

MC Charlie Ross, Corriefest

Corriefest kicked off with a warm up from MC Charlie Ross, stand up comedian, TV writer, actor, football fan and bit of a geek - his words, not mine. Find out more about him here.  Charlie introduced us to an amazing bit of footage from 1972 which had long been thought lost and had only recently been found. It was the episode of This is Your Life for Pat Phoenix and was like watching not just Corrie gold,  but pure TV gold.

We then had a screening of another rare programme which had never seen the light of day before.  It was a pilot for a TV show written by Coronation Street writer-turned-producer Harry Kershaw, called Lift Off.  It was a Corrie spin-off starring Graham Haberfield and Neville Buswell who played Jerry Booth and Ray Langton on the Street.  Graham and Neville played their Corrie characters but while on Corrie they were both builders, in Lift Off they'd turned into insurance salesman.  It was interesting to watch and to see what could have been if Lift Off had indeed Taken Off, which it obviously hadn't.  Fred Feast, who played Corrie's Fred Gee, also turned up in the programme as the lift engineer.

Actress Kathy Jones at Corriefest 2013 with Gareth Kavanagh and Charlie Ross

With our minds firmly planted in Coronation Street's past and the golden age of Granada TV, what a delight it was to hear from one of Corrie's first ever dolly-birds!  Actress Kathy Jones, who played Gail's mate Tricia Hopkins, took to the stage and shared some of her history working as a 19 year old on what was then the new Northern drama series.  Find out more about Kathy Jones and Tricia Hopkins here.   After Kathy's turn at the mic, the floor was open to questions from fans.   You can follow Kathy on twitter at @KathyJones.

Casting Director June West at Corriefest 2013 with Jeni Howarth-Williams

Up next on stage was legendary Coronation Street casting director June West. Not only has June cast some of the most iconic characters for Corrie, she also did the casting for the rather fab BBC4 drama The Road to Coronation Street.  June was interviewed by actress Jeni Howarth-Williams, who played Elsie Howard in the Coronation Street 1977 plays held at the Lass o'Gowrie.  

June revealed that actor Rupert Everett is "desperate" to be in Coronation Street and he was almost cast in the role of Lewis Archer but it was given, as we know, to Nigel Havers. 

June gave a good insight into the casting process for Coronation Street and The Road to Coronation Street. She got a big laugh when she said that after Alan Hasall was originally cast as Tyrone Dobbs, one of the Corrie writers saw him on screen for the first time and said: "Well, there's our next Albert Tatlock!"

It was then time for lunch with hotpot served behind the bar and the chance to meet some lovely people I'd only ever chatted to on twitter before - including our guest blogger Kel who is on twitter @kelwrites and Coronation Street extra Jonny Grimshaw, who is on twitter @jonnygforce and I even got the chance to meet one of our Coronation Street fans of the week.  What a cracking day this was turning out to be!

Writer John Stevenson at Corriefest 2013 with Corriefest organiser and Lass o'Gowrie landlord Gareth Kavanagh

After lunch we took our seats again for the main man, Coronation Street writer John Stevenson. John wrote his first script in May 1976 and his work includes writing the Ken/Deidre/Mike love triangle storyline and the January 2000 "two-hander" featuring Raquel and Curly Watts.  He also wrote out Alan Bradley by killing him off getting knocked over by the Blackpool tram.

John revealed that one side of the character of Annie Walker was partly based on his own mum. Now, there's an admission to make! He also said that Sir Laurence Olivier wanted to be on Coronation Street and the writing team had him pencilled in to make an appearance on the show - as a tramp!

What a great bloke and wonderful storyteller John Stevenson was.  As you can see from the picture below, the audience were rapt.  This picture shows just a fraction of the audience, with yours truly in seventh heaven at the very front, and is copyright Debbie Manley, who is on twitter at @debbiemanley 

Corriefest 2013 at The Lass o'Gowrie

After John Stevenson's fantastic talk, we then had The Big Fat Coronation Street Quiz with a quizmaster who had once appeared on Coronation Street. He played an extra who was thrown out of the Kabin by Rita for looking through mucky magazines.  We know this because it was a true or false question in the quiz! You can follow him on twitter @Eatmymindquiz

Our quiz team comprised of Flaming Nora, Sunny Jim, Fat Brenda, actor Dave Dutton, Nikki Beresford and John Beresford. The team from the Coronation Street Blog, I'm very proud to say, won the quiz! We very narrowly beat the team from Conversation Street and walked away with the top prize of Coronation Street Monopoly (which had been supplied by two of our team members!).

We also won a pot of cash which we donated to the charity which Corriefest was supporting - Myeloma UK.

And then, finally, to bring the day to a close, the wonderful Sue Jenkins took to the stage. Sue played Rovers Return barmaid Gloria Todd from 1985 - 1988.   

Sue Jenkins at Corriefest 2013 with David MacCreedy - co-director of Coronation Street 1977

Sue talked about being brought into Coronation Street for two episodes only while Julie Goodyear, who played Bet Lynch, was away from the show.  However, she made such an impression on the show's bosses that she was asked to stay on.  Sue is also the mother of Richard Fleeshman, and she was pregnant while she was working behind the bar at the Rovers. Richard, of course, went on to play Corrie's Craig Harris the Goth and is now playing on Broadway in musicals. 

Sue revealed that she was in very much in awe of Julie Goodyear when she first started work on Corrie and even though she and Julie became very good friends over the time she was working on the Street, she always felt a little in awe of her. She told a funny story about being at a charity do with Julie Goodyear where Julie Goodyear introduced Sue as "my barmaid" even in real life.   It was fun to listen to Sue talk about her time on Corrie working with Julie Goodyear as Bet, while being overlooked by a huge mural of Bet Lynch on the wall of the pub.

After Sue finished, she took questions from the audience and posed for photos with fans. As well as being a huge Corrie fan, I was probably an even bigger fan of Brookside when it was going and to me, Sue Jenkins is better known as Jackie Corkhill. I would've loved to have dared ask her to say, just once, in that scouse accent she had on the show: "Drucks, Jimmy? Drucks" but it was niether the time nor the place! 

And with that, it was time to head home.  Corriefest has been a wonderful experience and I do hope it'll run next year too.  With thanks to all at The Lass o'Gowrie for organising it for us Corrie fans.



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Vintage Corrie episodes live on stage in Manchester pub

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog November 2012, reposted to this blog with permission.)

While this is about an event being held in Manchester, We're letting you know about it in case anyone happens to be in the UK in January and might want to take in the events!

The Lass O'Gowrie Coronation Street event in January 2012 was one of the Corrie highights of my year so far - read my review here. 

So if you're anyway near Manchester in Janaury 2013, you will not - I repeat NOT - want to miss this...

Vintage Coronation Street episodes will be staged as part of Lassfest, 3 January - 3 February 2013 at the Lass O'Gowrie, Manchester, but this time the action has moved to the 1970s.

With the kind permission of ITV Granada, the action will include iconic characters such as Bet Lynch, Fred Gee, Betty Turpin, Eddie Yates, Hilda and Stan Ogden, Mavis, Rita, Deirdre, Ken Barlow, Mike Baldwin and Gail.

Former Coronation Street casting director June West, who cast the 1968 live episodes, is again using her inside knowledge to sign up a stellar cast with yet more familiar faces from the small screen.

Past and present Coronation Street stars including Chris Gascoyne, Brian Capron, Jennie McAlpine and Nigel Pivaro also popped into the Lass to watch the 1968 episodes covering Dennis Tanner's Wedding and the Ogdens going for a Chinese meal.

Even Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey tweeted about Coronation 1968 and Maureen Lipman was moved to tears watching the episodes written by her late husband Jack Rosenthal.

Maureen Lipman gave an emotional speech at the final show when she talked about Jack and the fact the shows were raising money for Myeloma UK - the cancer that Jack died from in 2004. Jack was born in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, and wrote 129 episodes during eight years working on Coronation Street during the 1960s.

Maureen said: "It was a historic day for me. I honestly think what you are doing at the Lass O'Gowrie is both trailblazing and vital for people like me who remember and relish the golden age of television. And for anyone who wants to see how great acting and great writing are interdependent."

There will also be a Corriefest on Saturday 5 January, 10.30am-4pm, when cast and crew, past and present, will be popping in to talk about their experiences on the show. There will also be screenings of episodes, out-takes and auctions of very collectable souvenirs.

There will also be screenings of episodes, out-takes and auctions of very collectable souvenirs.

For more details of this and all the shows visit www.thelass.co.uk and follow The Lass O'Gowrie on twitter @thelassogowrie.

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Would you visit a Corrie fan convention in the UK?

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog March 2012, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Doctor Who fans have been meeting this weekend in their thousands at an official convention in Cardiff. The weekend event at the Wales Millennium Centre has attracted fans from as far away as the US, Australia and New Zealand. And it included the chance to meet stars of the show, see behind the scenes, get insights into their favourite show and meet some of the staff, including the Producer, who work on the programme.

Billed as the "ultimate Doctor Who fan event", the convention included panel sessions, discussions with key cast members as well as members of the creative team such as directors, scriptwriters and special effects experts.  You can read more on the Doctor Who convention at the BBC website.

Now then, I don't know about you, but I'm dead jealous.  I want one of these for Coronation Street fans and wonder if we've ever had anything like it before in the UK? I know Canada gets their share of visiting current and ex-Corrie actors doing the rounds to promote the show and meet the fans, but as far as I know, we've never had the opportunity to do this as fans in the UK. 

So what do you think, Corrie fans?  Would you attend an official Corrie convention if one were to be arranged, say before ITV moves the show from the present set to the new one at MediaCity? What sort of events would you like to see included and what's the maximum price you'd pay to attend?

We very much welcome your thoughts so please do leave comments below.

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Corrie Ping notice for Comox, B.C.

If you live in the Comox valley in British Columbia, this is good news for you. I've seen a notice for a Corrie get together, commonly known as a "Ping", to be held this Sunday, May 6 at the Best Western Westerly Hotel in Comox. Registration is from 2:15 to 2:45 with a $3.00 cover charge. See this posting for a phone number to call for more information.

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