50 Years Of Corrie In 50 Days – 2007

Day 47 of our 50 day countdown of Coronation Street - written by blogger Sunny Jim.

After being jilted by Shelley Unwin, Charlie Stubbs teamed up with Tracy Barlow. The pair seemed well suited, both being amoral, selfish and cruel but a manipulative bully like Charlie wasn’t interested in an equal partnership and soon the mind games started. When Tracy moved in with him she brought her daughter Amy with her but Charlie threw them both out, saying that a kid wasn’t part of the deal so Tracy had to dump Amy on Ken and Deirdre. To get her own back at being separated from her daughter Tracy pretended that she was pregnant and let Charlie talk her into having an abortion which he was happy to pay for. She spent the money on shoes and by pretending to be grieving for her lost child, convinced Charlie to allow Amy to move in with them to give her some comfort.

When Charlie heard that his ex, Shelley, was leaving the Weatherfield to run a pub in Derbyshire, he decided to seduce her, just to prove that he could. Shelley told Tracy what had happened and then, disgusted at herself for what she’d done, took it back, saying she’d lied. But when Shelley returned later it was clear she was pregnant and it was obvious who the father was. Tracy forgave Charlie but his attentions soon turned to Maria Sutherland. She had moved into his old flat when he’d bought no. 6 and he was always finding excuses to visit her even sneaking in when she was out to sabotage things in the flat so that she would call him in to fix them.

Tracy was after revenge and by faking injuries, like burning herself with the iron, managed to convince her parents and Claire Peacock that Charlie was being abusive. When she was visited by her step brother Peter, she let Charlie believe that he was her lover and he beat him up. He was arrested and convicted of the assault and sentenced to community service. He ordered Tracy out of no. 6 but she refused. Instead she lulled him into a false sense of security by dancing provocatively round the living room before clocking him one with a statue. He fell to his knees and she hit him again and then tried to make it look as if there’d been a fight and placed a knife in his hand before calling an ambulance. Charlie clung to life for three days before finally dying much to Tracy’s delight.

Tracy was charged with murder, and planned to call as witnesses Claire, Deirdre, and David Platt, who told her he'd seen what she'd done, and would tell the truth unless she had sex with him. Tracy agreed, but strung him along during the trial. Deirdre told Tracy she had questions about Tracy's innocence, but would lie for her in court. Tracy then confessed her entire plan to a horrified Deidre. During the trial, the prosecutor managed to discredit Claire due to her mental illness, and tore David apart. Meanwhile, Deidre had a panic attack during her testimony and was less than convincing. With Tracy's defense in shambles, she was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum tariff of 15 years.

Also in 2007: Sarah Platt and Jason Grimshaw get married; Paul Connor dies in a car crash; David tries to sabotage his sister’s wedding; David drives into the canal; Sarah moves to Milan; Harry and Dan Mason buy bookies; the Morton family arrive; Casey Carswell abducts Freddie Peacock; Bruce Jones is sacked for giving away plotlines; Steve MacDonald and Eileen Grimshaw go to Malta on holiday; Liz MacDonald and Vernon Tomlin get married.