Guess who's moved from the cobbles to the moors in Wuthering Heights?

Two of our favourite ex-Coronation Street actors are starring in the stage version of Wuthering Heights from next week.

Rupert Hill (Jamie Baldwin) and Gaynor Faye (Judy Mallett) are treading the boards as Kathy and Heathcliffe at the Hull Truck theatre company in, er, Hull from 7 October.

See them looking moody and buy your tickets here.

Corrie's Sally donates bra to raise funds for Breast Cancer Care

Sally Dynevor, who plays Coronation Street's Sally Webster, has donated her bra to Betty and Belle, a specialist lingerie store in Altrincham to raise funds for Breast Cancer Care.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and over the next few weeks, the store is collecting all customers’ unwanted bras for charity to raise cash for Breast Cancer Care.

Betty and Belle is also donating £1 for every new bra sold in October to the Genesis Appeal, a local breast cancer prevention centre.

Sally, a keen supporter of the Genesis Foundation, praised the store for their help when she was recovering from her operation.

“There are people there I can talk to about what I am going through and, or course, beautiful lingerie which makes me feel good about myself again. I always came out of the shop feeling much, much better than when I walked in,” she said.

Find out more about:
Betty and Belle lingerie
The Genesis Appeal
Breast Cancer Care

The Flintstones on Coronation Street

Coronation Street isn't the only blockbusting show to be celebrating their 50th anniversary this year. Today marks the 50th birthday of The Flintstones. So here's our tribute to that 60's cartoon sitcom.

You may remember our blog about the similarity with The Sopranos. Are there any other TV shows that bear a passing resemblance to Coronation Street?

Male Coronation Street Icons

In the video in the blog post about iconic Coronation Street characters, most of the responses name female characters. Only when prompted did Jennie McAlpine mention William Roache as Ken Barlow, who *is* Coronation Street according to her. Yet that wasn't the first name that came to her mind.

So if Ken Barlow IS Coronation Street, that makes him quite a strong icon, don't you think? Yet it's the women that get all the first mentions with most people...Elsie Tanner, Ena Sharples, Hilda Ogden and Vera Duckworth. I'm surprised and pleased that Raquel Wolstenhulme Watts got several mentions in the video and I fully agree with her being one of the icons, from a more modern era, and I would include Gail Platt, Sally Webster and Fiz Brown Stape as an iconic woman in the making.

But who would the male icons be aside from Ken Barlow? Do we pick feckless fellas? Because if we do, there's a lot of them to pick from. Stan Ogden and Jack Duckworth certainly top that list. Curmudgeons bring to mind Albert Tatlock and Percy Sugden.

I think, for me, the iconic male characters that would top my list include the aforementioned Ken Barlow and Jack Duckworth. In addition, most definitely Mike Baldwin, Fred Elliott, Curly Watts, Kevin Webster and Steve McDonald. Steve might be a surprising entry but the character began as a rowdy 15 year old and has grown and progressed through a lot of ups and downs to a local business owner, including owning the Rovers Return. He's been part of a core family that have survived and returned to the screen several times since their introduction and Steve has been a constant presence. David Platt is probably going to be an iconic male character if he stays with the show.

I didn't include Stan Ogden or Eddie Yeats in that group. Eddie was a good character but mostly a secondary one. Stan always felt, to me, like he was part of an iconic couple. You may think of Hilda Ogden as iconic but when you think of Stan, you think of Hilda. "StanandHilda"...one name. Other standout iconic couples in my book are Jack and Annie Walker, Jack and Vera Duckworth, Mavis and Derek Wilton, and Roy and Hayley Cropper. If they stay around long enough, I do think Eddie and Anna Windass have iconic potential.

What are your iconic male characters? Couples? There's plenty to choose from and everyone has their own personal icons that stand out from the crowd. Leave a comment and tell us yours!

Corrie actresses choose their Street icons

With thanks to Whats On TV for this video, taken at Coronation Street's 50th press launch party last week. Corrie actresses reveal their favourite Street icons. Have a look.
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Betty Driver says she'll never retire from Corrie

There's an excellent interview with Saint Betty of the Hotpots in the Mirror today.

Betty Driver, who plays Coronation Street's Betty Williams, says she'll never retire from Corrie as if she did: "I'd be dead in six months!" 

Have a read of it here.

And if you'd like to see our picture of Betty being interviewed on the Street set at last week's Corrie 50th launch party, it's here. Doesn't she look great?

What will we do without Jack Duckworth?

I know I'm jumping the gun a bit here - after all, Jack's still with us. But nobody needs a crystal ball to know that it's not going to be for long. I'm guessing of course but it seems likely that there will be distressing revelations about Jack's health this week.

I'm in mourning already. When I first heard that Jack Duckworth was leaving the cobbles I thought - oh well! not that bothered. He isn't around much anyway, these days.

But now that the reality of his fairly imminent departure is kicking in - I'm in a bit of a bad emotional state to be honest.

When Vera passed on, I was sad but not devastated (a Corrie-obsessed friend of mine was in absolute BITS). But when Jack "goes" - well, I've got a real soft spot for him and I'm stocking up on hankies already. I'm glad that he's not getting wiped out in the tram crash - that would be most unfitting. Bill Tarmey's been in Coronation Street for over thirty years - probably most of his adult life if my sums are correct - I sincerely hope that the writers treat him with the respect he deserves and that he milks his final scenes for all they're worth. Best of luck to you Bill.

Win a day on the Coronation Street set

Do you want to be a star? Is your dream to visit the cobbles of Coronation Street? Well, Harvey's the Furniture Store, Corrie's sponsor, is holding a Casting Couch competition and the prize  is a day on the set. How do you win? You record your own version of a classic Coronation Street scene and send it to them. You have to be sitting on a couch (casting couch, geddit?) while you say the lines. You can choose one of the scripts they have online or write your own 45 second scene. Send the clip via text, email or web upload and it will be judged by other viewers. Check out the website for links to scripts and where to view and vote for uploaded clips (There's some great ones up there already!).

Sneak Preview of next week's Corrie, October 4 - 8

Without any piffle, here's the storyline for the week ahead on Coronation Street, all wrapped up nicely in 50 words or less.

Monday 4 October to Friday 8 October

Jack shares sad news with Tyrone, Gary goes to war, Peter helps drunken Carla, Leanne breaks Peter’s heart and Chesney loses his cherry.

The full weekly preview, with loads of pictures, is right here on Corrie.net

Missed last week's Corrie?
Catch up with the Coronation Street weekly updates.

Steve McDonald gurn of the week, September 30 2010

It's Thursday and that means only one thing... time for the Steve McDonald gurn of the week. Thanks go to Coronation Street fan Martin S. for this week's fab Stevie McGurn. If you've captured a good Corrie Steve gurn and want to share it via the blog, do email it in.

To see more gurnage from Stevie McGurn, have a look here, there's loads. Some good, some bad and some really very funny.

EXCLUSIVE! Maeve Binchy writes for the Coronation Street Blog

One of Blanche Hunt's favourite authors on Coronation Street was the best-selling writer Maeve Binchy.

If you remember, Blanche left her Maeve Binchy novels to Ken in her will when she passed away earlier this year. Another Maeve Binchy fan on Corrie is Connie, Jack Duckworth's fancy piece, who once loaned her sister her copy of a Binchy book.  Anyway, I'm building up to telling you something so exciting I can barely keep my fingers on the keyboard.

Not only has best-selling author Maeve Binchy been referenced many times by Coronation Street, she's also a huge Corrie fan and has very kindly offered to write a blog post for the Coronation Street Blog!

And so, to read all about Maeve Binchy's love of Corrie - and find out which Corrie characters she named her cats after - click here to read her blog post written exclusively for the Coronation Street blog

Visit Maeve Binchy's website

EXCLUSIVE! Win Maeve Binchy's new novel in Corrie competition

With a huge amount of thanks to the best-selling novelist Maeve Binchy, we not only have an exclusive blog post written by her about her love of Coronation Street (you can read that here), we also have a very special competition.

To win a copy of Maeve Binchy's new novel - Minding Frankie - all you have to do is email me with the correct answer to the following question.

Q: In Blanche Hunt's will on Coronation Street, who did she bequeath Eccles the dog to?

Overseas fans are welcome to enter this competion.  The winner will be drawn at random.  Deadline for entries is 5pm on Sunday 17th October.

Visit Maeve Binchy's website

Read more on Maeve Binchy and the Coronation Street Blog.

Where the flaming heck is Eddie Windass?

No, I'm not going to apologise for getting this picture out again. I've got it blown up poster-size at home and the neighbours are all paying to come in and have a look.

But where IS Eddie Windass? He's not been on Corrie for ages and it's not flaming good enough.

He put a couple of bets on at Peter Barlow's ages ago, and was horrible to someone in the Rover's a couple of weeks back, and that's been it.

No eating breakfast out of pans. No cake-making. No appearances in the tasteless plastic apron.

Just not good enough at all if you ask me.

One possible explanation is that they've been giving him a makeover - now that COULD take a while *faints at thought*. But I really really hope not.

VIP Guest Blogger - coming soon to the Coronation Street Blog!

Want to know who our mystery VIP blogger is? Click here

William Roache presents Specsavers Star of the Year award

William Roache, who plays Coronation Street's Ken Barlow, awarded the Specsavers’ Sound Barrier Star of the Year at the awards ceremony in London.

The award went to Roger Hewitt from Bromley, a profoundly deaf man has been recognised for helping improve transport systems for the deaf and hard of hearing ahead of the 2012 London Olympics.

Ambassador and judge of the 2010 awards, William, who suffers major hearing loss himself, says "All of the finalists here today are deserving winners of the title and selecting just one was incredibly tough. Roger, however, really shone through as someone who has triumphed over adversity, using his own situation to help others. It’s a true inspiration to us all and I was delighted to present him with the Sound Barrier Star trophy."

To enter The Sound Barrier Star Awards 2011. Please email: soundbarrierstars@beattiegroup.com

Behind the scenes filming at Corrie's new DVD: A Knight's Tale

The new Coronation Street spin-off DVD - A Knight's Tale - will be on sale in the shops next month. You can watch a sneak peek of the recording of it here.  And now we can bring you even more behind the scenes info direct from the place it was filmed at - Peckforton Castle in Cheshire.

Peckforton Castle is a Grade I listed hotel steeped in rich history and is the only intact medieval style castle in the country. Have a look at its website http://www.peckfortoncastle.co.uk/.

Also, keep your eyes right here on the Coronation Street blog as we'll be bringing you the chance to win a copy of the new Coronation Street spin-off DVD starring Norris, Mary, Rosie, Jason and the return of Curly, Reg - and Richard Hillman?

Watch Video: Corrie's Mary on Loose Women

With thanks to blog reader Gadgee for sending in this link. Patti Claire, who plays Mary Taylor on Coronation Street, has been on ITV's Loose Women this week. 

You can watch the video here.

Doctor Carter to stay in Corrie

After watching Natasha's exit last night, I was wondering if we would be seeing the brilliant Dr. Carter again now that Gail no longer works at Rosamund Street Medical Centre.

Good news! Coronation Street confirmed to me that we will be seeing more of Dr. Carter on the Street. The Medical Centre has been sat empty too long, but now it looks like we will finally be seeing some scenes inside. And let's not forget, he's something for the ladies - and men - to look at.

Would you pay to watch Corrie extras online?

The Chief Executive of ITV, Adam Crozier, suggested today that he's interested to find out if Coronation Street fans would pay to watch online content such as alternative endings and previews.  You can read the full report in The Guardian.

But let's take a vote of Corrie fans who read this blog.

Antony Cotton's Mission Impossible

Over at the official ITV Corrie site, Antony Cotton (Coronation Street's Sean Tully) went on a mission to uncover some secrets about Corrie's 50th anniversary episodes in December. What better place to start than at the street party kicking off the milestone celebrations?

Watch the video here.

Gallery: Inside Soap Awards 2010

Coronation Stret won four awards in last night's Inside Soap bash and we've made a picture gallery of some of our favourite Corrie actors in their best bib and tucker.

Have a look.

Fat Brenda's Cream Horn

I'm writing this in Weatherfield library, I had to sneak in though because I've been banned from entering the building after I was caught defacing their Jeffrey Archer novels so I'll have to get on with it.

I've been waiting a long time for Gail to get her comeuppance and it finally happened, my ciggies tasted all the sweeter last night when Eddie told me she'd been sacked. She's nowt but a walking scowl with hairspray that one, strutting round like butter wouldn't melt; delving into that poor lasses medical records like that, it's a disgrace! If you accessed Gail's records it would say, 'meddles in everybody else's love life but ignores the flamin' obvious when it comes to her own. Constantly chooses unstable boyfriends over her family - prescribed: a slap!'

Still, at least young Nicky has got that lovely Leanne Battersby to look after him in his hour of need. As ex drug-addicted, sex-working, lottery-scamming, insurance-swindling people go, she's great! Poor Peter, he'll be reaching for that bottle in the next couple of weeks, you mark my words.

And finally, what about Natasha! Can you believe it? Can you actually BELIEVE what she did?! She got in a flamin' black-cab instead of the Streetcars taxi she ordered! What's the point of having Weatherfield's premier taxi firm on your doorstep if you're not going to use it. I've complained to Weatherfield council about that driver hanging around The Rovers trying to pick up our customers but would they listen? No they flamin' wouldn't!

Right, I'm going... I think one of the librarians has seen me... if you want to keep up with life in the cab office then click here. She's coming over I'm going to have to g...

What did you think of Corrie's CGI tram?

With thanks to our blogger Chewy who's on twitter as @weatherfieldrec, here's a picture of the Coronation Street tram in CGI as seen on Corrie last night. I'm saying nowt - so what do you think?

Vote for Corrie! TV Times Awards 2010

Voting's now open in the TV Times Awards 2010. Coronation Street actors are nominated in some of the categories so get clicking and vote now.

Voting ends Friday 25th October.

Angel of Fury

All I can say is: I LOVE NATASHA.  In her last few moments, Rachel Leskovac turned into a furious banshee of vengeance, working her way through her tormentors with efficient and cruel brilliance.

From her dismissal of David as heartless compared with loveable naif Grahame,  to her sowing the seeds of doubt between Leanne and Peter, to twisting the knife in with Nick and his work colleagues, Natasha became the kind of bitch goddess we have all wanted her to be.  No more cringing and cowering; her evil side was finally released and she tore into every enemy she saw with cold, brilliant precision.

Of course, her greatest cruelties were saved for Gail.  Even if La Potter-Tilsley-Platt-Hillman-Platt-McIntyre hadn't hacked into Natasha's records, she still would have been top of her hit list.  As it was, Natasha got to wrench her away from her smug middle-class high horse and deposit her back in the gutter. Watching her wreak havoc was blissful; having Betty as a silent, but none the less reactive, witness to the whole thing was the icing on the cake.

Natasha's long been one of those characters who have filled in the gaps in Corrie's cast (think Poppy, or Minnie) but unlike them, she's been a firebrand when she's got a plot.  The whole pregnancy storyline has been tragic and disturbing, effectively showing her unravelling sense of reality and her desperation to keep the one person she loves.  Rachel Leskovac has been superb throughout.  Having her turn her back on all the false promises at the end is a real high point for the character, and leaves her return gloriously open.  What if she got pregnant in her last few days with Nick after all?  Wouldn't that be a twist..?

Coronation Street Weekly Update, September 27 2010

This week the update is as happy as larry after its visit to the Corrie cobbles last week. There are pictures online right here.  And so, without any further ado, here we go with this week's Coronation Street update.

Tto find out why the Corrie updates have been written for the internet since 1995, have a look here: http://www.corrieweeklyupdates.btinternet.co.uk/

Proof, if proof was needed, that Gail’s turning into Ivy Tilsley was seen on the Street this week when she confronts Natasha over not being pregnant. Natasha begs Gail to let her be the one who break the news to Nick and on this Gail agrees, to a point. She calls at their flat later and barks in the intercom: “Has she told yer yet?” then storms upstairs and turns Nick’s life upside down by revealing that there’s no baby. Cue tears on the sofa as Nick packs Natasha’s bags and tells her to shift. Hoping she’ll get some sympathy from Audrey, she hot-foots to the Platts where she’s stalled by a wonderful line from David as even he sticks up for Nick. “Blood’s thicker than Barbicide,” he says, backed up by both Audrey and Gail. Mind you, isn’t Barbicide when a  blonde doll commits suicide?

To add insult to injury, Audrey sacks Natasha from the salon and Gail just loves it that Nick’s going to come running back home to his mum. Well, he doesn’t, not yet, not when he finds out that he’s got a Barbicide of his own on his hands when Natasha tries to do away with herself with a little help from vodka and pills. Now, oh now, Audrey feels a twinge of guilt. “I sacked her,” she muses. “We all sacked her,” replies David, glaring at Gail. “But one of us enjoyed it.” Nick rushes to th’ospital where Natasha comes round and he gives her a kiss and cuddle but Natasha’s head is a mess and a muddle that’s going to need anti-depressants and counselling to help. With nowhere to go, Audrey offers Natasha a place to stay and when Nick finds out, he pops round with some roses and a half-hearted invitation for Natasha to move back in. At first Natasha’s excited with the news, but Audrey warns her not to get her hopes up but she piles on the make-up, flicks-up her hair and cabs it back to the cobbles where she gives everyone what for and what great scenes these were.

First, it’s David in the salon who she knocks down to size with a couple of bite-size biting bitchy remarks. Then it’s to Leanne in the bookies before hitting Underworld where she humiliates Nick in front of everyone by revealing the nicknames he uses at home for his workforce. Sean is incensed to know that Nick calls him “limp wrists”, Janice is “the grunting garden gnome”, Julie’s “Jackie O”. “But she was a style icon!” Julie points out before Natasha remembers, “I mean Jackie No” Nick’s nickname for Carla’s ”Mount Everest” – frosty and too big to mount. With that, Natasha heads to the medical centre where she gives Gail grief in front of the medical centre’s patients and Betty who sits open-mouthed, taking it all in. Doctor Matt comes out of his office to find out what the commotion’s all about and when he discovers Gail’s breached patient confidentiality he sacks her on the spot. “You can’t do that!” yells Gail. Oh but he can, and he does, and if he so wanted, he could prosecute her through the courts. With everyone told what she really thinks, Natasha turns on her heel, jumps into a cab and takes her leave of Nick and the Street. I’m so pleased they didn’t kill her off and hope she’ll be back, she was great.

Elsewhere, Eileen Grimshaw has never been a dogsbody, never, so why she’s degrading herself working for Owen Armstrong who treats her like dirt, is beyond me. I don’t understand it. Eileen would’ve and should’ve told Owen where to stick his petty cash box by now. But no, she’s gritting her teeth and as Owen turns nasty, Eileen gets her revenge, one cheque at a time when she’s left in charge of Owen’s accounts. The first thing she does is write a cheque out to Jason for wages owed by Owen. When Owen finds out there’s going to be trouble with a capital Oh ‘Eck.

Over at the Websters, Sally and Kevin breathe a sigh of relief when Sophie returns. Sophie rings Rosie who collars Jason Grimshaw to drive Kevin’s car to pick up Sophie and Sian. There’s hugs and kisses all round and Sally wants to know what’s going on between Rosie and builder-boy Jase. Rosie rolls her eyes to suggest nothing’s going on. “He’s so thick!” she opines, rolling her eyes again once she’s sensed the possibilities of their IQ love match. Mind you, while Sophie’s folks are happy to see their daughter again, Sian’s dad is less pleased that his daughter’s in love with a girl: “You grubby cows!” and spits out and storms back to Southport sans Sian. When he returns he’s got Sian’s mum in tow but it makes no difference, poor Sian’s parents are dreadful and walk out after shouting at Sally and Kev. There were some brilliant lines from writer Jonathan Harvey in these scenes with Sally offering Sian’s parents a seat on the sofa: “I’ve made some coffee. Would you like to sit soft?” Then there was Sally pointing out to Sian’s mum that Rosie went to a private school. “Which one?” she asked, peering behind the cleavage and legs. “Saint Trinians?” And Sally pointing out that there’s no law against lesbianism, “I know because I’ve Googled it.”

Over in the Kabin, Rita has a few tears when she finds out that her credit card’s been cloned and used by someone she doesn’t know. “They’ve bought a telly and a barbeque and… “ she pauses “…something from an adult shop!” Norris finds out his bank account’s been hacked too and puts the blame on Tina and Graeme, forgetting his laptop has been out of action and in for repair.

In other news this week, Ryan started college at WIPA (Weatherfield Institute for Performing Arts) and Ciaran contemplates a job offer elsewhere.

And finally this week, Jack moves back in with Tyrone, Molly and the new baby. He tells Tyrone over a pint in the Rovers that that’s nowt wrong between him and Connie, he’s just missing Tyrone and new baby Jack, but there was something in the way he told Tyrone that he wanted to spend as much time as possible with them all, that suggests there’s more to Jack’s move than he’s letting on. He puts a brave face on and asks Tyrone for a gossip catch up (he should really read this blog!). Tyrone leans in conspiratorially and whispers: “You know that Sophie Webster? She’s Lebanese!”

And that's just about that for this week.

Coronation Street writers this week were Chris Fewtrell, Simon Crowther, Carmel Morgan and Jonathan Harvey.
___
Glenda Young
Blogging away merrily at http://flamingnora.blogspot.com/

Corrie scoop four gongs at Inside Soap Awards 2010

EastEnders won Best Soap and six other awards in this year's Inside Soap Awards, held this evening, Monday 27 September. So, what did that leave Coronation Street to win, then?

Michelle Keegan (Tina McIntyre) was crowned Sexiest Female.

Craig Gazey (Graeme Proctor) was awarded Funniest Performance. He says, "It's a great honour to follow in the footsteps of last year's winner, the incredible Maggie Jones. Thank you to everyone who voted for me. The fact it's an award from viewers is very special. I keep my Best Newcomer Inside Soap award in the bathroom so that's where this one will be going!"

The award for Best Stunt went to Coronation Street. Alison King who plays Carla Connor says, "The factory fire scenes were some of the hardest I've ever done, they took four weeks to film and we were working with fire, which was especially dangerous. By the end of it all we felt like a little family though. Everyone worked so hard and they definitely deserve to win something. So thank you so much Inside Soap!"

Corrie also produced the evening’s youngest award winner, Alex Bain (Simon Barlow); this year sees him crowned Best Young Actor for the 2nd time.

Coronation Street through the years: 1960's

Around 50 years ago we got our first glimpse of Weatherfield, and of Coronation Street. Back in 1960 the street was a very different place. There was a frieght train line that ran along the end of the street, a raincoat factory towered over the terraces and a mission hall sat on the nearby Victoria Street.

Toward the end of the decade, Weatherfield Council demolished the old raincoat factory and Mission Hall and replaced them with Maisonettes, not only did they look brutal, but they had gotten ridden of two of the main places where characters gathered. They didn't remain standing too long before they were pulled down in the 1970's, but that's a story for the next edition! Which promises quite a few pictures of how the street looked in the era of spacehoppers and the Beatles!

Corrie's 50th anniversary survey

Fan website Corriepedia has been on a quest to find your 50 all-time favourite Coronation Street characters. Voting is now closed and your top 50 will be unveiled this week, beginning Friday 1st October.

See the Project's website for more information.

Corrie confectionery goes on sale for Christmas

There's Coronation Street confectionery going on sale in the shops just in time for Christmas.

Pick up this Carousel Box and Mug in the Coronation street range from Debenhams, Wilkinsons and House of Fraser to fill a Corrie fan's stocking with Street sweeties.

The Family Affair

I can't have been the only one who thought introducing William Roache's real-life sons to Corrie was a brilliant 50th anniversary idea.  Linus as his long-lost son?  James as his grandson? Brilliant.

In reality, I've been very disappointed.  The whole storyline's been executed really badly.

Firstly, let's deal with the revelation that Ken had another son. This is mind-blowing stuff, for parent and child. Lawrence has never met his father, never known who he was even. There should have been fireworks, recriminations, anger, tears.  Instead, Ken said, "I've worked out I'm your father." Lawrence's response?  "Oh, really?"

And that was it.  No resentment or yearning.  Barely any emotions at all.  In fact, the best responses came from Peter Barlow, who treated it all with amused disdain.

Then came the second part of the plot: Lawrence's estrangement from his own son due to his sexuality.  Again, a potentially good idea, in that it meant born-liberal Ken would be torn between his desire to know his new son and his support for his grandson's rights.  And again, it's been fudged.  Are we really meant to accept that an educated university lecturer like Lawrence, a man brought up by a left-wing firebrand and single mother, would be homophobic?  It seems completely out of character.

It's also too big a plot to be over and done with in a couple of weeks.  Linus will never commit to more than a handful of episodes - the episodes should be concentrating on Lawrence and Ken's relationship, without this distraction of James in the mix.  That could have been powerful, dramatic, and heartbreaking, and given Bill Roache a real storyline to get his teeth into.

I've been very let down by the whole thing.  Especially as by the looks of it, Lawrence is simply going to vanish to the same Barlow purgatory that Daniel lives in, never to be mentioned again...

Insane: Thu Sept 23, 2010 Corrie Episode Review

Written by Chris Fewtrell, directed by Ian Bevitt.

Natasha was up all night also and tells Nick that it’s not the first sleepness night she’s had since this baby.  Nick gets her the day off work, again, and he says that there’s got to be some perks to carrying the boss’s grandbaby.

David can’t believe that Natasha is going to be his sister-in-law, but Gail makes no comment since she didn’t sleep very well.  What, with her sleuth work on the medical computer.  David figures he’ll get his jollies out of it – stag do, wedding do – christening even.  Gail wants to talk to Audrey in the salon.  She can’t believe her ears when Nick comes in to get Natasha the day off work since she’s tired due to the pregnancy.  Audrey tries to calm Gail down and that there might be a reasonable explanation. 

Gail goes looking for an explanation and rings up to see Natasha at their flat.  Natasha lets her in and Gail lays it out flat: I know you had an abortion.  Gaill tells her how she knows the truth, since she looked through her medical records.  Natasha tells Gail that she loves Nick, then tells the entire story, including the fact that Nick doesn’t know.  Gail tells Natasha that what she’s done is not just wrong, but it’s insane and it’s over.  Natasha begs to let her tell Nick about this, so Gail won’t have to break his heart.  Gail agrees, but she wants it done now.  In the Rovers, Gail tells Audrey all and Audrey thinks the whole thing is so sad but can’t believe that Natasha did this through malice.  Audrey tries to get Gail to see things from Natasha’s point of view but can’t.  Gail wants to go over there and make sure that Nick is alright. 

Natasha finds Nick in the cafe and asks him why he came back to her – was it just for the baby?  He admits that the baby had a lot to do with it, but that he loves her.  Natasha brings him home.  Natasha tries to talk to him, but he just wants to get busy.  The ringer buzzes and it’s Gail asking if he’s alright and whether or not Natasha has told him anything.  Gail is let up, and the shit-storm begins.  Gail tells Nick how it’s all lies and Nick yells at her to get out and tries to kick her out.  Natasha confirms that it’s true, and Nick’s heart is broken.  She tells Nick that she’s made a horrible mistake and there isn’t a baby anymore as he crumbles down in tears. 

Ciaran tells Liz and Michelle that a mate of a mate has a place for him in a fancy restaurant in Scotland with talk of a Michelin star.  Both ladies look upset that Ciaran might be moving on – especially Michelle.  Liz tells him that if he does get it, he’ll be missed.  He asks “Will I?” and turns to look at Michelle who changes the subject.  Ciaran was talking about his life and why he wants to move on with Liz and Sean.  Sean figures the best thing for him could be Michelle.  Ciaran figures that he’s lost his chances with her because of his reputation, so it’s best to just move on. 

Owen gets Eileen to work on all of his accounts.  She finds that he doesn’t know how much he’s got in his four or five accounts, but they need straightening out.  He’s very rude to Eileen by assuming she’s got nothing better going on but to do his work and rubbing his date with Liz in her face.  This makes Eileen think twice.  Eileen fills out a cheque for Jason’s lost wages for that half day earlier in the week.  He tells him to keep quiet on the subject since Owen might think he’s rubbing it in his face. 

Sophie is trying to do their washing at the group house, and buddy-boy helps her out with the sorting of it, since she doesn’t know how to do laundry.  He tries to make a move on her, and she says she’s not interested.  He reminds her that he’s helping her out and with that she tells him never to lay another finger on her and that she’s leaving.  Sian finds Sophie sat outside miserable and finds that buddy-boy has put the moves on her and gets angry.  She goes back to the place and yells at the guy, telling him that Sophie’s HER girlfriend.  With that, the two girls were out on their arses again, despite “Finny” or whatever his name is insists that they still be ‘good mates.’  Sophie tells Sian that she felt good when she stuck up for her and it made her feel safe.  The girls have nowhere to go and Sophie’s very worried about that.  Sophie takes a break from the restaurant and makes her way to a phone booth.  No guesses for who she’s calling – yup Rosie.  She tells her big sister that she’s not hurt but she wants to go home. 

HIGHLIGHTS

- David: “Natasha’s a decent looking piece, but when it comes to upstairs – she’s a bungalow.” 

- David to Gail: “Still, thought you’d stay and toast the happy couple.  *gropes imaginary breasts* Or Michelle as some people call her.” 

- Nick with his shirt off coming out of the shower.  I almost didn’t notice it..since I detest his character so much!  Good thing I’m mature enough to look past that ;-)

- After Sian tells “Finny” or whatever his name is that she and Sophie are girlfriends, Sian: “Would you like me to draw you a picture?” Finny: “Well, if you like!” Ha-ha, men.

- Liz: “It’s one of those period pieces that I like.”  Eileen: “Oh, I bet.  Must take you back.”

- Nick referring to Trevor as “the missing link” at work. 

LOWLIGHTS

- Gail: “I don’t care about me, all I care about is Nick.”  Ain’t that the truth!

- How cruel is Owen?  What is with him rubbing Liz and his date in Eileen’s face?  What a douche. 

- Gail is so cruel, but Natasha is a bit nutters

Waifs and Strays: Sept 20, 2010 Corrie Episode Review

7:30pm

Written by Julie Jones, directed by Ian Bevitt

Sean can’t figure out why Eileen is still working for Owen after the way he treated her.  Eileen says that the money’s good, and half the time he just pays her to read her gossip rag.  She doesn’t want to cut of her nose to spite her face.  Owen says that he’s having a “do” for his birthday at the Rovers and she can nip in if she likes.  Owen gives Jason a raking over the coals for being late.  He’s rather harsh with Jason and knocks his wages for half a day.  Neither Eileen or Jason are happy with this.  Owen’s reign of terror continues as he yells at his daughter to go to school, is facetious with Chesney, then threatens Sean to stay out of his business. 

Steve plays around with Amy and puts her hair clip in his hair as Kylie watches on.  Kylie tells Steve later to make sure he enjoys himself with Max since they’ll be moving on soon, leaving Steve troubled.  Steve can tell that Becky is over the moon with her newly reunited little family and doesn’t know what he’s to do about Kylie now.  Steve tells Lloyd that he worries about what will happen to Max if Kylie does leave as he asked her to.  Kylie sees Steve out back and he tells her he’s a happily married man and that she could turn her life around.  There’s a safe place there for her her and Max.  Steve says that Becky’s happiness is what’s in it for her.  Kylie fears that Becky will soon get sick of her, since people always do.  Steve thinks that won’t happen at all, since they’re family. 

Natasha comes into the doctor’s office to see Dr. Carter and Gail sends her through.  Natasha has a hard time taking everyone’s compliments about her being lucky and brining a new life into the world at the doctor’s office.  In the office, Natasha says she can’t understand this since she got pregnant so easily last time.  Natasha is so desperate, she’s even scrambling for wives tales.  Dr. Carter insists she needs to tell her boyfriend and talk to someone.  Natasha leaves the clinic but Gail notices that she’s in a state and offers to get Nick, but Natasha declines.  Gail wonders if something’s wrong with the baby.  Later, Fiz finds Natasha and sees the state of her telling her she can’t carry on like that.  Natasha yells at Fiz and Nick sees this happening thinking they’re fighting.  He gets Fiz to quit bothering Natasha, not knowing why, of course.  Fiz tells Natasha to tell him – there isn’t a baby.  Natasha figures she can tell Nick that she had a miscarriage, but only then she’d have to listen to everyone else feel sorry for her.  Natasha tells her that she’ll tell Nick today.

At Underworld, it’s revealed that Nick has bought an engagement ring for Natasha.  Everyone’s very excited and they want to see the ring and asks when he’s going to propose.  Conveniently enough, Natasha comes to the factory to tell him the truth.  Only, he decides this is the best point to propose and gets down on one knee to do so.   Oh, boy!

At the B&B where Sophie and Sian are working, they’re talking with a co-worker about the trouble they’re having paying rent.  The co-worker offers to let them some space for free at their group home.  Sophie doesn’t think it’s a good idea since they don’t know the guy  but Sian thinks it’ll be find since there’s like 10 people living in the house – safety in numbers.  The place isn’t exactly Shangri-La. 

In the Kabin, Norris is in a critical point in a bidding war online for a bunion foot spa.  Graeme comes in and says that he needs to go home and take a bath, but it’d be terribly helpful if someone could scrub his back.  He then jokingly tells Norris that before he gets his hopes up – he didn’t mean him.  Tina tells him she’s working but Audrey gives them a break.  Later, Rita and Norris hear some dripping water.  They go into the back to see that there is water pouring down from the ceiling short-circuiting Norris’s laptop computer.  In a panic, they grab towels.  Tina and Graeme had let the bath runneth over as they were, ahem, busy doing other things upstairs in Rita’s flat. 

8:30pm

Written by Jan McVerry, directed by Ian Bevitt

Natasha, of course, after a lot of hesitation and shock, says yes to Nick’s proposal of marriage as Fiz stands behind her in shock.  Natasha and Nick go to the salon to show off the engagement ring.  Everyone, is happy for them, of course except for Gail.  And to a lesser extent, David.  Audrey goes on about how lovely a lady Natasha is and that she’s used to Nick bringing around sloppy slappers.  Well, except for Maria – present company – of course.  At Natasha and Nicks’ impromptu engagement party, Fiz doesn’t show up but no one really wonders why.  But, Gail does show up.  Gail is SO rude to Natasha and walks away as she’s in mid-sentence!  Gail knows for a fact that something is just not right.  Audrey tries to be on Natasha’s side and says that Natasha is like a puppy looking for approval.  Audrey tells Gail to go home if she’s not going to be happy for the couple, so Gail does this.  Well, almost.  She goes to the medical centre, where Audrey finds her later.  Gail’s found out about Natasha’s lies by finding her medical records.  Audrey tells her to box clever, but Gail wants out with this.  This isn’t going to end well. 

At the party, Kylie tries to offer Gary a drink but he turns it down saying he’s got other plans and he’ll see her around.  Kylie moves to the next likely beggar – David Platt – and offers him the beer.  Which, he of course, readily accepts.  Tina watches the two of them together and almost looks jealous. 

Norris is upset that he lost his foot spa since the “downpour” happened.  He blames people taking in “waifs and strays.”  Meanwhile, Graeme and Tina thinks it’s time that they move out.  Rita can’t really argue with it, since she really feel her style has been cramped by youngin’s. 

Owen tells Liz that it’s his birthday and he’d love to spend it with her.  Owen tells Liz that Eileen’s back at work today – no harm done.  Owen invites Chesney and his daughters over to the Rovers for a birthday non-alcoholic drink on him.  Chesney asks Katy if he has to buy him a present.  Katy wants to kiss Chesney in the pub, but her father’s watching and Ches doesn’t like that.  Owen sees this, and Liz figures the best way to get back is to snog Owen and it works as Katy – and Eileen – think it’s gross.  Liz talks with Eileen about Owen and says that she can have him – no hard feelings.  Owen tells Eileen that the alarm’s gone off in the yard so he instructs her to go check that nothing’s missing.  Eileen, at the builders office, spies some money and takes it from the petty cash.  Oh, Eileen, you naughty girl you. 

Sophie and Sian move into the “west wing” of their new 0 star accommodations.  Sian says it’s better than home because at least they can be together.  Sophie’s not so convinced.

HIGHLIGHTS

- Dr. Carter for keeping Gail in line at the medical centre.  It’s like she thinks she owns the place!

- Norris: “Burnt food is a carcinogenic, don’t you know?”  Kylie: “What, like magic mushrooms?”

- Norris to Rita: “Hey, Madame Sin.  I don’t think Emily will be best pleased you turning her house into a bordello.”  Norris screaming ‘These are the wages of sin!” as water comes pouring down into the Kabin from an over-drawn bath upstairs in Rita’s flat. 

- Sean singing the intro to Beyonce’s “If You Like it, Then You Better Put a Ring on It.”  And dancing around like  little fool.  Ha-ha. 

- David making fun of Tina’s scraggily hair and split ends.  She does look rather…ragged. 

- It’s official: Chesney is Katie’s boyfriend.  Just thought I’d throw that out there!  Cute couple!

- Julie: “My glass is half full.”  Sean: “Well, mine’s half empty, get your purse out, Pollyanna.” 

LOWLIGHTS

- Kylie saying she pierced her own belly button and bets she could do ears no problem.  How – unsanitary.  *shudder*

- Natasha’s totally losing it.  Dr. Carter is right she needs to see a counsellor. 

- Owen was quite nasty today…is this more of his bad side showing?  What else is he going to do? 

- What’s with David’s little pube-goatee?  Ugh, some men should not attempt facial hair until it can fully grow in. 

- Sian and Sophie thinking it’s a good idea to bunk up in a group home for free.  Oh, boy. 

- Gail is SO rude to Natasha!  And worse, she’s snuck into her medical records!  Gail, you’ve gone too far!

- Kylie and David Platt?  A couple in the making?  UH OH!  Board up your windows!