Coronation Street Blog: James Cunningham returns

Monday, 20 December 2010

James Cunningham returns

James Roache is set to make a return to the cobbles as James Cunningham, according to ITV.com. James was last seen visiting his grandad Ken this autumn, and even sent Ken a card on his birthday. His father seemingly no longer keeps in contact with Ken though. James will return in March 2011. I'm interested to see how he'll fit in on the street.

17 comments:

Tvor said...: I'm only expecting a short visit but i still look forward to it.; 20 December 2010 at 17:58
Chewy said...: It sounds like he might become a regular from they way they've released the news; 20 December 2010 at 18:00
Anonymous said...: I hope the writing has more "meat" this time around...; 20 December 2010 at 18:29
John M said...: Hopefully the storyliners will make a better job this time round. More "meat" indeed! LOL!; 20 December 2010 at 20:50
Frosty the Snowman said...: Good as a new character but does it have to be another "gay" character. Please can we have a cheerful character and not one full of angst and going on about their problems - yawn; 21 December 2010 at 07:58
DeeDee Eckerslyke said...: Company for Sean perhaps? It's been a while since he's had a relationship.; 21 December 2010 at 08:29
Tvor said...: I didn't get the impression that James was full of angst. He seemed very comfortable in his skin. The only problem he seemed to have was with his father. I think he might be a nice fella for Sean, DeeDee, i agree; 21 December 2010 at 10:23
Chewy said...: A pretty dim view thinking all gay characters are full of angst

I don't think they will pair him with Sean, but they probably will become friends; 21 December 2010 at 11:39
Sea Penguin said...: Glad he's coming back - can't see him with Sean really, though. But I suppose you never know.; 21 December 2010 at 12:20
abbyk said...: If Lawrence had trouble accepting James, could you imagine how he'd react to Sean? Peter hasn't even accepted his new brother or nephew yet; maybe we should concentrate on that drama before the comedy of pairing James up Sean. Besides, isn't James closer to David & Graeme's age? There's a lot he could do as another one of the boys.

I'm just trying to picture Sean at a Barlow family gathering. He might make a good double act with Simon (who doesn't?), but what would he and Ken talk about?; 21 December 2010 at 16:43
Cobblestone said...: Why on earth assume that if you put two gay men in a room together they will automatically be attracted to each other. Seriously, it doesn't work like that, any more than putting a random pairing of hetrosexual man & woman together. I know very few gay men who would look twice at Sean (in a romantic way, at least, although they would probably be friendly with him). I'll say it for the umpteenth time, Sean is a stereotype that teeters on the edge of offensive. Yes, there are gay men like him out there but they are very atypical. He's like something created by Dick Emery. I can't see James being interested in him any more than it would be viable for Todd to be attracted to him, if and when he returns.; 21 December 2010 at 22:40
Tvor said...: Of course there's no reason to assume any two gay men would be attracted. In real life. But this is telly. And we all know Sean falls in love at the drop of a hat. I don't think Sean is near-offensive or really a stereotype. He is who he is and it takes all types, doesn't it? Sure he's ott sometimes but he's also a really nice man too. He was good in the crash crisis, he is a good friend, too.; 21 December 2010 at 23:13
mister_tmg said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 22 December 2010 at 17:01
mister_tmg said...: Well, I'm gay, and don't find Sean particularly offensive since I started watching Corrie again. That could be because he hasn't been over-exposed lately. Never liked him doing drama, he's best as a supporting star, doing little comedy moments. As Antony says, there are plenty out there like him - and at least he's a nice character, unlike many of the real ones...

I welcome the return of James, as a 'serious' gay character.; 22 December 2010 at 17:02
Cobblestone said...: Yes, he's much better when he's playing a supporting role, but I think my problem with his character is two-fold. It's partly that I really don't think Anthony Cotton has much emotional range as an actor (he's either brittle & flippant, coming out with - admittedly - amusing comments from behind his sewing machine) or else he's doing the kicked puppy routine because no-one loves him and Violet took his son away.) I do know gay men like Sean, and without exception they are lonely men who disguise the fact by camping about making people laugh. That is to say, they PLAY UP TO A STEREOTYPE. Now Sean clearly IS lonely, staggering from one-night stands to brief, disastrous relationships, but I don't think Anthony has the subtlety as an actor to effectively portray the darker depths. In the hands of a more accomplished performer, I genuinely think the character of Sean Tully could be the new Bet Lynch.
The other problem, closely related to this, is that the writers veer between writing him as the warm, fuzzy, sassy gay best friend and - frankly - a nasty little bitch. His 'wit' on occasions, when other people are suffering, can be really rather unpleasant. If only the writers could make up their mind WHO Sean Tully is, I'd have less of a problem with him.
[Clair is another character who the writers have not been able to make thir mind up (whimsical, mildly-amusing/shrill nagging harpie)].
Like mister_tmg, I too am a gay man and also welcome James' return as a more REPRESENTATIVE gay character. I don't want him to be angst-ridden and morose; let him just be a regular guy who just happens to be gay, (like the wonderful Ted!) rather than an Issue Character.; 23 December 2010 at 11:22
Tvor said...: Very well said, Cobblestone. James' first short stint did seem to hint that he was less angst-ridden, just with father issues which isn't unusual for a lot of folk anyway. Peter Barlow is the best case for the end result of father issues on the Street! I'm not expecting James to be around for a long term but at least the newfound son and grandson won't be pushed under the paving stones as if they didn't exist or were forgotten.; 23 December 2010 at 11:38
mister_tmg said...: I agree, Ted was wonderful, as it shows that not every older gay man is a predatory old queen!

A lot of gay men do seem to have absent fathers, incidentally...; 23 December 2010 at 11:52