As I’m sure everyone who reads this blog knows by now, both Eddie Windass and Graeme Proctor will be bidding farewell to the cobbles within the next few months. I was gutted when I heard about these two departures as it means that out of my top 3 current male characters only Peter will remain. Fortunately my top 3 females of Sian, Sophie and Tina will all remain, although Sian has now decided a couple of weeks in Spain is a better option that living at the Websters - the girl clearly has sense!I was particularly surprised when I heard that the decision on Eddie’s departure was made by the producers not Steve Huison himself. This surprised me as Eddie seems to be a hugely popular character and the adoption storyline seems to be in full swing with Faye (played by Sophie Webster’s real-life cousin) making occasional appearances.
To me this double departure presents a problem for Corrie- where does the comedy come from? Everyone knew it was impossible to adequately replace the incomparable Blanche following the sad death of Maggie Jones, but Corrie has always had brilliant comedy characters who make you laugh just by being them.
To me Eddie’s finest moment came when he was effectively hired by Sally to put off a couple viewing No. 4. The genius of it was that he was simply being Eddie and he had no idea what was actually going on! That said the look on Anna’s face when Sally gave her a can of beer was priceless. He is one of those characters you really shouldn’t like because he is a lazy layabout. However, he also has a heart of gold and loves his family, in his own occasionally odd way.
As for Graeme, he may not be a heart throb but, like Eddie, he has a heart of gold which managed to land him Tina. Let’s be honest his light heartedness was probably a breath of fresh air for her after demon David and nice but dim Jason!To me the only character seemingly capable of filling the comedy void is Norris. I’m pleased the Kabin will soon be reopening as I’ve missed the brilliant Rita-Norris double act since she narrowly escaped death by bon bons in the tram crash. Even though it’s highly likely there will be more comedy to come, Graeme and Eddie will both be missed.
Picture credits: Holy Soap (Eddie) & Contact Music (Graeme)
