There's a wonderful interactive map of Coronation Street online at ITV Media website. Although it's not quite correct, it's still worth a look.
And within that map there's a short video called Journey of an episode. It's all about how an episode of Coronation Street is made, from the writing team meeting through to set design and make up.
There are interviews with some of the Corrie cast including Simon Gregson (Steve McDonald) and Jennie McAlpine (Fiz Stape). It's well worth a look and as it's publicly available on an open URL you can watch it below. Hope you enjoy watching it as much as I have.
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this is very informative for corrie fans, interesting to note that 3 weeks worth of eps are made, then they have a story conference before going on to the next 3 weeks.
ReplyDeleteAlso interesting how they film a couple of actors in the same scenery for the 3 weeks worth of eps all on the one day.
I guess that is why people seem to disappear for weeks at a time.
They get actors (Deirdre for example) for 3 weeks and then she isn't needed for the next block of 3 weeks and then back for the next 3 weeks.
Thanks for the clip; yes I did enjoy it. It was ahem... right up my street, fascinating - would love to see it expanded into say a 30 minute 'reality show' documentary, as has been done to the likes of Lynda La Plante's boardroom-style writer meetings etc.,
ReplyDeleteIt set me off on a few thoughts . . .
Interestingly, a big play is made by Phil Collinson and others throughout the clip, again, and again, of how important the story is (with the emphasis important).
As far as I'm concerned, the two opening b&w lead-in stills of Ena Sharples and Elsie Tanner, only brought up flash memories of their character, and not a single story they were involved in, although if I stopped to think maybe I would
- however, the fact is, what I do dimly remember is an argumentative, bullying Ena Sharples, ready at the drop of a hat to give someone an earful on their wrong-doings - at a full-speed-ahead verbal torrent, and of Elsie Tanner, stood there hand on hips, slightly canted forward as she spat fiery arrows in verbal retributive defence - but not at the same high velocity verbal speed as Ena, but then Ena's eyes weren't on fire as Elsie's were in a heated exchange. The two of them going hammer and tongue at each other was always promised; the actual story that brought about those warlike encounters, long since forgotten - but not the style, the force of the characters, and how they'd behave in 'any' given situation.
Which brings me to Sunita - and as Tvor mentions in the blog preceeding this, her behaving 100% out of character, with her current storyline not going down well at all - bet the production team are loving it, in a scandalous way - but I'm unimpressed by it - because the character is suddenly behaving out of character, and breaking the impoortant viewer suspension of belief/disbelief?
So yes, a powerful storyline is needed - but not to remember, but to allow the appropriate character to give us a display of what we have come to expect from them, and enjoy watching them do, aka: it's what they do - what they do best.
If a character such as Owen, or even better a 'Jim' were to ride to the rescue of Tina and Tommy being beaten by the drug thugs in the garage, we wouldn't expect a lame Tommy-like: "I have to do as Rick asks or he'll kill me", from either a Jim or an Owen - it would be the drug thugs in mortal danger! That story would take second place to enjoying a character/s known for dishing out retribution, doing just that.
Not once in the clip did I hear mention of how 'important' the stories are to bringing out the known worst/best in a character for viewer enjoyment. I'm sure it's a given, they seem to have nailed it with the likes of Kylie, but have dropped a googly over Sunita - just who is that woman masquerading as Sunita?
- And now 300 folorn clicks or so to prove I'm not a robot. . .
This puts me in mind of another behind the scenes video from 1972 that was blogged here in 2010: http://coronationstreetupdates.blogspot.ca/search/label/1970s. It's worth a look to compare with this new behind the scenes!
ReplyDeleteThere are interesting comments from a couple of writers and the producer of the time, Harry Kershaw, similar to what you see in this current video, albeit when the show was far less intense (only two shows per week, not as much violence and crime, etc.). Bill Roache says "there will be a time when I must get out"! Harry Kershaw says everyone working on the show at that time was passionate about it and they would continue until they were no longer interested. Then, as now, it's success is the stories and script!
At the end of the video, they hope Coronation Street will continue for another 12 years! At the end of this new one, they hope it will last another 50 years!
I wonder which of the idiots on the writing team came up with the idea of totally destroying a character in order to boost ratings. Karl and Sunita. Really? I suppose they all thought it was a good idea at the time and it sounded good at the time but it was a terrible idea. Sunita was (before they turned her into a douce) a kind caring mini-Emily type personality and then, without a blink of an eye WHAM..she's a slut of the highest order banging her bosses hubby.
ReplyDeleteThey almost did Eileen in with her and Paul carrying on under his sick wife's nose but quickly remedied it by killing Lesley off. Now it's all happy families. Really..the writing team must be all bessy-mates of Phil or are family members because...THEY SUCK BIG TIME!!!
Rant ended..thanks