Coronation Street workout DVDs

No pain, no gain! So come on - two, three four - here's how to get fit the Coronation Street way.

Bev Callard, who played Corrie's Liz McDonald, released not one, but two workout DVDs in her life away from the Street as an aerobics instructor. Her first DVD promised real results in only 10 weeks while the second DVD took an extra fortnight and had a disappointing lack of lycra and perm.

 

The first and thankfully unrepeated official Corrie workout DVDs included a trio of young lovelies - Tina O'Brien (Sarah-Lou Platt), Nikki Sanderson (Candice Stowe) and Lucy Jo Hudson (Katy Harris).  And pout, two three four, shimmy, two three four, run off to Milan/with the Quo/Martin Platt, two, three, four.

Tracy Shaw (Maxine Peacock) got in on the action with two Salsacise DVDs. No Maxine, you really should have stayed at the party.

Maxine's mate Fiona Middleton danced her way through a workout DVD, dancing away two stone in two months. Poor lass, I hope they let her out to go to the loo.

Janice Battersby actress Vicky Entwistle took the weight off her gob with her DVD.  A good bra and a pair of Spanx would have worked just as well.

And then we had Kym Marsh-Ryder-Marsh-Lomax's Burn & Firm Workout. "I lost 12 pounds in 4 weeks and so can you!". No thanks, love.

Here we go, this is more like it.  How can you not love Debbie Rush when she's clearly exasperated at not being able to fit into Stan Ogden's window cleaning overalls? 

Ah, Vicky Binns, who played the dearly departed, adulterous Molly Dobbs. And we all know what happens to adulterous women on Coronation Street - they get killed off. Bye-bye Sunita. Never mind dancing it off! Run, Molly, run! Run away, and run far, far away from that Kevin.

But for this Corrie fan, it's Fat Brenda's Bikini Boot Camp DVD that's on my hit-list to get my body in shape for this summer.  The sound-track's Cliff, just Cliff, and the exercises are smokin hot!  There's a lot of chair-based exercise and optional walks to the chip shop, but only if you fancy it.

With Fat Brenda's Bikini Boot Camp DVD, here's the before and after pictures, so you can see for yourself what sort of results you'll get.  It's money well spent. I'm sure you'll agree.  Follow her on tweeter @fatbrenda

This is you BEFORE Fat Brenda's Bikini Boot Camp

This is you AFTER Fat Brenda's Bikini Boot Camp

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The faces of 1990s Corrie

Inspired by Daran Little's 40 years of Coronation Street and having done some research on Corriepedia, I have come up with the top 12 faces of Coronation Street in every decade.

In the fourth of five posts, I look at the top 12 faces of Corrie in the 1990s. These are the faces who appeared the most during the decade.

1. Gail Tilsley/Platt (1070 episodes, 1990-1999)
2. Rita Fairclough/Sullivan (1022 episodes, 1990-1999)
3. Vera Duckworth (1006 episodes, 1990-1999)
4. Jack Duckworth (1005 episodes, 1990-1999)
5. Alma Sedgewick/Baldwin (969 episodes, 1990-1999)
6. Audrey Roberts (956 episodes, 1990-1999)
7. Jim McDonald (949 episodes, 1990-1999)
8. Kevin Webster (936 episodes, 1990-1999)
9. Mike Baldwin (910 episodes, 1990-1999)
10. Deirdre Barlow/Rachid (906 episodes, 1990-1999)
11. Ken Barlow (905 episodes, 1990-1999)
12. Curly Watts (891 episodes, 1990-1999)

Average age: 48

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Coronation Street artwork for sale

A few months ago, I spotted on Facebook  a really nice graphic of the Street. It's by a Toronto artist, David Crighton but there was no word at the time as to how you could purchase a copy of the print. I've had an email from Mr. Crighton and he's now got prints for sale. You can see a closeup of the full Coronation Street collage here.

You may notice that the houses/businesses are out of order but they're supposed to be like that, a kind of collage. You can also get sections of the main art view as a print, i.e. just the Rovers as in this photo here (copyright David Crighton of course!). Click here to see the poster showing the individual "section" prints.

He is selling the prints unmounted and signed and will be setting up a Paypal account for payment. Shipping costs within Canada should be under $15 and he will ship outside of Canada, though costs may vary. Prints are 8x12 inches in size and cost $50 Canadian for one or $175 for a set of four (plus applicable taxes and shipping costs) He's taking orders or inquiries by email david@davidcrighton.com

You can find David Crighton on Facebook and on his personal website, in the "Outside Toronto" section here. He also has some really lovely prints in a similar style of Toronto scenes. Check them out, too!

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Coronation Street wins Best Soap at Broadcast Awards 2013

From twitter @krissibohner (Krissi Bohn, Michelle Keegan, Cath Tyldesley aka Jenna, Tina, Eva)

Hot on the heels of winning Best Soap last week at the National Television Awards, Coronation Street has scooped another award for Best Soap.  They were named as Best Soap, beating all of the other UK soaps, in the Broadcast Awards 2013 held last night at the Grosvenor Hotel in that London.

The Broadcast Awards are chosen by a panel of judges to reward excellence in TV.

Congratulations to Corrie!

A full list of winners is here.

From twitter @krissibohner (Krissi Bohn and Patti Clare aka Jenna and Mary)

From twitter @krissibohner (Krissi Bohn and David Neilson aka Jenna and Roy)

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Where to buy Julie Carp's cape

For those asking where Julie Carp got her tartan cape from, worn earlier this week on Coronation Street, then wonder no  more.

Jade, the wardrobe lady at Coronation Street tells us that the cape is vintage and was bought from a boutique in Swinton. She's kindly sent us a photo of the label for any vintage fans who want to check it out.

Katy Cavanagh, the actress who plays Julie Carp on Corrie, is pregnant, in case any one was wondering why she's being covered up with capes and big coats at the moment!

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Coronation Street fun night in Canada

The Sparta House tea-room in Sparta, Ontario in Canada, is hosting two Coronation Street fun nights on April 26th and 27th. 

There's a three course meal including Roy's Rolls, Betty's Hotpot and Manchester Sponge. And there's prizes for the best Corrie look-a-like plus fun trivia, and more.

Find out more at the Sparta Houe website.

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Meet the woman who's played 12 different Corrie roles

While it remains true that no one can beat Dave Dutton's claim to Coronation Street fame, as the man who's acted 11 different roles on the cobbles.  Read all about him here.

There is someone who's been on Coronation Street in more roles than Dave - and it's a woman, Ann Aris.  With thanks to Corriepedia for letting us know about Ann and for the information below.

Ann holds the current record for the most credited parts on Coronation Street with twelve roles to her name:

1. Kay Miller, friend of Sylvia Matthews in April 1976. 

2. Ratepayers Association secretary Mrs Mottershead in April 1978.

3. The Registrar at the wedding of Kevin Webster and Sally Seddon in October 1986.

4. The Usher at the trial of Alan Bradley in October 1989.

5. Newton & Ridley Secretary in September 1992.

6. Bettabuys senior manager Mrs Waters in July 1993.

7. The Assistant Registrar at the wedding of Curly Watts and Raquel Wolstenhulme in December 1995.

8. A Woman on a golf course who found Fred Elliott injured there in July 1997.

9. The Magistrate at the preliminary hearing of Deirdre Rachid on charges of fraud in January 1998.

10. Barrister Fiona Kingsman-Lloyd at the trial of Les Battersby for assault on Mick Hopwood (a trumped-up charge) in May 2003.

11. Judge Fortune at the at the preliminary hearing of Tracy Barlow for the murder of Charlie Stubbs in January 2007.

12. The Judge at the trial of Becky Granger for vandalism in November 2008.

13. Her most recent connection with Corrie was in The Road to Coronation Street in September 2010 in which she played the part of actress Nita Valerie who appeared in one of the 1960 dry runs as Ena Sharples.

So there you have it. Dave Dutton is the man who's played the highest number of Coronation Street male roles and Ann Aris is the woman who's played the highest number of Coronation Street female roles.

What we need now, of course, is for them both to return for another part - the one where they fall in love and get married, to each other.

Now that really would be a soap wedding to celebrate.


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The faces of 1980s Corrie

Inspired by Daran Little's 40 years of Coronation Street and having done some research on Corriepedia, I have come up with the top 12 faces of Coronation Street in every decade.

In the third of five posts, I look at the top 12 faces of Corrie in the 1980s. These are the faces who appeared the most during the decade.

1. Bet Lynch/Gilroy (738 episodes, 1980-1989)
2. Ivy Tilsley/Brennan (691 episodes, 1980-1989)
3. Rita Fairclough (682 episodes, 1980-1989)
4. Alf Roberts (681 episodes, 1980-1989)
5. Mavis Riley/Wilton (667 episodes, 1980-1989)
6. Betty Turpin (658 episodes, 1980-1989)
7. Ken Barlow (657 episodes, 1980-1989)
8. Deirdre Langton/Barlow (651 episodes, 1980-1989)
9. Mike Baldwin (648 episodes, 1980-1989)
10. Vera Duckworth (628 episodes, 1980-1989)
11. Emily Bishop/Swain/Bishop (619 episodes, 1980-1989)
12. Gail Tilsley (613 episodes, 1980-1989)

Average age: 48

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Fat Brenda's Cream Horn

Well what a palaver! I’ve been squatting in Gail’s garage (not literally, loveys) for a while now after I left the shared housing I was in 'cos I found out Polish Pete had been spying on me through a hole he’d drilled into the wall – he told me it was to let steam escape as I was partial to a hot soapy bath of a Sunday night.

Perv!

Anyhow, I’ve been in Gail’s garage for a good year now and I’ve been very happy, but now I’m sharing with hundreds of jars of these green salty grape things! Oh loveys, proper mingin’ they are! It gets me why posh folk think eating stuff that’s horrible makes ‘em seem well to do! They turn their nose up at a Findus Crispy Pancake but give ‘em an artichoke heart or drizzle a bit of olive oil in their general direction and they’re all, “Oooh how delightful!” Get a grip posh folk and bang some McCain’s in’t oven!

Chips in't it?!

So I’ve been kipping with these jars every night and when Gail goes out I’ve been breaking into her house using a key I stole from Joe McIntyre’s corpse when he was in’t chapel of rest. Gail buries all her dead husbands with a key to the house so they’ll always have somewhere to stay in’t afterlife or summat like that. Anyway, I got this key and I’ve been sneaking in for me ablutions (that means me number twos an’ that) and to use her Lady Shave on me bits what want trimming back – although in this weather I usually like to go natural but they’re out of control, “nature’s thermals” as me friend Bernice calls it and she should know, her leg hairs get so long in winter she takes her jeggings off and it looks like she’s wearing mohair flamin’ trousers!

So while I was elbow deep in me leg hairs - like a young machete wielding Michael Douglas in that Romancing The Stone – I heard the sound of squelching and I went to investigate only to find Gail playing saliva bingo with the ever fragrant Lewis and in walks Audrey and I swear to Cliff I thought it was gonna kick off right there and then! I was up the stairs with Gail’s false teeth glass to the floorboards and the whole clan walked in! “It’s disgusting!” David cried forgetting it’s not as bad as pushing yer mam down’t stairs and getting someone to rob yer gran’s house or hitting folks' windows with a baseball bat or sleeping with Tracy Barlow so you’ll keep quiet about the brutal murder of a fella or pretending to be the dead ex husband of yer mam who drove you all into a canal after murdering folk or psychologically torturing yer mam’s FOURTH husband so he’ll put in a good word for you with his daughter, Tina, who you forcibly leapt on while she was dating yer best mate… “Its disgusting!” Yeah David, whatever lovey!

Ooh that's a bit tutti frutti!

And as for Nick with his ex drug addled, would-be arsonist insurance swindling lottery stealing prossie wife, well he can shut up an’ all! He’s not all sweetness and light if them looks him and Kylie are giving each other every time David knits another pair of booties are anything to go by– he learned how to knit in’t nick… in fact, you could say he was a nick knitter. If he knitted knickers he’d be a knicker knitting nick knitter! If he knitted knickers for Nick he’d be a Nick’s knickers knicker nick knitter… I’ve confused meself… What was I on about now? Oh aye, Gail!

Nick's nick knitted knickers!

So let him or her that’s done nowt wrong cast the first stone and turn yer other cheek in a glass house or summat cos in Weatherfield everyone’s done summat bad to someone – except maybe Roy, Hayley or poor Ty.

On the subject of Ty, if Dev was to start selling burning torches and pitchforks he’d make a fortune cos the folk of Coronation Street (and Rosamund Street) are after his blood!

“Kill Tyrone!” they cry outside Tina’s flat. 

How can Weatherfield have such a good hospital (the only person to have performed more sick healing miracles than them doctors is Jesus) and such a rubbish police force?! Mind you, at least it’s a fella who’s facing a miscarriage of justice instead of our Deirdre, Gail and Fiz! The only person who is actually guilty is Tracy flamin’ Barlow! Her gurning alone should be punishable by death let alone the killing of Charlie with a piece of objet flamin d’art!

So to cut a long story short, Tyrone has been abandoned by folk with no memory of what he’s actually like and Tracy is going on a date with that fella who’s like Dick Van Dyke. Meanwhile Jenna has lost her job after studying for two hundred and fifty seven years and she’s also come out as one of them lesbians. Kirsty knows how to “play the system” but not as well as me cos I work and claim housing benefit and dole! Who’s the best at playing the flamin’ system now, Kirsty, you evil witch?!

Remember loveys, in Weatherfield the truth always comes out in’t end… Do you hear that, Dev?! The truth always comes out! He’s been stealing folks’ identities with that cash machine of his! Maybe that’s why Sunita has had a total personality transplant! Maybe Dev stole HER identity so she replaced it with someone else’s!

I'm here on tweeter: Fat Brenda

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Heartbreak for Chesney when Katy kisses Ryan

There's a Coronation Street spoiler in today's Sun, and this time there are pictures to prove it.  Poor Chesney's going to have his little heart smashed to pieces if he sees who girlfriend Katy's kissing now - it's only druggy Ryan!

The Sun says that pics taken on location show Katy and Ryan travelling in a van together - I wonder why? Anyway, the van breaks down, and the two of them end up snogging.

Ah well, I suppose it gives Katy something to do, she's been rather dull of late. But mind you, she does have lovely hair.

Have a look at all the pics here.

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Coronation Street fan of the week - Char in Canada

It's Wednesday and time to meet another Corrie fan of the week.
Would you like to be our Corrie fan of the week?
Click here to find out more.

Who are you and where are you from?
My name is Char Lewis, and I live in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.

How long have you been watching Corrie?
I have been watching Corrie since the 1970's. I started watching with my mom, back in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

Who are your favourite female and male characters - and the reasons why?
Male character: I really like Tyrone. He's a solid friend, and he's a stand-up guy, never does anything bad. He's the type of guy that every girl hopes for. 

Female Character: I think that would have to be Rita Tanner. She's the one who is the wise one of the street. She's honest, generous and really cares about her friends. She doesn't let anyone take advantage of her, she is a strong woman as well as independent. She reminds me of my sister, and I think my sister even looks like her. (Well, she will in the future). I would love to be more like Rita. 
(Editor's note: I think we need to see a photo of your sister for a Rita look-a-like!)

What's been some of your favourite Corrie storylines over the years?
I have become mesmerized by the Tyrone/Kirsty storyline. I realize that this really happens, and men are either to embarrassed, or too proud to say anything. It's a real tragedy.

And what would your fantasy Corrie storyline be?
I would love to see Sean finally find the one true love of his life, for keeps, and for Dev and Sunita to get back together for good. I also want to see Tracy get her comeuppance, and finally be put in her place in front of everyone. It would be fun to see Les Battersby come back just to pester Stella.

Have you any snippets or news about meeting any of the Corrie cast, or trips to the set, etc., that you'd like to share?
Oh, I wish I did. I would love to visit the cobbles, and meet some of the actors.
 
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Sneak preview of tonight's Corrie - Wednesday 30 January

Coronation Street, Wednesday 30th January at 7.30pm
 
KYLIE FACES A MEXICAN STAND-OFF WITH LEWIS. His scam now in motion Lewis secretly prints off Gail’s bank details from the bistro computer. When Kylie and Nick enter the office he’s forced to hide. As Kylie assures Nick his secret is safe Lewis is stunned to hear Nick could be the father of her baby. His brain in overdrive what will Lewis do with this information?
SOPHIE AND JENNA FACE AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE. Sophie and Jenna have a heart to heart. Will Jenna finally admit to her feelings?
KIRTSY AGREES TO LET TYRONE SEE RUBY. Tyrone’s thrilled when he gets a call to tell him Kirsty’s agreed to let him see Ruby.
Elsewhere Tracy tells Rob she’ll accept his offer of a date. Over lunch at the bistro she dares him to give her a job, how will Rob respond? Owen and Anna forbid Faye from seeing dad Tim.

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Coronation Street actors who return as different characters

No one can yet beat Dave Dutton's claim to Coronation Street fame, as the man who's acted 11 different roles on the cobbles. 

Read all about him here.

But there's a good article on The Radio Times by journalist and Corrie fan David Brown, who writes about Weathefield rovers who return. 

This was no doubt prompted by an article in this week's Sun which used twitter comments saying fans were angry that actor Joe Duttine had returned to Corrie as one character when we'd already seen him play another. Well, if you follow us and read us regularly, you'd have found that out some weeks ago. 

Anyway, back to the Radio Times where they mention some of the actors who have turned up in Corrie more than once in different roles, but none of them beat Dave Dutton!

Have a look at some of the pics here, it's good.


See also: Where have you seen...? Corrie's new policeman, Faye's real dad,  Audrey's date, Harry the councillor, Lewis' friend Patrick,The Corrie Registrar, Marcus' friend Aiden, Kirsty's parents, Jenny Sumner, Corrie's prison Governor, Sunita's Aunties, Ken and Deirdre's pottery teacher, Tommy Duckworth,  Mrs Hargreaves who died in Audrey's salon, Sally Webster's fella Jeff, Joy Fishwick's investigator, Charlotte's Parents, Ken Barlow's grandson James, Ken Barlow's son Lawrence, Dr Matt Carter, Saucy Charlotte, Izzy's dad Owen Armstrong,The Corrie coppers, Colin Fishwick, Trevor the binman, Connie Rathbone, Uncle Umed,Julie Carp's mum, Luke Strong, Sophie Webster's boyfriend, Eileen Grimshaw's dad, Norris' girlfriend, Graeme Proctor,Molly's Aunty Pam, Maria's mum and dad, Gail's dad, Scary Brian, Tina's dad, Tony Gordon's henchman, Little Simon Barlow

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What I loved about Monday's Corrie

I hadn't watched Coronation Street for over a week, but I decided to tune in again last night as I knew Audrey was going to catch Gail and Lewis and I couldn't miss that! I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by both episodes last night.

I found the Gail and Lewis developments in equal parts hilarious and disgusting. I don't often find myself in agreement with David Platt! Both David and Kylie's reactions to this latest development were hysterical and Sue Nicholls yet again played a blinder as Audrey. I'm biased because the woman can do no wrong as far as I'm concerned. We all know this will end badly for Gail and I can't help but think she deserves it. 

I also loved the brief exchanges between Gail and Eileen. The On the Buses gag in the Cafe was good fun but I particularly enjoyed their old fishwives routine in the Street. Both gave as good as they got, although Gail was particularly cruel I thought. I would love a proper return to the Gail/Eileen feud of old. Their famous cat fight on the cobbles will always be a Corrie highlight for me and it's clear both actors relish these encounters.

The surprising thing for me was how much I got involved in the Jenna and Sophie storyline which was the other big feature in the episodes. I love Craig Charles as Lloyd and his touching support for his daughter through her work and personal issues was terrific to watch. The writing was great and although Mandy's true feelings were difficult to watch, the performance was spot on and very believable. More of this please!

Other minor developments also entertained me. I enjoyed the scene with Ken and Steve conducting their conversation around the irrational, delusional Tracy. Deirdre's offer of making Steve a sandwich was hilarious (well, I thought so!) I also found myself getting very incensed about Julie and Norris ganging up on Tyrone in their exchange with Fiz and Tina. I can understand Norris having a go as he's widely known to be 9 parts nasty and 1 part unpleasant but Julie really should know better. I'm looking forward to seeing how that plays out.

I hope this positive trend continues! What did you think??


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The faces of 1970s Corrie

Inspired by Daran Little's 40 years of Coronation Street and having done some research on Corriepedia, I have come up with the top 12 faces of Coronation Street in every decade.

In the second of five posts, I look at the top 12 faces of Corrie in the 1970s. These are the faces who appeared the most during the decade.

1. Len Fairclough (749 episodes, 1970-1979)
2. Betty Turpin (699 episodes, 1970-1979)
3. Annie Walker (676 episodes, 1970-1979)
4. Bet Lynch (675 episodes, 1970-1979)
5. Hilda Ogden (661 episodes, 1970-1979)
6. Ray Langton (636 episodes, 1970-1978)
7. Ken Barlow (634 episodes, 1970-1979)
8. Stan Ogden (585 episodes, 1970-1979)
9. Emily Nugent/Bishop (580 episodes, 1970-1979)
10. Elsie Tanner/Howard/Tanner (552 episodes, 1970-1973, 1976-1979)
11. Rita Bates/Littlewood/Fairclough (519 episodes, 1972-1979)
12. Albert Tatlock (501 episodes, 1970-1979)

Average age: 50

See also: The Faces of 1960s Corrie

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