Recent comments from Vicky, one of this lovely blog's readers (re. this blog post) made me wonder if I have been too harsh on Coronation Street. While I may write in a critical manner on certain aspects of Corrie that annoy, irritate or get on my nerves, I still think it is way ahead of its main rivals on many levels.In my opinion Coronation Street still has some of the best characters, actors and writers on British television today. It is lauded for its long and rich history however this heritage has also created a massive rod for its cobbled back. On looking back at the Street in previous decades it is easy to criticise today's Street in comparison to the so-called golden days when the likes of Annie Walker and Elsie Tanner ruled the back streets of Weatherfield. However Coronation Street is and in many ways has to be a very different beast in today's television climate.
While I may criticise the show for plots I believe to be poorly conceived or characters I don't much care for I do honestly think British television would be far, far, far worse off without our regular trips down Coronation Street. So in the spirit of this positive blog post, here are five reasons why I love Corrie:
1. I love how Coronation Street has a long tradition of providing strong, prominent stories for more mature ladies. It is terrific to see actresses such as Helen Worth, Sue Nicholls and Barbara Knox still carry storylines after being in Coronation Street longer than I've been on this earth. It is great to see these actors still being appreciated, and I know us Corrie fans love them.
2. The ability to create and develop truly eccentric characters. As much as Corrie loves to feature classic love triangle plots and the like, there is a strong tradition of developing more unusual characters, such as Graeme Proctor, Julie Carp and the wonderful Royston Cropper. It says a lot about Corrie that Roy and Hayley have become one of the most solid, stable couples in the show's history.3. The Street, despite tram crashes, robberies and other disasters, still manages to be one of those places we'd all like to stop by for a pint and a plate of Betty's hotpot. Even in these modern, fast-paced times Coronation Street is still a welcoming place and it's familiar presence is, I'm sure, a great comfort to us all.
4. In my view the Street is doing its job if it does give us issues to debate, criticise, agree and disagree over. If it didn't create these talking points it would, quite frankly, be dull, boring and heading off air. And if we did all agree on every aspect of this programme this blog wouldn't be half as entertaining as it is!
5. Finally, as I think I have mentioned before, I love that so many of Coronation Street's actors as so loyal. As has often been highlighted here on the blog, we are lucky that three original actors are still involved in 2013. What a terrific achievement! The loyalty of these actors and the many characters that endure for decades provides great continuity and allows us viewers to care more about what happens to them.I do love Coronation Street and hope it lasts for at least another 52 years.
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I'm with you there. I've always said that as much as people pine for the "good old days", it has to move with the times in order to keep the audience and gain new viewers. The humour is still there underneath and a very large percentage of the large cast are very good actors. Are there actors and/or characters I dislike? Of course. Are there storylines I think are stupid? Yes but then the ones i dislike, someone else loves! There's enough there to appeal to a wide swathe of viewers. I would never say "Corrie is rubbish right now", though i might say there are a few rubbish storylines that are driving me mental. Overall, though, I love it and i wouldn't stop watching because even when it goes through periods of more down than up, it always comes back up.
ReplyDeleteYes, Coronation Street has to move with the times, but that does not mean ignoring its history and its strengths. The successors to Hilda/Stan or Jack/Vera are to be found on the BBC in the shape of Barbara and Jim Royle, not on Coronation Street. Stuart Blackburn should beg Caroline Ahearne and Craig Cash to join the writing team.
ReplyDeleteDavid/Kylie could have been a great Corrie couple. She is a strong character, but flawed. He is just flawed. But instead of nurturing an unlikely relationship that somehow works, she climbs into the sack with the worst possible person for no apparent reason other than boosting the Christmas ratings. Unless Stuart Blackburn puts an end to nonsense like that, there will not be an "Up".
Dont put yourself down Graeme, this blog is for OPINIONS. I must have slept in the day we were told forums are only for positive opinion. Yes I think a lot of us hanker back to the 'good old days' when Corrie was only on twice a week and the plots were character driven and not sensationalist and original. Watch the early days when characters were cracking - even Ken Barlow. In the main its still watchable today - it must be - its still top of viewing figures and this forum has a good following. Very poor and lazy writing for me has to take most of the blame plus there seem to be far too many characters with only a handful constantly used but then Frosty has said all this before.
ReplyDeleteVicky got me thinking and it perhaps it is to do with why you watch a soap. If you watch a soap in much the same way that you'd watch a sitcom, it's at a fairly superficial level - no criticism implied. I watch Corrie not as a documentary so it doesn't have to be absolutely true to real life, but as a continuing drama. It therefore has to be true to Weatherfield life and it often isn't. We also know the plots way before they're broadcast so I'm looking for humour, character and plot development etc. much more than I used to.
ReplyDeleteAnd about this blog, I think it's great and quite literary in its way. We have terrific bloggers like yourself, Graeme, it's very well moderated and attracts very interesting contributions. A soap is like a football team. It's yours and you're entitled to complain about the manager/producer,team/actors etc. Our comments don't seem to affect the morale of our 'team', anyway, because nothing changes. It's a good way to let off steam when things annoy you and stops you switching off altogether. As others have said, the blogs and comments are often funnier and more thought-provoking than the scripts.
Hello - newbie here.
ReplyDeleteI think with Coronation Street, it evokes passion because of a feeling that the institution deserves better.
There are a lot of things that irritate me. For example, the surrogacy storyline is ridiculous. An investment of a year to 18 months lead in, and the involvement of different characters (perhaps Julie and Brian, in a real test of the actors' and characters' ability to carry a serious storyline), would have made this 100 times more enjoyable. But despite this, there are moments every week that I love.
It's still far and away my favourite thing on TV. :) The 50th anniversary live episode was probably the most incredible TV event I've seen. IMO.
I disagree with those who feel unless you have only positive comments you are not a fan. I enjoy the humour of Corrie, both the intentional and unintentional. Bad acting, poor story lines, weak characters are funny only if you have others to laugh at them with. I find the Canadian blogs full of do's and don'ts. I was so happy when Canada caught up to UK so I could enjoy the gripes and clever put downs I see in UK blogs. Keep it up.
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ReplyDeleteThanks very much for your comments - I hope I'll be blogging my honest opinions for a long time to come!
You have no idea how freaked out I was for a second when I saw my name there! I instantly thought "no, what I have done?!!" But then I saw the rest of your column and realised I had not started any kind of internet war. Phew.
ReplyDeleteYes I also love Corrie's matriarchs and the eccentric characters. It's quite a magnificent thing really when you think about Roy and Hayley, given that even now I can't think of many other transgender characters on TV in any genre. And now we've had a transgender character happily thriving in a relationship on Corrie for 15 years.
Anyway, someone called me a "pollyanna" on the other thread because they assumed I was saying anyone who doesn't like something about Corrie must hate all of it. That's not the case, it just happens that on the random days I've been on this blog, I've happened to catch a few blogs of the same tone by the same author and drawn (incorrect) inferences from that. Sorry about that. Personally, I could go on forever about the things I don't like about Corrie (top of the list is Leanne's red coat, actually), but I could talk twice as long about the things I do.
ReplyDeleteHi Vicky - didn't mean to freak you out! I just love interacting with people on here. Your comments are great and it really spurred me on to write another blog post so keep your thoughts coming!
I agree, Corrie has had to move with the times to survive and the past can be seen through rose tinted glasses. I get tired of the "Those were the good old days" when people comment on any Corrie episodes over 20 years old. I bet if the show went back to being what it was like 30 years ago people of today would moan like hell.
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