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Monday 18 February 2013

Brian Packham to leave Coronation Street

There's a Coronation Street 'exclusive' in today's Sun that says Peter Gunn, who plays Brian Packham in Coronation Street, has been sacked by new Corrie producer Stuart Blackburn.
Peter, who first appeared in Weatherfield in April 2010, will leave the cobbles later this year.

There's a bit of a blurb from Mr Curry Sauce but sadly, the news is confirmed in the Sun's story by ITV as follows:

A Corrie spokesman said last night: “Peter will leave at the end of his current contract. The decision is purely storyline-driven. Peter is a great actor who has made the character of Brian Packham a joy to watch.”

I'll be sad to see him go, will you?  And what will happen to poor Julie? She loves him to bits!

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27 comments:

Frosty the Snowman said...

Sorry to hear this. Although a buffoonish character he was popular enough in the John Stape saga to be brought to the front as a character. How much more heartbreak can poor Julie suffer? I sincerely hope the new producer is not going to sack characters which still have potential while carrying on and on the dead wood that seems to escape the culls time after time.

njblas said...

Agreed Frosty! Rob, Tracy and Stella would all be ahead of Brian if I was drawing up a hit-list.

Digger said...

What a waste. A character with such rich potential, played with flashes of brilliance and excellent comic timing, and the producer decides to get rid for "storyline-driven" reasons? I think I'd rather sack the storyliners then! They appear to be content to rehash the same tired old drivel while Brian is sent Packhaming. Their picnic on the Red Rec was Corrie gold and there could have been much more of that to mine if they'd had any sense.

Humpty Dumpty said...

Sorry to see Brian go and they could have done so much with Brian and Julie. If tptb think Tracy's storylines are hilarious and worth keeping then this bunch of writers all need sacking. Terrible waste of talent.

Mary Prankster said...

When I think of all the problems in schools today, (e.g. bullying, racial tensions, immigration problems, ADHD, autism, blended families, etc. etc.) with both young and older children, then think of all the kids currently on the street who could be used, along with their families, to explore some of these issues, it seems to me Brian's character could have been used so much more profitably than he has been. The fault certainly isn't with the actor, but with the creators of the storylines! I hope Mr. Blackburn does a better job with his priorities than this in future.

Beth said...

He is a bit of joke of a headmaster though - doesn't come across in all seriousness as a head figure and Bessie Street Junior School isn't somewhere I'd like my children to go to school :) That story regarding the healthy eating with Kylie when all the while he was stuffing his face with pie and chips. It was a bit silly and forced.

I think he was brought in to be a cross between Derek and that twerp that used to be in the shop years back, Reg Holdsworth, but it didn't quite work out imho. And I think that they were hoping that he and Julie would become a Corrie couple that would go down in history.

He's not one of my fav's, too bufoonish and silly, could work if he wasn't the headmaster. Comedy is how Craig plays it :)

Having said all that there are others that should go before him.... Tracy, Ryan, Stella, Tracy, Katy, Michelle, Jenna, Tracy, Mandy, Sophie, Tracy Paul the fireman oh and Tracy!!!

David said...

If this is the new producer's decision then this doesn't bode well. Brian is very much in the classic mould of Corrie character, but not written very well. He needs better writers, not the axe. For deadwood look no further than Paul Kershaw, who truly adds nothing to the show.

Anonymous said...

A character who had lots of potential but was let down by poor storylining. - Micky

Tvor said...

Aww that's awful. As everyone else has said, he's a great character. I wonder if this is anything to do with the timing of Katy Cavanagh's maternity leave? That might be the story driven thing?

Anonymous said...

I quite like Brian and there are certainly other characters I would like to see the back of before him.

That dreadful Leanne is top of my list.

Cobblestone said...

Awfully hard on the actor if a colleague's pregnancy has led to his losing his job. I too think it's a great waste. All quality drama is character-led not story-led. Great stories arise naturally out of great characters. As Thamas Hardy said, 'Character is Fate'. There are many Brian scenes that I've greatly enjoyed but generally feel that the writers have let him down ; as David says above, a potential classic character, poorly written.

rosepatch said...

Such a shame that he is leaving. He is obviously a talented actor, and could do so much more with the character with better writing. So many of the story lines seem to be based on who is sleeping with who, and being unfaithful to who. They eventually get found out, inevitably, and there is the very predicable choice of two or three endings. I appreciate that love affairs seem to be the bread and butter of soaps nowadays, but I think Corrie concentrates too much on this aspect, to the detriment of the programme.
Although Brian Packham is a buffoon he is a perfect match for Julie and has had some good storylines.
If they want to cut the salary costs there are others that can be easily dispensed with, such as St Ella, Tracey, Leanne, Sophie, Tracey.

Anonymous said...

Another example of the writers not knowing what to do with a comedic male character. It's like the Eddie Windass departure all over again - they'll probably give Julie a personality transplant like they did with Anna. I bet Sean will ALWAYS be there though, how he continually escapes the axe is beyond me!

Anonymous said...

Brian, as a headmaster, had all the credibility of a 40 stone personal trainer. I don't know if this was a good decision, because of the insult that Brian is to every teacher in the land or a bad one taken because a quirky character does not fit into plans for more sensational stories about sex and crime. I don't have a good feeling though.

Barrie.T said...

I would have sacked him too...I don't like actors that ham it up, reminded me too much of Reg Holdsworth. Julie is funnier with Eileen and Sean. I think that could get rid of Paul the fireman too. Karl & Eileen would be great together.

Anonymous said...

How utterly predictable of this show..take an interesting quirky character and turn him into a total buffoon. Don't fire the one character that the viewers hate to watch..Tracy Barlow..oh no..that might make sense. I don't get it but that's soapland.
Here's a few that could go

Sean
Tracy
Rob
Tracy
Dev
Tracy
did I mention Tracy??

Anonymous said...

A sensible move. Brian and Julie could have been the new Derek and Mavis but he wasn't in the same league as Peter Baldwin who could make you cry as easily as he made you laugh and the actors never seemed to have much chemistry. Gunn can only do broad comedy. He let down the miscarriage storyline by failing to match Katy Cavanagh's performance for emotional impact. The character is too much of a buffoon to be plausible as a head teacher, hasn't integrated into the street, and has contributed so little that he won't be missed for long. Julie would work better with someone else, or as a spinster for a while longer.

Stephen said...

I thought B Packham was a lovely character. Even if he was buffoonish, as some here have said, his scenes made a lovely, tension-relieving change from some of the drama we've seen.

Janice. said...

I never cared for him. Can't lie and say I will miss him.

Anonymous said...

This is a terrible decision. Both he and Julie have excellent chemistry and I had hoped to see the pair get wed and settle down as a couple. Very sad to see him go and I do wonder if there will be much point in Julie remaining on the Street herself as the relationship with Brian was the turning point for her character who never gets a lot to do.

Anonymous said...

He WAS alright, but they made him way too buffoonish for a headmaster.

Maybe he'll get a job offer and he'll take it once he discovers what a horrible judgemental bitch Julie is re: Tyrone. After the way she's behaved in that storyline, I won't mind a bit if she gets hurt by Brian's departure. I'll actually be kinda glad if it happens that way.

Ditto for Eileen - I hope she loses Paul for the same reasons cited.

~JB in Canada

Janice. said...

Just had a thought: Roy and Julie. Now that Hayley and Brian will be gone, I can see these two as a great comedic couple.

abbyk said...

Would that it were BRIAN the character who was being fired from his headmaster post, where he isn't believable, and PETER the actor had to develop his gem of a character as he sorts out a true midlife crisis. **sigh**

What about pointless, unbelievable, really out to still be in prison Tracy, and the smirking, one-dimensional, probably-more-expensive actress who portrays her?

Anonymous said...

If someone else had been axed I bet people on here would be moaning that it should have been Brian instead.He doesn't do much, and when he does he overacts it. He's no loss.

Anonymous said...

I wish it was Julie/Sylvia/Gloria instead. Get rid of those 3 and I'll be happy as Larry.

Anonymous said...

The minute they made a secondary geography teacher the headmaster of a primary school who gets to eat breakfast in the cafe and a pint at lunch in the rovers he had had it for me. He should have been a failed teacher who set up shop with Julie but instead he has been wasted. Good move I say Stuart, now get rid of Stella, Tracy-Luv, and Sylvia,. Mandy, Jenna, Sophie (for a bit), Paul and Dev. Notice how most of the 'wish list' are PC introductions?

Anonymous said...

I will shed no tears when Brian is gone. I never took to him anyway. He can Julie with him, she is always getting into everyone's buiness. I can't wait until Kirsty looses it with her. It couldn't happen to a nicer person. That Mary has got to go too and I wouldn't miss Tracy (it's getting very old with her mean tricks and lies). Why didn't they keep her in prison. Mandy and Jenna just don't fit in, especially with Lloyd. Bring back Cheryl.

GRITTY SAGAS BY CORRIE BLOG EDITOR GLENDA YOUNG, PUBLISHED BY HEADLINE. CLICK PIC BELOW!

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