After weeks of speculation and anticipation,
Tina McIntyre’s killer is finally revealed as none other than Rob Donovan, in
what was a truly sensational and gripping episode.
After entering to some playful boos, he spoke
of the “massive relief” that a handful of people now knew, revealing that the
storyline has been talked about since the end of October, and that a lot of
work and personal embargo has gone into keeping the huge secret. Marc was thoroughly engaging, interesting and passionate about the character of Rob, and I could have listened to him for hours.
Stuart Blackburn revealed that having
identified a dark edge to Rob’s character shortly after taking over at
Coronation Street, he has spent a long time looking for a story where he could back
him into a corner to see what he would do. Marc added that this is when Rob
will either lash out or do something that may appear pretty callous to others,
but is a means of protection in his eyes.
I’m told Rob will cover his tracks in many
different ways over the coming months. “He’s not a stupid man”, explains Marc,
“he knows where to point the finger, where to play the innocent, where to play
different parts that will protect him, to maybe cast shadows on to other
characters as well. This is the beginning of a massive new chapter for Rob so
there are a lot of changes.”
Rob isn’t your stereotypical cold blooded killer
and it was never his intention to kill Tina, but rather to protect Carla from
finding out about Peter’s affair. Marc reveals that the accidental and unplanned
murder has a massive effect on him, and pulls him closer to his roots and
family. “We go through that with Rob,” he explains, “it’s not just ‘Oh, he’s a
killer now, he’s a murderer!’ we actually see the through line of how he deals
with it psychologically.” He also promises a number of twists along the way.
Considering Rob’s good heartedness which has
been increasingly revealed in recent times, Stuart Blackburn tells us, “I would love it if people have sympathy
for the character of Rob”. He is against making simple judgements that fail to
take into account a person’s motivations, background or circumstances, and observes
“I suspect most people who end up killing people aren’t evil tyrants without a
conscience or morality, it’s much more interesting if for a few seconds on
screen you’re really with him and think, ‘no, no, no it can’t be’.”
It follows that Stuart impresses the importance
of remembering Rob and Carla’s tough upbringing at the hands of an
alcoholic mother and a succession of step-fathers. “They’ve come from a world
of violence”, he tells us “we can’t forget that behind the glamour.”
Both Stuart and Marc describe Rob as a man with
a conscience whose situation is far from straightforward. “This is not a black
and white storyline that takes us through to the end,” Marc tells us, “there
are a lot of grey areas which is why there are moments when hopefully from an
audience point of view they see Rob as a person not as a murderer.” What adds a
tragic dimension is that where Rob’s personal life is concerned, he’s probably never
been happier. I certainly felt a twinge of sadness that it was him, as he has really come out of his shell in recent times, and I find him both endearing and immensely likeable.
We’re assured that Rob does everything possible
to avoid being caught. But would he kill again
to cover his tracks? Stuart reveals, “It would depend entirely on the
circumstances. I think he’d do an awful lot to defend his sister and
increasingly, anything to defend Tracy.”
How about letting someone else go to trial? Marc tells us that “In order to
protect the people that are foremost to him, maybe he would do that, yeah,
which does bring out a callous side to him.”
He added, “It depends on who that person is,
and it depends on what they’ve done to him.” He talked of the theme of history
repeating itself, noting that the first time Rob went to prison involved an
incident in which he tried to help support his mother, and this time, his crime
is committed in an attempt to protect his sister.
Both Marc and Stuart agreed that Rob would
never betray Tracy,
but neither would go as far as to say whether or not he would confess to her. Marc
explained how Rob has seen a side of her that the audience haven’t necessarily
seen. “In their quiet time, in their downtime, she’s got a very loving side
with him,” he reveals, “It’s a genuine relationship and I think that’s the key
to why it works.”
While the notorious soap-killer is guaranteed
to be remembered, their continued presence in the programme is generally short
lived. Marc confesses that playing one did make him anxious for his future on
the show, but acknowledges that there is always going to be trepidation, and
it’s not something an actor should focus on. The character of Rob is the
longest part he’s played in 15 years of acting, and he feels very privileged to
be chosen from the cast to be such a huge part of this storyline.
Asked how he will react to potential negative
reactions from the public following the big reveal, he joked, “I think I’ll
even swim into work across the canal so no one can see me.” On a serious note,
he observed, “I can’t think about that too much, I think I’m going to have to
take it on the chin. I live a pretty low profile life anyway so I’ll just have
to find new techniques to hide away.” When it was pointed out that Tony appeared a popular
choice for Tina's killer, Marc joked, “I’m still wishing it was Tony.”
We’re assured that a massive twist lies in
store tomorrow night, and if the quality of tonight’s episode is anything to go
by, it promises to be similarly unmissable.
By Emma Hynes
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