It's publication day today of the brand new Christmas on Coronation Street book. And we have a wonderful interview with the author of the book Maggie Sullivan which I hope you will enjoy too. Our thanks go to Maggie for her wonderful words...
Tell us all about your new book “Christmas on Coronation Street”
"This book delivers exactly what it says on the tin. It features Coronation Street and some of its well-known characters – and a few more characters besides – from Christmas 1937 to the Manchester Blitz just prior to Christmas 1940. Apart from the plumbing, the street itself bears many similarities to the street as we knew it in the 1960s when it first came to our TV screens.
It was enormous fun to write. At times it just seemed to write itself. I particularly enjoyed getting to know the new characters, Elsie’s friends and family who never actually made it to our screens.
ITV were very supportive throughout the process. It was agreed at the beginning who the main character would be and ultimately ITV approved all the Coronation Street characters that were included in the book. Their involvement and encouragement are invaluable.
Will fans recognise the Coronation Street they know and love from TV when they’re reading the prequel or is it set in a completely different world being so far back in time?
The book is set in a different world, and thankfully nowadays we have a few more mod cons, but apart from the indoor plumbing and the number of cars that are now on all the roads, I think the street is recognisable. There was none of Vera’s stone cladding of course, and inside the houses have all been modernised since the time the book is set, but the outside appearance is still recognisable.
Is there an Ena Sharples type of battleaxe in the book or any other character types we might recognise?
Ena Sharples herself appears, and is very recognizable, and Annie Walker can have a sharp word or two to say to Elsie.
When you were writing the book, were you still watching Coronation Street on TV at the same time? Did that bring any challenges?
Yes, I am still watching, but the current story lines offer no fresh insight into the characters I am writing about. I just enjoy them for who they are. But each of the Coronation Street houses has a history of characters who have gone before and it is interesting to think about how the positions of the current occupants have evolved.
There’s a second book coming next year called ‘Mother’s Day on Coronation Street’, can you give us a teaser of that one?
All I can say is look out for Annie Walker and the fascinating life she had before she came to our screens. This story goes back to the 1920s and ends in 1944 when the end of the Second World War is in sight.
With your passion for writing, do you have any other writing projects on the go at the moment?
I am primarily a writer, so I’ve always got projects on the go, including a third Corrie book to be released some time next year. So watch this space...
Christmas on Coronation Street is out today in hardback, for Kindle and audio book too.
Order it here on Amazon.
The audio book is even narrated by an ex-Corrie actress. Find out who it is!
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