As it's Valentine's Day, it's time to hark back to a wonderful blog post from Graeme (on Twitter @GraemeN82) who back in 2013 wrote about Coronation Street's happiest couples and what makes them so special.
And so, it's over to Graeme....
It being Valentine's Day got me thinking about romantic, fluffy stuff in Weatherfield and then I quickly realised there wasn't much to speak of. Even though I know it's all fictitious, i think it's a shame they can't portray more happiness in Coronation Street.
Most couples in Corrie are separated into two different categories. There are those who lurch from one outrageous disaster to the next (Nick and Leanne; David and Kylie; Peter and Carla; Steve and whoever).
And there are those who just seem to exist together because it's comfortable and despite faults on both sides, they're well and truly stuck with each other. Yes, that's you Ken and Deirdre Barlow! Normally when couples get together in Coronation Street and enjoy happy times or good fortune you know something disastrous is just around the corner.
Yes, I hear you cry! A consistently happy couple in Weatherfield would be tedious, dull and boring. I guess that is true, but I would love a bit of long lasting happiness for some of our Corrie couples for a change. Or at least a few more couples managing to fight through their troubles and stick together regardless. Too many break ups and musical beds, oh powers that be!
So who have been the happiest couples in Weatherfield in the past? Looking back, one couple stand out above all others. Stan and Hilda Ogden. Together on screen for twenty years, they never had much of anything and Stan was forever driving poor Hilda up the wall. However there was a strong bond between them that was only broken by Stan's death. There were never any huge romantic gestures between the two of them, but there were often touching moments and you knew they would never be apart. Similarly Jack and Vera Duckworth, very much the Ogdens' successors, shared an often unspoken love for each other which could be both touching and heartbreaking.
Are there any couples to rival the Ogdens or the Duckworths today? Probably the closest thing to enduring happiness on the cobbles today is the relationship between Roy and Hayley Cropper, however this image has now been tarnished as we know the partnership is to come to an end. I had hoped Audrey and Lewis would settle down long term, but sadly both the writers and Nigel Havers' pantomime commitments got in the way. No, for me there is one clear stand out happy couple in Weatherfield today - Rita and Dennis Tanner. 
I loved the touching story of Rita and Dennis finding each other after so many years. Although we don't see as much of them together as I would like, I think both characters have gelled and I love the idea of Rita being a Tanner after all her history with Elsie. I hope Rita and Dennis have a good few years together. So please writers, don't follow the pattern of Rita's previous partners. That means no motorway crashes on the way back from visiting a mistress. No Blackpool trams. No brain tumours. And finally, please don't turn Dennis into Alec Gilroy!
So do you think there should be more happiness on the cobbles? Who do you think are the happiest couples in Weatherfield?
I'm off to watch Stan and Hilda on their second honeymoon back in 1977. What could be better - a bottle of champagne, chocolate mouse and a borrow of Rita Fairclough's best nightie...
"What's that lipstick taste of?" All together now...
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7 comments:
The only happy couple I can think of at present is Tyrone and Fiz. And if the spoilers are true (I'm hoping not!) then even that is going to come crashing down. :(
If we're talking about long-standing relationships, Tim and Sally are for the most part happy. Let's face it, any couple can be happy or miserable depending on what the writers want. It also requires actors who want to stay long-term. Tyrone and Fiz might always stay together because Alan and Jennie show no signs of leaving permanently. I approve of this new move to let actors go off temporarily to do other things and then return. There are other happy couples but they are relatively new relationships.
I agree with Humpty about Tim and Sally. Johnny and Jenny seem happy together for the most part too. We're definitely supposed to believe that Peter and Toyah are a ~perfect match~ even though they clearly make no sense at all. Of all people, Steve and Tracy seem to be the happiest they've ever been together, though they are one of the newer couples. David and Shona also seem pretty stable together. Kathy and Brian seem to have nothing but fun together, to their credit. But the most inseparable of all: Aidan and his too-tight shirt.
What a waste the way they treated Dennis. He’s a classic character but was used as a one trick pony.
Back to today, it’s also a shame that they ruined Zeedan and Rana. He started so rough and unpleasant but really grew up and became likeable, esp once he and Rana married. She doesn’t have his depth but was getting some through a few friends and her role as a nurse. The Nazirs are fun to watch and they had plenty of room to grow. I know there are plenty of Kana fans but to me, that ‘ship just popped out of nowhere and has zero substance other than they are pretty and look awfully cute in their panties.
Dennis was always a shyster - especially when he was young, so it was not out of character for him to behave that way when they brought him back. It just sucks that Rita ended up as collateral damage with him.
Rana and Zee kind of popped out of nowhere too - and they were totally unsuited to each other. I'm not surprised they're having difficulties.
Over on ITV3 we're seeing Bet and Alec holding sway behind the Rovers' bar - and they feel like a real couple to me.
I'm a bit late with this I know, but I really want to sing the praises of Alf and Audrey. I've also been watching itv3 and they had a fantastic on screen relationship. As for today's couples, I guess Tim and Sally win there.
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