How did you feel when you first heard about the storyline?
I am 100% behind this storyline and I understand why the programme wanted to do it with Aidan. Aidan is so loved and it appears everything is going well for him and on the surface he is happy. I believe this is what happened and it can be very hard to spot the signs that someone is struggling to the extent they are considering suicide. I feel it is important to highlight it in this way, because I really don't think it is talked about enough at all. Men do not talk as much as they should and this shows in the figures of the number of men who tragically have taken their own life.
Aidan and Shayne are men that people can identify with. If the storyline can encourage someone to speak out and talk about how they are feeling as a result of watching this story then surely that is a good thing.
Obviously I knew it meant the end of Shayne's time with Coronation Street and I was very sad that he was going to be leaving, but when you get to my age everyone in some way has been affected by suicide. There are several people that I know who have been lost to suicide and I think most people have had some experience of the tragedy of someone taking their own life.
Can soaps play a part in getting these messages across?
Soap are the perfect way to get this issue out there to ensure it's talked about. How often do you access information unless you are in the doctors or a community centre. But seeing something on television is more accessible and you only need to see the increase in men coming forward as a result of David's rape storyline to see the difference we can make. If we can use Coronation Street as a platform to highlight this issue then that is amazing.
Are you pleased to be part of this story?
I am so proud to be involved in the storyline and honoured that Kate Oates put her trust in Shayne and I and the rest of the Connor family to tell this story.
How did you feel about Shayne leaving the show?
We clicked from day one, and we have just been inseparable ever since, so personally I'm gutted that we're no longer working together, but I understand completely why this has happened. Whenever we had down time we just had a giggle. He is like my brother and he is such a team player, and no one has a bad word to say about him. He is such a gentleman and he looks after everyone, cast and crew. He is a genuine soul and I do feel lost without him.
What happens when Aidan comes round to see Eva at the cottage?
Eva doesn't know why Aidan has come to the house. She has previously told him about the baby and had hoped he would want to make it work, but his reaction was such that she backtracked and said it wasn't his child. Deep down he knew she was telling the truth, but he couldn't deal with it. Unbeknownst to her, he is struggling so much mentally that he just can't cope with the news. Wrongly, he thinks that everyone is better off without him, including his child.
When he comes to the cottage he knows, having seen the baby and witness Toyah's reaction, that Susie is his baby. She is shocked when he arrives, but hope starts to build within her and she believes he has come to see her because he wants to try and make a go of their relationship. She tells him that she loves him and he says he loves her. By the time he leaves her mind is racing and she is convinced he wants her back. She thinks she is going to have to tell Toyah she wants the baby back. It is her dream come true and when she finds the engagement ring that he has left behind it seals it for her.
She has no idea what his real plan is and by the time she returns to the Street the next day she is too late and is devastated by what he has done.
They are very emotional scenes. What were they like to film?
The scenes asked for Eva to cry, but I didn't have to try. I replayed all the scenes we had ever played together in my head, all the wedding scenes, the lovely moments between Eva and Aidan and the tears just flowed. I enjoyed working with Shayne so much and I had all those memories to drawn on. The way the journey has been strutted is compelling and I didn't have to try and dig for those emotions, because they were already there. The scripts are beautifully written and it wasn't difficult to feel the emotion that Eva was feeling.
That said, they were incredibly tough to film, because it felt very real. Shayne's final scenes on his last day of filming were just the two of us out on location at the cottage and it was very emotional. We were both wiped out afterwards.
How did you and Shayne plan the scenes?
Shayne and I talked a lot about the storyline and how it would play out. We have worked so closely together for such a long time and known each other's characters inside out and we knew instinctively how we wanted to play it. Whenever we had spare time we rehearsed, because we wanted to put everything we had into those scenes.
Will Eva blame herself moving forward?
She believes she is responsible, but she is not to blame of course. However, she is riddled with guilt. The reaction of Eva and the Connors is so important in this story. We've been grieving and crying in pretty much every scene, and your body thinks that is real.
Eva's life is full of secrets and she is feeling terribly guilty. It is eating away at her because she has given away Aidan's baby and now she doesn't have either of them. She keeps thinking back to what they had together.
Is this one of the best storylines you have been involved in?
Yes, 100% and it's definitely the most important storyline we could be telling. This narrative began a year ago and to working on such an important story before I leave Coronation Street is a privilege and an honour.
If Aidan's storyline is resonating with you, there is help and support available now. Samaritans offers a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week helpline support service. Call them FREE on 116 123. You can also email jo@samaritans.org. Further information can be found at www.mentalhealth.org.uk.
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Before anyone says that this is how it happens in real life, that people cover up their problems and their suicide is a terrible shock, I totally, absolutely get that. What doesn't feel right about this storyline and the way Aidan commits suicide is that we, the audience, haven't had an inkling. We saw a fleeting scene of Aidan at a post box and tears after his operation which we, the audience, can see were signs now that they've been pointed out to us. OK, some viewers may have worked out what was going on but I'm guessing it's mostly the explanatory interviews which have made it clear. I'm disappointed in the *dramatic* handling of Aidan's suicide. Aidan is not the chap round the corner/in our family/colleague who took his life seemingly out of the blue, and we are not Aidan's fictional family and friends. I do think we should have had more signals that Aidan was seriously depressed - regardless of what happens in real life. They may say it wasn't a stuck-on exit but it feels like it. Aidan, as we've known him up till these interviews, was one to do a runner. Suicide is a serious issue but Corrie is a drama and needs to be authentic to the character.
ReplyDeleteBut isn't that supposed to be the point, that sometimes you never can tell and there are no signs? If there were noticeable signs, people would write on here asking why friends/family members arn't people taking any notice and trying to help him .I can see both sides, but I do feel this is a realistic way of portraying this sad storyline
DeleteMaricha:
DeleteI understand what you're saying. The fact that the audience sees Aiden at unguarded moments unlike the other characters would make it seem odd that we haven't really noticed anything the same way we knew David is reacting to his rape unlike other characters.
Still, I think the show is getting it right. We did get some subtle signs:we wondered why Aiden didn't appear keen to give Carla his kidney since he didn't look physically scared to do it. Viewers mentioned how Aiden didn't recover from that operation nearly as well as Carla (I even thought a medical complication was going to kill him). There were other hints here and there too, very subtle it's true but nonetheless there. Even the point you bring up about the fact Aiden looked more likely to be a runner in the past was a sign because why then was he passing on numerous opportunities to run? Eva dumping him, the factory loss, Carla initially refusing to help, Johnny not wanting to use his insurance money to restart the factory, the trouble with the racist would-be investors; those were all great reasons to pack up that Aiden ignored and it didn't make sense.
It's now that we know he planned to kill himself that his sticking around until Carla had her kidney and the factory was safe that makes his remaining instead of leaving more logical.
Short of having Aiden talking to himself about suicide, which would have been too heavy handed, we viewers got hints. It's just that as in real life, sometimes these hints mean something and sometimes they don't or everyone who wants to commit suicide could be detected and helped before they act.
Having lost my brother to suicide at aged 25 I will be giving this episode a miss when it airs in Canada. If it helps even one person then I am glad it was done.
ReplyDeleteIt is a shame though that most actors only get a good dramatic storyline when they are leaving.
ReplyDeleteJeanie (anon):
ReplyDeleteThis story line is way too sad for me--not just for Aidan, but for his father and sister. Not really sure of the point of it, since it doesn't seem plausible to his character or his actions, except that it will provide lots of follow-up drama for the characters who remain plus lots of eventual conflict over the baby when her true parentage is revealed. All this relentless pain and grief--culminating with a doting father finding his only son dead from suicide! Just too sad for me and not what I want to see on a soap I'm watching. Worse even than all Phelan's random killings because those are just preposterous.
I agree with Humpty that the suicide does not seem prepared for or in character with Aidan as he has been depicted. People might say--oh well that's the point; suicide can be so unexpected! That may be true but I believe in the majority of cases, the person does have a history of depression or shows suicidal type behaviour (over a period of longer than 2 days!) or they give numerous signs of what's going on in their heads. It's just that no one listens or takes them seriously; or they're so socially isolated that there is no one to hear or care. But in Aidan's case there has been almost nothing to suggest he is suicidal or depressed and his personality as depicted was always very upbeat and positive; no apparent history of depression or mental illness.
So, I'm not sure that Corrie is really raising awareness (as they claim). Because the point surely is that you want to raise awareness to help people who are showing they're suicidal, so people take them seriously and give them the help they need. Unlike Aidan who shows no signs of being suicidal till the directors need to write him out and then they give him 2 days of suicidal behaviour. You can't really help someone who doesn't actually show any indication that he is suicidal.
I can only respectfully suggest you haven’t been paying full attention, Jeanie. In our house we’ve been asking for months ‘What’s going on with Aidan?’ There have been many tells, most obviously his crying after the successful transplant (it was clearly not tears of relief), and his less-than-ecstatic reaction to Carla giving him the Faktry. Shane Ward has played a lot of scenes with a smile on his face but sadness in the eyes, indicating Aidan was putting on a front.
DeleteAgree with you Cobblestone. I have been thinking for a while now that Aiden was not happy. I remember another scene when this seemed so. After he bought Sophie's van they had a cup of tea together and he seemed sad when she said she had to go. It was like he really wanted someone to talk to.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Jan and Cobblestone, sorry Jeanie. We've been having an ongoing "What's up with Aidan?" discussion at work around the water cooler. Although none of us ever suspected this. I think Cutie are right going down the subtle road of shock here. Not everyone who takes their own life, shows suicidal tendencies
DeleteAgree with Cobblestone. I knew something was wrong with Aiden from the way he was acting - his crying and interaction with the dr when talking about the surgery. I thought perhaps he knew he was dying. I knew something was wrong but just wasn’t sure what.
ReplyDelete