The Barlow family are critical to the continuing story of Coronation Street, the main family or number two family (depending on where your Platt loyalties lie) the family features heavily in this year's anniversary week.
As part of this 60th anniversary press day, I joined zoom to watch ITV's Nina Nannar chat with the Barlow boys; actors Chris Gascoyne (Peter Barlow), Rob Mallard (Daniel Osborne), and Sam Robertson (Adam Barlow)
The Barlow boys discussed the drama that's still to come, and what it’s like to be part of Ken’s enigmatic and often multi-faceted brood.
NN = Nina Nannar, CG = Chris Gascoyne, RM = Rob Mallard, SR = Sam Robertson
NN - Chris, how to do you feel about playing a character so fundamentally flawed?
CG - ‘ I love it. I love playing Peter. I don’t think so much about the character, I just play it. The writers do it very well, but he is troubled and seems to go from one thing to another but he is a survivor.'
NN - Did you see the drinking recurring again, where you told about it in advance, and where the 60th anniversary goes?
CG - 'Yes, we did discuss it. Every time he has a drink, he can’t keep saying; if you have another drink you could die - we had to finish this story at some point. After this, he will never be able to drink again. It's great that I started the show on the 40th anniversary and 20 years I’m still here and part of the 60th.’
NN - What do you think of Peter as a person?
CG - 'I understand him from instinct - I don’t understand the choices he makes but instinct, I do. When he does something to Ken or goes out to hurt Ken in some way, I find that hard and very difficult oddly, and I don’t know why.'
NN - Peter's relationship with Carla is cleverly written, and messy, you never know where they are going to go, do you?
CG - 'You never know which way they are going to go, from one scene to the next. If one of them is going to upset the other, you know, but again I like that. They can't live with or without each other, that’s what it's become. They deeply love each other but they aren’t good for each other, at all.'
NN - The anniversary storyline is very tumultuous for them, isn’t it?
CG - 'Yeah, it's a great storyline and a real test of their love and understanding for one another. Peter supported Carla through the psychosis, of course, so we will see what this one does.'
NN - This seems a good time to bring in Sam (Adam Barlow) for a chat. Do you like Adam as a character?
SR - 'Not always, He is quite cocky, arrogant and charmless and some scenes can be quite difficult to play, but, it's the job. I asked Kate Oates to bring in a bit of Baldwin charm, and it feels a lot more comfortable now.'
NN - How does it feel to be a part of the 60th anniversary storyline?
SR - 'It is very humbling actually to be part of this. A real enjoyment for me and a lot of pressure. Receiving the anniversary scripts is an honour - you feel you have to step up to the mark. Being part of the show on a massive anniversary is incredible.'
NN - It's a great anniversary storyline coming up. Let’s bring in Rob Mallard (Daniel Osbourne) now. Daniel is being brought into this storyline as a moral compass, somewhat?
RM - 'He stumbles into the story by accident. Like most things, he spots tiny bits of evidence and he strings it all together. Daniel is livid because of the brother code being broken and of this deceit.'
NN - Your character has been put through it in recent years, has it been tough to play the tragedy of Sinead’s death and being a single dad, etc?
RM - 'Yes, it's been brilliantly written, particularly Sinead’s death episodes, written by Ellen Taylor. It is tiring, but it's what you want to do and why you train to be an actor. It’s real-life for some people. Sometimes you feel like you're stomping around on other people’s experiences but we do offer something when people watch, it helps people, and it's never rushed, always a slow burner. Gruelling though.'
NN - What is the dynamic between the Barlow boys?
RM - 'It’s a bit different as Adam is older than me, yet I’m his Uncle, different dynamics but I think it works well and comes across on screen. It feels like that, and when I’m on set with Chris and Sam, Bill (William Roache) sometimes comes along and knocks our heads together.'
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In terms of quasi-incestuous bed-hopping, Carla’s snaring of Adam, whilst his Uncle Peter battled the booze, is atrocious behaviour. In terms of drama, however, it’s brilliant. I can’t wait to watch this drama explode across the Barlow/Platt clan
Any thoughts on what’s coming up?
I am @rybazoxo your cobble connoisseur!
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I am definitely the 'Platt' is the family of the cobbles. They all grew up, we all saw the kids and now the grandkids growing up. All of the Barlow boys grew majority of their childhood off screen, so they are family number 2 for me. :)
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