Coronation Street Blog: Corrie uses kissing doubles for Alina and Tyrone's snog

Coronation Street bosses have revealed the secret to how Tyrone and Alina managed to ‘kiss with confidence’ in tonight’s episode (Fri 19th).

Millions of viewers were shocked to see the loved up pair share a secret kiss on a bench in Victoria Gardens and many were left wondering how the soap filmed such a close contact scene during the pandemic.

Now we can reveal that the scene was filmed using a real life couple as kissing doubles.

To avoid contact between the actors and to adhere to the UK’s social distancing guidelines, regular Corrie extra Alex Mulvaney and his wife Hannah stepped in to the roles of Tyrone and Alina to film the scene.

The action was filmed outside on the memorial bench on the Victoria Gardens set. However, Alan Halsall and Ruxandra Porojnicu were never seated on the bench together. The two actors were shot having the conversation separately and it was later composited together during post production to give the illusion that they were next to each other.

To make sure the actors had the correct eye line, Coronation Street’s design department taped a pair of sunglasses onto a telescopic radio aerial so the on-screen lovers could give the impression of looking into each other's eyes.

Alex and Hannah were then called in to kiss for real as the camera pulled back to see the couple in a clinch on the bench. Hannah had hair paint on the ends of her hair to make it look more like the character of Alina.

Alex Mulvaney said: “My agent said that Coronation Street needed extras who were in a support bubble and because I used to be an extra three times a week and they knew half of my family had done extra work on the show it worked out perfectly.

My partner, Hannah, hadn’t done any extra work before, but my agent knew she had dark hair like Alina’s so I asked her if she wanted to do it. Hannah was nervous at first, but she is a big Coronation Street fan. I had been on set many times before, and I was able to talk her through what to expect and she was a bit starstruck when she saw the actors.

I thought it was a really inventive idea, especially the sunglasses on the car aerial to keep the actors’ eyeline. Given what is going on in the world this was the best way to do it safely. It was a really enjoyable day and it was clear that all the cast and staff follow COVID rules strictly. The organisation and care taken is second to none.

I wasn’t nervous because I have done a lot of television work in the past and this wasn’t my first on-screen kiss. I love Coronation Street, but I tend not to watch it when I know I am going to be on it. I usually cringe, but the rest of my family will be watching.

My dad has been a regular on the cobbles and in the Rovers for forty-two years and he is still going strong. He pops up in Roys Rolls on occasions, now with my mum, brother and sister all joining as extras. It’s quite the family affair!”

Ruxandra Porojnicu, who plays Alina, said: "Filming the kissing scene under the covid restrictions where we had to keep two metres apart was definitely a challenge, but one as an actress I really enjoyed. It was difficult not being able to look into each other's eyes for the emotion of the scene but Coronation Street came up with a clever way to cheat that with sunglasses on an ariel. Everything that's been said in the scene leads to the kiss which is very important for Alina because it is the first time that she has said out loud to Tyrone that she is falling for him."

Producer Iain MacLeod explained: “For the most part, our brilliant writers, cast and crew have cleverly worked around the inability of our characters to get within two metres of each other. We have therefore told the same stories throughout the pandemic that we would have told in “normal” times. But it just felt wrong to tell a story of an illicit liaison, where someone betrays their partner based on lust and sexual attraction, only for us not to see any of the chemistry and closeness. Hence the smoke and mirrors here!”

And there's a behind the scenes video here.

Glenda Young

Author of gritty, family saga novels with Headline