What goes around, comes around. One positive of a show like Corrie airing for sixty plus years is it can draw on its rich history and back story. It's not just casual mentions of characters like Bet or Mavis, but it's also how stories we saw twenty years ago inform the actions of characters today. It means you can see characters' personalities shift and develop - and you can see them become what they fear the most. Tracy, for example, looked absolutely terrified throughout her time at Amy's side in the hospital - no doubt because she remembered how a bad drug experience in a nightclub changed her life forever back when she was 18.
Leanne went off on one about Jacob's crimes as a drug dealer and how she didn't want him anywhere near her or her family. Is this the same Leanne who we've seen on Classic Corrie the last couple of months getting off her face on cocaine and cosying up to drug dealers? Yes. Yes it is.
And David, the gold standard of wayward teens, the original child from hell, is being forced to deal with an equally unpleasant son as Max leaves a trail of destruction throughout Wethy High. We all turn into our parents in the end. There's something delightful about seeing it happen to Corrie's former wild children in real time.
This week, however, he announced he was going straight to Canal Street once the Rovers closed, and all became clear. Sean does have a sex life, except it's so filthy, so disgusting, so debauched, there is no way they can show it on ITV of a weekday night. Oh, he might have turned up at the factory next morning with an innocuous story of what he'd got up to, but this was him self-censoring so he didn't frighten the straights. Sean spends his nights being passed around at the raunchiest sex clubs, poppered up, barely pausing for breath, as he becomes the Gay Village's Good Time Had By All. That's why he doesn't look for a boyfriend any more - he can't be trapped by tedious notions of monogamy and loyalty. From now on, I will be imagining that Sean is wearing a full leather harness and studded thong under every outfit he wears on screen. And now, so will you.
It's Nan vs Nan. Katy's mum Linda made a return to the show, years after her last appearance, to remind Chesney and Gemma that it is possible to occasionally brush your hair and look nice. Linda is played by Jacqueline Leonard, who I mainly know as the mum of Joe "be still my beating heart" Wicks on EastEnders in the 90s. No, not the overactive PE teacher Joe Wicks - this one:
Joe suffered from schizophrenia, and I'm sort of hoping Linda will break out her EastEnders catchphrase "Joe! You're rocking!" on little Joseph. She'd nipped in on the way back from a six week retreat in Belize to visit Weatherfield, but surprisingly didn't immediately go into a coma from the culture shock. She was quickly appraised of the whole Joseph situation and turned on Bernie; Bernie, for her part, fought back over an afternoon tea. I know we should be on Bernie's side because she's the permanent member of the cast but we learned that Bernie pronounces "scone" with a long o while Linda correctly pronounces it "skon" so frankly I'm torn.
I bring this up because we were very ostentatiously informed this week that Geena is struggling and really Sally should go and see her for a few weeks to make sure she's alright. This is presumably to cover Sally Dynevor taking part in Dancing On Ice; ITV don't want her doing both shows at the same time in case she breaks an ankle and wrecks filming on Corrie. I understand that, but couldn't she simply disappear like Simon did? We don't need a whole storyline about it. After all, this week Amy was at death's door in hospital, and even when she returned home to number 1 Ken didn't bother turning up to check on her. This forces us to think about Geena again, and I was quite happy forgetting she ever existed, thank you very much. Instead they could've sent Sally upstairs to listen to her tapes for a month or two and we'd never have noticed.
Stalk and stalk again. We should really give Lydia some credit. Ok, yes, she's clearly off her rocker. I loved all those ITV press releases saying viewers were "shocked" to learn she was Adam's stalker, even though she's had DEMENTED written across her forehead right from her very first appearance. She made Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction look like a model of understated feminist iconography. (Incidentally, there's still time to catch Kym Marsh in Fatal Attraction: The Play at a theatre near you; presumably in this version she doesn't get shot in the bathtub but instead the Michael Douglas character admits she was right all along and apologises for ever disagreeing with her).
There was sadly no time to mention Imran and Toyah getting engaged, mainly because the author is crying into a glass of chardonnay and singing "It Should've Been Me" at top volume. Please send caring thoughts via Twitter @merseytart.
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9 comments:
Not a chance, Scott, when every breathing female is also crying into their chardonnay.
Sally is not going to have a time off to do dancing on ice, she has already said that.
But the baby will also have Audrey's gene, so it wouldn't be too bad.
The Lydia storyline might work if any part of it was believable. Her son is too young to be Adam's so obviously she's had relationships in the 15 years since Adam. Maybe she's picking off the men who let her down. And maybe that's why she's so expert at what she does. Is this Adam's exit storyline when he and Lydia die in a burning car crash? And her kid? Minor detail.
Great post Scott, made me chuckle. Missed your post last week!
I like Linda, I hope she stays and gets it together with Dev. It's good to have a strong actress on the show and I like the way she's not a chav, like the Winter- Brown family.
I assume she's split from Owen. She's more suited to him than Bernie was. Although there's mentions of Izzy, there's no mention of her other grandson, Jake.
I must admit that I'm not that bothered what Sean does on Canal street!
Yes, I would have thought that Ken would have expressed concerned about Amy, but he didn't seem to be around, and no -one gave a reason for his absence.
Wouldn't Ken and Elaine make a nice couple?
It was mentioned about Jake and Izzy by Linda. I would love to hear about Sean's antics down Canal Street, to remind me of wonderful night's out there
Scott, your comment about singing 'It should have been me" made me laugh out loud! Cheers, I always look forward to reading your blog.
Linda split from Owen when Izzy and Katie were small. Think she abandoned them. then reestablished contact a few years back.
Agree that Linda is more classy than Bernie. (Who isn't?) She was also remarkably understanding about Joseph running away, but we all know what's coming.
Sharon Stone was in Fatal Attraction, not Glenn Close.
It was Glenn Close
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