Tuesday, 15 July 2025

Coronation Street Episode Review Monday 14th July

MICK - CORONATION STREET - ITV 

There's gonna be a borstal breakout, as Sham 69 sang (or barked) many years ago. To be honest, I thought Soap Rules stated only one prison break per annum and we already had this year's, (Rob Donovan back in January). Anyway, Mick gets a job in the laundry, which somehow means he can make an escape (let's just gloss over the details) and he's back on the street and looking for his kids (originally, I thought he might be on the lam because he heard about the Oasis gigs and wanted to be at Heaton Park).

Brody has already gathered Shanice, but Joanie has gone off to a taster day at Weathy High, where she's immediately bullied by Hope, who has a conspiracy theory that the whole Michaelis family hates gingers. First Ches, then Craig, now Gary. She's worried for her mum (Ben Stokes and Jannick Sinner should go into hiding). Meanwhile Mrs Crawshaw, sporting a fetching blonde bob, is pretty much begging Daniel to return to the school, which I presume means the STC set is being dismantled (and that Crawshy's midlife crush on Dannyboy has not faded with time).

The two stories collide as Mick invades the school looking for his eldest daughter and Sam, who has become an adolescent over night and Lily, who is a completely different person now, hide in a classroom. La Crawsh and Daniel are locked in the head's office and can't stop Mick, but Joanie has already gone home and is hanging out with Sally and Izzy in the factory. He heads there and Sally, hearing him in the foyer, takes Joanie up onto the roof. Once again, I implore Carla to get a keypad installed on the front door. Also the back door shouldn't be locked - fire regs! Anyway, Kit is now stalking Mick and seeing Sally and Joanie on the factory roof, he follows Mick up there where they fight and Kit is stabbed. He goes to get his daughter and Sally meets him with a crowbar.

Sally acknowledging her weaker physical prowess, shows her stronger mental/emotional power and talks him into giving himself up. Now that Gail and Eileen are gone and Rita and Audrey only in a few episodes per month, Sally is now the true matriarch of the street and it can't be long before The Girls #2 are ensconced permanently in the conservatory.

In the meantime, Jess tells Lou that she can't be released on bail because she is a flight risk, due to Mick's escape. I presume Jess is now going to get all the copper scenes that Craig once had (maybe she'll graduate to being a fully formed character a la Swain?)

It was all quite exciting but I do wonder if the Michaelis's needed to be on t'cobbles for at least a year before this denouement. Mick was shaping up to be a Phelan-style baddie but everything has played out very quickly. I wonder if Joe Layton, who has an impressive resume, was required on set somewhere else and so the storyline had to run over 5 months only. Also, given Corrie's recent flop at the Soap Awards, I wonder if these EastEnders style storylines are even worth it. Corrie's competition is not Emmerdale or 'Enders but reality shows like Love Island or true crime. Young people don't watch soaps and I wonder whether TPTB should stop trying to appeal to them and just produce continuing drama for their core audience of middle aged and old people, who still watch regularly scheduled terrestrial TV. Corrie is based on humour, pathos,and bathos, not gangsters, issues and voiceovers. Characters should drive the drama and the drama should draw out and enrich the characters - it shouldn't be social issues steering the drama. I mean, if I had to guess, I'd say more people enjoyed the Toyah/Leanne/Nick love triangle than, I dunno, Summer having diabetes.

Here's what I think Corris should do to keep viewing figures (none of it will win any gongs at the Inside Soap Awards, but they didn't win any anyway!):

Ramp up the camp. I'm not saying they should abuse Jonathan Harvey's, Damon Alexis Rochefort's or Nessah Muthy's human rights and tie them to a table so they can write every episode, but at the same time I'm not not saying that.

Older characters having a natter.

Fewer gangsters.

Bring back older characters (I loved seeing Julie and Jason again).

More love triangles. Everyone loves a love triangle.

Give Michael a storyline.

Give Glenda a love life.

Don't neglect characters otherwise they will leave (Aadi, Beth, Bobby).

More Brian.

Fewer Very Special episodes. Corrie doesn't need flashbacks or weird camera angles. 

More dysfunctional family time. People still remember the Barlows at the AA meeting or The Trifle Incident.

Introduce new characters more slowly. It feels like Kit, the Michaelis clan and Theo (and family) have been in every ep since they were introduced. 

More of what creates a consistent world: Zombesi on TV, the ongoing olive situation at the Bistro, remembering Monday is quiz night. 

Rachel Stevenson - on bluesky 






8 comments:

Sharon at A Quick Read said...

I don't want to come across all Mary Whitehouse but wasn't the violence a bit OTT for an 8 pm broadcast? But I'm one of the middle aged viewers mentioned in this piece. Maybe that's the level of violence that's the norm these days in a soap. I've said my piece about the new lily on another thread.
Lou and Mick are leaving but will the kids stay? The guy who plays Brody is a good actor. if he does, I expect we'll see a sudden transformation of his character into a good guy.

Gorgeousness Inc said...

Thanks Rachel for a good write up. I agree with all your points. Let the character "ease in" more. A new audience will always come to Corrie, just like we did, watching it with their grandparents. Then one day it just becomes a habit. Not all storylines will grab you, some will, some won't. I've said before that Corrie needs less medical and police stuff. A touch here and there is fine. We have the pub, the factory, the garage, the shop and 3 eateries, not to mention all the front rooms, this is where things should be happening. Mundane stuff with a funny twist is what most of us want to see; gossip and tiffs. Then every now and then a Pat Phelan or John Stape to really stir things up. Jack Duckworth was a great example of writing and acting. Picking up glasses in the pub, bickering with Vera, talking to his pigeons, quintessentially Northern.

Anonymous said...

Not mentioned in this post but here in Canada the Todd/Theo/Millie storyline is currently playing out as one of the most ridiculous and implausible in Coronation Street history. It has gone from ridiculous to absurd - like one of the worst storylines from the worst of American soaps. This is a typical working-class. neighbourhood? Yeah, right.

We know what a wealth of screenwriting talent there is in Britain (we get BritBox!). It was no such writer who delivered this up to a disappointed audience.

Anonymous said...

This piece pretty much nails the problems and the issues.

Anonymous said...

Brody is clearly being set up as yet another reformed bad boy. So predictable.
Trying to make Mick sympathetic as a loving father was rubbish. The girls are terrified of him because he is violent to Lou. Saying he would never hurt his daughters is meaningless. But well done, whoever wrote Sally's lines for her confrontation with Mick.
As for new Lily, do we need a new actress to turn her into a bully like Hope? Will she no longer be a football prodigy?

Anonymous said...

Hope the daughter of a murderer, Lily the daughter of a murderer (Kylie killed Callum) and someone who was murdered, Sam whose mother was murdered, and Jake whose father was attempted to be murdered by Joanie's mother, whose father also killed police officer Tinker....and finally Ruby whose mother was an abuser and who tried to murder (was it Fiz or Tyrone)..yeah, these kids could use some new life models!!!
So should any of these kids bully Joanie (especially HOpe, who almost killed her little brother's mother in a fire)...sigh....What a street to live on, the poor kids don't stand a chance

Sharon at A Quick Read said...

We also have The kabin, but we hardly ever see it.
People used to nip in for The Gazette and a natter but they don't seem to do that now, for some strange reason.
The police station, hospital and jail sets are used more - which says it all, really.
I see Bethany is returning, plus Eva and Dev.
But we're losing Billy, Aadi, Lou and Mick. I see there's a persuasive piece in Inside soap mag to keep Lou. I'd like to see her stay a bit longer.
It'll be be good to see familiar faces.

Anonymous said...

Bethany, no thanks. I doubt Eva will stay long because she's been successful in other rĂ´les.
Aadi will be a great loss. Why doesn't Asha tell him the rest of the conversation with Amy that he overheard and misinterpreted? Or was Amy talking to someone else? I get so confused.
We're well rid of Billy, Mick and Lou. Nasty Summer should go with Billy.
Sadly we will be stuck with Brody, Kit and interfering Bernie.
I don't want Gary going back to the dark side either but that's obviously the plan. Eastenders on the cobbles - noooo!

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