Episode Review Friday 23 January 2026

Good evening (or as appropriate).  Will has his big race today.  However there is bad news - Megan will not be there to watch him and later he finds a rival from Hull, Lee (Oscar Aldersley), is also participating and Lee always beats him - which happens again today.  It quickly transpires that Lee has also participated in the Megan Walsh Grooming Training programme and like Will enjoyed the additional benefits which Megan provides to her charges as he tells Will later at the bus stop after Megan has told Lee that she is now with another teacher at the school and he must stop pestering her.  Lee can see that Megan was just using him now, Lee insists to Will that he is not lying about it.  However Sam overheard their loud exchange concerning Miss Walsh and her morals from where he was just inside the kebab shop.  He looks concerned by what he has just heard.  

All is not well at the Metcalfe residence with Tim earlier consuming a sausage butty at Roy's rolls rather than Sally's muesli and similar rabbit food after his shift ended.  Jodie tells him Sal sounds a right nag and he needs to grow a pair.  Nina is having a mare - flying solo and no stock.  Jodie volunteers to take over whilst Nina gets some stock as it cannot be that difficult to make a few cups of coffee and she has a lot of experience.  Within minutes she cannot open the till, although it magically works for Carl who pays for Leanne's coffee and then the smell indicates that his cheese toastie is over cooked.  Carl and Jodie have a discussion and she soon guesses that he is the bad boy in town which is quickly confirmed when Abi comes in.  Later Jodie and Carl resume their conversation in the Rovers.  They leave together with a promise to see each other later.  Carl also tells Abi that she should be scared of him.  

Carla is working from home and is not planning to get dressed and Sarah is running the factory today.  Betsy is off to the shops as she explains that whilst she is glad to see them back together she feels she needs a pair of noise cancelling earphones given the paper thin walls in these modern houses.  This is demonstrated when we hear Sally remonstrating with Tim over his bacon butty.  Lisa takes a glass to listen more closely.  As Betsy goes she lets Sally in with some misdelivered post.  Carla makes the mistake of asking if Sally is alright and before they know it Sally is delivering a complete list of all the things every husband does but Tim does to the nth degree because all wives have to remind them of that at very frequent intervals, usually three to five times a day on a good day and every few minutes on an average day.  Carla is not happy that her plans have been disrupted.  After the initial few minutes of Tim's Carla excuses herself and calls Tim.  Lisa opens a bottle of wine.  Carla tells Tim that Sal is upset, she needs to be collected and Tim needs to bring flowers which he soon does and all is well again.  Lisa and Carla are contemplating ascending the stairs when Betsy returns.  

As a reminder on Thursday Jodie told Shona a complete cock and bull story ripped off from a fellow group attendee about controlling partners.  Shona swallowed it wholesale and so has decided to find out why by tracking down her (Shona's) dad.  David thinks it is a bad idea.  Shona is going to start with the pub where her father used to drink.  Shona wants answers and if she does see him she does not want Jodie to know.  

Summer is having a difficult time.  Nina made her go to the pub but Carl came in and Summer blames the Webster family for the loss of Billy when we all know that Harrison Theo is to blame (he is away trying to make his marriage work in Ambridge as his wife thought he had bottled someone).  Summer insists that Nina leave her on her own.  She keeps phoning Bill's phone to listen to the voicemail  Billy had left her asking her to call him back - a message from Weatherfield's answer to Richard Chamberlain which he admits is before anyone's time (Thorn Birds 1983).  She cries as she plays it repeatedly.  

Best Line of the Night:

Eva has decided she needs some new shoes from the new shoe shop - after all it is not like she has a lot of shoes like Imelda Staunton is it?  Ben thinks she might have confused Imelda Staunton and Imelda Marcos.  

For some reason (with modern technology who actually knows why) ITVX had no subtitles tonight.  So this episode was brought to you courtesy of YouTube to whom I offer my thanks.  I know that ITV has always made Coronation Street as half hour blocks but for some years has played them out as hourly programmes.  I think I prefer them being shown as half hour episodes as there is less to digest and the hooks to make you watch the next segment (as there is only one rather than three) feel less intrusive.  I still wish the pace would slow, add more humour and characterisation.  We had a little of that tonight with Tim's allegedly to provide the comedy - after all calling Sally Karen was hardly nice was it?  

Written by John Kerr.  Directed by Matt Hilton.

There were one or two Hilton touches tonight - a shot in a locker room and I gather the closing shot was slightly special - but I am not a technical expert.

Kosmo

@Kosmo100

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