Coronation Street Blog: august 1997

Showing posts with label august 1997. Show all posts

Saturday, 27 November 2021

The Week In Classic Corrie

MONDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 30th August and 1st September 1997

The daughter of Sidney Templeton, Maud's fiance, turned up at the Rovers wanting a word. She was unhappy that she was getting £10,000 off him when his own flesh and blood had been cut out of the will. Maud felt guilty and was about to hand over her inheritance when Blanche intervened: the paper said he'd left £60,000 in his will in total. Steve went off in his van to Amsterdam. He'd swapped cigarette smuggling for something a bit dodgier at the behest of Stephen Graham's Lee. Jim was unhappy, and when Lee showed up in the Rovers, he told him so. They began to argue so Vinny - a drayman who was giving Natalie a hand while Jack was ill - threw them out. Ashley's birth mother Kathleen appeared in Freshco's, buying meat off him without admitting who she was. When Fred saw her he was terrified. He talked to her and she confessed she was now curious about her long-lost son, so Fred told Ashley she lived in Greater Manchester and it was up to him if he wanted to get in touch. Spider told Emily he was going out with Toyah and she was horrified, pointing out he was ten years her senior and she was barely out of school. He said he was doing nothing wrong, so Emily challenged him to prove that was what he really thought - by telling Les.

TUESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 3rd and 5th September 1997

Vinny got bad news from Nuttall's Brewery, who pointed out that he couldn't be a drayman for them and a potman in the Rovers at the same time. Natalie decided to employ him full time - meaning she'd have to get rid of Jack. Steve received a payment for the dodgy goods from Amsterdam, and Jim kicked off, until Steve revealed it wasn't drugs he'd brought back from Holland - it was a dog called Polly. Maud called Sidney's daughter and told the moneygrabber to get lost. She was going to spend his ten grand flying to the Far East to scatter his ashes, and she invited Emily along. Spider and Toyah told Janice about their relationship and while she wanted her daughter to be happy, she told her not to tell Les or there'd be hell to pay. Ashley got Fred to take him to Oldham to see Kathleen, but he couldn't bear to go inside. It was like that episode of Friends where Phoebe went looking for her dad, except nobody ran over a dog. Ashley eventually decided he was happy with the mother he had and didn't need another. And Alison's mum turned up to talk to her, but she brought up her dead sister again; Alison pushed her out the door and told Kevin she only needed him now.

WEDNESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 6th and 8th September 1997

Maxine's mate Melanie returned with some news: she'd decided to marry her awful fiance after all, so she wanted her wedding booking back off Maxine. Maxine, of course, being the Bride From Hell, refused point blank. Vera realised Jack had lost his job at the Rovers and worried that he'd take the news badly. It turned out he was perfectly fine with it though, confessing he didn't think he was any use to anyone any more. Meanwhile, Vera asked Tyrone to look at her car; for some reason the door was sticking, and he thought it was out of alignment. Remember that, it'll be important later. Alison took the girls out for the day but was late back. Kevin realised he didn't know where she was and admitted to Sally he was worried. He told her about Alison's maybe-murderous past and the two of them started panicking. Alison soon returned; she'd been getting an astronomically hideous professional photo of her with the girls taken as a present. I hope Kevin still has it in the loft somewhere. When she realised he'd been worried she'd done something to the girls, Alison felt betrayed; she handed him her engagement ring and left.

THURSDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 10th and 12th September 1997

Danny had been on a disappointing dirty weekend with Sharon and he told Sally so. He admitted he had more fun with her than with his girlfriend, and when it came down to it, he still wanted to be with Sally. Blissfully ignorant, Sharon told her all about her great sex life, and how she wanted Danny to move in with her. Alison refused to go back to Kevin, saying he clearly didn't trust her. She bid goodbye to Rosie and Sophie and moved out of the flat. Kathleen turned up at Freshco's again and introduced herself to Ashley. He was upset, since he'd decided he didn't want her in his life; he told her his real mum was the woman who brought him up and that was that. Meanwhile Maxine was so busy faffing about panicking about not having a bridesmaid she barely paid his emotional torment any mind. What a catch she is.

FRIDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 13th and 15th September 1997

Natalie held a farewell party for Jack in the Rovers, presenting him with a silver tankard to mark the end of an era. Tyrone also had a gift for him: his favourite pigeon, Fergie, stuffed and mounted. Jack was shocked but hid it well. Tyrone returned to the garage and Kevin told him and Jim that he'd been talking to Natalie, and she'd decided they had to be fired because the profits were down. However, he was lying, and when Natalie found out she was getting the blame she lost it with him. He admitted he was in a nark because Alison had left him, apologised, and gave the boys their jobs back. It was the Battersby's wedding anniversary and of course Les had forgotten. In an attempt to bring back the romance Janice cooked a posh dinner for him, but she made the mistake of letting slip that Toyah was going out with Spider. Les barrelled over to the cafe and attacked Spider, telling him he'd break his legs if he didn't stay away. Sharon asked Danny to move in with her, but he not only said no, he broke things off with her. She was left an emotional wreck, sobbing in the middle of the Kabin and asking Sally for advice. Sally shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

Next week's Classic Corrie will be a good old mix of tragedy and happiness. Although if he's honest, the tragedy will cheer @merseytart right up.

Classic Corrie is on ITV3 weekday afternoons and is also on the ITV Hub.

All original work on Coronation Street Blog is covered by a Creative Commons License

Sunday, 31 January 2021

The Week In Classic Corrie

MONDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 18th and 20th August 1997

It was Jack and Vera's ruby wedding anniversary and the rest of the Street joined them in the Rovers to celebrate. They handed out free first drinks but Alec kept a tab on who got one so he could charge the Duckworths for it later. Gail made up with Sally and invited her to the pub. She enjoyed herself - until Natalie and Kevin turned up. Sally lost her temper and called her a hypocrite for celebrating a wedding anniversary when she was a dirty homewrecker; Natalie fought back and told her she'd rescued Kevin from a boring marriage. Vera capped off the night by presenting herself to Jack in a filthy negligee she'd got off Angie, and he realised he was going to have to have sex with her (Bill Tarmey practically broke the fourth wall as he pulled his horrified faces, pleading with the audience for help). The police told Les they'd found his car but (a) it was a write off and (b) it was nicked in the first place. To stop them from suspecting him, he gave them the name of the bloke he bought it off - and threw in the lads who robbed the corner shop as well. Maud identified them down the police station and gave the Battersbys their shopping for free out of gratitude.

TUESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 22nd and 24th August 1997

Natalie's ex-husband stopped her money because she was living with a new bloke. It meant that Kevin couldn't afford to give Sally the same maintenance but he refused to drop the amount. Natalie took it upon herself to sort it out, and turned up at number 13 to ask Sally to drop her demands. Kevin was disgusted that she'd gone behind his back and they rowed. He finally realised he should never have left Sally in the first place and walked out on her. Good. Samantha decided to leave Weatherfield and move down to London. She had a goodbye meal at number 6, and Des begged her to stay. Alec meanwhile was unhappy to hear Sam was leaving because that meant the pub was lacking a sex bomb. He told Vera that they needed a younger clientele with a jukebox and fewer old faces behind the bar, but she misunderstood what he was hinting at and thought he wanted rid of Betty. Betty did her usual outraged act but Alec said she'd be in charge of the catering; in a first, she didn't storm out in a huff, so they must be saving the 1997 version of that storyline for later in the year. When Vera realised he meant her she was furious and said she'd never leave. Maureen decided to sell the shop, but Fred had a different idea: marry him and combine the shop with the butcher's. She agreed but warned him she didn't really love him.

WEDNESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 25th and 27th August 1997

Zoe got lathered on vodka and smoked a few fags with Leanne because just because she's pregnant doesn't mean she can't have some fun. In a moment of karmic justice she promptly went into labour. She was forced to have a Caesarian, but soon gave birth to a little girl. Judy was there the whole time and was thrilled that she finally had her daughter. Maud was disgusted to hear that Maureen was engaged to Fred and vented her frustration by dousing him with a fire extinguisher in the shop. She thought Maureen was being a mug again. Fred argued with Maud, telling her that she only cared about Maureen as a nursemaid. Kevin stayed away from Natalie and told Sally it was all over and he wanted to return. She pretended she didn't care, but was secretly thrilled; when he spent the evening with her and the girls she realised how much she wanted him back. Unfortunately in the meantime Kev had made up with Natalie. At the Rovers, Vera decided to take over the catering so they could get rid of Betty. The only problem was she couldn't cook and she promptly burned Curly's insides with her chili. On the plus side, Sam agreed to stay, so they still had a saucepot behind the bar.

THURSDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 29th and 31st August 1997

Natalie, lacking basic human decency as usual, took on a job at the Rovers. She didn't understand why it would be a problem. Everyone except Alec thought this was a bad idea, with Betty refusing to talk to her and Rita boycotting the pub on principle. Vera was disgusted and called her a "known trollop". Alec pointed out that if they barred everyone who'd had a bit on the side the pub would be empty. Sally tried to get Kevin back, but he told her he was with Natalie now, and she sobbed to Gail about how she wasn't wanted any more. Judy tried to persuade Gary to put his name down as the father on the birth certificate, but he was wary as it was a legal document. Also he didn't want everyone to think he was a pervert who had sex with a teenager. However, yet again, Judy sobbed and begged and he caved. They called the baby Katie and brought her and Zoe back to the Street.

FRIDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 1st and 3rd September 1997

The factory girls went in the pub for their lunchtime pints and were horrified to see Natalie. Sally left, and Janice followed; they decided that they were going to boycott the pub while she was working there. In a moment that deeply disappointed me, Ida got bored of it and soon wandered back. Vera took the battle to her marriage, refusing to cook or clean for Jack while Natalie was there. He finally got up the courage to sack her but she resigned anyway. Sally got her own back though and told Natalie Kevin had wanted to return to the family and she'd turned him away. Zoe put on a show for the midwife but she resented the way the Malletts pushed her in the background. She showed the baby to Leanne, but Judy came back in and disapproved. It seemed she was starting to bond with Katie whether she liked it or not. Angie and Chris looked at the flat above the bookies but she wasn't keen. He realised that she might not be that keen on their relationship either. Deirdre was excited to be moving in with Jon and showed Liz the outside of his posh house. As they drove away, the real owner turned up...

@merseytart will never forgive Natalie. Never.

Classic Corrie is on ITV3 every weekday afternoon and is also on the ITV Hub.

All original work on Coronation Street Blog is covered by a Creative Commons License

Sunday, 24 January 2021

The Week In Classic Corrie

MONDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 1st and 3rd August 1997

There were wedding bells all over the place, though none of them were very romantic. Jim told Fiona she shouldn't marry Alan and should marry him instead. Get over yourself man. Fiona rightfully told him to get lost. At the Elliott household, there was a nice Sunday lunch for the men and their girlfriends. After the meal Fred proposed to Maureen, but she said she didn't want to marry anyone again, then Ashley went down on one knee during the washing up to propose to Maxine. She said she was too young to get tied down. Ken was upset that Daniel didn't seem to recognise him as his real dad, thinking that Brian, Denise's boyfriend was instead. Don't worry Ken, soon Daniel won't recognise either of you in a line up - this was the last appearance of the character for ten years. He returned him to Scotland but felt there wasn't anything else going on in his life. Sally got a solicitor onto Kevin, saying that if he couldn't agree to maintenance the courts would. He decided to fiddle the garage's accounts so that he could hide how much he earned but, in a rare attack of decency, Natalie refused to help him. Kevin finally agreed to give Sally a reasonable amount of money if she told him what she needed.

TUESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 4th and 6th August 1997

Toyah was enjoying herself at home with a couple of boys, drinking booze and playing her music loud. Janice kicked them out but they came back later in search of more beer. They forced themselves on Leanne. Samantha heard the commotion and rescued her, smacking the boys about and chasing them off. She confessed to Des that she'd been raped by her tennis coach as a teenager and the incident had brought it all back. Sally gave Kevin her list of financial needs but he thought it was too much and told her she'd have to get a solicitor to sort it out. He caved in though when he saw how upset she was and how much she needed the money. It looked like they had reached a detente but then Sally dumped the girls on Kevin at the garage. He couldn't take time off work, so Natalie took them, which drove Sally into a fury. Jim and Bill were busy working on a renovation site but Steve attracted the attention of the management company's representative, Rachel. He paraded her in front of Fiona to try and make her jealous.

WEDNESDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 8th and 10th August 1997

After talking to Des, Samantha decided to confront her past and went to see her parents in Hale. She also called in on her rapist on the way to get it out of her system - but he'd died the year before. She told Des she wasn't sure if she'd return to Weatherfield. As part of his scheme to make Coronation Street the worst road in town Les bought a battered old car which he worked on in the Street. Mavis was repulsed, while Alec refused to serve him because he was shirtless. However Kevin took one look at it and told Les it would cost a bomb to do it up. He realised he'd bought a lemon. Zoe went to her midwife and they told her it would take a few months to bond with the baby; she replied that it didn't matter since she wouldn't be looking after it. Judy fretted about her blabbing, so Gary suggested that she stay with them for a while after the baby was born to put the authorities off the scent. However Judy worried that if she stuck around she'd become attached to the child.

THURSDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 11th and 13th August 1997

Leanne was working at the factory as a cleaner, though she was useless at it, mainly because she was dancing around the place singing to the Spice Girls. This was of course incredible. However she then smoked a fag in the bogs and set off the fire alarm so Mike sacked her. Zoe overheard the Malletts discussing how to get rid of her once the baby arrived and she went off in a huff, deciding she wasn't wanted. Gary decided it was good riddance to bad rubbish and they could adopt a baby the proper way but Judy was distraught. Zoe returned eventually - because she had literally nowhere else to go - but she demanded half her money up front. Gary realised that if they gave her a thousand pounds she'd most likely vanish without trace so instead he offered to give her treats and luxuries until she gave birth. And there was a really horrible storyline where the two scrotes who assaulted Leanne returned and robbed the corner shop. They locked the door and tipped Maud out of her wheelchair while they ran amok and it was unbelievably nasty.

FRIDAY - Episodes originally broadcast 15th and 17th August 1997

The nastiness continued throughout these two episodes as the Battersbys continued to poison the well. Maud was rescued from her ordeal, but Maureen was shaken by how vulnerable she'd looked. On the plus side, Maud acquired a very natty hat to cover her wound. They offered a reward for information leading to the criminals being caught, and Toyah realised it was probably the two boys she was entertaining. Leanne told her that if she grassed them up there'd be trouble. Meanwhile Les took Angie to one side and threatened her for sacking Leanne; she barrelled back to the factory and threatened Janice with the sack as well if she didn't control her wayward husband, because she's ace. Fortunately, Les's old banger got robbed, so there's karma. Martin agreed to have dinner with Natalie and Kevin, much to Gail's horror. She disapproved of Natalie and told her so. After they left Kevin said he'd thought it'd gone well, and Natalie called him stupid and said they'd clearly hated it. Dump her Kev. Unfortunately, Sally nipped over the road to see Gail at the same time, and Audrey told her where she was. (Audrey also sat down with Ken and jabbered on about how well Deirdre was doing now she was on her own, the glorious old gossip). Sally was understandably upset and next day she told Gail she didn't need friends like her. Vera and Jack were planning their ruby wedding anniversary, but to save a few quid, Jack insisted they hold it at the Rovers instead of a posh hotel. Alec demanded they pay the usual hiring fee, so the Duckworths couldn't afford to buy one another presents, which Jack was especially glad about when Angie hinted he should buy Vera some of her dirty underwear. They got their own back by insisting Alec organised the whole do and also that he stayed behind the bar and served during the party. Samantha returned from her parents', feeling a lot better, and Jim insisted on getting an invite to Fiona's wedding, because he really can't let things go.