Cosy crimes and gritty sagas by Corrie Blog editor Glenda, published by Headline. Click pic below!

Tuesday 30 April 2013

Fans vote Hilda Ogden's curlers as their favourite Corrie accessory

 
Coronation Street Blog readers have voted for Hilda Ogden's curlers as their favourite Corrie accessory. 289 of you voted and 70 (24.22%) voted for Hilda's curlers.
 
Close behind was Roy Cropper's bag with 64 votes (22.15%). Deirdre Barlow's glasses came third with 34 votes (11.76%). Jack Duckworth's plaster held glasses came fourth with 32 votes (11.07%).
 
Hayley Cropper's red coat came fifth with 27 votes (9.34%). In sixth place was Ena Sharples' hairnet with 19 votes (6.57%). And in seventh and eighth place was Bet Lynch's earrings (16 votes, 5.5.4%) and beehive (9 votes, 3.11%).

3 votes (1.04%) were given to Hilda Ogden's ducks, while Albert Tatlock's cap, Deirdre Barlow's belt and Liz McDonald's zig-zag necklace received 2 votes (0.69%) each.

Alf Roberts' trilby hat, Reg Holdsworth's glasses, Hilda Ogden's 'muriel', Leanne Tilsley's earrings, Deirdre Barlow's copper cake tin, Tina McIntyre's earrings, a Rovers pint glass, Tyrone Dobbs' trial suit, and Blanche Hunt's mobility scooter all received 1 vote (0.35%) each.

Happy with the results?

You can also vote for your favourite Baldwin's Casuals employee here.
 
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Yay or Nay - is Rob Donovan the new Mike Baldwin?


Last night on Coronation Street, Ken pulled Peter to one side in the kitchen when Rob and Carla were sitting down to Deirdre's coq au vin, from scratch, you know.  

"You know who he reminds me of?" Ken whispered to Peter.
"Mike Baldwin," we whispered back at Ken from the sofa.
"Mike Baldwin," Ken whispered to Peter.

Does Rob remind you of the Weatherfield wheeler-dealer or was there more to Mike than there'll ever be to robo-Rob?  I think you know where I stand on this one.  Mine's a big fat Nay. 

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Spoiler pics: Roy Cropper in a state in his pyjamas

I hate linking to the Daily Mail because a) it's odious and b) they once nicked our work and refused to give us credit. But as I can't find these pictures anywhere else online, I'm going to have to link to them.

The Mail have paparazzi pictures of Roy Cropper wandering around in a park in his pyjamas and dressing gown, his shopping bag in hand and apparantly confused and distressed.  Deirdre is walking Eccles in the park and comes to Roy's rescue.

I wonder if this all fits in with the storyline about Roy's dad that's coming up shortly. 

Poor Roy, though, eh?

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Coronation Street CBC schedule changes for Canadian viewers

It's that time of year again folks - but Coronation Street will still be broadcast during the next few months of NHL ice hockey playoffs.

Starting Monday, May 6, in most regions, Corrie will be aired on CBC  at 3:00 p.m. with a rerun at 2:30 a.m. the next morning.

Those in the Atlantic time zone may still get Coronation Street at 7:30 in the evening as well. In Newfoundland, the wee hours rerun seems to be at 1:30 a.m. with the afternoon at 3:30 and evening at 8:00.

Edited to add: Just to further confuse the issue, it seems some regions are starting the early shift for Corrie from today. On CBC Halifax tonight, there was a scroll  that said we in the Atlantic time zone are going to 6:30 from May 1 to 10 then to 7:30.

PLEASE Check your local listings.


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Karl's exit is announced

It's the announcement we've all been expecting. John Michie as Karl Munro is to leave Coronation Street. Clearly, Karl is a murderer and he will have to come to justice somehow. The big question is whether Karl will succeed in killing anyone else before he goes. I'm guessing not.

According to the Daily Star, Dev Alahan takes up the quest to prove Sunita's innocence. We've seen that Karl framed Sunita and the police believe she started the Rovers fire to get back at Stella. Karl is not very comfortable with that as you can imagine. This all comes from a phantom "soap insider", let's call him "Willy Heckaslike".

 Dev tells him: “I can’t stop now. I feel close to something, I can feel it. I don’t want people thinking the worst of Sunita. I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do.” Picking up a golf trophy and hiding it behind his back, Karl, who is wearing gloves, menacingly shouts at Dev: “Raking over the coals like this is just not helping. The kids have already lost their mum, if you don’t get a grip then they might be in danger of losing you as well.”

This sounds very like Richard Hillman sneaking up on a sleeping Emily Bishop with a cushion, intent on smothering her only to be foiled by someone arriving. Anyway. Karl's downfall will play out over the summer as he gets more and more desperate to keep his crimes a secret and hold onto the life he's only just got back.

Justice will prevail. It's Soap Law.

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Spoilers for next week's Coronation Street, May 6 - 10

Without any piffle, here's the storyline for the week ahead on Coronation Street, all wrapped up nicely in 50 words or less.

Week of Monday 6 May to Friday 10 May



David has a seizure, Stella offers Owen half of Rovers, Roy receives letter from his dad, Izzy’s upset about Gary and Tina, Stella applies to be a scrubber at the Bistro.

The full weekly preview, with loads of pictures is right here on Corrie.net

Missed last week's Corrie? 
Catch up with the Coronation Street Weekly Updates   

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Monday 29 April 2013

Coronation Street double episode review, Monday 29 April

The first scene to greet us tonight is Eileen lying prostrate on the sofa fully ensconced in self-pity mode. How great it would have been if Dexy's Midnight Runners had strolled on singing 'Come on Eileen'. So Paul is going to Yorkshire. This said as if Yorkshire is a million miles away, rather than it being an easy drive across the Pennines and this is 2013 not 1700. Bizarre! Also - did anyone else think it strange that Paul was going to Yorkshire and no indication of where in Yorkshire?Was it Leeds? We saw a sign to Leeds at the station and later we learn that Paul only got to Huddersfield but with a hint that Huddersfield was not the destination.So was it made clear where he was going?

 Julie, trying as ever to help, brings up the scene in The Graduate where Dustin Hoffman stops Elaine's wedding. Eileen - Elaine - what's in a name? 'Time is of the essence,' warns Julie.

What a lovely breakfast Carla has cooked. Peter though, swiftly loses his appetite when Carla informs him that he will be working with Rob. He pushes the plate away and gives Carla a long reproachful stare before leaving the flat to head, we soon learn, to Roy's.Hope somebody ate that spare breakfast.

Stella and Karl return tonight from Cornwall and there is spilt clotted cream to contend with. Stella does try to explain the mystery that are women's bags. 'That's not my handbag,' she says as Karl mentions that she has clotted cream in her handbag. 'That's my bag, this is my handbag.' Precisely Stella, whose hair was so shiny, it practically sparkled.

Deidre was on top form tonight. 'Just the woman I've been looking for,' says Jason, in a bid to help his mum.
'Can I have that on film and play it back on a daily basis?' Why not Deirdre, why not indeed! So, before rustling up a coq au vin with shallots and removing a cake from its box and trying to locate the squirty cream that has been hanging around for a while, Deidre sat on Eileen's sofa as the film  Ghost played and Unchained Melody rang out in the background.  'The finest, the funniest, the fittest,' opined Eileen, but we knew didn't we, that the move to Yorkshire would be cancelled. Again - where in Yorkshire? Why so unrevelatory?

Good scenes in the bookies tonight.with Rob, Carla and Peter. Oddly though, after some impressive sniping between Peter and Rob they must have arrived, at least superficially, at a way of coping with each other. That apparent bonhomie was soon to be revealed as just show, as Peter and Ken share their views of  Rob, 'the human oil slick'. The bookies did look good though. The line Rob delivered about the now extinct vending machine, that it delivered 'tea, soup and botulism,' was superb as was Peter's reaction to the word 'rebranding'  of which he wholly disapproved .Peter though appears confident that Rob will soon be 'crying for his mummy' and 'running back to his knicker factory.'

And the rest, or at least most of it - Karl proposes to Stella who feels a wedding now would not be right. Karl becomes unpleasant and walks out after reminding Stella of all he's done for her. Tyrone is going back to work, Anna is concerned about Gary and his feelings for Tina. But the best of the rest was the invoking of the ghost of Mike Baldwin. Sorry Rob, but you are not a patch on him.


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Coronation Street Weekly Update, Paul choo-choo-chooses to stay

GOT KINDLE? GET CORRIE!
Corrie weekly updates from 1995 - 18 years in 18 e-books
All the wit and warmth of Weatherfield, none of the waffle
Available in UK at http://www.amazon.co.uk/Glenda-Young/e/B0077OXHBQ
and in Canada and USA at http://www.amazon.com/Glenda-Young/e/B0077OXHBQ

Greetings and welcome to the Coronation Street Weekly Update. Find out more about the Coronation Street Weekly Updates and why they've been written for th'internet since 1995 at http://www.corrie.net/updates/weekly

It’s all go at Barlow’s bookies where Carla installs brother Rob behind the counter to work with Peter, who doesn’t want him there. Carla buys Leanne out of the bookies business: “Leanne knows the square root of chuff-all” and gives Rob a job. It’s odds-on that Rob rubs Peter up the wrong way but Peter lays a £20 bet with Steve that Rob won’t last more than a week before he’s running back to the knicker factory and swapping betting slips for under-slips with matching bra and pants.  Over tea at the Barlow’s where Deirdre’s made coq-au-vin from scratch (was that the chicken’s name? poor scratch!) and tried to pass off a Freshco chocolate cake as her own, Rob rubs Ken up the wrong way too. Ken takes Peter to one side in the kitchen and whispers: “You know who he reminds me of?” “Mike Baldwin!” we whispered back at the telly from our sofa. “Mike Baldwin!” Ken whispered to Peter.  All mouth, no trousers and an ego the size of Salford.


Meanwhile, Anna’s suspicious that Faye’s not being looked after properly now Faye’s living with dad Tim in the flat above the shop. Little does Anna know that her suspicions are spot on as Tim leaves Faye home alone so he can go out drinking with Jase.

Anna’s other suspicions prove right too after she spots a receipt in Gary’s pocket. He’s only gone and scoured the second-hand shops to find Tina’s dad’s wedding right that she had nicked in the robbery from Tina’s flat. He tells everyone it cost him £20 to buy back but Anna finds the receipt in Gary’s pocket for £200.  She knows summat’s up between Gary and Tina but she isn’t quite sure what, not yet anyway.

Over at Dev’s, Mary mothers the kids and smothers Dev. “She treats me like the third twin,” he complains but he can’t deny she’s doing a great job with his kids and they like her a lot, even if she is, you know, a bit too much Mary at times.

Elsewhere, Eileen prepares to say ta-ra to Paul who heads across the Pennines to his new job in Leeds and she gets maudlin on red wine with Deirdre. I’d love an afternoon like that, wouldn’t you, getting maudlin on red with Deirdre. Anyway, Eileen decides to run after Paul and belts it to the train station in Jason’s van only to get there in time to see Paul’s train chuffing out of the station and out of her life.  And then back in as he gets off the train at Huddersfield and returns to the Street and Eileen’s life with his beige bomber jacket and his funny hair-do.

And finally this week, Kevin Webster got an exit storyline as the actor who plays him won’t be in the show for a few months for reasons we all know.  How fortunate that Kevin’s got a dad with a heart problem and German connections. Join up the dots and that’s where Kev’ll be and that’s who he’ll be looking after, for the next few months.

And that's just about that for this week. Remember, you can sign up to get these Corrie weekly updates by email at http://www.corrie.net/updates/weekly/subscribe.htm

This week's writers were Jonathan Harvey, John Kerr, Jan McVerry, Carmel Morgan, Julie Jones. Find out all about the Coronation Street writing team at http://coronationstreetupdates.blogspot.com/2008/11/exclusive-all-current-corrie-writers.html

Glenda Young
--
Blogging away merrily at http://flamingnora.blogspot.com

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The Corrie couple shuffle


And if you can say that 5 times quickly after a few pints of Newton and Ridley's, you get a star!

What does it mean? Well, I've been thinking about spoilers and speculating my little heart out this morning.

We know that Owen will be offered a share in the pub because Stella can't afford the rest of the renovations. My guess is that the insurance isn't going to come up with the money. Doesn't seem fair but Stella did remark that she wanted the work started before she heard back from the insurance and needed three quotes. I don't know if she actually got them and I reckon the insurance company is balking.

So, if this plays out as given, that Owen will be part owner of the pub, he's obviously not going to be a silent partner. Karl will not be long for our world since he's a murderer. He'll have to be caught or die trying. That's him out of the picture.

Cut across the road to Chateau Windass. Anna is struggling with Faye's desire to get to know her father, Tim, who's moved in across the road. Others have wondered if Tim and Anna could end up being a couple eventually, nudging bully boy Armstrong out the door. There you have the template for the couple shuffle.

Karl will be gone. Owen will be sticking his nose in the pub business and probably helping to pick up the pieces when St. Ella is all morose and upset after the revelations of Karl's dastardly deeds. Faye continues to cause ructions between Owen and Anna and their relationship breaks under the strain. Tim steps in, and Anna has finally got herself a nice guy (providing Tim proves to be that nice guy, no reason at this point to suspect otherwise but you never know...) while St. Ella has a stormy relationship with Owen. It's not the first time he's had his eye on the Rovers landlady (Liz). He may even have a hand in bringing Karl down, who knows, especially if Karl goes doolally and loses control.

What say you, dear readers? Worth a consideration?


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Coronation Street Chit-Chat: Corrie news catch-up April 2013

Here we go with Coronation Street chit-chat, a catch-up of some of the shorter news stories that have been happening but haven't made it into their own blog post.  And so, here we go.

Current Corrie cast
Kate Ford (Tracy Barlow) opens a horse sanctuary.  
Lisa George (Beth Tinker) opens a bank.
Michelle Collins (Stella Price) opens a kitchen and bathroom showroom.  She also opens a beauty salon.
Kym Lomas (Michelle Connor) launches a Corrie competition in Irish Tesco.
Alan Halsall (Tyrone Dobbs) and Lucy-Jo Hudson (Katy Harris) are expecting baby girl
Michelle Keegan (Tina McIntyre) hopes for door left open when she leaves Corrie and is voted world's sexiest woman.
Jennie McAlpine (Fiz Stape) talks about her nomination for British Soap Award best on-screen partnership
Simon Gregson (Steve McDonald) forgets where he packs his car and thinks it's been nicked.
Catherine Tyldesley (Eva Price) on beauty and boyfriends
Chris Gascoyne (Peter Barlow) on learning from his on-screen son Simon (Alex Bain).

Ex-Corrie cast

Bruno Langley (Todd Grimshaw) on stage in The Mousetrap
Suranne Jones (Karen McDonald) on Norris getting lost in her boobage
Judy Holt (Lesley Kershaw) raises awareness for Alzheimer's Disease

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Karl threatens to kill Leanne

There's a good interview with Jane Danson, who plays Leanne Barlow on Coronation Street, over at Digital Spy today.

The interview's in two parts.  The first part Jane talks about the upcoming storyline for Leanne when she finds out that mum Stella and Karl are not only back together again, but that Karl's proposed to her.  Stella's going to find herself stuck for cash to keep the Rovers going as she can't afford to pay Owen. So she asks Leanne for the loan of the money and Leanne agrees - on condition that Stella bins Karl.

Karl, as you might imagine, doesn't take this news well and threatens Leanne.

The second part of the interview Jane reveals what it's like working with Chris Gascoyne, who plays Peter Barlow and she also tells us a little bit about the new Rovers Return set:  "There's a new photograph of Betty on the wall, and the style of the pub isn't too dissimilar from what it was before. The layout is the same, but the design is a bit different."

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Vote for your favourite Baldwin's Casuals employee


A few weeks ago, in our Corrie A-Z feature, I did a blog post on Baldwin's Casuals, the factory that dominated the even side of the street between 1976 and 1989. And I thought it'd be nice to find out who was your favourite factory employee.

Some of you may remember Baldwin's Casuals in its heyday in the 70s and 80s, while others, like me, have witnessed those classic factory scenes on the internet or on DVDs.

So who was your favourite Baldwin's Casuals' employee? You can choose from the following:

Vera Duckworth - machinist between 1976 and 1989
Ivy Tilsley - machinist/shop steward/supervisor between 1976 and 1989
Elsie Tanner - supervisor between 1976 and 1979 and machinist between 1981 and 1983
Ernest Bishop - wages clerk between 1976 and 1978
Hilda Ogden - cleaner between 1977 and 1987
Steve Fisher - van driver and trainee manager between 1977 and 1979
Ida Clough - machinist between 1978 and 1988
Emily Bishop - wages clerk between 1982 and 1989
Shirley Armitage - machinist between 1983 and 1989

Voting closes on Monday, 6th of May. Next week you can vote for your favourite Underworld employee. Also, there's still time to vote for your favourite Corrie accessory.


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Sneak preview of tonight's double Corrie - Monday 29 April

Coronation Street, Monday 29th April 2013 at 7.30pm

EILEEN MAKES A TRANS-PENNINE BID TO FIGHT FOR PAUL. As a saddened Paul says goodbye to Eileen, before heading for his new job in North Yorkshire, she tries to cover her heartbreak. But as she drowns her sorrows with Deirdre, Eileen has an epiphany, realising Paul was the one for her and she shouldn’t be letting him go so easily. Racing to the station Eileen calls Paul’s phone, will she reach him in time?
STELLA AND KARL RETURN TO FACE THE PAST. Stella and Karlarrive home but the holiday’s soon over for Stella when she opens a worrying letter from her insurance company. Heading to the pub to check out the rebuild Stella leans on Karl for support but faced with the scene of his crime will Karl crumble?
PETER HATCHES A PLAN TO OUST ROB FROM THE BOOKIES. Carla manages to convince Peter to at least try working with Rob at the bookies. As Rob installs new betting machines and technology, claiming he’s going to drag the place out of the dark ages, Peter’s riled but holds his tongue.  What’s his game?
Elsewhere Anna’s quietly concerned when Izzy insists only Gary need go to the latest antenatal class with Tina and encourages her to get involved.

Monday 29th April 2013 at 8.30pm

EILEEN AND PAUL ARE DRAWN BACK TOGETHER. As the train pulls away, taking her man with it, Eileen’s gutted. Returning home she decides it’s time to move on. But when Paul returns to the street, having witnessed her station dash, Eileen’s heart soars. He loves her but needs to know she can cope with him being a fireman, can they find a way forward?
KARL RETURNS TO THE SCENE OF HIS CRIME. Karl’s unnerved as he and Stella look round the pub. After a run in with Jason he’s further on edge and desperate to seal his win over the battle for Stella he stuns her with a shock proposal. Sensing his desperation will Stella agree?
PETER AND KEN UNITE IN THEIR MISTRUST OF ROB. At the Barlows Rob lords it over Peter, Deirdre’s taken in but Ken can see through him and tells Peter he doesn’t want him near the family. Peter tells Ken not to worry, he has a plan.
Elsewhere as Gary and Tina talk Izzy through what happened at the antenatal class Anna can see the bond they’re striking up. She’s relieved when Izzy suggests maybe she should go with them next time.

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Sunday 28 April 2013

Winner announced in our Corrie Director's new novel competition

Congratulations go to Coronation Street Blog reader K Daggett who has been drawn at random from all correct entries to win the Kindle version of Corrie Director Griff Rowland's new novel, The Search for Mister Lloyd .

Griff’s book The Search for Mister Lloyd is a comedy about a racing pigeon.

Inventive and eccentric, packed with drama and humour, this is a coming of age novel that will delight readers of all ages.

Read all about it on Amazon here
.

See also: If you've got Kindle, get Corrie!

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Corrie Weekly Awards: April 22 - 26


Fifth Wheel award: Izzy feels like a spare part watching Tina and Gary laughing together and participating in the classes.

Swinging the lead award: Faye does not normally have toast with chocolate spread and chocolate milk for breakfast

Shot yourself in the foot award: Chesney is pushing Katy right back to Ryan with his jealousy.

Wonderbra award: Katy really did have herself done up like a dog's dinner, tight dress, very high heels and push up bra.

Plank award: Chesney. Definitely

Pants on Fire award: Gary's lying about the ring.

Mary not-so-Bobbins award: Mary's making herself indispensible.

Donald Trump award: Leanne drives a hard bargain.

X Factor award: Up and coming star Faye Windass?

Peeing contest: Rob and Peter are still at it, naturally Carla would think Peter and Rob will work well together. I don't think.

Smug award: Leanne and Nick.

Lines of the week
Anna about Faye "I don't want her to be happy (with Tim), I want her to be dead miserable"
Chesney "You make it sound like it's all my fault, like I'm the one being unreasonable" (you are being unreasonable, now)
Fiz to Chesney "You need to stop acting like some daft little kid and man up!" (I've been saying that for weeks)
Steve "I'll have you know I'm in great shape" Ryan "Yeah. Round is a shape"
Steve "I wouldn't be caught gambling if there wasn't an element of risk"
Mary to Dev "You can do this, you know, but it's a marathon, not a sprint"
Leanne "I'd say you got yourself a bargain there, Carla" Carla "And I'd say you're the luckiest cow in Manchester"
Peter "You've backed me into a corner" Carla "I've thrown you a lifeline"
Carla "Leanne knows the square root of chuff all"


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Leanne Batt-Til-Barlowsby - paragon of virtue?

When social historians sit down to evaluate the life of the lovely Leanne, as surely they will, how will they consider her life? The People's Prozzie? Queen of Tarts? Hopefully not but, in keeping with seemingly every other woman on the cobbles, Leanne is now morphing into someone else.

For a while it looked as though a new Leanne was emerging from the ruins of the old one. That somewhat nasty, calculating piece of work had developed into a slightly harassed but dedicated mum to young (scary) Simon. She was a wronged woman who was trying to do her best.

How times change. Leanne has now clambered up to her very own special place on the peak of the moral high ground. Last Friday saw her crowing like a demented harridan, cawing with delight as everyone's favourite drunks thrashed around in their car-crash of a relationship. There was a slight wave of sympathy extending to Leanne as she surveyed her former home, possibly the Street's most unpleasant flat, having undergone some kind of seventies porn flick make-under. Well that's Carla for you - more money than taste.

The return of 'embittered witch' Leanne doesn't make for particular edifying viewing.  We probably realise that she is drowning in a loveless marriage and that puts her in a vulnerable position. Realistically, a happy, mumsy Leanne would hardly be a great draw in an on-going drama. It would have been good though to finally see her a little more emotionally settled. As of yet, she has not reached the sanctimonious heights of Rita but the prospect of seeing Leanne screeching from the side lines forever and a day is not a good one. Leanne's past is, to say the least, chequered yet she conveniently forgets her call-girl, drug-addict, arsonist years. Her experiences should have mellowed her, maybe reigned her in a little.

Do we want to see Leanne as a more settled character or do we relish the opportunity of seeing her come out fighting yet again?


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Why do you watch Coronation Street?


It's a simple question but I am interested to know what your answers are. It was suggested by an anonymous poster the other day that Coronation Street is something people have on in the background while they conduct their daily lives. Is that true?

Coronation Street has nowhere near the peak viewing figures it had in the 60s, 70s, 80s or even the 1990s. However it does still rate highly each week compared both with its rivals and other programmes. And this is in a time when viewers have three hundred channels to chose from, not just three (or even two when Corrie first started in 1960).

I have mentioned before that I no longer never miss Corrie. I still love it, I still know what is going on, but I feel these days that if I miss two episodes on a Friday it won't really matter as I can tune in again the following Monday without feeling that I have missed out. However when I do watch these days I find more and more that I am multi-tasking watching Coronation Street while doing something else. I may be looking back through rose tinted Deirdre bins, but back in the day Corrie always had 100% of my attention. 

So do we care as much about Corrie and its characters now as we did in the past? Do we make our regular date with the Rovers regulars through habit or choice these days?

I want to know why you still watch Coronation Street each week and if your reasons for doing so have changed.


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Saturday 27 April 2013

Corrie's Julie Hesmondhalgh on All Star Mr & Mrs


This week sees the first show of the new series of All Star Mr and Mrs and Coronation Street actress Julie Hesmondhalgh (Hayley Cropper) and her husband Ian Kershaw, will compete for big cash prizes for a charity of their choice.

Corrie's Jennie McAlpine (Fiz Stape) will be appearing on a later edition of the show too.


Every episode, the audience gets an insight into the lives of three celebrity couples as they battle it out to win the jackpot for their charity.  In the first two rounds the three couples answer questions and we get to see how much they really know about each other.


 

The victorious couple will then go on to play for the charity jackpot, whilst the other two couples take home £5,000 each for their charity, and a coveted carriage clock for their mantelpiece!

The show starts on ITV1 at 8pm on Wednesday 1 May.   

 
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Coronation Street goodies up for sale on eBay

Amonst all the fake-autograph cast cards, old DVDs and unwanted Corrie books on eBay, every now and then there's a little gem that someone's selling off.

The ebay gem this week is this poster advertising Rita Littlewood singing at The Capricorn Club.  I don't know - and it doesn't say - if it's a prop from the show back there or something new that someone's made.  Whatever it is, it's fun and I like it.
Bid for it here.

Post-blog note: I should have known better because I've got the Treasures Corrie book - it's been taken from there. So... not a true gem, but still, nice.

Watch Rita singing Hey Big Spender in The Capricorn Club from 1872 via the wonders of YouTube here.

We no longer have The Capricorn Club on Coronation Street, of course. Neither do we see any more The Clock, Delphine's,  The Weatherfield Arms or The Flying Horse. Crikey, we don't even see Freshco any more Shame, eh?

Also up for sale on eBay are these Corrie cast cast-offs with the ITV certificate of authenticity:

Leanne Barlow's top.
Becky McDonald's cardigan

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Vote for your favourite Corrie accessory

 If you haven't yet, you can still vote for your favourite Corrie accessory.
 
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Friday 26 April 2013

Corrie A-Z: C is for Canada

While researching the links between Corrie and Canada, I was amazed at how many there have been over the years. Be it links with characters, cast or crew.
 
Ivan, Linda and Paul Cheveski emigrated to Canada in 1961 when Ivan got a new job there. They stayed there until 1966 before returning to live in Birmingham. While in Canada, their second son Martin was born in 1964 but he wasn’t mentioned until 1980!
 
The residents were shocked in 1965 when Corner Shop owner Florrie Lindley’s husband Norman turned up on the street. Florrie had always maintained she was a widow. In fact, the Lindleys had been estranged for many years and Norman had been working in India. Upon his return, Norman offered Florrie the chance to reunite and move to Canada. While Florrie considered his offer, Norman had a brief fling with Elsie Tanner. In the end, Florrie accepted and the residents bid the Lindleys farewell.
 
Handel Gartside, Minnie Caldwell’s old flame, returned to Weatherfield in 1970 after 33 years of living in Canada. He then moved to Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire where Minnie regularly visited him and went to live with him in 1976.
 
When Irma Barlow left the street for the last time in 1971 she was said to have moved to Llandudno. But by the time of her father Stan’s funeral in 1984, she was said to be living in Canada as she had sent a telegram of condolence to her mum Hilda from there.
 
Then in the late 1980s it was revealed that Audrey Roberts had a son called Stephen living in Canada that she gave up for adoption at the age of 16. It was Malcolm Reid, an old flame and neighbour of Audrey’s that adopted him and later immigrated to Canada where Stephen was brought up as a Canadian. Malcolm visited Audrey in 1988 and the residents speculated who he was until Malcolm innocently told Ivy Brennan about Stephen. Audrey had told Ivy that Malcolm was her brother-in-law! During his visit, Malcolm tried to lure Audrey from Alf but he was having none of it and saw him off. In 1996, Stephen visited Weatherfield to get to know his mother Audrey a bit better and meet half-sister Gail for the first time. During his stay, Audrey’s best mate Alma Baldwin fell for him. Stephen soon returned to Canada and visited again in 2007 en route to Italy where he had moved to expand his business empire. Initially offering nephew David a job, it was niece Sarah and her daughter Bethany who joined him in Milan.
 
During his first stay, Stephen’s nephew Nick went to stay with him and Stephen offered him a job in Canada which he accepted. But within the year Nick was back and married Leanne Battersby. But after a disastrous marriage, Nick left the street again for Canada. He returned for Gail’s wedding to Richard Hillman in 2002 and embarked on a relationship with Maria Sutherland who joined him when he returned to Canada. But Maria soon returned after the relationship soured. Nick returned once more in 2003 and stayed until 2004 before leaving for Canada. Many years later, Nick returned to the UK and settled in Nottingham before moving back home in 2010.
 
Recently, Colin Fishwick (the real one!) immigrated to Canada to escape the wrath of Ben Fielding, the husband of a woman he’d had an affair with. But he soon returned to the UK, only to suffering a beating from Ben which resulted in him suffering a fatal heart attack – and thus began the John Stape and rug saga!!
 
As for members of the cast with links to Canada, Sue Cleaver (Eileen Grimshaw) lived there for a time.
 
And how many of you knew that it was indeed a Canadian that was responsible for the commissioning of Corrie back in 1960? Harry Elton (1930-2004) was the first executive producer of the show and did so until 1963 when he returned to his native Canada. Thinking he’d have as much success in Canada as he did in the UK, Elton was shocked that he to climb the ladder once again. He worked at CBC and the Canadian Museum of Civilisation until his retirement in 1990. He spent his later years visiting China and it was while visiting Tibet that he died from a heart attack. On another note, it was his daughter Victoria who played the first baby, Paul Cheveski, on the programme back in 1961 and 1962.

 
And let’s not forget that Corrie has been broadcast in Canada since the late 1960s on CBC and repeats have been shown on various other Canadian channels. The show has a strong fan base in Canada and many Corrie stars have visited the country over the years to meet fans and plug the show and of course many Canadians contribute and comment on this blog and various other websites dedicated to Corrie. So, to all you Canadians out there: hello!!
 
Do you watch Corrie in Canada? Since when and how did you start watching? Have you ever met any members of cast or crew when they visited Canada?
 
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