The Big Week, The Big Reveal

Wow! ITV really pulled out all the stops this week, didn't they? There were a few smaller fill-in storylines but mostly it was one major surprise after another. Big things were revealed, one or two which were superbly timed.

First we had Ken remembering Daniel was his assailant. The viewer knew by the end of last week and watched as Daniel quickly fell apart, guilt, pain, long held damage and resentment, it was all there as he attacked his father but wait, the door opens, that bookcase blocking the way shudders as someone tries to push through...just as Ken is accusing Daniel of killing his mother, his mother shows up on the other side of the door! I knew Denise would be back in the show but I had no idea it would be just then. Excellent stuff! Now to find out why she left and why she stayed away. A breakdown? That lasted for 6 years? And she had no friends at all in the  world she could send to check up on him?

Denise's reveal was that she'd had a breakdown and stayed away because she thought he'd be better off without her and still believes it. If she could see throught he walls of that bathroom to see her son trying to cut himself, scald his hands and shake and cry in a little heap in the corner, maybe she'd rethink that statement. *I* wanted to smack her for that. Daniel was about to have that discussion with his mother when he finally came out but the police showed up. Sinead had found the bloody book and oh too familiar inscription and the penny dropped there, too. But in the end, it was her that called the police.

Daniel turns himself in. I wonder if he could claim temporary insanity because he certainly is a damaged boy, no thanks to his mother. The detective is  practically spitting coins because Ken won't press charges. I didn't expect he would so that wasn't a surprise. Now the way forward is to find a way to help him. I think this was my favourite of the big stories this week, because I've been following it with great interest from the first, spellbound especially by Rob Mallard's performances.

Next up, Craig inadvertently revealed to Shona exactly who Bethany's boyfriend really is. Nathan was the ex that Shona was running from at Christmas, the ex that she has told people abused her, with at least one burn scar to prove it. When she confronted Nathan, she got away but was attacked and left for dead. Craig proves yet again to be the hero and rescues her, just days after helping a lost Bethany.

Nathan is feeding Bethany drugged drinks, just enough to keep her pliant but she kicked off so he dragged her outside and wielded his control by shouting, physically burning her arm and then blaming his actions on her. Typical abuser. She'll do anything to make up to him now, convinced she caused his anger. This really is painful to watch, painful in that your heart breaks for her.  The next reveal was Shona managing to get out of the hospital to warn the Platts about what Nathan was doing with Bethany sending them running en masse to rescue her.

They weren't in time to prevent the 3-on-1 in the bedroom, which was quite chilling to see, those men filing into the room behind her and Mel ensuring she stayed there. I didn't expect that. It's one thing to imply that she's heading into the bedroom and has had sex with a crooked copper, it's quite another thing to put her in a Three Men and a Bethany situation, even if it is after the watershed early air time but they went there, apparently. Bethany was "rescued" though she doesn't see it that way and refuses to take against Nathan. But I wonder if, at the end of the last episode when she looked at the burn on her arm and then her engagement ring, a little flash of doubt passed her mind. Just for a brief moment. One more reveal, Shona told the police that she ran away from Nathan when she realized what Nathan was trying to do so it sounds like she wasn't used sexually after all.


The thing is, now that we know Nathan's cohort in the whole scheme is a police officer, it's going to make things more difficult to prosecute him even when he was arrested at the flat. I'm not sure where the raid came from but I suspect one of the Platts probably called them while on the way. This ongoing story has been very interesting to watch, too, even if the subject matter is difficult. This happens. It's important because it might help someone. And, again, the performances, especially by Lucy Fallon and Chris Harper as the creepy Nathan have knocked it out of the park.

Nick's a good man with the kids, really he is. He did try to help bring them all together for Simon's sake but couldn't resist getting into it with Peter yet again, trying to prove he's the better football player. With Simon walking away in disgust, Nick's in the bad books again. When Leanne overheard that he could have provided Peter with an alibi the night his father was attacked, that was the last straw. He was willing to say nothing if it would get Peter out of their lives, not caring what the effect on Simon would be. He says he trusts Leanne but he feels like he doesn't belong. He would if he was able to accept Peter and Steve and be a decent man instead of someone that always has to have all the prizes.

His lifelong sense of entitlement is his downfall. He's always taken advantage of Leanne when she's been vulnerable, knowing she always leans on him when she's been heart broken or let down. She's continually the one that gets away, that one that keeps leaving him when he messes up, trying to be her one and only. That's what happens when one person loves more than the other, when one person's definition of love is possession and triumph. He lost her again and knew it. Peter was a bit harsh, suggesting he throw himself into the sea. He didn't really consider it but he was in the wrong place at the wrong time and nearly drowned under the quicksand.

Peter was then the one that kept Nick talking, trying to make him angry enough to fight to live. It worked and Nick was rescued just in time. Acrimony aside, there was no way Peter nor Steve would ever let Nick drown if they could do anything to help or get assistance. Nick would do the same for either of them. I think. Nick says he wouldn't but I think if the situation was presented to him, he would. Don't forget that Nick saved Peter's life after the tram crash. Then again, he also lured Peter back to drinking afterwards and had been having an affair with Leanne who was engaged to Peter at the time. Peter, flawed as he is, is definitely the better man.

Previously, as far as spoilers went, it was left up in the air whether he'd survive or not. ITV was very cagey about it. They're getting a lot better and keeping some things back as surprises which is a good thing. We knew the actor was leaving, would they actually kill off Nick? I really didn't think so but it was a close call, wasn't it? Nail biting stuff.

In the end, Nick gave up and walked away. Leanne was ready to stay with him after nearly losing him but she was that close to walking away before that. If he hadn't nearly died, he wouldn't have changed his attitude and even if they got through that day, it would never have gone the distance. He knows that very well. He told his mother that he didn't like the man he was turning into, and he wasn't coming back. I can't think of anyone that needs a fresh start more than Nick Tilsley and maybe he'll even manage to get Leanne out from under his skin. Will he be gone forever? Probably not. I would imagine that they will recast Nick some day and bring him back.

But for now, that's the end of Nick on our screens. At least he said goodbye to his mum! Yet another really good storyline. As much as I really dislike Nick, the chemistry between Ben Price, Jane Danson and Chris Gascoyne especially just leaps off the screen. Georgia Taylor and Jane Danson still have that sibling dynamnic, too. While it might have felt a bit out of character for Leanne and Steve to have sex in the first place, it certainly kicked off a lot of drama and a long running storyline.

In the minor leagues, Cathy finally kisses Brian after him faffing around his superstitions for half the week. I fail to see what she sees in him. It's Anna's 50th birthday and Kevin's organized a surprise party for her with Erica's help in keeping Anna out of the house until the appointed time. Anna's still finding it difficult to get close to Kevin due to her low self esteem over her burns. Careful, luv, Kevin doesn't respond well to partners who find reasons to shy away from his advances, even if they're good ones. Just ask Sally.

What a week of Corrie! I think this was one of the best "big weeks" I have ever seen on Coronation Street.There wasn't a lot of lightness or fun, very little humour and mostly what there was of it, Brian's buffoonery and susperstition, was just annoying. I wanted to get back to the drama and there was plenty of that.


Tvor (Twitter @tvordlj)

Nick Tilsley, Master of Passive Aggression

Watching Nick lay a shedload of guilt on Leanne this week and then proceed to flirt with the hen party, keeping a close eye on how Leanne was reacting had my blood boiling. I've often seen Nick use passive aggressive methods over the years to manipulate Leanne and it is really a nasty side of his personality.

Leanne kept pushing him away because she's pregnant with someone else's baby so he made his speech, forlorn face, resigned to her never loving him back as much as he loves and always has loved her. Never mind, I'll get over it. It'll take time but if that's what you want, I'll go along with it. *sigh*  All the while, Leanne's tearing up and feeling more and more guilty because she does love him and wants to be back with him but can't deal with telling him about the baby.

And that's another thing. I do believe that Leanne is the love of Nick's life. He has loved others, and I believe he did love Carla. She was even more hard work than Leanne could be! But for him, it always comes back to Leanne. But while I do believe she was over the moon about him when she was 16, caught up in the excitement of it all, running away to get married, I also don't believe he was the love of her life. He was just her first love and I always felt that when he insisted on her having an abortion when they were first married back in the 90s, he broke something in her. Add on to that, he put her in harm's way when he set her up to be the one that met the man that killed his father. That hurt and betrayal never really left her and he never truly apologized for it, either.

Every time Leanne went back to Nick after they'd both grown up, it felt like she was either running from commitment (the affair when she was about to marry Peter) or rebounding (after her divorce from Peter). I felt like she settled for Nick. She does care for him, he's familiar and safe in her mind, and she probably does love him after a fashion but Nick pushes and manipulates and uses passive aggressive methods to do that.

Now it seems she's planning to leave town, likely the best move considering she needs that distance from Steve and Michelle and it's not really a spoiler to guess that Nick will come running to persuade her to stay. Then when he finds out about Steve being the father of the baby, it'll all start up again. Snarky remarks, testosterone pushing him to lock horns with Steve on the mountain top, metaphorically, because it's all about him, always has been.

I'm sure there are Nick and Leanne fans out there, but I'm not one of them. If Robert hadn't turned out to be a bit of an arse, I'd have said they would have made a much better couple and I'd certainly bet Leanne could stand up to Tracy better than Carla did. You don't mess with a Battersby. Alas, I think Nick and Leanne are probably Corrie's Ken and Deirdre for the new era, the couple that will go around and around, on and off many times over the years and end up settling for each other in their old age if both characters stick around.




Tvor (Twitter @tvordlj)

Leanne Anneke Battersby Tilsley Barlow

Leanne's life has always seemed to be one bad choice after another, with her lurching from disaster to disaster, and not just in her relationships though they've been the catalyst for a lot of her unpleasant situations. Today's character study looks at Leanne Anneke Battersby.

When first we met the Battersbys, Les, Janice, Leanne and Toyah, they rumbled into Weatherfield with their worldly goods in a clapped out old car and pull-trailer in July 1997. Leanne was 16 and fresh out of school. No A-levels for our Miss, she'd had enough of that and she was ready to get on with her life. The Battersbys as we knew them were a blended family. Les's biological daughter was Leanne and Toyah was Janice's but the two girls had grown up together and were mates as well as sisters. From what we know, Les and Janice had lived together for a few years before they got married, which was shortly before they moved into Number 5 (depending on which source you use, otherwise, they married in 1994...it's a bit murky).

We know that Leanne's mother left her to be raised by Les, and knowing what we do about Les, he probably made a botch job of it before Janice came along. We know that Janice has always been gobby, common and aggressive when she's had to be though she loves her daughter and grew to love Leanne as a daughter as well. She probably did provide some semblance of family stability for Leanne but family life at the Battersbys' is bound to have been fraught with loud arguments fueled by booze. Leanne and Toyah do not seem to have been brought up with a lot of discipline or responsibility and by the time we met them, they pretty much did what they wanted to and when.

Janice wasn't one for letting Leanne off the financial hook, however, and insisted that if she wasn't going to school, she would have to get a job. If Janice is nothing else, she's a worker (when she has to be). She managed to get Leanne a job as cleaner at Underworld but that didn't last long when Leanne was caught having a crafty fag in the Ladies' loo.

Even though the new family started off on the wrong foot, and as much as the residents viewed this family with suspicion, one person decided to take a chance on Leanne. Rita gave her a trial run in the Kabin after Mavis moved away and oddly enough, the two rubbed on quite well together for a time even if Leanne continued on rubbing other neighbours the wrong way, particularly Gail Platt. Leanne wasted no time giving young Nick Tilsley the glad eye and he was more than happy to return it. Gail was horrified that her son was attached to someone from such a common family.

Leanne was happy to wind up Gail and when she and Nick ran off to Scotland to get married, her job was complete. They weren't going to live under the Platt roof for long so eventually they rented a room from Ashley who was living in Number 4 which his "Uncle" Fred had purchased for Maureen, the bride who got away. Ashley was dating Maxine Heavey but runaway Zoe usurped her place. Zoe Tattersal and Leanne had made friends and Leanne is loyal to her friends and family in the "we all stick together" mode of thinking. In fact, it was Leanne that pursuaded Zoe to return and claim her baby from the Mallets.

The marraige didn't really go on that well. Leanne was holding down a job but Nick was going to school and was a bit wet behind the ears (or maybe, he was just a bit wet full stop). He and Leanne went to Canada for a holiday and when they returned, Leanne discovered she was pregnant. Nick insisted he was not ready to be a father and pushed her into having a termination. This irretrievably broke the marraige. Nick scarpered back off to Canada and Leanne took what financial offer she could get from Gail as a divorce settlement.

Single and ready to party, she dated Vikram Desai. Too many late nights and missed mornings at the Kabin meant she and Rita parted ways but she soon got a job in the Rovers behind the bar working for Natalie Horrocks. The party girl continued to have a good time but unfortunately, she soon made friends with cocaine and Jez Quigley. This went badly wrong when he used her for sex when she couldn't pay the piper and eventually, he wanted her to allow his boys to rob the Rovers. She put her foot down and fought back that time but Jez kept coming back. She became friends with Mike Baldwin's son, Mark Redman and finally, in order to escape Jez, she left town with Mark to travel to Amsterdam, just as friends.

Over the next few years, we'd get the occasional mention of her via one of the Battersbys and it seemed like she'd made it all the way to Australia. But in 2004, Les discovered her dressed as a belly dancer in a back street local bar, serving beer. She returned to the street and moved in with Janice. She discovered Nick was back from Canada and dating a local hairdresser, who also happened to be the woman that stole her sister's boyfriend from her. Leanne had just enough ammunition to give them both a hard time (remember that loyalty thing) and after a while, Maria and Nick's relationship showed the strain.

Leanne worked in a variety of jobs including a short term in the corner shop where her flirting with Dev resulted in her getting the sack. Rushing in without thinking, yet again, she decided to sue Dev for sexual harassment. Leanne never did figure out that "scream and leap" was not usually a successful method of planning. She used solicitor Maya Sharma who in turn used Leanne since Maya had a grudge to settle with Dev. The case was lost and Leanne was back to square one which is familiar territory to her.

In another relationship that was due for disaster, she dated Jamie Baldwin though she and Jamie's mother, Frankie, did not get along (too much alike?). She flirted with Danny who then ramped it up and pursued Leanne romantically. They decided to go for it and had an affair. Nothing serious, you understand, it was all just a laugh... until it was discovered. You see, Frankie found out and threw Danny out. Jamie was heartbroken at the betrayal of not only Leanne whom he'd wanted to marry, but of his father as well. Since neither of them had any better ideas, Danny and Leanne moved in together. Neither of them were in love with the other but they did like each other at least.

Unfortunately, Mike Baldwin, Danny's father, had health problems and was suffering from Alzheimer's. Danny and Leanne moved in with Mike and Leanne got the brunt of caring for Mike. Danny had managed to manipulate Mike into making a will giving it all to him, and cutting out his other sons, Mark and Adam but shortly after Mike's death, Leanne discovered a will that post-dated this one and in it, Mike left Adam his fair share. Janice advised her to make a copy of it and let Danny know (but not that the original was still safely with Leanne herself). Another bad choice. Leanne worked with Danny in the factory that he thought was all his now and they got engaged but when Danny thought that Frankie wanted him back, he dumped Leanne. She used the will and blackmailed him. She got half of the money she wanted and gave the will to Adam to do with what he ...er...will. She took the money and ran.

50,000 pounds should have been enough to give her a new start in life but this is Leanne "half baked idea" Battersby. When she returned to Weatherfield in March 2007, she did still have a bit of it left but was adding to it in an more traditional way, as a paid "escort". She thought that was ok since it wasn't as if she was walking the streets. Yet, Janice pointed out, bitterly disappointed in her stepdaughter. It seemed Leanne may have hit rock bottom and was yearning for a bit of respectability, especially since she'd quickly found a handsome new boyfriend in Liam Connor, now owner of Underworld.

She quit the business but Liam's sister-in-law, Carla, proposed that they start up a restaurant, buying out the local Italian. To get her share of the investment, Leanne went back to providing her services but was soon busted by Carla. Because Carla's husband, Paul, was almost one of her customers, Paul stood to lose everything and kidnapped Leanne by stuffing her in the boot of his car. He was drunk at the time and crashed his car. He was killed but Leanne was only shaken up but the secret was out. Shunned by Liam, outcast by most of the neighbours, Leanne was determined to show them all.

She borrowed the rest of the down payment she needed from Janice's new boyfriend, Roger. She hired the Duckies' grandson, Paul, who was a pretty good chef though he was a bit on the dodgy side too. She let him invest in order to pay back Roger and didn't mind that he obtained the money by pretending to be Jack at a bank and using Number 9 as collateral. Paul developed feelings for Leanne but she didn't return them. However, she used them.

The restaurant was not making money and eventually, after a joking suggestion by potential new boyfriend, Dan Mason who was the local bookie, she hinted to Paul that he should burn it all down and they could collect the insurance money and start over. He would do anything for her and he did the deed only to discover that she wasn't returning his affections as she led him to believe. Having nothing to lose, he's going to turn her in but alas, he is the only one that's going to pay for the fire, because it's his word against hers.

She got nothing, though, because the insurance didn't pay out after all. Janice turned on her and threw her out but they made up eventually. She went on nicely with bookie Dan Mason but her involvement in a lottery scam with Janice offended even his somewhat-dented sensibilities and that was over and done with. She was beginning to warm up to newly returned Peter Barlow and fell for his sweet little boy Simon but didn't cope well with  Peter's drinking and she went off to Leeds working. While she was gone, Peter stopped drinking and she's back in his bed once more. Unfortunately, her ex-husband Nick has returned and he still loves her.

Leanne agreed to Nick's proposition that they open up a bar together and The Joinery opened it's doors in November 2010. Along with the opening, Leanne also succumbed to Nick's amorous advances, a throwback to the past it seems. All the old attractions, unresolved feelings and nerves about her upcoming marraige to Peter seemed to have her throw a wobbler and she and Nick had an affair that lasted several weeks. She admitted it to her friend Carla who had fallen in love with Peter herself. Peter gently rejected Carla who continued to subtly push Nick and Leanne together so she could make inroads with Peter.

It all came crashing down, literally. Leanne gave Nick the push once and for all but the tram crash in December 2010 nearly cost Peter his life. Leanne married him in hospital, thinking he might not live and asked Nick to leave her be. She realized she did love Peter and Nick agreed to back down. Peter survived but has not dealt well with paralysis and is drinking again, with Carla egging him on.

Naturally, affairs don't stay secret for long and Peter found out about Leanne and Nick's affair. After he recovered from the crash, he had to learn to walk again and Nick, still determined to have Leanne, schemed to lure Peter back to the bottle. Leanne stuck with Peter though the recovery process was difficult and just before the wedding, Peter found out about the affair when Tracy overheard Carla and Leanne in the ladies' loo. Peter walked down the aisle for the wedding vow renewal they had planned and blasted her at the altar, serving Leanne with divorce papers. In a matter of days, though, Peter was persuaded by Ken to take her back and work through it and they plodded on. But there was more to come.

Leanne's long lost mother, Stella, showed up a few months after the wedding. Leanne was reluctant to say the least, after a lifetime of knowing her mother abandoned her to be raised by Les. After a devastating miscarraige, though, and little by little, Leanne and Stella finally bonded. Good thing, too, because Carla was still shadowing the marraige.

Clearly, Carla's presence is a thorn in Leanne's side. Peter and Carla finally gave in to temptation around the anniversary of the tram crash, something that sent Peter back into the bottle yet again with serious post-traumatic memories. Peter finally left her for Carla when the truth came out at the trial where Frank Foster was accused of raping Carla. Leanne's been on a mission to protect little Simon from Carla and Peter both, considering that while Carla isn't an alcoholic, she does drink too much and Peter's sobriety is not all that stable. Simon has already lost one mother and he wants to be with Leanne, holding a lot of anger inside against his father and Carla both. Leanne is fighting with everything she has in spite of the possibility of her own past being dragged up.

Peter and Leanne did make a good couple but I wonder what's the future going to hold for Leanne?  Leanne's history has her lurching from pillar to post, not seeming to have learned her lesson. She tries to be responsible but she just can't quite get the knack of it. Will Leanne ever put her murky past behind her and become respectible? Will she at least find some success in life, with a family of her own, sagely giving younger women advice gleaned from her own mistakes? In the aftermath of this current custody battle crisis, it looks like Leanne is going to yet again lean on Nick who is more than willing to hold her up. Is Nick the real love of her life or just an unresolved issue from her past?

Leanne isn't one of the savviest characters on the street but she's never been boring.

Peter and Leanne, Together again!

I didn't really think she'd get on that train. I really did believe they wouldn't split up my current favourite couple, Peter and Leanne Barlow. If i'm skeptical, i'd say i knew it would happen because there was nothing in the papers about either one of them leaving the show and Jane Danson wasn't headed for maternity leave or something like that. So, that's one reason.

But I also think they are a fan favourite couple and people really are rooting for them to be together. Is it Simon's devastated little face? Partly. But I, along with a lot of people, really believe Peter and Leanne are good for each other. As we know, they're both flawed and they both mess up big time and sometimes it's hard to forgive that. Leanne's affair might have been less of a betrayal if Nick hadn't stuck the knife in and twisted it a few times, encouraging Peter to drink so that Leanne would leave and go back to her first husband.

Ken was right, and i've always believed it. Nick and Leanne's affair was about the past. Leanne had some pre-wedding wobblies and Nick knew very well which buttons to press. He's as weaselly as he always was, smug, arrogant and up his own arse. And you know what? His father, Brian, was the same way.

This whole week on Corrie was great! The blessing in the church started it all off with Peter blasting Nick and Leanne, his father, Deirdre and Carla from the altar. They all knew and they all kept it from him. Rock... hard place. It always is if you're in that situation. Should he have done it in a church? Maybe not. But he was so profoundly hurt and betrayed that he lashed out in the most public way he could.

Next up, he saw Nick go into the still-unfinished bar under the viaduct which is finished and the trams are now running again. (I hope we'll now get appropriate sound effects from here on in. We didn't get them for nearly 49 years of the show until they planned to have the disaster then oh... do i hear a tram? And it was only in the opening credits as a computer graphic train for a few years but nobody ever took the tram and you never heard it. But I digress...)

Yes. the Joinery. The scene of the disaster where Nick and Ashley saved Peter's life. I also didn't think they'd have Peter kill Nick in cold blood, even if it might be deemed a crime of passion. GBH is GBH and Peter would have the book thrown at him. Heck, he'd probably confess! He sure put a good scare into Nick though. I bet those designer kecks were ruined! I was glued to the screen, i really was. Then when Nick started rubbing Peter's nose in it, i literally hollered at the telly.

Honestly, the balls that boy has to continue to be such a bastard, to continue to twist words and make Peter think Leanne only married him out of pity. Peter almost believed it, i thought, but when Nick gave him back the bottle of whiskey i prayed Peter would throw it at him and he did! Yay! He did inflict some damage on Nick's leg, or i thought he did, but Nick was running the next morning so it must not have been much more than a graze from him falling over.

Peter finally broke down in his father's arms and admitted he "loved" her. But you knew it wasn't past tense. You know he was just so hurt by what she'd done and she knew it was her fault. She didn't think she could face her friends and neighbours day after day and was about to do what Leanne always does, a runner. I thought he'd manage to get her off the train but in the end, she never got on it and they reunited at the train station.

(Never mind that it was the wrong one. Trains from Manchester to London Euston leave from Piccadilly station, and that most certainly wasn't the modern Piccadilly, it was the much older Victoria station. Maybe they couldn't get filming permission for that day in the other one.)

I digress again. So what's next for Peter and Leanne? Will we have to put up with Nick's moaning and moping and petulant face? Will he go to Milan or will he stay and reopen the bar? I'm telling you, I'd not drink there. I think it's jinxed. First it didn't open because Peter got drunk and Leanne realized it wouldn't work. Then it was the site of a huge disaster with fatalities. He'd have been better off changing it into a rival factory or something.

Anyway. Peter and Leanne will probably have a few rough weeks but it will all smooth out soon enough. I'm predicting by this time next year they'll have a little bouncing Barlow either present and accounted for under the Christmas tree or one on the way. Watch this space!

Political Incorrectness

With the news this week that Peter Barlow is apparently going to attack Nick in revenge for the affair with Leanne, people are cheering him on. Nick has been manipulative and sneaky, he persued Leanne until he wore her down and then encouraged Peter to drink to get Leanne to leave him. Lower than a snake's belly in a pothole, that! So in the realms of tv land, Nick deserves it.

Not in reality, of course. But it also got me thinking.... what about Leanne? She may have been persuaded but she participated fully in the affair. It's politically incorrect and morally wrong for Peter to put a physical pasting on her for her betrayal.  Men aren't supposed to hit girls! You don't see that on tv, not often anyway and not on a soap. The most you ever see is a slap unless it's a storyline about spousal abuse and the culprit is very much not cheered on.

So why is it that it's ok for Peter (or any man in a similar situation on a soap) to be seen going all postal on the Other Man when he's been just as betrayed by his wife/girlfriend yet it's ok for a woman to scratch and slap and wallop the Other Woman or the husband/boyfriend, too, when the opposite situation happens? 

I'm not saying it should be ok, either. Far from it. Violence is never a correct response though sometimes it's understandable why people lash out. But why can't Peter find a way to put Nick through the public humiliation he deserves instead? Ruin his reputation, turn his Mummy and Gran against him and give David another reason to cackle at his brother's misfortune. Even Ken would huff "Violence isn't the answer, Peter!!"

And you know, if Nick had stopped at the affair and not stirred the pot with his utterly reprehensible plan to lure Peter, an alcoholic, back down into the bottle, maybe it wouldn't have turned violent, or just a routine punch up in the Rovers, done and dusted like most people do.

Apparently there *will* be humiliation for Leanne. I think. Another spoiler tells us that there will be a wedding, and they've been filming it this week. However, I also thought I read something awhile back that Peter blows Leanne out of the water at the altar and reveals the affair to everyone. Far more PC with humiliation served up like a grand finale. I don't know if it's a real spoiler or a tabloid-made-up one but I can see it happening. It's standard Soap Opera stuff, jilting at the altar.

If it happens, I'm going to say "Poor Leanne" but *only* because the woman has had more than her share of being publically humiliated over the years. She always bounces back but how much can one girl take? That's the only reason i'd have any sympathy for her because she shouldn't get off scot free. She was in the wrong as well.

If there was any justice, I would have been far happier to see Leanne rip Nick a new one instead. I doubt Peter will kill Nick or even go too far, more than a few blows before someone interrupts the rampage which is apparently going to take place in the rubble of the viaduct.

Quadrangle future predictions

Love triangles are classic soap stuff. We've had what is in effect a quadrangle on Corrie recently. There's Nick, Peter and Leanne forming the main triangle but there's Carla too, who has an unrequited thing for Peter, forming the fourth arm of the geometric drawing.  So what's next for these four?

Leanne dragged Nick off to a quiet spot in hospital to tell him about marrying Peter.  He accepted it but still lurked around in the corridors while the ceremony went ahead. That little snap/crackle/pop sound you heard was his heart breaking.

Leanne really does love Peter, I knew it all along. She told Nick he was the past and I think that's exactly where the fling came from. It was all about unresolved feelings and old hurts and yes, old attractions at a time when Leanne was facing committment, something she doesn't do all that well. She called it the Battersby gene.

I really hope she's not going to get pregnant and we have to suffer another "Who's the Daddy" story so soon on the heels of the last disaster of an ill-received affair. I have a feeling Nick is going to move on sooner than you think in a big rebounder. The two possibilities i see it being are either Carla or Tracy Barlow who is more than willing to put it about. She's been in the nick for a couple of years so she must be feeling like a cat in heat. A cat with big claws, as Steve and Becky are probably about to find out.

Carla? Well she's got a broken heart, too, right? It might be logical for her and Nick to seek refuge together. They could start off having a mutual pity party in the pub, get drunk, and Robert's your mother's brother! Yes, i know Carla is struggling with sobriety but the loss of Peter to Leanne (or worse) could send her back over the edge at least temporarily. Or the horizontal bop (boff?) could happen sober. Either way. It's just a guess, not a spoiler.

This is all hinging on Peter's survival, of course. I maintain my position at this point, with tonight's episodes still to be aired, that they won't kill off yet another of Ken Barlow's immediate family or leave Simon an orphan. Come on, we've got Ashley, father of two, dying and Molly, mother of an infant dying. It just isn't logical for a soap that all three victims will be leaving children behind like that, especially one having lost both parents.

What say you, dear readers? What's next for Peter (if he survives), Leanne, Nick and Carla?

Monday's episodes are why Corrie has lasted 50 years

I just have to jump in here and say how much I enjoyed Monday's double episodes of Corrie. In contrast to last week's gloom, doom, drama and pyrotechnics, Monday's episodes were filled with fun, weirdness and foreboding (but not in an impending pyrotechnics way). Mary's Star Wars get up and musing about not being allowed to watch those kinds of movies, or pretty much any movies from the sound of it, was just as far out there as the far, far away galaxy. Is it me, or is she getting weirder and weirder? It's almost as if by having her mother living in a home instead of under her roof, the relief of not having that obviously domineering life force under her feet has set her free, dizzyingly so. I don't understand how Norris seems to be friends with her again, even having her working in the Kabin after the whole kidnap debacle, but he was also not all that upset that Rita gave Tina her job back, displacing Mary who wasn't happy about it at all.

The factory is back up and running, in the old Joinery bar. It's bizarre, really. All the fixtures and fittings and empty bottles are still there on shelves and on the bar and the (rented?) machines are lined up in the middle with just desk lamps for light. Surely that isn't really good enough for close sewing work? Kirk is happily running around with bolts of fabric (and packing and shipping, assuming there's a rear delivery door as most restaurants do have that.) At least there is a fully equipped kitchen, not just a kettle and a sink and I suppose the girls could always have their tea break at the bar! Didn't Julie mention something about having a smoothie maker?

What did have that sense of foreboding for me was the increasingly clingy Natasha. Now she's lent Nick the deposit for the lease, money she'd been saving for their own place. Um. Really? She's going to be borrowing a page out of Mary's wedding book soon and we'll be seeing a meringue type dress on a hanger behind the door of the salon pretty soon. And Nick, it's so obvious, honey, he's just not that into you! He's going to let her down with a huge thump, she's going to crash and burn. Well, maybe not burn, we've already had our share of that this year. But it isn't going to be pretty.

And Peter's jealousy just got inflamed well and truly. It seems like it came out of nowhere, doesn't it? Or is it just me? After everything that Leanne has gone through with Peter, you'd think he would have more trust in her. Why on earth would he think Leanne still has feelings for Nick after all these years? Mind you, Nick seems to quite enjoy winding up Peter. Nick is a smug git, isn't he? And for those of you that remember, he does seem to be his father's son. Brian was a smug, arrogant git, too.

I can understand Peter's feelings toward having anything resembling George anywhere near him and Simon but I don't think George will be back lurking on street corners trying to get a glimpse of Simon. I think George has an empty premises, an investment that isn't making him any money and this is a good chance to recoup. I'm sure they will rebuild Underworld once the insurance money comes in. A good chance to spruce up the old set.

It did strike me odd that Paul Stokes remarked that Nick had never let him down before but I thought this was a new Underworld contract? Nick came from Nottingham previously. Maybe Stokes is a contact and Nick had worked with him before when he lived there.

It was nice to see Tina and Gail making up and it's nice to see Tina smile, even if it was at Ciaran's daft flirting. Did he really ask her what her sign was? (Speed Dating, starring Graeme and probably Mary. That ought to be hysterical!) And so nice that Roy and Hayley are going to make it legal, finally! Again, Julie manages to put her daft foot into it wondering about Hayley's bits and pieces but she's daft as a brush anyway. Julie. Not so much Hayley. I would be very afraid, though, if I were Hayley, what with Mad Mary looming over her with her wedding planning advice.

Anyway, I quite enjoyed the Monday episodes. This is the kind of thing Corrie does so well. High drama and tragedy is good, but Corrie became famous for it's slices of everyday life like this!

Do they still fit in?

A few days ago, commenter, "Ena's Hairnet", on this post on The Coronation Street Blog, suggested a topic for conversation. When a character leaves for an extended time, do they really fit in when they return? She mentioned characters like Carla, Hayley and Leanne. As this post was getting rather long, I've posted it here on my blog rather than clutter up the other one and linked back to it.

I do think in many cases when an actor returns from an absence, be it health related or maternity leave or when the character is written out but returns down the road, that the producers and writers have to have a clear idea of what they're going to do with the character. Sometimes, I agree, things do fall flat. It's taken over a year for Hayley to get back into the forefront with the fall of Tony Gordon and having her back in the factory (where she belongs!) It seemed like her last storyline before her exit, the revelation of her long lost son (an unfortunate rewrite of history), was a stumbling block for the character. She and Roy are such a wonderful, supportive couple and she deserved to be slotted back into the canvas rather than spend a year being a spare part. I'm hoping we'll see a lot more of Hayley from here on in.

Carla's character always seemed to me to be un-Corrielike. A lot of people have commented in a similar vein that they didn't think she fit in the show. After her long maternity leave, it seems a jolt to have her back for a lot of people that didn't like her anyway. She's only just back but has returned in the thick of a major story, the downfall of Tony and it remains to be seen if she'll continue to fit in. Now that she doesn't have Tony, with Leanne her only mate, will she be with us long term? She'll have to make a few more connections to have a reason to stick, I think.

Leanne has been on the canvas since 1997 and has been away from Corrie several times over the years in addition to two maternity leaves. I have found that she always seems to fit in and they always seem to be able to find a return storyline that features her that re-acclimatizes us to Leanne.

When a long time favourite has been gone a long time, people still like to think they could come back but most of them really wouldn't fit in well. Things move on without them and they lose their connections on the Street. Curly is a case in point. I loved Curly, he was always one of my favourites and yes, I'd like to see him back but only for a visit. Say, for a wedding or funeral. It always rubbed me the wrong way that he didn't return for Vera's funeral but it's down to the availability of the actor or whether ITV wants to pay for various and sundry to return for guest visits, as well, I suppose. Other than a visit, though, there really isn't anything there for Curly anymore aside from one or two friends.

Look what happened when they tried to bring Bet Lynch back! As much as I also liked her, I really don't know as she fit in either. Unfortunately, we didn't get the chance to find out because the actress found the new shooting schedule too difficult. It was still good to see her, though, for a short visit.

It isn't always the case, though. If the writers have a good storyline in mind to feature the returnee, it can work. Leanne is a case in point and upcoming, we will be seeing Sunita return. I don't know if it's for a long term or short term but I'm looking forward to it. She only has Dev as a connection, really, since her best mate, Shelley is gone, but she was a fixture on the Street for a long time and should slot back in nicely. They're also bringing back Ciaran who has a history with her as well as a history with Peter. Do you think he'll hit on Leanne like he did Shelley or has he learned that lesson? Nick Tilsley is also coming back with a new face. It will be interesting to see how that works.

So what is your opinion on returning characters after either short or long absences? Do they fit in again? Do the writers really need to know what they're going to do with them before they bring them back? (Especially characters who have been away more than a year)