The end of an era

Next week, for the second and final time, the McDonalds will have sold the pub and Liz will no longer be ruling the roost from behind the bar.

She first worked at the pub in the early 1990s as a cook, helping Betty Turpin and it seemed to spark her ambition. Newton and Ridley offered her the Queens and she and Jim ran that for awhile but it was her pub, not his and his jealousy killed their relationship temporarily over it. It didn't end well for Liz. She's worked behind the bar at the Rovers on and off but missed out on her chance to be the landlady when Vera and Jack Duckworth beat she and Jim to the post after Bet had to give up the pub, unable to find a financial backer.

This began a period of unsettled life for Liz. Her marriage eventually died, she was involved with a hood for awhile, had an attraction to Des Barnes, nearly reunited with Jim but fell for Jim's physiotherapist. She remarried Jim some years later when he was banged up for killing Jez Quigley but it didn't last. We didn't see a lot of Liz as she first followed Jim around as he was moved to various prisons and later, she lived in Brighton for awhile and spent a lot of time in Spain with her son, Andy. She returned to work for Fred Elliott and when he decided to sell up and travel with his new bride, Bev, Steve bought the bar from him, though it ended being the Estate of Fred Elliott since Fred died on his wedding day before it was formally sold. Ashley as his next of kin finished the transaction and Steve owned the pub, with Liz's name over the door. It was a dream come true for Liz who had always wanted to own the Rovers Return.
 

There were more ups and downs, a marriage and divorce (Vernon Tomlin), a number of fellas including Harry Mason and Lloyd Mullaney and after a near-reconciliation with Jim who was released from prison went badly when he robbed a bank to get the money to buy the pub from Steve for her, she left Weatherfield, heart broken. Steve found a manager, Stella Price,  and then later sold the pub to her and her partner Karl, but that was a disaster that ended in Karl burning down the pub which killed two people. Liz returned a couple of years later to be Steve's business partner when he bought the pub back.

Even though it was Steve and Michelle's names over the door and even though Michelle might tell people she was the landlady, we all knew the truth. That title belonged to Elizabeth Jane McDonald. For me, Liz has entered the Rovers Landlady Hall of Fame, just as worth as former Queens Bet Lynch and Annie Walker. Lesser landladies, Natalie Horrocks and the hapless Vera Duckworth are not as memorable and we won't even give a side glance at Ms. Price who faltered before she even rounded the first stretch of the track. Shelly Unwin, a manager under Fred Elliott had potential but never had her name over the door and Becky McDonald, Steve's (4th?) wife was far too volatile to be one of the greats. 

Steve's marriage to Michelle has been on rocky ground for a long time and his one night stand and subsequent paternal revelation was the straw that broke the back of that union. Michelle was bent on financial revenge so Steve buckled down and put the pub up for sale. Even though he wouldn't have to fight for the right to see baby Oliver after all, Liz ended up selling her share as well and is taking a job at the medical clinic while Steve still has Streetcars to run with his partner Tim.

It's a shame, really. But with a new producer, things always change. I'm not so sure about the sale of the pub to alcoholic Peter Barlow. Even if he knows that if he drinks again, it will likely kill him after that last binge in the prison drinking bootleg moonshine, the temptation is there. And his partner, Toyah Battersby will be the landlady. A mere shadow of the former greats, is Toyah. Oh, she used to have spark and the Toyah we knew 15 years ago, back when she was a barmaid at the pub, probably would have had us nodding collectively and speculating that she might make a good landlady someday.

Toyah is much changed from those days. She shows the occasional flashback to the Little Madam she was but I can't see that she'll be comfortable behind that bar. She's not blonde for one thing. The best landladies have always been blonde (well, ok, most of best ones). She scowls. She's a bit of a whiner. She'll probably nag the life out of Peter who will probably start spending a lot of time down in the cellar with the racing form a la Jack Duckworth. She just doesn't have that air of authority.

We aren't losing Liz from the Street. She and Steve will be living in the Streetcars' flat but it will seem strange not to see her behind the bar.

Let's all raise a glass to Liz McDonald, one of the best landladies the Rovers Return has ever seen.


Thanks to Corriepedia and Corrie.net.

Tvor (Twitter @tvordlj)

The Achilles Heel

With the latest rumours suggesting that Charlie Lawson may bring Big Jim McDonald back to Coronation Street, there are fans jumping for joy and other fans cringing. I'm one of the former. People accuse the character of Jim as being a "one trick pony", coming in to do the same things over and over. He'll try to get Liz back, she'll be tempted, he'll mess up, argue with Steve, probably do something stupid and leave. Lather, rinse, repeat.

And maybe it will go down like that, with lots of Jim's sayings to pepper the pot. "The Big House", "So it is", "I'll tell ye this and I'll tell ye no more", "Ach to be sure" and calling Liz "Elizabeth". It ought to be a drinking game! Fans of Jim squeal when one of his familiar sayings slips out. You feel let down if one's missing, in fact.

As far as being a one trick pony, when I look back, there are many, many characters that are just the same. Stan Ogden, anyone? (Drink, cower under Hilda's wrath, cook up schemes, evade work where possible. Repeat. And the same could be said about Jack Duckworth)

But the main reason I would love to see Jim back for a visit is the chemistry that has always been there between Lawson and Bev Callard as Jim and Liz McDonald. It's there with Simon Gregson as his son, as well. They all three just leap off the screen when they're in scenes together. It's not just familiarity that comes with acting together for a long time, either because it was evident even in the early days of the McDonald clan.

Jim and Liz were always a fiery couple. Jim had a quick temper but Liz had a volatile one as well. She was never cowed by him and stood up to him frequently, especially if she was defending one of her lads against their father's rages. It became too much, Liz started to look elsewhere, and they divorced but Jim is the love of Liz's life. He's edgy and a bit dangerous and she likes that in her men. I think that's why she seemed so suited to Tony Stewart. They are exciting and she knows they're probably going to let her down in the long run but she just can't resist.

Jim swept her off her feet as a teenager and they married when she got pregnant. She may have regretted that she was more or less a single parent because of his duties in the army but they had that passion that never really left and that's the passion she remembers when he comes around, even after years away. They fit together like two halves of a pair of scissors. 

Will we see Jim return? There's always a possibility as long as Jim is alive and the producer and writers cook up a story. As much as Steve and Liz keep washing their hands of Jim and his monumental mistakes, Jim is still Steve's dad and Liz will always be in Jim's heart. She'll always be tempted even though she knows he's not good for her. Jim is Amy's granddad and they love each other. I think conversations between Jim and Amy as she is these days would be a joy to behold.

I'm definitely in the Yay camp. I'll tell you this and I'll tell you no more, Bring Back Big Jim!

Tvor (Twitter @tvordlj)

Revenge is Sweet

One of the staple storylines in a soap is the love triangle. Another is revenge. Sometimes one is a result of the other but not always. The most recent revenge storyline in Coronation Street was about love but also betrayal of a different kind.

Let's recap: Tony Stewart and Liz McDonald are a couple. For the first time in a long time, Liz seems to have picked a man that she was really passionate about. That's probably because Tony had a dangerous edge and Liz likes that in a man. She gets bored with the good guys after awhile. As much as I really liked she and Lloyd together, he wasn't exciting enough for her. Tony was.



Tony also had a good side. He's matured since he and Eileen split up years ago. He finally came back into his son Jason's life and wanted to have a real father-son relationship. He had bridges to build and slowly, he did it. He financed the builder's yard for Jason and he bailed out Steve when the tax man came knocking after Steve's illness caused him to overspend and ignore the pub's finances.

But like most men on Corrie, Tony was weak, too. He started to feel a bit taken for granted, a bit used and he was ripe for the picking when Tracy Barlow wanted comfort after her fiance was nicked for murder and jailed. There is no love lost between Tracy and Liz, long time adversaries due to Tracy's history with Steve so having a fling with Liz's fella just added to the enticement. But Tracy got greedy and started to infect Tony with her need to lord it over everyone. She wanted the Rovers and she knew how to get it, by using Tony as her man behind the scenes.

Tony pretended to be in financial straits which would be solved if Steve paid back the money Tony loaned him. But Steve couldn't afford to do that. Tony found a company that would buy Steve's share but would leave them to manage it. Tony owned that company of course. He bought half the pub and got his loan returned as well. Sweet. Now he had to convince Liz to sell her half and he nearly succeeded.

Michelle was heartbroken that they would lose the pub even if they got to stay and run it. Her BFF Carla offered to buy Liz's share and they stopped the sale at the last minute. The day after the offer was made, Steve and Michelle got married and went on honeymoon so they never found out what Liz discovered the day of the wedding, that Tracy and Tony had an affair and were behind the takeover of the pub. Tracy was so pissed off that they lost the chance of owning the pub at the last minute that she went straight to Liz and spilled the beans. Tony skipped town before Liz could confront him but he knew she knew because of the message she'd left him.

Carla never did actually sign the papers, it turns out, so Liz still owned her share of the pub but Tony owned the other half. Tony came slinking back a few months later, very sorry. Nobody was willing to forgive him, least of all Liz. Tony persisted. He was willing to do anything to win her back and make it up to Steve, too, in the name of keeping peace in the family.

Little by little, Liz seemed to be coming around. She accepted that he regretted his lapse in reason with the affair but it was harder to get her head around the scheme to take the pub away from her and her family but Tony thought he had finally talked her around and so did everyone else. It was almost believable. There were no side looks over Tony's shoulder, no narrowing of the eyes or maniacal wringing of the hands or  twirling of the metaphorical moustaches involved. Bev Callard was far more subtle than that. Viewers thought they caught a glint in her eye now and then but couldn't be sure.

A number of viewers had predicted that she was luring Tony in for the fall, me included. That pub means everything to Liz and she would defend her family like a lioness. For me, the definitive moment was when she told her friends who were trying to make her see sense that she had to do what she had to do. I thought that if it was real, she'd have proclaimed something about following her heart, and a lot more passionately than she was doing. It almost felt like grim determination when she said what she said. I thought "A ha!!! here it comes!"

Sure enough, here it came. After she verified the contract that Tony signed, handing the pub back to her and Steve completely, Tony thought he had proven himself to the woman he loved.  She didn't expect Tony to then go down on one knee and propose but it probably made it all the better. She exposed him in front of everyone in the pub because that's what you do, isn't it! Publicly humiliate someone. And he deserved that at the very least after what he'd done to her.

Tony was shocked. He was confused. He looked around and saw surprise turn to glee on the faces of Liz's loved ones. They weren't in on the plot. Even Liz and Tracy Barlow seemed to be in agreement for once. Liz, a normally honest woman, took a page out of Tracy's book. She schemed and lied like a pro even though it was hard for her.

She persisted and she came out on top. Tony knew he was defeated. He didn't even get angry that he was duped out of the pub. He'd cleaned Tracy's business bank account out to get himself out of that partnership and that's pretty much all he was walking away with. And walk away he did, calling everyone pathetic on the way out. Not much of a dignified exit but it was all he could muster.

The champagne cork was popped. Liz and Michelle celebrated as did Steve who was in Spain with his brother. Liz didn't have regrets. If it had just been an affair... but it was more than that. She found it difficult lying but did what she had to do.

Revenge is sweet.


Tvor (Twitter @tvordlj)

Liz McDonald, Landlady Extraordinaire

A lot of episodes lately have reminded me again why Liz McDonald is probably the best and most worthy landlady since Bet Lynch Gilroy. Yes, there, I've said it. We've had quite a few since Bet's stint and a couple of landlords as well but nobody has has had the strength, force and vulnerability that Liz has. Nobody else can order someone out of her pub or bar them like she can. Nobody else  can carry on serving when her heart is breaking, a smile snapped on over a scream. Nobody else has that disastrous sense of style while carrying it off with the confidence of a runway model.

Bet was amazing, she really was. A classic character, a brassy blonde with a heart as big as all outdoors, Bet was strong and determined. If she got knocked down, she got back up again and fought tooth and claw to survive. Nobody messed her about for long and Liz has long been cut of that same cloth. She may be blonde now but she used to be a redhead and has the fiery temper to match. No wonder she and the volatile Jim were such a good match!

In some ways, I think she is even better as landlady than Bet was. Bet always seemed to have this undercurrent, a deep rooted belief that she really didn't deserve to own the pub that was her life. I think she believed, down deep, that it would be taken away from her and indeed, in the end, she wasn't able to manage it properly and she lost it,  unable to buy it from the brewery when they decided to sell it off. Liz loves the pub every bit as much as Bet did but in her case, she "owns" it with a lot more self confidence. Nobody's going to take it from her and she'll see to it. Yes, Tony did wear her down but she'd been knocked sideways over Steve's depression which caused a lot of financial trouble. A mere blip.

Here's a quick run down of the Rovers' management since the departure of Bet Lynch.

After Bet left the pub, we had Vera Duckworth ruling the roost. I loved Vera but she really wasn't landlady material and in the end, made a bit of a mess of things.

Natalie Barnes was a homewrecker. She was the instigator in the affair she had with Kevin Webster and deliberately set out to break he and Sally up. In the end, Kevin's heart just wasn't in it, it was back in Number 13 with Sally. Natalie worked in the pub and later did a deal with Alec Gilroy who had taken the pub on from the Duckworths. I never really liked her as landlady. She always had that air of predatory female about her even if she more or less reformed from the homewrecking business and the female punters never really did settle down and trust Natalie with their confidences.

The Rovers went through a period after that when it was owned and run by men, first a triumvirate of Mike Baldwin, Duggie Fergusson and Fred Elliott. Then Duggie ran the pub until he died and Fred ultimately carried the load for a few years until his demise. Shelly Unwin was mostly the bar manager throughout this
period and she was great. She could have been a worthy successor as classic landlady/manager and filled the stilettos of Bet admirably but she fell to the charms of Charlie Stubbs and later, the bigamist Peter Barlow broke her heart. She didn't last long after that.

Eve Sykes was also in the picture as Fred's wife for a short while during this period. She was more interested in getting her heels behind the bar than she was in Fred himself and she turned out to be a bigamist, too. She never had a chance in the annals of Rovers history.

Thus began a rocky period in the pub's history. Steve bought the Rovers and installed Liz as licensee and landlady. Admittedly, Liz did retreat to Spain a couple of times for lengthy visits (due to actor Bev Callard's health) and because of that we struggled through stints of volatile Becky as Steve's wife, arm folding Michelle Connor who is also currently Steve's wife, and a very unfortunate but relatively brief (two years) sufferance with Stella Price at the helm, first as manager and later, mercifully short lived, as owner.

Steve bought the pub back from Stella with Liz's help and she returned from Spain, ready to take the reins again, sharing the responsibility with Steve and Michelle. In the year or so she's been back, she's gone through two men, both of whom have turned out to be wrong'uns. Tony Stewart who got sucked into Tracy's schemes to own the pub and "show everyone" and then Dan the Brewery Man who has a temper and a history of violence towards women, specifically prostitutes.

But Liz? She told both of them to go to hell and get out of "her" pub (one by phone and one in person). I do love it when Liz shouts that, or "Right! Yer Barred!!", chin out, one hand on hip and the other ready to foist 'em out if they don't go willingly.

At the moment, Tony owns Steve's half of the pub and it is still unclear whether Liz's half transferred to Carla or not. Nothing's been said, and if any papers were signed, they probalby went up in smoke in the fire at Carla's flat. I'm sure this will be addressed sooner or later but if things come out the way they must, Liz will once again be rightful owner of half of the pub and Tony will be barred for life!

Pure speculation - What to do with Stella?

Heart lifting news this week comes with the announcement that not only is Liz McDonald returning to Weatherfield, but Steve is going to buy back the pub and install her as landlady! Can I  just have an undignified W00T from the gallery? Thank you.

Apparently, when Karl's misdeeds have been splashed all over the Weathefield Gazette and he's languising in Strangeways, Stella is going to put the pub up for sale, unable to live with the memories. I can understand that. Presuming, then, that Gloria will take her share of the sale equal to what she put into it and go bye-bye as we've also heard, what will Stella do?

Will she leave? Maybe not just yet. I hear her contract is not up until next spring. That doesn't mean she won't leave early and it doesn't mean they won't make her leave early, but all things considered and she stays until they push her out the door at the end of her contract, here's where I think her storyline will go.

First off, where does she live? If Kevin hasn't returned, she can probably stay there. If Steve and Michelle move into the pub with Liz, she can stay in the kebab flat. Sorted.

But without the pub and all the punters into whose lives she could normally meddle and without a back room in which  to hold court, what kind of storyline could she possibly have?

I have an idea and it's one I've seen coming for months.

Dev. Alahan. Yes, that's right. Stella has already been all over Dev like a rash, being all concerned he's doing ok and trying to cheer him up. I think they will have a relationship as he tries to console her and be as good a friend to her as she was to him. It won't happen straight away, she'll need a few weeks to brew that fondness into a full on boiling heat. Before long she'll be up that ginnel and sneaking in to the back door of Number 7.

Poor Aadi and Asha will have yet another adjustment. Maybe Mary will meet Stella at the door with a rolling pin, intent on defending her twin charges who are still recovering from the loss of their dear mother. I don't fancy Stella's chances.

In the end, it will all go pear shaped and, if we're lucky, Stella will be off in a black taxi, a tearful Leanne waving her goodbye.

I've never been fond of Stella though not held her in as much contempt as some fans have. She stuck her nose into business where she "didn't ought to", the worst travesty being her inclusion into the aftermath of the death of Betty Williams. Her whispery voice grated on my nerves. Her frozen face did her no favours either.  "Facial expressions? I don't need no steenking facial expressions!" And there's all that beige. I don't even think she uses lippy with much colour to break up that monotony of neutral. I suppose it's meant to be her "signature" like Hayley's red anorak or Deirdre's specs but beige doesn't make you stand out in a crowd, it makes you melt into it.

Stella put up with so much crap from Karl over the years, even before we met them. We've been told he'd cheated on her before and he gambles. He continued to do both. She turfed him for gambling but took him back. Again. And then let the door hit him on the backside for his affair with Sunita. But she took him back after the fire out of gratitude because he saved her life.

Can I just repeat here, once again, he did NOT save her life, he was ready to die on the bedroom floor with her because they were trapped. Toni (RIP) and Paul got them out the window.

Stella continued to be sucked in by Karl over and over. She kind of deserves what she gets, heartbreak and shame and at least one smug daughter who Told Her So.

So, besides Michelle Collins being a friend of former producer Phil Collinson, why were we saddled with her? Well, because Beverly Callard was unable to continue as Liz at the time. She's been struggling with depression on and off for a few years and needed more recovery time. The Rovers has to have a landlady and Steve can't have his name over the door because he's got a criminal record. Someone had to be brought in as manager. I wish Steve hadn't had to sell the pub but we can blame Tracy for sucking him in and turning him away from Becky. If he hadn't wanted to buy her Number 13. Since they had to have someone, MC got the nod.

Soon, we will be back where we started and I for one can't be happier. I do hope Bev Callard will be able to keep up the pace this time around and stay. I can handle Stella in smaller doses.

Now the big question is...Will Liz take Owen away from Anna? Or will she take Tim away from Sally? Personally, since Lloyd is now single, I want Liz and Lloyd to get back together.

Sorted.

The Rovers Landladies - the Runners Up

I, like many others, have not really warmed up to St. Ella of the Back room (aka Stella Price). Graeme blogged on the Coronation Street Blogthat he feels she’s a weak landlady when compared against classics like Bet Lynch and Annie Walker. They were the two most iconic landladies, for sure, but let’s not forget Vera Duckworth’s stint, which was a disaster from the word Go, Natalie Horrocks, the scarlet woman, and, another of my favourite characters, Liz McDonald. 

Vera’s sojourn as landlady was bound to fail. The Duckies were trying to be upwardly mobile, trying to make something of themselves for once, but as usual, they didn’t have the savvy to make it work. Book keeping, VAT, and their tendency to take the profits out of the till led to their downfall. It was fun to watch them but we always knew there was a limited shelf life for Vera as the Queen Bee. Still, even though she lurched from crisis to crisis, she was a wonderful character just the same. 

Natalie Horrocks was the woman that chased Kevin Webster and broke up the happy home of Kevin, Sally and the gurls. She was branded as a homewrecker and, indeed, that’s exactly what she was. She was the chaser, not the chased and let’s not get that mixed up with “chaste” because she most certainly wasn’t. Blonde, as all landladies of the Rovers must be, Natalie was probably one of the lesser landladies but still had the strength and vulnerability to carry it off. You grew to like her but perhaps Natalie was softened up a bit too much after her hard-faced introduction, and she seemed to become a bit too vulnerable for the job. She buckled under the strain and left. The talented Denise Welch played Natalie and was perfect for the character. 

Shelley Unwin was the bar manager and landlady de-facto for a few years. That was during the trifectorate of Duggie, Mike and Fred. Mike bowed out early on and Duggie played mein host, bringing Shelley in to mind the shop. Shelley was a great manager. She was blonde, of course, pretty, sparky and strong most of the time. She was confident and friendly and knew her way around a bar. She had a confidence knock back, first after new husband Peter Barlow turned out to be a bigamist and then  at the emotional hands of Charlie Stubbs and it was all downhill from there. She got her mojo back and decided a fresh start  away from Weatherfield was in order. 

Fred Elliott continued to run the bar but had so many irons in the fire that he brought in Steve McDonald’s mother, Liz  to manage the pub. Liz had worked at the Rovers several times in the past and fit the part like a glove. She, too, was blonde, this time around anyway, and gave it her all. She loved the Rovers and when Steve bought the pub after Fred died, she finally got her name over the door as licensee due to Steve’s criminal record, "Elizabeth Jane McDonald".

I think Liz is the next best of the classic iconic landladies after Annie Walker and Bet Lynch. Liz had the guts, she had the glory, she had the jubilant highs and crushing lows and still she put on a smile and greeted the punters like a pro. Liz had history in the community. She had friends and family, not just newly made up connections. She had lived in the Street for many years off and on.  She survived, she bounced back, she had terrible dress sense but we loved her anyway!

Liz fought for her family and for her business many a time. When daughter-in-law Becky’s actions threatened her livelihood, she broke out the claws and defended her bricks and mortar chick. But in the end, when her ex-husband Jim’s attempts at buying the pub to bail Steve out of a debt that Becky had instigated failed in a spectacularly botched bank robbery, she left town with tail between her legs in a  classic landlady leaving moment. A darkened room, memories surrounding her, she shut off the lights and got into a cab, doing a moonlit flit. 

In some ways, Liz may even be my favourite, certainly favourite of the post-Bet landladies and landlords. When the trifecta of men owned the pub, even when Fred alone owned it and had a manager in place, it just wasn’t the same without that woman’s name over the door.

There have been other managers and short-lived wannabes (The marvellous Lillian! Fred’s bigamist wife, Eve Sykes.) but they didn’t make the grade in the long haul. Even the 40+ tenure of Betty Turpin Williams (no matter what any rewrite of history may say)  only had her in as temporary manager now and then. None of these women were blondes and therefore not contenders from the start. Liz had the grit and the glamour and the door has been left open for her return. 

I continue to hope.

T'ra Elizabeth.

She had a weep. She knew she wouldn't keep her promises to Jim. Lying alone in a cell, I think he knew it too, down deep.  She sends Steve and Becky to bed and listens to the echos of her past.

Then it's last orders and turn out the lights

The inevitable and traditional taxi, red shiny case in hand.

"Airport, please.... Go for it"

And off she goes. Good luck, Elizabeth!

Character study: Elizabeth Jane McDonald

Now that we're about to say goodbye to Liz McDonald, it's fitting that we look back on her life on Coronation Street.

We first met red headed Liz McDonald in 1989 when she and her family moved to Coronation Street. Her husband, Jim, had just got out of the army and was determined to give his loved ones a more stable family life and a fresh start. Liz and Jim were married very young when Liz got pregnant for twins at 16 and by all accounts they've always been passionate people, both in love and marital war. Jim had a violent temper but Liz had a fire to her too and their battles were legendary. Liz was a strong woman, having to be both father and mother to her two energetic tearaway boys because Jim was off on maneuvers and courses much of the time.

During their first few years on the show, It was never stated for a fact that he was physically abusive to her or the children. Later on, it was implied that he sometimes would get a bit physical, maybe a bit of pushing around, especially when he was drinking. Liz was definitely not beaten down and victimized by Jim, so I always believed that he did more shouting and wall-punching than knocking her or the children around. Liz has never said that Jim was an abuser, either and she was not afraid of him. She would stand up to him toe to toe if the situation called for it, especially if she was defending one of her chicks and wasn't above a roundhouse slap across the chops when he really messed up. Most of the time, Jim seemed to know just how far he could push her and mostly only crossed the line when he was roaring drunk.

She stoutly defended her lads but she also knew when they were to blame, as one or the other would often get into trouble. When they arrived, the lads broke Alf Roberts' shop window twice accidentally. They later started a pirate radio station that made fun of local teacher, "Captain" Kenny "carpet slippers" Barlow. As they got older, Steve emerged as the main cause of trouble, getting on the wrong side of the law more than once. The stress of this may have caused Liz to go into early labour when she was pregnant unexpectedly. The baby, wee Katie, was born too early and died. Liz still has moments of grief for her lost daughter.

In 1993, she was hired by Alec Gilroy to help with the food in the pub and often worked behind the bar as well. This eventually led to an offer to run a Newton and Ridley pub, the Queens. Liz was thrilled. Finally, something she could find of her own! She had spent years being wife and mother and now that Steve and Andy were grown, this was something that she could do and do well. But Jim's endless jealous rages spoiled it for her and after a blazing row, she threw him out and handled the pub on her own. On the rebound, she even had a fling with Des Barnes' brother, Colin. She had to give up the pub when Jim knocked ten bells out of a brewery executive but she eventually forgave Jim and they gave things another try. (In a little nod to history, this was actually revisited recently when Liz and Jim met with the manager, Richard Willmore and Betty Williams told Tina behind the bar about the time Jim gave him a thumping.)

It wasn't to last. On the way home from an army reunion, Jim discovered that Liz had had a brief affair years ago with his best mate, Johnny. In a drunken rage, he lashed out and hit her, leaving her on the side of the road at night. That was the end of their marraige. Spitefully, Liz even enhanced the bruise to mke it look worse and went out in public so people could see what he'd done. Liz struck out on her own, barely tolerating Jim when he would turn up, wanting to reconcile. She'd have none of it or his temper anymore. His jealousy and temper were dragging her down. The lads waivered their support between their parents but mainly disapproved of their father's antics, especially when he broke into the house in another rage. She had him arrested for that.

To be fair, Liz had done her fair share attracting attentions of other men and though she didn't do it deliberately while she was married, she also knew it would bait Jim, both before their split and after. She worked in the betting shop for awhile. Flirtations with Des Barnes and his boss, Sean Skinner caused Des to lose his job.

Liz always kept herself in shape and always dressed attractively. But as she got older, she's clearly decided that she is fighting advancing age with her hair and wardrobe choices. She continues to wear the same trendy hair do's that women in their early 20s sport and continues to wedge herself into short tight skirts and low cut tops.

At one point, she became involved with criminal Fraser Henderson who had been in prison with Steve. Fraser's interest in her then got Sean Skinner beaten up as a warning to leave Liz alone. She worked for Fraser later in his wine bar, and though knew he was on the shady side of the law, didn't seem to realize how deep he was in. When she did, she half heartedly passed on information to a police detective, Alan McKenna who was dating Fiona Middleton, another of Steve's on-again off-again girlfriends. It all blew up when Fraser skipped town and his henchman held Liz and Andy hostage. Never one to cower, Liz helped take him down with a lethal stiletto!

Jim had an accident that left him in a wheelchair for awhile and it seemed like Liz's sympathies were leaning his way. Jim even bought a ring to ask her to marry him again but by that time, Liz was having it off with Jim's physical therapist. She broke Jim's heart when she left town with Michael Wall. We didn't see her again until a few years later though we did hear that she and Steve's new wife, Karen, absolutely did not get on well. Too much alike, I would hazard to guess. I think Liz saw a lot of herself in Karen and it seems like Steve basically married a woman just like his mother!

In 2000, Steve was badly beaten by Jez Quigley. In retaliation, Jim beat Jez badly who then died of his injuries. Jim confessed and was sent to prison. Liz returned to see him and the old spark was still there. They remarried in prison and Liz vowed to wait for him. She worked in the Rovers for awhile but ended up leaving town again to move closer to the prison where Jim was transferred.

She popped up on our screens a couple of years after that, in a bar in Blackpool. Jim had been suspicious of her relationship with her boss and escaped prison to confront her. Liz was indeed having relations. You can't keep a passionate woman down for long, so it seemed. In the end, Liz decided to try to run off with her husband but they were thwarted when, on a boat to Ireland, they encountered the young Peacock family in trouble in a small boat. They rescued them and Jim was arrested on the wharf and sent packing back to the nick. Liz went to Brighton with Bet Lynch for a time.

She returned in 2004 for Karen and Steve's second wedding. There was a bit of upset because she was spending time with her new granddaughter and Karen didn't like that one little bit. It also caused a bit of tension between Liz and her old best mate, Deirdre who was little Amy's other grandmother. Liz worked at the Rovers for awhile until she came along the wrong side of Charlie Stubbs who was living with Shelley at the time. She left there for the Weatherfield Arms and roomed with Maria for awhile in the flat over the cab office since it was owned by Steve. She also tried to get Steve and Tracy together, for Amy's sake but Steve was having none of that until he thought it might get him custody.

Eventually, she divorced Jim again because his temper kept getting him into trouble in prison, and his sentence was extended. She was lonely and wanted to find someone new. She had a few disastrous dates but has landed with a musician, drummer Vernon Tomlin who is the complete opposite of Jim in temperment. Vernon is mild and peaceful, if a bit feckless. The only problem is, he's also a lot less passionate than Liz herself and Liz was often bored and less than respectful of Vernon who cared for her quite a bit.

She had a fling with a delivery man, Derek but finished that when his wife found out. Vernon wasn't too happy about it either but forgave her and she decided to accept his marraige proposal, thinking that at her age, she really did need to settle down in a stable relationship, even if it wasn't as full of fire as she was used to.

Finally, too, she had her dream job. Steve bought the Rovers from Fred Elliott and Liz was the one that got to have her name over the door. There was one hiccup when Jim was released from prison just before her wedding. He seemed to have changed. He seemed to have accepted that she moved on.

Liz always remained close to her lads, as they grew up and settled down. She has always been fiercely loyal and though does admit that they don't always make the smartest choices, will defend them with every last breath, even if she's smacking one of them up the earhole for doing something stupid (usually Steve!). She's never really got on with any of Steve's wives. Karen was probably the most like her but Becky is just over the top troube, in Liz's eyes. She maybe right. Time will tell.

But Big Jim still loved Liz and so he always would. When he tried to convince her that she shouldn't marry Vernon, Vernon caught him attempting to kiss Liz and pulled him away. Red rag... bull... Vernon got a bloody nose for his trouble and Liz ejected Jim from her life altogether. Although she still had doubts about marrying Vernon, she knew she would never reunite with Jim either. She nearly called off the wedding but after Vernon took an injury for her, knew she couldn't hurt him and married him. He discovered she was going to call it off and was very hurt but they seem to have made up their differences and they were happy for a short while.

Liz was yet again tempted by a handsome man and realized that Vernon really wasn't the man for her, even though good looking bookie Harry wasn't either. Liz has found herself with affable Lloyd for a time but in the end, felt he wasn't the right one for her, either. Rough and Ready Owen might have been the closest to being someone Liz could really fall for, since he's cut from much the same cloth as Big Jim but due to Bev Callard's absence, that died a quiet death as did a potential clash between Owen and a brief return by Jim.

Liz returned from Spain and walked into a financial crisis. Steve and Becky were backed into a corner,having got themselves way over their heads in debt because Becky's sister, Kylie, insisted on 20,000 pounds to let them have her little boy Max. Becky stole an additional 3000 from Dev and Sunita's safe, which was broken open after the tram crashed into the corner shop. Tracy, recently released from prison, found out about Max and was holding it against them, using it to keep Amy from Steve.

Jim came back into the picture. It looked very much like there was a reconciliation on the books. Jim suggested that Liz buy the pub off them but she was unable to raise the cash. They tried to get the brewery to buy it back and when that was unsuccessful, Jim tried to get Kevin Webster to invest some of his recent lottery win. No dice. In desperation to give his beloved Elizabeth her dream, Jim committed armed robbery, was caught and went back to prison. There is nothing left for Liz in Weatherfield now. She blames Becky for all the bad things that have brought her to this point and there's no pub, no Jim and no dream.

Spain beckons and she's answering the call once and for all.

Digital Spy has a good gallery of McDonald photos.
ITV has a nice good-bye gallery here.

He's back, so he is!

Yay! Big Jim McDonald is back! I'm always glad to see this character return even if it's only for short visits. I know that Liz and Jim have had a lot of ups and downs and are probably better off apart, but I still see the chemistry there and I'm pretty sure Liz does too. I think it's more than just old feelings. I think she still loves Jim and always will, no matter who else she is with. Now that he's back again, for a bit at least, I'm sure there will be lots of longing gazes across the bar though they haven't clapped eyes on each other yet. There's also sure to be conflict between Jim and Liz's newest squeeze, builder Owen. This time, though, I think Jim might have met his match.

Owen reminds me a lot of Jim. He's feisty, tempermental and has a nasty left hook. If there was a fair fight between them, I'm not sure who would come out the winner. Spoilers say that Owen will have the upper hand and beat up Jim or maybe have someone else do it and if so, it's either going to be unfair odds or they'll have taken him by surprise. If Liz finds out Owen is behind the beating, that will probably be him shown the door in a New York Minute. She knows what Jim's temper is like but does she realize that Owen's is just as bad and probably a bit worse? I do think Liz senses the dangerous side of Owen and that's the big attraction. She always preferred men with an edge which is why Vernon didn't last too long. Too safe.

So Jim is back, and he gets to connect with his Elizabeth and his son Steve and granddaughter Amy. Wasn't he sweet with wee "Maxie"? And, with the departure of Beverly Callard in the New Year, will he and Liz go off into the sunset together? I certainly hope so!

High praise indeed

I've just *got* to bestow my praise and kudos to four actors in particular that have absolutely shone like a very shiny thing for me in recent episodes of Coronation Street.

The first storyline concerns Steve and Becky's current predicament. Now, logic tells us all that this will have a happy ending because, as far as we know, neither actor is leaving the show. In the meatime, we have to watch the frustration and pain of their backs against the wall in between where that rock and that hard place are. Becky went from feathery exuberance on her wedding day, determined not to mess up like the last time to about the lowest place she's ever been in her life. The rug was well and truly pulled out from under her white satin stilletos and add to that, the betrayal that the love of her life, her shiny new husband, didn't believe in her innocence. Steve, knowing how easy it is to fall back into shady deals and illegal measures, assumed the worst but when push came to shove, he realized she was set up and had a huge amount of groveling and making up to do. He was sincere about it too.

Becky spent her wedding night in the cell, had to endure Hooch's emotional torture and then had to face Steve in the morning. Steve and Becky sat in the car, he apologized, explained and groveled and she was very, very quiet. There was no shouting, no screaming recriminations. Just pain on both their parts.

Simon Gregson and Katherine Kelly were magnificent in both the wedding episode and in the aftermath, in my humble opinion. She was radiant in Friday's eps, just as her father-figure Roy said she was. She shook with pre-wedding nerves, held Roy captive with those big blue eyes when he had to convince her she wasn't ill nor dying, silently begging him to be right (he was, of course!). She practically danced down the short "aisle" of the registry office, excited and exuberantly giggling "I love it when he's gaggin' for it!" as Steve pulled her to the front so they could tie the knot. Simon played it just right. He and Becky have spark and fun together and this wedding certainly showed that up.

Later, when she was taken away in cuffs, as white as her dress, his face was grey with shock and you could almost feel that sick feeling in his gut when he seemed to think the worst, putting the wrong 2 and 2 together.

In the car the next day, they played it quietly. Katherine hardly looked at him at first, but had her face turned towards his side of the car, though looking past him to the back, towards where one of the cameras was. You could tell when he was finally getting through to her that he really did believe her and he really was sorry. She started glancing at him through her eyelashes and finally did look at him face to face, but you could feel the doubt, the weariness, the fear all etched into her expression. She put every ounce of vulnerability into that scene. Simon never took his eyes off her, pleading for her to forgive him but never whining, never in desperation, just earnestly and honestly. He wasn't blustering his excuses, he was stating where he was coming from and pledging to her that he really did believe her. He played it like a real grown up, something we haven't always seem Steve be when under pressure like this. He accepted his betrayal and was very sorry for it. He was gentle. He was patient. She had her defences up but didn't completely shut him away by turning her back on him. They didn't rush the scene. They nailed it.



The second storyline concerns Liz and Lloyd's breakup. The relationship was unexpected for both of them, starting off as two lonely friends reaching out. Lloyd is younger than Liz and is her son's best mate but he's older than Steve, too, probably about half way between Steve and Liz's age. Don't forget, Liz was only 17 when she had the twins so she really wouldn't be that much older than Lloyd, less than 10 years, is my guess. Still, she was never comfortable with the age difference since she was the older of the two. It mattered not at all to Lloyd and he seemed really taken with her, even moreso when she finally seemed to relax and enjoy their relationship. Even Steve seemed to come to terms with it and it all looked good. But then, Liz went to Spain to look after Andy and his bar while he was ill and stayed. And stayed. And it didn't look like she was going to come back. She stopped returning Lloyd's calls and messages leaving him bewildered and confused. Finally, she appeared in time for Steve and Becky's wedding and the stalled relationship whimpered to an end.

Many times when a couple breaks up there are rows and sobs, heart rending drama or cold, unfeeling declarations. This breakup was a little different than you usually see on telly. No rows, no name calling, but there were tears. There were tears, not only from Liz but from Lloyd, also unusual. Maybe that's because of the skill of the actor involved. Crying on screen is difficult for many actors and it doesn't always look very realistic. Craig Charles doesn't usually get dramatic scenes so you don't really realize how good an actor he can be. Lloyd is usually joking and silly with brief glimpses of anger depending on the situation. Bev Callard has always impressed me with her capabilities. This time she was playing it vulnerable, a bit confused, sad and maybe a little unsure she was doing the right thing. She bared her soul and was as honest as she could be, right down to having no makeup on and a very reserved tshirt and comfy trousers instead of her usual mask of makeup and tarty clothes. The tears on Craig Charles' face did look real and he put a truckload of emotion into their final breakup scene in the empty Rovers, the feathery, sparkly remains of the aborted wedding reception still on the walls around them. He gave Lloyd that reluctance to accept the end, the heartbreak of it and maybe, a little spark of hope against hope that someday she might change her mind. When Liz reminded Lloyd that Jim would soon be coming round, there was no puffed up blustering about being unafraid of the beligerent ex, just confidence and surprise that she might think he would be fearful. You get the feeling that he wouldn't be cowed so quickly as Vernon was by the face of Jim in a temper and could give as good as he gets. Lloyd might be a lover rather than a fighter but he'd be an even bet in most, I think.

That aside, it remains to be seen whether Lloyd and Liz will get back together though I'm guessing not. Steve and Becky will probably defeat Hooch and go at least some of the distance. I've long thought highly of Simon Gregson who has grown up into a really solid actor and he's really jumped up another level in my estimation lately. Craig Charles has jumped up several levels for me. I never thought he was a bad actor, but stretching to the emotional stuff really shows his acting chops off in a shining light. Bev Callard has always been solid and has always given us many sides of Liz. In one episode she showed her vulnerability and her rage and resentment towards her new daughter-in-law. Katherine Kelly just goes from peak to peak in her ability to portray Becky Granger McDonald as a loose cannon, a rough diamond who seems to gain confidence and self esteem only to have it thown out with the trash, sometimes by her own doing and sometimes not. She's cut from a similar cloth as Karen McDonald was but has a fiercer edge, a bit more desperation in her grasp to find some good in a life that didn't have a lot of it now that she realizes there are people who do believe in her and love her.

If you now ask me who my favourite character is, I will not be able to name just one. It'll be any one of these four though maybe Katherine Kelly has a slight edge.