''Coronation Street'' Live is a live episode of the British soap opera ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...

'', which was first broadcast on Thursday 9 December 2010 on ITV. The special live edition was to celebrate fifty years of the programme being on air. The sixty-minute episode was directed by Tony Prescott, who had directed the soap's 40th anniversary live episode in December 2000. The episode, the 7487th in the series, was written by Jan McVerry and produced by

Phil Collinson Philip Collinson (born 26 August 1970) is a British television producer. He was initially an actor, before switching to working behind the cameras in the industry as a script editor and writer on programmes such as ''Springhill'' and ''Emmerdal ...

for

ITV Studios ITV Studios is a British multinational television production and distribution company owned by the British television broadcaster ITV plc. It handles production and distribution of programmes broadcast on the ITV network and third-party broadca ...

. It was filmed at the

Granada Studios Old Granada Studios (known simply as Granada Studios and previously known as The Manchester Studios) is a television studio complex and events venue on Quay Street in Manchester with the facility to broadcast live and recorded television programm ...

complex in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

. To celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, episodes had been broadcast every day during the week 6–10 December 2010 under the advertisement banner "Four Funerals and a Wedding". An episode broadcast the preceding Monday showed a gas explosion in local bar The Joinery, causing a

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...

to crash from the viaduct into the Corner Shop and The Kabin opposite. The live episode continued to depict the aftermath of the accident, such as the rescue attempts and deaths of the characters

Ashley Peacock Ashley Sibelius Peacock is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Steven Arnold, the character first appeared on screen during the episode airing on 1 February 1995. Ashley was a victim of th ...

(

Steven Arnold Steven Arnold (born 12 December 1974) is an English actor best known for his role as butcher Ashley Peacock in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. Early life He was educated at Sir Thomas Boteler in Warrington, where his drama teach ...

) and

Molly Dobbs Molly Dobbs (also Compton) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Vicky Binns, she debuted on 5 September 2005. Introduced as the daughter of a local baker, she is the love interest and l ...

(

Vicky Binns Victoria Jane Binns (born 27 August 1982) is an English actress, known for her two roles in the two veteran ITV soap operas ''Emmerdale'' and '' Coronation Street'' respectively. She had a lead role in ''Von Trapped'' opposite Caroline Quentin ...

), an emergency marriage between Peter Barlow (

Chris Gascoyne Christopher Gascoyne (born 31 January 1968) is an English actor, who is known for his role as the seventh Peter Barlow in the soap opera ''Coronation Street'' from 2000. Gascoyne has been nominated for several accolades at the British Soap Aw ...

) and Leanne Battersby ( Jane Danson) on Peter's hospital bed, Fiz Stape ( Jennie McAlpine) giving birth prematurely to her daughter

Hope Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's life or the world at large. As a verb, its definitions include: "expect with confidence" and "to cherish ...

, and Molly's revelation to

Sally Webster Sally Metcalfe (also Seddon and Webster) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', portrayed by Sally Dynevor. The character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 27 January 1986, when Kev ...

(

Sally Dynevor Sally Jane Dynevor (née Whittaker; born 30 May 1963) is a British actress, she is best known for her role as Sally Metcalfe in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', which she has played since 1986. In 2022, Dynevor competed in the fourt ...

) that her husband

Kevin Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant '' Kevan'' is anglicized from , a ...

(

Michael Le Vell Michael Robert Turner (born 15 December 1964), known professionally as Michael Le Vell, is an English actor. He is best known for his role as mechanic Kevin Webster in the long-running ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', a role he has played ...

) fathered Molly's recently born baby

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

. The episode attracted an average of 14 million viewers, peaking at 14.9 million, the show's highest audience for seven years. Critical reception was mainly positive. According to Daniel Kilkelly of the

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...

website the opening of the episode featured the first

computer-generated imagery Computer-generated imagery (CGI) is the use of computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, simulators, and visual effects in films, television programs, shorts, commercials, and videos. The image ...

in live television. Jennie McAlpine (who plays Fiz Stape) also became the first actress ever to act out a birth live on a soap opera.

Plot summary

The special anniversary was marked with a storyline in which the residents had to deal with a tragic accident and its aftermath. In the storyline,

Nick Tilsley Nick Tilsley (also Platt) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. He was born off screen during an episode broadcast on 31 December 1980, but made his first appearance on 5 January 1981. He was played b ...

(

Ben Price Ben Price (born 30 June 1972) is a British actor, director and writer. He has played the role of Nick Tilsley in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' and has made four films as a writer/director, the first of which, ''I'm Sorry To Tell You ...

) and Leanne Battersby's ( Jane Danson) bar – The Joinery – explodes during Peter Barlow's (

) stag party. As a result, the viaduct running above the restaurant is destroyed, sending a

careering onto the street, destroying D&S Alahan's Corner Shop and '' The Kabin''. Two characters,

(

) and

(

), and an unnamed taxi driver perished as a result of the disaster.

Rita Sullivan Rita Tanner (also Littlewood, Bates, Fairclough and Sullivan) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. Portrayed by veteran actress Barbara Knox, the character first appeared onscreen as "Rita Littlewo ...

(

Barbara Knox Barbara Knox, MBE (''née'' Brothwood, formerly Mullaney; born 30 September 1933) is an English actress, best known for her long-running portrayal of Rita Tanner in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. She first appeared as Rita Littlewo ...

) survives despite being trapped under the rubble of her destroyed shop, while Fiz Stape ( Jennie McAlpine) prematurely gives birth to a baby girl,

, after her husband

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

(

Graeme Hawley Graeme Hawley (born 28 November 1975) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as John Stape in the British soap ''Coronation Street''. Career Hawley graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in 1996 with a degree in Drama, b ...

) strikes his stalker

Charlotte Hoyle Charlotte Hoyle is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', played by Becky Hindley. The character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 9 April 2010 and departed on 10 December 2010 after b ...

( Becky Hindley) with a hammer to silence her. He later poses as

Colin Fishwick The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' in 2010, by order of first appearance. Trevor Dean Enid Crump Enid Crump, played by June Broughton, arrives on the Street to confront ...

( David Crellin), Charlotte's supposed partner, attempting to turn off her life support. Peter marries Leanne in an emergency hospital ceremony, shortly before going into cardiac arrest, although he later rallies and makes a slow recovery.

Production

Origins

Early episodes of ''Coronation Street'' were broadcast live. A live episode was produced in December 2000 to celebrate the programme's 40th anniversary. As the show's 50th anniversary approached, speculation began to grow as to whether another live edition would be broadcast, particularly after rival soap ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

'' aired its own live edition to celebrate its 25th anniversary on air in February 2010. In April 2010,

William Roache William Patrick Roache (born 25 April 1932) is an English actor. He is best known for playing Ken Barlow in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' since it was first broadcast on 9 December 1960. He is listed in the ''Guinness World Records ...

, who has portrayed Ken Barlow since the show's

first episode A series premiere is the first aired installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often a television series. In the United States, many series premieres are aired in the fall time or, for mid-season replacements, either in the spring or ...

, said that ITV would not be airing another live edition of ''Coronation Street'', saying, "We're not going to do a live episode, we did that in the Millennium year he show's 40th anniversary we don't want to do that again." Reflecting upon the 2000 episode in November 2010, Roache said that he was glad when it was over and that "they won't do that again". He joked "anyone who said that they enjoyed the live episode are either not telling the truth or they're masochists." However, on 29 August, actor

Keith Duffy Keith Peter Thomas Francis Julian John Duffy (born 1 October 1974) is an Irish singer, actor, radio and television presenter and drummer who began his professional music career as part of Irish boy band Boyzone alongside Ronan Keating, Mik ...

said that ''Coronation Street'' would air a live episode to celebrate its 50th anniversary, something which was confirmed on 1 September by ITV. It was later confirmed that the episode would be aired as part of a week-long celebration of the soap's 50th birthday.

, who had only recently taken over as producer, explained:

I thought we wouldn't go live, but quickly realised we should. I think we can deliver the most spectacular piece of live television people have ever seen. ''Coronation Street'' has such a heritage – the first episodes were filmed that way, and we did it ten years ago. My ambition is for the episode to be like a disaster movie with stunts. It'll be action-packed. I want people to sit at home and think, 'There's no way they did that live, not in a million years!'

The anniversary was celebrated with a storyline involving an explosion in The Joinery, causing a tram to crash from the viaduct into the Kabin and Corner Shop. The storyline was a sign that TV shows now have to strive harder to make an impact, according to producer Phil Collinson. "Television has changed. Programmes like ''Coronation Street'' have to stand up against massive pieces of event television like ''

Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (informally known as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored by a panel of usually 4 j ...

'' and ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

''. So we had to do something extraordinary. When drama pushes the boat out, it has to push it out really far. I think the days are over when television drama can sit back and leave it to your imagination. We have to compete against those great big juggernauts." The tram crashed during an episode broadcast on Monday 6 December, with episodes later that week, including the live episode, depicting the rescues and aftermath.

Filming

The live show involved 65 actors and a 300-strong crew. The episode opened with a wide shot of other streets in the fictional Weatherfield, reported by Digital Spy's Daniel Kilkelly to have been the first

to be produced live. In reality, the Coronation Street set is surrounded by the

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was its ...

complex in

Manchester city centre Manchester City Centre is the central business district of Manchester in Greater Manchester, England situated within the confines of Great Ancoats Street, A6042 Trinity Way, and A57(M) Mancunian Way which collectively form an inner ring road. ...

. The special effect was produced by The Mill, the post-production company that had worked on the tram crash. Collinson had worked with The Mill during his tenure as producer of ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

''. The episode was directed by Tony Prescott, who had directed the 40th anniversary live episode in December 2000. Prescott also directed the two episodes surrounding this live episode to gain some continuity. The live episode provided some challenges for dressing the set. The other episodes during the 50th anniversary week, including the tram crash, were filmed in October. As episodes are usually filmed weeks in advance, the tram had to be removed from sight for the filming of the Christmas and New Year episodes, and then put back in place over the weekend 4–5 December in time for rehearsals and transmission. Also, the cast and crew had to deal with extreme cold on the outdoor set during the days of rehearsals and broadcast as the UK was plunged into record levels of cold weather for the time of year. The producers reportedly banned the actors from drinking alcohol for 24 hours before the transmission to reduce the chances of accidents. Producers also banned the

sweepstake A sweepstake is a type of contest where a prize or prizes may be awarded to a winner or winners. Sweepstakes began as a form of lottery that were tied to products sold. In response, the FCC and FTC refined U.S. broadcasting laws (creating the ...

that some cast members were running to bet on who would "fluff" their lines first.

''The Sun'' false story

On the day of transmission, tabloid newspaper '' The Sun'' claimed that police were "throwing a ring of steel" around the filming.

Greater Manchester Police Greater Manchester Police (GMP) is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester in North West England. , Greater Manchester Police employed 6,866 police officers, 3,524 memb ...

issued a statement saying that they "have categorically not been made aware of any threat from Al-Qaeda or any other proscribed organisation." The statement said that Granada had approached the police to assist a private security firm to help ensure that the "live programme went ahead without outside interference", but "to reiterate there is no specific intelligence threat to ''Coronation Street'' or any such event" ''The Sun'' published a correction on 28 December. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'' pointed out that the apology had been negotiated by the

Press Complaints Commission The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) was a voluntary regulatory body for British printed newspapers and magazines, consisting of representatives of the major publishers. The PCC closed on Monday 8 September 2014, and was replaced by the Inde ...

Characters and cast

Sue Nicholls Susan Frances Harmar Nicholls (born 23 November 1943) is an English actress, known for her roles on British television in ''Crossroads'' (1964–1968), '' The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin'' (1976–1979) and, '' Rentaghost'' (1981–1984), ...

Audrey Roberts Audrey Roberts (also Potter) is a fictional character from the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', played by Sue Nicholls. Audrey made her first appearance on 16 April 1979 and appeared on a recurring basis for three years until April 1982 ...

Malcolm Hebden Malcolm Hebden (born 21 December 1939) is an English former actor. He is known for portraying the role of Norris Cole in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' on and off between 1994 and 2020. Aged 81, he announced his retirement from act ...

Norris Cole Norris Gene Cole II (born October 13, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League. A 6' 2" point guard, he is a two-time NBA champion, winning back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013 with the Miami ...

Brooke Vincent Brooke Levi Vincent (born 4 June 1992) is an English actress, known for her portrayal of Sophie Webster in the ITV soap-opera ''Coronation Street'', which she played from 2004 to 2019. Early life Vincent was born in Audenshaw, Greater Manche ...

Sophie Webster Sophie Webster is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. She was born on-screen during the episode broadcast on 4 November 1994. She was played by Ashleigh Middleton from 1994 until 1997 and by Emma Wood ...

* Helen Flanagan as

Rosie Webster Rosie Webster is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. She was born on-screen during the episode broadcast on 24 December 1990. She was played by Emma Collinge from 1990 until 27 December 1999. Helen Fl ...

* Andrew Whyment as Kirk Sutherland *

Alison King Alison Rosamund King (born 3 March 1973) is an English actress and model. She is known for her roles as Lynda Block in the Sky One drama series ''Dream Team'' (1998–2003, 2005–2007), and Carla Connor in the long-running ITV soap opera ''C ...

Carla Connor Carla Barlow (also Connor and Gordon) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', played by Alison King. She made her first appearance on screen during the episode airing on 1 December 2006 and introduced ...

Samia Smith Samia Maxine Longchambon (''née'' Ghadie, previously Smith; born 13 July 1982) is an English actress. She has played the role of Maria Connor in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' since 2000. Early life Samia Ghadie was born in Eccles, ...

as Maria Connor * Jack P. Shepherd as

David Platt David Andrew Platt (born 10 June 1966) is an English former professional football coach and player, who played as a midfielder. Born in Chadderton, Lancashire, Platt began his career as an apprentice at Manchester United before moving to Crewe ...

Craig Gazey Craig Gazey (born 24 February 1982) is a British stage and television actor, best known for his portrayal of Graeme Proctor in the ITV soap '' Coronation Street''. Early life Gazey attended Our Lady's Roman Catholic High School in Royton, O ...

Graeme Proctor Graeme Proctor is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Craig Gazey, the character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 18 April 2008. The character is also noted for his e ...

Sacha Parkinson Sacha Louise Parkinson (born 11 March 1992) is an English actress, known for her role as Sian Powers on the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Early life Sacha Louise Parkinson was born on 11 March 1992 in Salford, Greater Manchester, th ...

Sian Powers Sian Powers is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', portrayed by Sacha Parkinson. Sian was introduced as a love interest for Sophie Webster (Brooke Vincent). Sian joined the cast of ''Coronation Street'' a ...

as John Stape * Jennie McAlpine as Fiz Stape *

Antony Cotton Antony Cotton (born Antony Dunn; 5 August 1975) is an English actor, known for portraying the role of Sean Tully in ''Coronation Street'', as well as portraying Alexander Perry in the original ''Queer as Folk'' series. In 2007, Cotton hosted ...

as Sean Tully *

Katy Cavanagh Kathryn Sarah Collins Jupe (born 12 December 1973), known professionally as Katy Cavanagh, is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Julie Carp in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' from 2008 to 2015. She also had reg ...

Julie Carp Julie Carp (also Jones) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Katy Cavanagh. The character debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 25 April 2008 and was originally introduced as a new g ...

Vicky Entwistle Victoria Entwistle (born 15 September 1968) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Janice Battersby in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Early life Entwistle grew up in Accrington; her father owned a newsagen ...

Janice Battersby Janice Battersby (also Lee) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Vicky Entwistle, the character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 6 January 1997. On 2 August 2010, i ...

* Jane Danson as Leanne Barlow *

as Peter Barlow *

Julia Haworth Julia Haworth is an English actress. She is known for playing the role of Claire Peacock in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' from 2003 to 2011. Early and personal life Haworth was born in Burnley, Lancashire. She attended St Christo ...

as Claire Peacock *

Simon Gregson Simon Alan Gregory (born 2 October 1974), better known by his stage name, Simon Gregson, is an English actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Steve McDonald in the long-running ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' since 1989. He has r ...

as Steve McDonald * Katherine Kelly as

Becky McDonald Rebecca McDonald (also Granger) is a fictional character from the British soap opera '' Coronation Street'', played by Katherine Kelly. Becky was created by producer Tony Wood, and made her debut in the episode airing on 5 February 2006. Kelly w ...

Paula Lane Paula Lane (born 17 April 1986) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Kylie Platt in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' from 2010 to 2016. Early life Lane is originally from Hebden Bridge near Halifax. Lane atten ...

as Kylie Turner *

Kevin Webster Kevin Webster is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Michael Le Vell, the character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 19 October 1983. Le Vell was suspended from the so ...

Alan Halsall Alan David Halsall (born 11 August 1982) is an English actor, best known for portraying the role of Tyrone Dobbs in ''Coronation Street'', a role he has played since 1998. Early life Halsall was brought up in Walkden, Salford and attended Wal ...

Tyrone Dobbs Tyrone Dobbs is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Alan Halsall, the character first appeared on screen during the episode airing on 30 November 1998 and is still a cast member over 20 yea ...

Julie Hesmondhalgh Julie Claire Hesmondhalgh (born 25 February 1970) is an English actress and narrator. She is known for her role as Hayley Cropper in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' between 1998 and 2014. For this role, she won Best Serial Drama Perf ...

Hayley Cropper Hayley Cropper (also Hayley Patterson) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Julie Hesmondhalgh. The character first appeared in the episode first broadcast on 26 January 1998. Hayley was the ...

* David Neilson as

Roy Cropper Roy Cropper is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by David Neilson. He first appeared on-screen on 19 July 1995. Originally a secondary character, he was given a more prominent role in 1997, by ...

Sue Cleaver Susan Owen ( Cleaver; born 2 September 1963) is an English actress. She is best known for portraying the role of Eileen Grimshaw on the ITV soap opera, ''Coronation Street'', which she has played since 2000. Early and personal life Cleaver wa ...

Eileen Grimshaw Eileen Grimshaw (also Phelan) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Sue Cleaver, the character first appeared on-screen during the episode airing on 3 May 2000. Her storylines have often i ...

Ryan Thomas Ryan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Ryan (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) *Ryan (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) Places Australia * Division of Ryan, an electo ...

as Jason Grimshaw *

Patti Clare Patti Clare (born 3 March 1976) is an English actress, best known for playing Mary Taylor in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' since 2008. She is a three-time winner of the British Soap Award for Best Comedy Performance (2011, 2013 and ...

as Mary Taylor *

Ciaran McCarthy Ciaran McCarthy is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', portrayed by Keith Duffy. He made his first on-screen appearance on 7 August 2002, before departing in 2005. He returned in 2010 until Duffy tempora ...

Craig Charles Craig Joseph Charles (born 11 July 1964) is an English actor, comedian, television and radio presenter. He is best known for his roles as Dave Lister in the science fiction sitcom ''Red Dwarf'' and Lloyd Mullaney in the soap opera ''Coronation ...

as Lloyd Mullaney *

Michelle Keegan Michelle Elizabeth Keegan (born 3 June 1987) is an English actress, known for her roles as Tina McIntyre in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' and Sergeant Georgie Lane in the BBC drama series '' Our Girl''. Keegan also starred as Tra ...

as Tina McIntyre *

Steve Huison Steve Huison (born 2 December 1962) is a British actor who is mostly seen on television and occasionally in films. He is best known as “Lomper” in the film ''The Full Monty'' (1997) and for his role as Eddie Windass in ''Coronation Street'' ...

Eddie Windass Eddie Windass is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Steve Huison, the character's first appearance on-screen was broadcast on 14 November 2008. On 5 December 2010, it was announced that ...

Debbie Rush Debbie Rush (born 29 March 1966) is an English actress, known for portraying the role of Anna Windass in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' from 2008 to 2018. Career Early career After training at the Manchester School of Acting when she ...

Anna Windass Anna Windass is a fictional character from the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', portrayed by Debbie Rush. The character was introduced in the episode first broadcast on 14 November 2008. Rush announced her decision to leave the series in ...

Holly Quin-Ankrah Holly Quin-Ankrah (born 27 August 1987), known professionally as RAHH, is an actress and singer from Warrington, England. She began her acting career as a teenager, playing Karen Young in the long-running CBBC drama series ''Grange Hill''. She is ...

as Cheryl Gray *

Ian Puleston-Davies Ian Puleston-Davies (born 6 September 1958) is a Welsh actor and writer. He is best known for his role as builder Owen Armstrong in the ITV (TV network), ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' from 2010 to 2015. In November 2014, ITV announced ...

as Owen Armstrong *

Georgia May Foote Georgia May Foote (born 11 February 1991) is an English actress and model. She is best known for playing Alison Simmons in the BBC school drama series ''Grange Hill'' from 2005 to 2008 and Katy Armstrong in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation St ...

Katy Armstrong Katy Armstrong is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', played by Georgia May Foote. She made her first appearance during the episode broadcast on 30 July 2010. Foote had previously appeared in the soap ...

Sam Aston Samuel David Aston (born 7 June 1993) is an English actor, who has portrayed the role of Chesney Brown on the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' since 2003. Career Aston made his television debut at the age of five, as an extra in ''Eddi ...

Chesney Brown Chesney Brown (also Battersby-Brown) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Sam Aston. He made his first on-screen appearance on 10 November 2003. The character is named after the singer, Ches ...

Mikey North Michael "Mikey" North (born 27 September 1986) is an English actor best known for his role as Gary Windass in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' since 2008. Early life North was born in the Cayton area of Scarborough and began acting ...

Gary Windass Gary Windass is a fictional character from the British soap opera '' Coronation Street'', portrayed by Mikey North. He made his first appearance on November 14, 2008, the same episode where his parents Eddie (Steve Huison) and Anna Windass (De ...

Jimmi Harkishin James "Jimmi" Harkishin (born Rajan Harkishindas; 19 March 1965) is an English actor best known for his role as shopkeeper Dev Alahan in ''Coronation Street'', which he has played continuously since 10 November 1999. He also played Ranjit in t ...

Dev Alahan Dev Alahan is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Jimmi Harkishin, the character's first appearance was broadcast on 10 November 1999. He is the ex-husband of Sunita ( Shobna Gulati) and ...

Shobna Gulati Shobna Gulati (born 7 August 1966)www.shobnagulati.co.uk
Shobna Gulati official website is an English ...

as Sunita Alahan *

as Ken Barlow *

Cherylee Houston Cherylee Martina Houston (born 20 August 1974) is a British actress. She grew up in Morecambe, Lancashire, in the United Kingdom. She is currently playing Izzy Armstrong in '' Coronation Street'', a role she has portrayed since April 2010. She ...

Izzy Armstrong Izzy Armstrong is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', portrayed by Cherylee Houston. The character first appears on-screen on 16 April 2010; she is introduced as a new love interest for Kirk Sutherland ...

Will Thorp Will Thorp (born 21 June 1977) is an English actor. Early life Thorp attended St Augustine's Catholic College in Trowbridge. He studied at Bath College and joined Musical Youth Theatre Company. Thorp was also a member of the National Youth T ...

as Chris Gray *

Arnold makes an uncredited voiceover as Ashley.

Reception

The hour-long episode averaged 14.03 million viewers (52.1%), peaking at 14.9 million. It was the most-watched episode of the series in seven years, and drew an additional 2.04 million viewers (14.1%) when repeated at 10.35 pm. Viewing figures did not surpass those of "

EastEnders Live "''EastEnders'' Live" is a live episode of the British television soap opera ''EastEnders'', broadcast on BBC One on 19 February 2010. It was also simulcast to Irish viewers on RTÉ One. The episode was commissioned as part of the show's 25 ...

", a live episode of the BBC soap opera ''

'' watched by 16.6 million viewers in February 2010. Following the live broadcast, the second part of a two-part documentary, ''Coronation Street: 50 Years, 50 Moments'', averaged 6.81 million viewers (27.2%). Live episodes are prone to mishaps and actors fluffing their lines. This episode was commended for how smoothly it seemed to have gone. Critic

Mark Lawson Mark Gerard Lawson is an English journalist, broadcaster and author. Specialising in culture and the arts, he is best known for presenting the flagship BBC Radio 4 arts programme '' Front Row'' between 1998 and 2014.Padraic Flanaga"Mark Lawson ...

commented that "the producers were clever in setting every scene among characters under stress or grief, so any flapping might have been taken as acting." The only mistake that the press pointed out was the character Sally Webster being allowed into the wreckage of Dev's shop without a safety helmet. ''EastEnders'', the ''Streets biggest rival, supported the anniversary by having its character

Dot Branning Dorothy "Dot" Branning (also Cotton) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders'', played by June Brown. In a special episode entitled ''EastEnders: Dot's Story'' (2003) a young Dot was played by Tallulah Pitt-Brown in fl ...

reveal that she is a massive ''Corrie'' fan, although another character, Kat Moon complained that she'd "rather watch a lot of dirty laundry going round". ''The Live episode'' along with all the ''50th Anniversary'' episodes and also included special features. which included: • The Making of Anniversary week,• The Filming of the tram crash,• The filming of the Live episode,• Tram Crash News Flash (dramatised ITV News),• Farewell Ashley,• Richard Arnold Blog ' What's Next for the Websters',• Ken Barlow – A Life on the Street,• 50 Years of Corrie Stunts hosted by Craig Charles. were released on DVD by ITV Home Entertainment, as a two disc set on 21 February 2011. ''The 50th Live episode'' was repeated on 11 December 2020 on

ITV3 ITV3 is a British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. The channel was first launched on Monday 1 November 2004 at 9pm, replacing Plus (Granada). ITV3 is the sixth-largest UK television channel ...

, This will also be the first classic episode to be produced and re-transmitted in

1080i 1080i (also known as Full HD or BT.709) is a combination of frame resolution and scan type. 1080i is used in high-definition television (HDTV) and high-definition video. The number "1080" refers to the number of horizontal lines on the scree ...

High Definition, as part of the 60th Anniversary celebrations of ''Coronation Street''.

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External links

{{Coronation Street Coronation Street episodes 2010 British television episodes Anniversary television episodes Pregnancy-themed television episodes Television episodes about murder Television episodes about weddings Television episodes set in hospitals