BESIDE THE SEASIDE! WE CELEBRATE CORRIE’S BLACKPOOL LEGACY ON
As Corrie celebrates 10,000 episodes with a bus to Blackpool, we look back at some other memorable excursions to Britain’s favourite seaside town…
A grand day out!
In its early days, Corrie was recorded entirely within a TV studio in Manchester. The first time the show ever filmed outside was in 1961, when battleaxe Ena Sharples and her friends Martha Longhurst and Minnie Caldwell, among others, took a trip to Blackpool. Huge crowds turned out to watch the filming of just four minutes of silent footage, which was set to jaunty music in the episode itself.
Not-so Golden Mile
By contrast, Corrie’s second trip to Blackpool, later in 1961, never left Manchester at all! It was faked – bus journey and all – entirely within the studio. This visit saw Ena left behind in a fortune teller’s booth – trying to sniff out some juicy gossip! – while haughty Ken Barlow sneered at how low-brow and tacky Blackpool was, from the safety of a pretend South Pier!
Kiss me quick
Corrie returned to Blackpool – now in suitably lurid colour – in 1985. Rita Fairclough and Bet Lynch went prowling for men, much to the distaste of their uptight friend Mavis Riley, and were thrilled to find themselves sharing their hotel with a party of toy salesmen, equally up for mischief. But while Rita and Bet’s bits of fluff ended up being more trouble than they were worth, Mavis enjoyed a sweetly romantic weekend with a real gentleman!
Life's a beach
Gail Tilsley took her two kids – little Nicky (seven) and Sarah Lou (one) – for a picnic on the beach with their dad, Brian. We wonder if they remember it? Meanwhile, Gail’s mum Audrey was taken on a horse-drawn carriage ride by her admirer Malcolm Reid – to the fury of husband Alf Roberts – while old Percy Sugden tried his best to woo a roundly unimpressed Emily Bishop.
Look both ways!
Among the many perils of a visit to Blackpool are the trams that rattle along unfenced tracks on the Promenade. Indeed, it was the northbound tram to Little Bispham that famously did for Street villain Alan Bradley, as he chased Rita. (The Strand Hotel, where Rita hid from Alan, is still open today, with a plaque to mark its claim to fame!)
Vera's dream
Jack and Vera Duckworth were frequent visitors, especially after wayward son Terry decided to sell their grandchild Tommy to his maternal grandparents, who lived in the town. The Duckworths planned to retire to the seaside, and were thrilled when their offer on a house was accepted. Sadly, Vera died before her Blackpool dream came true.
A towering love!
The highlight of the big Blackpool beano of 2000 was Tyrone Dobbs proposing to Maria Sutherland atop a blustery Tower – promising that one day he would “have a garage of his own and lots of cars”. We’re still waiting, Ty! Meanwhile, Norris Cole and Vera triumphed at a ballroom dance contest in the Winter Gardens – but only after Jack spiked the drinks of their rivals!
Hold my hand!
The Barlows have never had the best of luck in Blackpool – probably as a result of Ken bad-mouthing the place back in ’61! Little Simon was lost on the North Pier during a rainy night in 2010, while in the custody of his miserable grandad George – with desperate Peter, Leanne, Ken and Deirdre leading the search. A year later, Amy wandered off on the South Pier during a pretty standard bust-up between Steve and Tracy.
Look both ways! (2)
Two of Coronation Street’s favourite Blackpool clichés (almost) collided in 2016, when little Jack Webster ran away from his family and straight into the path of a speeding tram. Tragedy was averted at the last second thanks to the intervention of Jack’s own former kidnapper Jenny Bradley – ironically, the daughter of tram victim Alan!
Best of times, Worst of times
“You can’t beat Blackpool. There in a couple of hours in a charabanc. Everybody’s letting their hair down. You can cut the smell of shrimps and best bitter with a knife. It’s paradise.” BET LYNCH
In 2013, a trip to Blackpool was high on ailing Hayley Cropper’s ‘bucket list’– including a paddle on the beach and a dance at the famous Tower ballroom. A year later, when Cathy and Roy embarked on a tentative romance, she took him on a surprise trip to Blackpool, without knowing of his emotional connection to the town. This faux-pas steered their own relationship gently into the friend zone.