Conversation Street

Tony Warren: 1936-2016

British television has lost one of its greatest visionaries. On the night of Tuesday 1^st March, Coronation Street creator Tony Warren died after a short illness, surrounded by his friends. As the mind behind the world’s longest-running and most successful soap opera, Warren’s contribution to the television industry cannot be understated.

Growing up in Eccles, just outside of Manchester, he would spend many a day hidden under the table at his grandparents’ house, listening in on the conversations going on between his grandmother and her friends. It was these words, phrases and speech patterns that stuck with Warren as he went onto pursue a career in the entertainment industry, and would later form a key ingredient in Coronation Street’s unique appeal.

Warren first appeared on radio show Children’s Hour alongside future Corrie legend Violet Carson, before attending – and being expelled from - drama school in Liverpool. He later moved to London, where he was given a role on a television play. He also began to dabble in scriptwriting, which would later see him get a job in Granada Television back in Manchester, penning episodes of detective series Shadow Squad and adaptations of WE John’s Biggles novels – though Warren yearned to create his own show.

The idea for Florizel Street –  as it was then known – had long been forming in Warren’s mind. A serial about the lives of normal, working class characters living in the Salford terraces was a far cry from anything that had been seen on television before. Northern accents were virtually unheard of on British TV programmes, whilst soap operas in the United States would focus on the lives of the wealthy. It is therefore unsurprising to hear that Warren had to fight hard to get his idea accepted by television executives. One BBC producer described the idea as “a bore”, whilst another did not even acknowledge receipt of the script. However, Warren quickly made himself indispensable at Granada, and although many higher ups were reluctant to launch the serial, Warren persisted, and a dry run was given the go-ahead.

After receiving great acclaim from the employees at Granada, the newly renamed Coronation Street was commissioned for 13 episodes, which Warren scripted single-handedly. Drawing from his experiences growing up in a matriarchal society, Warren was able to construct dialogue that exuded realism for his female characters, from razor-tongued battleaxe Ena Sharples, to haughty Rovers landlady, Annie Walker. In Ken Barlow, he created a character that would long – but ultimately fail – to escape the drudgery of northern life, whilst classy Elsie Tanner would go onto become a TV legend.

Coronation Street continued to rise in the ratings, and it became apparent that Warren would not be able to continue to write the episodes alone. Rather than sharing his baby with others, he decided to leave Granada, though none of his other writing projects were able to garner any real attention from the critics.

After recovering from various drink and drugs problems, Warren returned to Granada in the 1970s in the role of a consultant, a position that he has enjoyed ever since. In addition to this, Warren wrote a small number of novels in the early 1990s, before being awarded an MBE in 1994. In 2008, he received an honorary degree from Manchester Metropolitan University “for his contribution to ground-breaking television and creative writing which has helped put Manchester and Salford on the cultural map”, and the naming of the Tony Warren building at Media City in 2014 reflects the great respect that the television industry continued to have for him.

At the time of his death, Coronation Street is still one of the UK’s top rated television shows, and, though he has now given up on his dreams of the past, still features Warren’s creation Ken Barlow in a regular role. A true genius, Warren will be sadly missed, but long remembered for his far-reaching and long-lasting influence on British television.

Conversation Street Episode 189

This week's episode of the podcast starts off with an obituary of Coronation Street creator Tony Warren, who sadly died this week. We then spend a bit of time discussing his achievements and legacy, before returning to Street Talk as usual. This week's discussion covers the shows broadcast in the UK between the 29th February and the 4th March - a solid set of episodes, in our opinion. We particularly liked the addition of Billy to the Marta storyline, as he's the perfect character to add another understanding, sympathetic voice to the mix. Similarly, we felt the Bethany bullying storyline was really boosted by the appearance of Todd's caring side - yes, he does have one! We didn't see much of Sally this week, which was a shame, but the extra Phelan more than made up for it - now get in there with Eileen, so Michael can go back to Gail! Next up, we head over to The Kabin to report the some shocking rumours about Sean Ward and Georgia May-Foote, before finishing off with some (attempted!) quick-fire Q&As in the feedback section.

Conversation Street Episode 188

The latest episode of the podcast (and we don't just mean that we've uploaded it very late this time!) covers the episodes of Coronation Street broadcast in the UK between the 22nd and 26th February 2016. Carla vs. Tracy.  Robert vs. Leanne.  Sally vs. Norris.  Battle lines are being drawn up and down the Street this week, but who will fall on the battle field, and who will come up smelling of oregano? Meanwhile, Chesney's still anxious about the attention that Sinead's modelling career will bring her, though at least he needn't worry about Zeedan - he's only got eyes for Rana at the moment! In The Kabin section, we talk about Sally's hilarious campaign video, and we finish things off with some listener feedback.

Conversation Street Episode 187

In our latest podcast, we dissect the episodes of Corrie broadcast in the UK between the 15th and the 19th February. And what a messy dissection it is - we weren't that impressed with the show this week, so be prepared for a bit of criticism, especially of the never-ending Carla and Tracy feud, which is the main storyline of the week. Fortunately, Sally's political aspirations continued to provide some much needed laughter, and Phelan's just as good a baddie as ever - plus Simon's off to Portsmouth again by the end of the Monday's episodes. Every cloud has a silver lining, eh? In the Kabin, we take a look at a cool new range of Deirdre merchandise, then a bumper feedback session sees us reading a number of emails, plus uncovering a load of your lovely iTunes reviews! Our character profile this week is on Sinead Tinker.

Conversation Street Episode 186

On our Valentine's weekend podcast, we share our love for the week of Corrie broadcast in the UK between the 8th and the 12th February. Well... not love exactly - there was a bit too much of the Leanne story for that, to be honest - but if we saw it in a bar, we'd definitely buy it a drink. What we *did* really enjoy was Sally's continuing foray into politics, and with Norris as her new campaign manager, things can surely only get funnier. Also this week, David's botch-up in the salon leaves Beth all blotched up, and after Izzy takes a tumble, she turns to Erica for an unorthodox source of pain relief. After that, we answer some more of your listener questions, including which character we thought deserved a better exit from Corrie, and what should happen to Norris now Emily's away in Peru. There are a few small news stories to discuss in The Kabin, then after listener feedback we end the show with some spoilery discussion of the latest cast member to quit the show.

Conversation Street Episode 185

The latest Conversation Street covers the episodes of Corrie shown in the UK between the 1st and the 5th February. This week sees the mystery of the missing French fancy at Underworld, along with a number of other items from the girls' lockers. Sally, of course, pins the blames squarely on newly hired cleaner Jenny, but the identity of the actual culprit turns out to be someone that nobody would have guessed.. Sally's not the only one targeting Jenny this week either, and things are made even worse for her when she's accused of kidnapping Jack again. She's done a good job deflecting everyone's barbed comments so far, but how long will it be before Ginger snaps? In the Kabin segment of the show, we discuss Kate Oakes' recent comments about celebrity cameos and her alleged upcoming cast cull, before finishing off with some more listener feedback. Our classic character profile this week is on our favourite Corrie bimbo, Rosie Webster.

Conversation Street Episode 184

On our latest podcast, we chat about the episodes of Coronation Street broadcast in the UK between the 25th and the 29th January in the UK. This week, dark horse Mary is in for some heartache after Brendan publically chooses his wife over her. From one slimeball to another, Phelan continues to wrap himself around pretty much everyone's finger, though with Gary back on the scene it's surely only a matter of time before things start to unravel for him. Of course, our favourite storyline of the week saw the return of ginger nutter Jenny Bradley - Rita's letting bygones be bygones and even Kevin allows her to come back to the Street, but there's definitely a mountain to climb before she can win the favour Weatherfield's fountain of unforgiveness, Sophie.. After Street Talk, we get into a lengthy discussion about some of Corrie's most famous comebacks over the years, then in The Kabin, we share some release information about a new Betty Driver CD (it's a slow news week okay?) We finish off by finding out what some listeners think of a potential romance between Ken and Audrey.

Conversation Street Episode 183

On this week's show, we share our thoughts on the episodes of Coronation Street broadcast in the UK between the 18th and the 22nd January. We always look forward to a bit of extra drama on National Television Award week, and we weren't disappointed by the break in at the Bistro on Monday night - not least because of the awesome scene that followed it with Carla being dragged along the street by Jamie's car! Phelan's return was another great move - actor Connor McIntyre is back in fine form, adding a good dose of creepiness to the cobbles! Also this week, Sally decides to go into local politics, whilst Rita signs up to Facebook. Now, who might this lead her to get back in touch with..? The Kabin segment of the podcast is all about the NTAs this week - there are congratulations for Shayne Ward, Gemma's thoughts on the red carpet fashion, plus some amusing comments from some.. very passionate Danny Dyer fans! We finish off the show with a spot of feedback, including an intriguing question about Alex's parentage...

Conversation Street Episode 182

On our latest podcast, we share our thoughts on the episodes of Coronation Street shown in the UK between the 11th and 15th January 2016. If you like Robert, there's a good chance you'll have enjoyed Corrie this week - with his name now above Tracy's flower shop plus a 20% share of the Bistro, it looks like it won't be long until he's taken over the whole Street! (Watch out Steve - The Rovers could be next!) Of course, we're no big fans of the greatest chef in the north, but we did enjoy watching the blossoming romance between Kevin and Anna. Things are going pretty well for them right now but we've got a Phelan that that could be changing pretty soon... After Street Talk, we answer some listener questions, including what advice we'd give Ken if we could go back to the very start of the show. There are a few small news items to cover in The Kabin, and we round off the show with a bit of feedback.

Conversation Street Episode 181

In our first weekly review of 2016, we talk about the episodes of Coronation Street shown between the 4th and the 8th January in the UK. This week, Anna and Kevin are all loved up after he finally manages to shake off Joanne - with a little help from Anna herself! The flames of passion are also burning for Mary and Brendan, but just how much is he willing to commit when he has a wife back at home? Speaking of flames, it's Roy to the rescue on Friday, when Cathy's cache goes up in smoke - but can she forgive him for keeping quiet about Alan's letters? In the news section of the podcast, we find out which Corrie characters got the most air time in 2015, and after a little bit of listener feedback, we share our reactions to Alison King's recent bombshell in a Kabin Extra segment.