Conversation Street

Conversation Street Episode 420

In this week's podcast, we take a look back on the week in Weatherfield between the 25th and the 29th May (Episodes #10,066 - #10,068). Before we get going with that, though, we're joined by a special guest from the cobbles, who picks out a winner in our Royal Mail stamps competition, then we chat a bit about some of the Corrie merch that we've been buying this week.

When we finally get round to discussing the goings on in Coronation Street, top of the agenda is, of course, the return of the lovely Shona, who's back after what we would say is Corrie's most seamlessly covered maternity leave ever! Looks like she needs to get listening to some back episodes of the podcast, though, as it turns out she's lost all memory of living on the street - well, apart from the most important things like where the tea bags are. Now there's a woman who's got her priorities straight! Also this week, Leanne's in denial about the severity of Oliver's condition, David gets attacked (and we use that term *very* loosely) by Weatherfield's most unthreatening teenagers and Chesney proves himself to be even less tech savvy than his seven month old baby.

Hopefully, Sam Aston fares better than his on-screen counterpart where that's concerned, because in The Kabin we hear the pitter patter of little feet for him and his partner on the horizon, plus we we see who from Corrie has been recognised with a nomination in the upcoming TV Choice and Radio Times awards. We round off the show with more of your listener feedback.

Street Talk - 00:29:11
The Kabin - 02:17:52
Feedback - 02:30:34

Feature Discussion: 1970-1974 - Episode 419

If you've been enjoying listening to our journey through 60 years of Corrie, you'll be pleased to hear that our bonus material for this week's podcast is a look back at the first half of the 1970s. This period saw the debuts of characters who'd go onto be Coronation Street icons including Deirdre and Blanche, introduced Corrie viewers to the Kabin, and saw the show film abroad for the first time as the ladies of the Street jetted of to Majorca. We laughed at the continued capers of the Ogdens, gasped at the intense Joe Donneli saga and said a fond farewell to the likes of Val and Irma. Corrie in the 1970s certainly felt like a different place to the cosy Street of the sixties at times, but there was certainly still a lot to love!

Conversation Street Episode 419

On our latest podcast, we chat about the episodes of Coronation Street broadcast in the UK between the 18th and the 22nd May (Episodes #10,063 - 10,065).

It was a pretty heavy week this week, with the dominating stories being Oliver's diagnosis of mitochondrial disease and Ed standing up to racist Bistro manager Don. Though the message in the latter story was hammered home a little too heavily at times, we thought, both stories contained some fantastic performances from the main cast, and we're hoping that this could be a bit of a turning point for the Baileys, especially Ed. Thank goodness for the lighter side of the week provided by Evelyn and Arthur's blossoming romance, though - now can we please not rush towards some kind of tragic end for Arthur, and let the two of them enjoy a bit of happiness together?

With not much news to cover this week, we decided not to have a Kabin segment, but rather skip straight to the feedback section after Street Talk, where we read out some of your early reactions to Friday's episode and discuss the employment status of Special Constable Tinker.

Street Talk - 00:11:20
Feedback - 01:56:42

Vikram Desai Character Profile - Episode 418

With Street Cars recently celebrating its 20th anniversary, this week's character profile is of one its founders, Vikram Desai. Actor Chris Bisson may be better known for his role in Emmerdale these days, but back in the early 2000s, his character Vik was busy working his way through the women of the Street. We chat about some of his more memorable stories, reflect on the legacy he and his family have left on the show, and uncover some surprising behind the scenes stories - including which Corrie character he first went to audition for back in the 80s!

Conversation Street Episode 418

On our latest edition of the podcast, we chat about the episodes of Coronation Street shown in the UK between the 11th and the 15th May (Episodes #10,060 - 10,062).

This week, Steve and Leanne's worries about Oliver escalate as his seizures intensify - does he have epilepsy, or could it be something even more severe? Meanwhile, David gets a buzz from being chased through the scally estate, the odious Ray and his equally odious new manager prepare to unveil the newly renovated Bistro, and Bernie is instructed in the fine art of tomato slicing.

Next up in the podcast, we give our stamp of approval to a new Corrie project from the Royal Mail, then we finish off the show with more of your listener feedback.

Street Talk - 00:13:30
The Kabin - 01:32:46
Listener Feedback - 02:04:17

Conversation Street Episode 417

On the latest podcast, we chat about the episodes of Coronation Street broadcast in the UK between the 4th and the 8th May (Episodes #10,057 - 10,059).

After last Friday's shocking cliffhanger where she was driven to attack Geoff with a wine bottle, Yasmeen has to face a grilling from Weatherfield's most tenacious police officer, DS Abney. Did you act in self-defence? Was Geoff still holding the knife when you hit him? What do you think of my amazing fringe? It's a tough week for Yasmeen - thanks goodness she has Imran to back her up! Also this week, Weatherfield hosts yet another bizarre award ceremony, whose recipients appear just as randomly picked as the kids they get to do the speeches, and, for some reason, Leanne is concerned when Oliver comes back messy from messy play.

Next up on the podcast we take a look through this week's Corrie news in The Kabin, including a couple of quotes from Ian Macleod's press interview - filtered for spoilers, of course! - and we finish off the show with some of your reactions to the latest Geoff and Yasmeen developments in the feedback section.

Street Talk - 00:09:27
The Kabin - 01:52:20
Feedback - 02:07:38

Feature Discussion: Weatherfield At War

To mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, the feature discussion for Episode 417 of the podcast is all about Coronation Street during World War 2. Using information taken from Daran Little and Maggie Sullivan's books, the Official Coronation Street magazine from 1995 and, of course, that repository of all Corrie knowledge, Corriepedia, we chat about the history of the Street that's been created for the years between 1939 and 1945, including what went down on the 8th May 1945. We also discuss the legacy of World War 2 and its effect on some of the characters in the show, like Elsie Tanner and Percy Sugden.

Claudia Colby Character Profile - Episode 416

Coronation Street may have originated as a serial about down to earth, working class folk, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for a bit of sophistication from time to time! In our character profile this week, we take a look back at Corrie's fabulous friseur Claudia Colby, from her entrance on the arm of Lewis Archer and her friendly rivalry with Audrey to becoming the classiest notch on Ken's bedpost.

Conversation Street Episode 416

On our latest podcast, we break down our thoughts on the excellent episodes of Corrie shown in the UK between the 27th April and the 1st May (Episodes #10,054 - 10,056).

This week, Iain MacLeod finally found the memo that Kate Oates left him when he took over as producer: if you want people talking about Corrie, sometimes you've just got to go dark. For us, this week's episodes, in which we saw the climax of Yasmeen's long-running torment at the hands of evil Geoff, were some of the most adrenaline-inducing we've watched in a good long while, with a level of intensity not seen since the height of the Pat Phelan drama. Hats of to Shelley King, Ian Bartholomew and everyone behind the scenes for putting together some truly terrific telly. Oh yeah, and some stuff happened with Asha, Gary and Ken too.

Not a whole lot in the way of news this week, but we cobble together a few headlines into a brief Kabin segment next, and we finish off the podcast with some listener feedback, including some of your immediate reactions to Friday's climactic cliffanger.

Street Talk - 00:10:15
The Kabin - 01:55:05
Feedback - 02:02:23

Steven Arnold Interview - Episode 415

In 1995, Steven Arnold debuted on Coronation Street as butcher's boy Ashley Peacock. Over the course of his fifteen years on the show, we watched him become a husband, father, widower and, ultimately, the hero who gave his life to save Nick and Peter during the tram crash of 2010. This week, we welcome Steven onto the podcast to chat about his time on the show, promote his latest short film series, Thick As Thieves, and reveal what else he's been up to in the ten years since Ashley met his grisly demise.