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2000

2000 was Coronation Street's forty-first year.

Main characters[]

Ranking Character Played by Duration Number of Episodes Running total Previous year's ranking
1 Gail Platt Helen Worth Full year 144 2106 2
2 Janice Battersby Vicky Entwistle Full year 143 480 2
3 Natalie Barnes Denise Welch Until December 136 489 6
4 Martin Platt Sean Wilson Full year 132 1185 15
5 Linda Sykes/Baldwin Jacqueline Pirie Full year 122 260 9
6 Sarah Louise Platt Tina O'Brien Full year 120 535 44
7 Mike Baldwin Johnny Briggs Full year 115 1841 5
8 Jim McDonald Charles Lawson Until December 108 1070 29
8 Steve McDonald Simon Gregson Full year 108 857 35
10 Tyrone Dobbs Alan Halsall Full year 106 212 28
11 Duggie Ferguson John Bowe Full year except for June and July 103 107 62
12 Geena Gregory Jennifer James From February 101 101 -
13 Toyah Battersby Georgia Taylor Full year 98 378 14
13 Vera Duckworth Elizabeth Dawn Full year 98 1801 20
15 Hayley Cropper Julie Hesmondhalgh Full year except for February 96 275 22
16 Ken Barlow William Roache Full year except for April 95 2921 25
16 Deirdre Rachid Anne Kirkbride Full year 95 2048 23
18 Audrey Roberts Sue Nicholls Full year 93 1377 8
19 Les Battersby Bruce Jones Full year except for May and June 92 386 16
20 Roy Cropper David Neilson Full year 90 401 30
21 Fred Elliott John Savident Full year 88 429 11
21 Rita Sullivan Barbara Knox Full year 88 2321 10
23 Vinny Sorrell James Gaddas Until November 86 145 37
24 Vikram Desai Chris Bisson Until July and September to November 78 149 34
25 Dev Alahan Jimmi Harkishin Full year except for July 77 87 56
26 David Platt Thomas Ormson and Jack P. Shepherd Full year 75 423 47
26 Debs Brownlow Gabrielle Glaister February to June and August to November 75 75 -
28 Norris Cole Malcolm Hebden Full year except for April 73 158 58
29 Leanne Battersby Jane Danson Until August 72 406 1
29 Curly Watts Kevin Kennedy Full year 72 1319 25
29 Sally Webster Sally Whittaker Full year 72 1241 7
32 Maxine Peacock Tracy Shaw Full year except for June 68 491 12
32 Mark Redman Paul Fox Until July and September 68 151 52
32 Kevin Webster Michael Le Vell Full year except for July 68 1392 19
35 Gwen Loveday/Davies Annie Hulley Until June 67 91 50
35 Ashley Peacock Steven Arnold Full year except for June 67 448 2
37 Jack Duckworth William Tarmey Full year 64 1581 21
38 Danny Hargreaves Richard Standing Full year except for August 63 117 40
39 Betty Williams Betty Driver Full year 59 2251 33
40 Emma Taylor/Watts Angela Lonsdale From April 57 57 -
41 Bethany Platt Amy & Emily Walton and Mia Cookson From June 54 54 -
42 Dennis Stringer Charles Dale February and from July 52 52 -
43 Candice Stowe Nikki Sanderson Full year 50 55 61
44 Alma Baldwin/Halliwell Amanda Barrie Full year except for June 49 1084 16
45 Emily Bishop Eileen Derbyshire Full year except for May 47 2471 32
46 Gary Mallett Ian Mercer Until October 46 424 31
47 Bobbi Lewis Naomi Ryan March to June and from August 45 45 -
48 Blanche Hunt Maggie Jones Full year except for February 42 173 48
49 Maria Sutherland Samia Smith From May 41 41 -
50 Liz McDonald Beverley Callard From October 39 911 -
51 Anthony Stephens John Quayle From July 35 35 -
52 Alison Wakefield/Webster Naomi Radcliffe January to March and May to June 33 133 25
53 Eileen Grimshaw Sue Cleaver From May 32 32 -
54 Karen Phillips Suranne Jones June to October and from December 28 28 -
55 Spider Nugent Martin Hancock January and April to July 23 230 16
56 Nita Desai Rebecca Sarker Until May 22 122 24
57 Edna Miller Joan Kempson June to November 20 21 -
58 Rosie Webster Helen Flanagan January, March to June, August to September and November to December 20 448 37
59 Sophie Webster Emma Woodward January, March to June, August and November to December 18 232 40
60 Tommy Duckworth Joseph Aston July and August 17 138 -
60 Becky Mallett Megan Foster and Elizabeth Mackie February, March, May and July to October 17 68 43
60 Billy Mallett Lewis Ablett February, March, May and July to October 17 63 45
63 Sam Kingston Scott Wright From June 16 16 -
64 Peter Barlow Chris Gascoyne From December 14 68 -
65 Andrea Clayton Caroline O'Neill November and December 11 40 -
66 Andy McDonald Nicholas Cochrane November and December 8 600 -
67 Paul Clayton Lee Booth November and December 7 7 -
67 Tom Ferguson Tom Wisdom January only 7 58 42
67 Matt Ramsden Stephen Beckett From November 7 7 -
70 Charlie Ramsden Clare McGlinn From November 6 6 -
71 Terry Duckworth Nigel Pivaro November and December 5 323 55
71 Molly Hardcastle Jacqueline Kington From November 5 5 -
73 Raquel Watts Sarah Lancashire January only 2 533 -
74 Evelyn Sykes Melanie Kilburn October only 1 1 -
74 Jason Grimshaw Ryan Thomas From December 1 1 -
74 Kirk Sutherland Andrew Whyment October only 1 1 -

Production[]

Jane Macnaught[]

2000 gail and sarah

Sarah Louise's teenage pregnancy was one of the biggest storylines of the year

For the first time since 1996, a single producer oversaw Coronation Street for an entire year. Like Brian Park, Jane Macnaught worked with no executive producer over her, and in November she assumed that title herself. Macnaught had no drama show-running experience when she took charge but had a clear vision for the programme. Under her, the programme began featuring more issue-driven plots, and the amount of violent storylines increased. To maintain a high profile all year round, event episodes such as weddings, crimes, revelations and deaths were shown regularly at a rate of one per month.

Much of the violence centred around the character of drug dealer and gangster Jez Quigley, played by Lee Boardman. After early plots including setting up a robbery of the Rovers Return in the New Year's Day episode, and getting Leanne Battersby addicted to cocaine, Jez was unveiled as Tony Horrocks's killer. Jez was charged with the murder but found not guilty, after which he had Steve McDonald beaten and left for dead as payback for grassing him up. The storyline reached a climax when Jez, hospitalised after being set upon by Jim, made his way to Steve's bed to finish the job only to rupture his spleen and die himself. The storyline heralded Charles Lawson's departure from the series after 11 years, with Jim confessing to beating Jez and receiving an eight-year custodial sentence for manslaughter. Writers decided to drop the character as they felt that he had reached the end of his shelf-life in light of Beverley Callard's departure. Callard and Nicholas Cochrane returned briefly later in the year for Lawson's final episodes, which saw Jim and Liz remarry.

The grittier depiction of violence was also seen in October's Freshco siege storyline. In the story, various characters were trapped inside Freshco by armed robbers, resulting in the police storming the supermarket and shooting one of the robbers, who was revealed to be Linda Baldwin's brother Dean Sykes. Two episodes were shown on one day, with most of the action taking place in the latter hour-long instalment which aired post-watershed at 10.00pm. Melanie Kilburn made an appearance as Linda's mother Eve, a role she reprised the following year. After this, Freshco was retired as a recurring location, ending a tradition which had begun with Bettabuy in 1989.

A notable example of Macnaught's predilection for issue-based storylines was Sarah Platt's teenage pregnancy. In February, 13-year-old Sarah was revealed to be five months pregnant, and in June gave birth to baby Bethany, played by twins Amy and Emily Walton. In doing the storyline, Coronation Street was criticised by the National Viewers and Listeners Association for turning teenage pregnancy into entertainment, but the storyline was otherwise well received and won Best Storyline at the British Soap Awards.

Macnaught proved a controversial figure in the writers' room and early in the year John Stevenson, Jan McVerry and Ken Blakeson left the team, returning in 2002 after she had vacated her position.

Cast departures[]

2000 cast

Tony Warren (centre) and the 2000 cast

Seven actors resigned over the course of the year. Having only introduced Natalie Barnes's sister Debs Brownlow in February, writers dropped the character after Denise Welch and James Gaddas, who played Rovers landlady Natalie and her boyfriend Vinny Sorrell, both quit. Natalie left Weatherfield in the last episode of the year, a month after Vinny and Debs had a fling and ran off together. With no obvious replacement for Natalie at the Rovers, Beverley Callard was offered a new contract, with Liz becoming landlady. Callard was back for Jim's storyline but with the actress uninterested in returning full-time, Duggie Ferguson took over the establishment in a business partnership with Mike Baldwin and Fred Elliott.

Naomi Radcliffe quit after 18 months as Alison Wakefield. Alison ran into the path of a lorry following the death of her newborn son Jake Webster from a Group B Strep infection, ending a new chapter of Kevin's life in a double tragedy.

Unhappy with his reduced role since the death of his screen wife, Ian Mercer decided to leave after five years as Gary Mallett. Gary moved in with his girlfriend Paula Shipley in Blackpool, taking twins Billy and Becky with him. Gary's departure was used as an opportunity to return Jack and Vera Duckworth to their old home of 9 Coronation Street, which had been the Malletts' abode since 1995 when the Duckworths took over the Rovers.

The other departees were Martin Hancock, Jane Danson and Paul Fox. In their cases, the door was left open, although only Danson subsequently came back full-time; Spider Nugent went travelling in India after quitting his job at the DSS, Leanne fled to Amsterdam to get away from Jez Quigley, and Mark Redman was thrown out by father Mike after his affair with Linda was exposed on Mike and Linda's wedding day.

These resignations were coupled with the now-standard round of axings. Most of these were characters introduced the year before by David Hanson: Tom Wisdom as Tom Ferguson departed in January, Rebecca Sarker as Nita Desai in May, and Annie Hulley as Gwen Davies in June, while Rosie Webster and David Platt changed heads, now played by Helen Flanagan and Jack P. Shepherd respectively.

Arrivals and set changes[]

The set extension into Victoria Street was completed in April, bringing three new businesses to the show: Sally Webster and Danny Hargreaves's hardware shop D & S Hardware, Elliott & Son butcher shop, and taxi firm Street Cars. Street Cars was owned by Steve McDonald and Vikram Desai, with Sue Cleaver making her debut appearance as switch operator Eileen Grimshaw in May. Eileen proved a popular addition to the cast, and her son Jason was introduced on Christmas Day.

Rosamund Street was also built up, with a doctor's surgery opening in the old Graffiti Club building in November. The programme's first professional couple was introduced in the form of Dr. Matt Ramsden GP and his teacher wife Charlie, who moved into No.6, while Molly Hardcastle was introduced as a practice nurse and Gail Platt became the centre's receptionist.

Other new characters included Samia Ghadie as Maria Sutherland, a kennel maid who stole Tyrone Dobbs's heart, Andrew Whyment as her dimwitted brother Kirk, Jennifer James as new Rovers barmaid Geena Gregory, Suranne Jones and Naomi Ryan as Underworld machinists Karen Phillips and Bobbi Lewis, Angela Lonsdale as Emma Taylor, a police officer girlfriend (and, by the end of the year, wife) of Curly Watts, Charles Dale as biker Dennis Stringer, Scott Wright as stripper Sam Kingston, and John Quayle as bookshop owner Anthony Stephens. Meanwhile, Joan Kempson returned full-time as pessimistic cleaner Edna Miller, and Chris Gascoyne became the seventh actor to play Peter Barlow, who made his first appearance since 1986 when he became a regular for the first time since 1971.

40th anniversary[]

40th logo

40th anniversary logo

Coronation Street's 40th anniversary year began with the surprise return of Sarah Lancashire as Raquel Watts. Raquel was first glimpsed at the end of the New Year's Day episode, which saw the residents celebrate the Millennium with a street fancy dress party. The following instalment was a 45-minute two-hander - the programme's first - which saw Raquel return to Weatherfield to tell Curly that they had a daughter, Alice, and to ask for a divorce to marry her French partner Armand de Beaux. The episode was written by Raquel's creator John Stevenson who felt that her 1996 departure had left the couple with unfinished business.

Lancashire made no further appearances as Raquel but Alice was seen later in the year when Curly, Emma, Fred, Audrey, Ashley and Maxine went to stay at Raquel's chateau in the wake of the Freshco siege. Filming took place in Paris for three episodes which, in a first for Coronation Street, featured no scenes set in the UK.

Prince Charles 2000

Prince Charles visited the street as part of the 40th anniversary celebrations.

For its actual anniversary in December, producers decided to broadcast an hour-long live episode of Coronation Street, the first episode not pre-recorded since 3rd February 1961. The main storyline saw the residents campaign to stop the council replacing the cobbles with tarmac, with their efforts resulting in Northern Heritage granting a preservation order for them. The episode featured guest appearances by Noddy Holder, Sir Trevor McDonald (as himself) and, in a pre-recorded segment, Prince Charles. The episode also saw Vera Duckworth have a brush with death after donating a kidney to her sick grandson Paul Clayton. Nigel Pivaro made another of his semi-annual returns to the role of Terry for the storyline, while the characters of Andrea and Connie Clayton appeared for the first time since 1985 (although only Andrea was played by the original actress).

Viewing figures[]

2000 ratings

Ratings chart for the year

The (aggregated) ratings average suffered its biggest drop in a single year since 1993, to a figure of 14.54 million viewers, representing a drop of over a million viewers from 1999. For the third time in its history, every month fell year-on-year from the year before, with the biggest drops occurring in March and May which were down by almost two million viewers.

The programme's chart performance was also down on 1999, with 21 episodes reaching number one (four fewer than the year before).

The highest-rated episode was Episode 4746 on 3rd January, which gained an audience of 19.06 million viewers (including omnibus repeat). The episode took place immediately after the Curly and Raquel two-hander.

Episodes[]

# Ep.
No.
Date Part Writer Director Viewing
Figures
(With omnibus)
Chart
Position
1 4745 Saturday 1st January Peter Mills David Kester 15,820,000 9
2 4745a Sunday 2nd January John Stevenson Brian Mills 18,170,000 6
3 4746 Monday 3rd January John Stevenson Michael Kerrigan 19,060,000 4
4 4747 Wednesday 5th January Phil Woods Michael Kerrigan 18,280,000 5
5 4748 Friday 7th January Stephen Bennett Michael Kerrigan 16,060,000 6
6 4749 Sunday 9th January Martin Allen Garth Tucker 15,120,000 7
7 4750 Monday 10th January Catherine Hayes Garth Tucker 17,490,000 4
8 4751 Wednesday 12th January David Lane Garth Tucker 17,570,000 3
9 4752 Friday 14th January Mark Wadlow Garth Tucker 16,150,000 6
10 4753 Sunday 16th January Julie Gearey Graham Wetherell 16,020,000 7
11 4754 Monday 17th January Peter Mills Graham Wetherell 17,590,000 3
12 4755 Wednesday 19th January Catherine Hayes Graham Wetherell 18,080,000 2
13 4756 Friday 21st January Peter Whalley Graham Wetherell 15,580,000 7
14 4757 Sunday 23rd January Ken Blakeson Tony Prescott 17,580,000 4
15 4758 Monday 24th January Stephen Bennett Tony Prescott 17,860,000 2
16 4759 Wednesday 26th January Phil Woods Tony Prescott 17,150,000 4
17 4760 Friday 28th January John Stevenson Tony Prescott 16,070,000 6
18 4761 Sunday 30th January Stephen Bennett Colin Cant 15,480,000 7
19 4762 Monday 31st January Joe Turner Colin Cant 17,800,000 3
20 4763 Wednesday 2nd February Ken Blakeson Colin Cant 17,100,000 5
21 4764 Friday 4th February Peter Whalley Colin Cant 16,460,000 6
22 4765 Sunday 6th February Susan Wilkins Tim Dowd 17,340,000 4
23 4766 Monday 7th February Phil Ford Tim Dowd 17,810,000 3
24 4767 Wednesday 9th February Phil Woods Tim Dowd 17,360,000 4
25 4768 Friday 11th February Mark Wadlow Tim Dowd 15,220,000 7
26 4769 Sunday 13th February Peter Whalley Garth Tucker 16,280,000 6
27 4770 Monday 14th February Peter Mills Garth Tucker 17,380,000 1
28 4771 Wednesday 16th February Julie Gearey Garth Tucker 16,980,000 4
29 4772 Friday 18th February Ken Blakeson Garth Tucker 17,050,000 2
30 4773 Sunday 20th February John Stevenson John Anderson 16,940,000 6
31 4774 Monday 21st February Mark Wadlow John Anderson 17,760,000 4
32 4775 Wednesday 23rd February Joe Turner John Anderson 17,690,000 5
33 4776 Friday 25th February Phil Ford John Anderson 16,400,000 6
34 4777 Sunday 27th February Mark Wadlow Tony Prescott 14,600,000 7
35 4778 Monday 28th February Martin Allen Tony Prescott 17,620,000 2
36 4779 Wednesday 1st March Joe Turner Tony Prescott 18,120,000 1
37 4780 Friday 3rd March Susan Wilkins Tony Prescott 15,420,000 7
38 4781 Sunday 5th March Catherine Hayes David Kester 16,100,000 6
39 4782 Monday 6th March Phil Woods David Kester 17,090,000 1
40 4783 Wednesday 8th March Stephen Bennett David Kester 13,200,000 7
41 4784 Friday 10th March John Stevenson David Kester 15,390,000 6
42 4785 Sunday 12th March Catherine Hayes Tim Dowd 16,010,000 4
43 4786 Monday 13th March Peter Mills Tim Dowd 17,260,000 1
44 4787 Wednesday 15th March Julie Gearey Tim Dowd 12,230,000 7
45 4788 Friday 17th March Martin Allen Tim Dowd 14,430,000 6
46 4789 Sunday 19th March David Lane Brian Mills 16,190,000 2
47 4790 Monday 20th March Stephen Bennett Brian Mills 17,150,000 1
48 4791 Wednesday 22nd March Peter Whalley Brian Mills 12,210,000 12
49 4792 Friday 24th March Joe Turner Brian Mills 15,090,000 6
50 4793 Sunday 26th March Stephen Bennett John Anderson 15,080,000 7
51 4794 Monday 27th March Catherine Hayes John Anderson 16,550,000 1
52 4795 Wednesday 29th March Susan Wilkins John Anderson 15,790,000 3
53 4796 Friday 31st March David Lane John Anderson 13,180,000 8
54 4797 Sunday 2nd April Martin Allen Tony Prescott 15,550,000 4
55 4798 Monday 3rd April Phil Ford Tony Prescott 16,530,000 1
56 4799 Wednesday 5th April Peter Mills Tony Prescott 14,130,000 5
57 4800 Friday 7th April Peter Whalley Tony Prescott 13,710,000 6
58 4801 Sunday 9th April Julie Gearey David Kester 14,420,000 4
59 4802 Monday 10th April John Stevenson David Kester 15,310,000 4
60 4803 Wednesday 12th April David Lane David Kester 15,830,000 1
61 4804 Friday 14th April Stephen Bennett David Kester 13,930,000 7
62 4805 Sunday 16th April Phil Ford Tim Dowd 14,040,000 6
63 4806 Monday 17th April Martin Allen Tim Dowd 15,910,000 1
64 4807 Wednesday 19th April Phil Woods Tim Dowd 13,410,000 6
65 4808 Friday 21st April Mark Wadlow Tim Dowd 14,290,000 4
66 4809 Sunday 23rd April Susan Wilkins Brian Mills 11,830,000 7
67 4810 Monday 24th April Mark Wadlow Brian Mills 14,740,000 4
68 4811 Wednesday 26th April Catherine Hayes Brian Mills 14,880,000 2
69 4812 Friday 28th April Phil Ford Brian Mills 13,050,000 6
70 4813 Sunday 30th April John Stevenson John Anderson 12,750,000 7
71 4814 Monday 1st May Peter Whalley John Anderson 14,600,000 1
72 4815 Wednesday 3rd May Ken Blakeson John Anderson 11,140,000 8
73 4816 Friday 5th May Phil Woods John Anderson 13,350,000 6
74 4817 Sunday 7th May Peter Whalley Tony Prescott 13,650,000 5
75 4818 Monday 8th May John Stevenson Tony Prescott 14,320,000 1
76 4819 Wednesday 10th May Phil Ford Tony Prescott 12,860,000 6
77 4820 Friday 12th May Ken Blakeson Tony Prescott 13,170,000 4
78 4821 Sunday 14th May Peter Mills David Kester 12,420,000 7
79 4822 Monday 15th May Julie Gearey David Kester 13,900,000 5
80 4823 Wednesday 17th May Phil Woods David Kester 14,320,000 3
81 4824 Friday 19th May Joe Turner David Kester 13,580,000 7
82 4825 Sunday 21st May Peter Whalley Graham Wetherell 13,890,000 6
83 4826 Monday 22nd May Julie Gearey Graham Wetherell 14,220,000 4
84 4827 Wednesday 24th May Joe Turner Graham Wetherell 10,670,000 8
85 4828 Friday 26th May Jan McVerry Graham Wetherell 13,550,000 5
86 4829 Sunday 28th May John Stevenson Brian Mills 12,970,000 6
87 4830 Monday 29th May Peter Mills Brian Mills 11,690,000 7
88 4831 Wednesday 31st May Martin Allen Brian Mills 15,060,000 1
89 4832 Friday 2nd June Phil Ford Brian Mills 14,320,000 4
90 4833 Sunday 4th June John Stevenson John Anderson 14,780,000 2
91 4834 Monday 5th June Julie Gearey John Anderson 16,400,000 2
92 4835 Wednesday 7th June Jan McVerry John Anderson 17,210,000 1
93 4836 Friday 9th June Catherine Hayes John Anderson 14,490,000 6
94 4837 Sunday 11th June Peter Whalley Tony Prescott 14,370,000 7
95 4838 Monday 12th June Peter Mills Tony Prescott 15,110,000 1
96 4839 Wednesday 14th June Joe Turner Tony Prescott 14,800,000 3
97 4840 Friday 16th June Mark Wadlow Tony Prescott 11,700,000 6
98 4841 Sunday 18th June David Lane Philip Wood 11,870,000 5
99 4842 Monday 19th June Peter Whalley Philip Wood 11,900,000 6
100 4843 Wednesday 21st June Joe Turner Philip Wood 11,360,000 7
101 4844 Friday 23rd June Mark Wadlow Philip Wood 12,990,000 3
102 4845 Sunday 25th June Stephen Bennett Graham Wetherell 12,580,000 5
103 4846 Monday 26th June Martin Allen Graham Wetherell 13,470,000 4
104 4847 Wednesday 28th June John Stevenson Graham Wetherell 12,300,000 7
105 4848 Friday 30th June Ken Blakeson Graham Wetherell 12,850,000 6
106 4849 Sunday 2nd July David Lane David Kester
Ian Bevitt
13,360,000 5
107 4850 Monday 3rd July Phil Ford David Kester
Ian Bevitt
13,260,000 4
108 4851 Wednesday 5th July Susan Wilkins David Kester
Ian Bevitt
15,200,000 1
109 4852 Friday 7th July Julie Gearey David Kester
Ian Bevitt
12,980,000 5
110 4853 Sunday 9th July Peter Whalley David Kester
Ian Bevitt
12,790,000 6
111 4854 Monday 10th July Mark Wadlow David Kester
Ian Bevitt
16,140,000 1
112 4855 Wednesday 12th July Joe Turner David Kester
Ian Bevitt
14,880,000 3
113 4856 Friday 14th July Peter Mills David Kester
Ian Bevitt
13,520,000 6
114 4857 Sunday 16th July Catherine Hayes Brian Mills 12,150,000 7
115 4858 Monday 17th July Peter Whalley Brian Mills 13,970,000 2
116 4859 Wednesday 19th July Joe Turner Brian Mills 13,340,000 5
117 4860 Friday 21st July Phil Woods Brian Mills 11,830,000 7
118 4861 Sunday 23rd July Martin Allen Colin Cant 13,310,000 6
119 4862 Monday 24th July Phil Ford Colin Cant 14,930,000 2
120 4863 Wednesday 26th July Mark Wadlow Jim Loach 13,180,000 5
121 4864 Friday 28th July Susan Wilkins Colin Cant 13,060,000 6
122 4865 Sunday 30th July Phil Woods John Anderson 10,560,000 7
123 4866 Monday 31st July Martin Allen John Anderson 13,770,000 3
124 4867 Wednesday 2nd August Joe Turner John Anderson 13,320,000 5
125 4868 Friday 4th August David Lane John Anderson 12,460,000 6
126 4869 Sunday 6th August Phil Ford Graham Wetherell 11,630,000 7
127 4870 Monday 7th August Susan Wilkins Graham Wetherell 14,420,000 3
128 4871 Wednesday 9th August Catherine Hayes Graham Wetherell 13,950,000 5
129 4872 Friday 11th August Peter Whalley Graham Wetherell 12,170,000 6
130 4873 Sunday 13th August Phil Ford David Kester 11,980,000 7
131 4874 Monday 14th August Martin Allen David Kester 14,480,000 2
132 4875 Wednesday 16th August Peter Whalley David Kester 13,360,000 4
133 4876 Friday 18th August Phil Woods David Kester 12,440,000 6
134 4877 Sunday 20th August David Lane Ian Bevitt 12,220,000 7
135 4878 Monday 21st August Mark Wadlow Ian Bevitt 14,360,000 1
136 4879 Wednesday 23rd August Julie Gearey Ian Bevitt 13,210,000 4
137 4880 Friday 25th August Joe Turner Ian Bevitt 12,440,000 6
138 4881 Sunday 27th August Peter Mills Colin Cant 11,080,000 7
139 4882 Monday 28th August Peter Whalley Colin Cant 11,840,000 5
140 4883 Wednesday 30th August David Lane Jim Loach 13,330,000 1
141 4884 Friday 1st September Phil Ford Jim Loach 12,290,000 3
142 4885 Sunday 3rd September Catherine Hayes Anne Ross Muir 11,520,000 7
143 4886 Monday 4th September Martin Allen Anne Ross Muir 14,060,000 5
144 4887 Wednesday 6th September Julie Gearey Anne Ross Muir 14,290,000 4
145 4888 Friday 8th September Susan Wilkins Anne Ross Muir 13,400,000 6
146 4889 Sunday 10th September Joe Turner Tony Prescott 15,840,000 2
147 4890 Monday 11th September Joe Turner Tony Prescott 15,870,000 1
148 4891 Wednesday 13th September Peter Whalley Tony Prescott 11,460,000 8
149 4892 Friday 15th September Peter Mills Tony Prescott 14,590,000 3
150 4893 Sunday 17th September Catherine Hayes Graham Wetherell 14,600,000 2
151 4894 Monday 18th September Susan Wilkins Graham Wetherell 14,830,000 2
152 4895 Wednesday 20th September Phil Woods Graham Wetherell 11,360,000 9
153 4896 Friday 22nd September Mark Wadlow Graham Wetherell 12,650,000 6
154 4897 Sunday 24th September Julie Gearey Graham Wetherell 14,610,000 3
155 4898 Monday 25th September Susan Wilkins Ian Bevitt 14,720,000 3
156 4899 Wednesday 27th September Joe Turner Ian Bevitt 11,540,000 9
157 4900 Friday 29th September Peter Whalley Ian Bevitt 11,930,000 8
158 4901 Sunday 1st October Phil Woods Ian Bevitt 14,760,000 2
159 4902 Monday 2nd October David Lane Jim Loach 15,740,000 1
160 4903 Wednesday 4th October Phil Ford Jim Loach 14,930,000 6
161 4904 Friday 6th October Peter Mills Jim Loach 13,500,000 7
162 4905 Sunday 8th October Julie Gearey Jim Loach 14,950,000 5
163 4906 Monday 9th October Julie Gearey Haldane Duncan 16,760,000 1
164 4907 Wednesday 11th October 1 Jo O'Keefe Haldane Duncan 15,900,000 2
165 4908 Wednesday 11th October 2 Mark Wadlow John Anderson 14,030,000 9
166 4909 Thursday 12th October Joe Turner John Anderson 14,740,000 6
167 4910 Friday 13th October Susan Wilkins Haldane Duncan 14,060,000 8
168 4911 Sunday 15th October Phil Ford Haldane Duncan 15,730,000 3
169 4912 Monday 16th October Phil Woods Tony Prescott 16,300,000 2
170 4913 Wednesday 18th October Mariam Vossough Tony Prescott 12,040,000 8
171 4914 Friday 20th October Peter Whalley Tony Prescott 13,680,000 6
172 4915 Sunday 22nd October David Lane Tony Prescott 14,120,000 5
173 4916 Monday 23rd October Nick Doughty Philip Wood 16,310,000 3
174 4917 Wednesday 25th October Susan Wilkins Graham Wetherell 11,460,000 9
175 4918 Friday 27th October Catherine Hayes Philip Wood 13,460,000 7
176 4919 Sunday 29th October Julie Gearey Graham Wetherell 15,550,000 4
177 4920 Monday 30th October Peter Whalley Philip Wood 16,670,000 4
178 4921 Wednesday 1st November Mark Wadlow Graham Wetherell 15,330,000 6
179 4922 Friday 3rd November David Lane Philip Wood 14,530,000 7
180 4923 Sunday 5th November Phil Ford Philip Wood 14,480,000 8
181 4924 Monday 6th November Jo O'Keefe Brian Mills 17,370,000 3
182 4925 Wednesday 8th November Martin Allen Brian Mills 12,400,000 9
183 4926 Friday 10th November Mark Wadlow Brian Mills 14,070,000 6
184 4927 Sunday 12th November Julie Gearey Brian Mills 14,870,000 5
185 4928 Monday 13th November Wendy Lee Jim Loach 16,810,000 3
186 4929 Wednesday 15th November Mariam Vossough Jim Loach 15,110,000 6
187 4930 Friday 17th November David Lane Jim Loach 12,980,000 9
188 4931 Sunday 19th November David Lane Jim Loach 15,240,000 5
189 4932 Monday 20th November Peter Mills John Anderson 16,540,000 3
190 4933 Wednesday 22nd November Martin Allen John Anderson 12,040,000 10
191 4934 Friday 24th November Nick Doughty John Anderson 13,720,000 9
192 4935 Sunday 26th November David Lane John Anderson 14,780,000 6
193 4936 Monday 27th November Mark Wadlow Tony Prescott 16,710,000 3
194 4937 Tuesday 28th November Jo O'Keefe Tony Prescott 13,850,000 8
195 4938 Wednesday 29th November Phil Ford Tony Prescott 15,490,000 4
196 4939 Thursday 30th November Joe Turner Tony Prescott 13,100,000 10
197 4940 Friday 1st December Julie Gearey Graham Wetherell 13,870,000 7
198 4941 Saturday 2nd December Peter Whalley Graham Wetherell 12,810,000 11
199 4942 Sunday 3rd December Mariam Vossough Graham Wetherell 15,190,000 5
200 4943 Monday 4th December Mariam Vossough Colin Cant 16,550,000 4
201 4944 Wednesday 6th December Peter Whalley Colin Cant 12,360,000 8
202 4945 Friday 8th December Peter Whalley Tony Prescott 16,680,000 3
203 4946 Sunday 10th December Phil Ford Colin Cant 15,390,000 6
204 4947 Monday 11th December Joe Turner Brian Mills 15,560,000 4
205 4948 Wednesday 13th December Jo O'Keefe Brian Mills 15,610,000 3
206 4949 Friday 15th December Julie Gearey Brian Mills 13,590,000 6
207 4950 Sunday 17th December David Lane Brian Mills 12,370,000 7
208 4951 Monday 18th December Wendy Lee Jim Loach 16,710,000 3
209 4952 Wednesday 20th December Susan Wilkins Jim Loach 15,270,000 5
210 4953 Friday 22nd December Mark Wadlow Jim Loach 13,650,000 7
211 4954 Sunday 24th December Peter Mills Jim Loach 14,070,000 6
212 4955 Monday 25th December Julie Gearey John Anderson 15,950,000 4
213 4956 Tuesday 26th December Phil Ford John Anderson 13,190,000 8
214 4957 Wednesday 27th December David Lane Noreen Kershaw 14,860,000 5
215 4958 Friday 29th December Mariam Vossough Noreen Kershaw 14,520,000 7
216 4959 Sunday 31st December Joe Turner Noreen Kershaw 12,910,000 9

Storylines[]

January[]

  • The street residents dress up as historical figures for the Millennium party on the cobbles. Les Battersby DJs, while Rita Sullivan and the Underworld girls perform on stage. Fred Elliott is put in the stocks when he tries to use his unsold reindeer meat from Christmas to make stew for everyone, and Maxine Peacock lets Audrey Roberts know that it was he who, out of jealousy, reported Sergei Kasparov to immigration. Emily Bishop catches Steve McDonald trying to swindle her over the proceeds of his tombola and demands receipts for his "overheads".
  • Leanne Battersby sleeps with drug dealer Jez Quigley, but fails to dissuade him from carrying out his robbery of the Rovers on New Year's Eve. His thugs hide in the toilets during the bells before emerging at closing time. When Leanne makes a scene, alerting Natalie Barnes and Vinny Sorrell, they knock her unconscious and flee. Leanne tells DC Gough that she doesn't know who the attackers were, and in return for her silence Jez wipes off her debt. However, she feels uncomfortable with being hailed as a hero and confesses to Natalie that she was in on the robbery. Natalie lets her stay on at the Rovers if she beats her cocaine addiction. Leanne goes to drug counselling, but it isn't until she sees the the emotional toll her actions are having on Janice that she throws away the coke she has left and makes an effort with counsellor Will Griffiths. Meanwhile, Les goes after Jez when Steve hints that he was involved in the robbery. He corners the drug dealer in a pub, but his thugs protect him, and Jez tells Les that his daughter is a cokehead. Initially ashamed, Les supports Leanne in her determination to get clean.
Episode4745a

Raquel returns with life-changing news for Curly

  • Curly Watts receives a visit from his estranged wife Raquel, who reveals that they have a two-year-old daughter, Alice, who lives with her in France. She asks him for a divorce in order to marry her boyfriend Armand de Beaux, assuring him that Armand will never adopt Alice and Curly can visit her as much as he likes. Curly is deeply hurt that Alice's existence has been kept from him, but grants her request.
  • Martin Platt's fling with fellow nurse Rebecca Hopkins blossoms into an affair. Rebecca's husband Jerry finds out and informs Gail, but she doesn't believe him. Martin decides to leave Gail for Rebecca.
  • Alison Wakefield returns to Weatherfield from Morecambe when Kevin Webster proposes to her. She accepts the proposal when he repeats it back home, showing that he genuinely wants to marry her. The couple book a quick wedding at the Weatherfield Register Office and Alison returns to Underworld, with Mark Redman refusing an order from Mike Baldwin to sack her to avoid paying for maternity. During Alison's hen party, Kevin visits Sally and they row about who caused the demise of their own marriage. He suddenly professes his love for her and they end up in bed together. Although Sally regrets it, Kevin doesn't and goes to the registry office intending to confess all to his bride-to-be. In the end, he chickens out and marries Alison instead. The Websters set off on their honeymoon in the Lake District.
  • Following Mike and Linda Sykes's split, Mark confronts Linda about the way she's treated his dad. He surprises Linda by making a pass at her, and they have sex on the factory floor. They barely have time to dress before Mike arrives and asks Linda to marry him, and Mark to be his business partner. Linda moves into the shop flat with Nita Desai while she considers the proposal, ultimately accepting and threatening to tell the police she was raped if Mark says anything to Mike. Alma Baldwin is embarrassed to stumble upon the engagement celebrations at the factory. Linda starts playing mind games with Mark, by turns avoiding him and teasing him. When she takes a dislike to his girlfriend Clare Machin, Mark thinks she's harbouring feelings for him. They have sex again while Mike is away on business, and to avoid further temptation, Mark decides to leave Weatherfield and go travelling.
  • Blanche Hunt announces to Deirdre Rachid and Ken Barlow that she's selling her flat in Kenilworth, and guilt trips the couple into begging her to come and live with them permanently.
  • Rita takes up Norris Cole's suggestion of applying to open a post office in The Kabin. The newsagent is refurbished, while Rita takes on Candice Stowe as a paper girl.
  • Vinny tells Natalie that he has an 18-year-old daughter, Lisa Scott, but assures her that he has no lingering feelings for her mother Pauline. Going public with their relationship, the couple go to Tunisia on holiday, with Jim McDonald managing the Rovers in their absence.
  • Jim feels uncomfortable when his partner Gwen Loveday tells him that she was abused by her ex husband Laurie. He confesses that he once hit Liz, causing Gwen to back away. She returns to Jim when he convinces her that it was a one-off, but is unnerved when he shouts at for Mark sending her home from work for drinking during her lunch hour.
  • Amy Goskirke arrives in the area from Birmingham and tells her ex-boyfriend Dev Alahan that she's pregnant with his child. Knowing her to be a liar and fantasist, Dev doesn't believe her, especially when she claims that her scan was cancelled as the machine has broken down. Amy gets taken on as a barmaid at the Rovers and uses her new friendship with Leanne to turn the neighbours against Dev, firstly by saying that he's been pressuring her to have an abortion, and then by disappearing from the area leaving a suicide note behind. Dev is sure that Amy is just playing games, but is rattled when the police ask him to identify a body, which turns out not to be her.
  • Tyrone Dobbs has his first driving lesson with Mr Charles. He's a natural after years of joyriding.
  • Duggie Ferguson starts work re-developing the old townhouses in Victoria Street. Steve is passed over for the job of foreman, but when Duggie's main contractor goes bust, the developer fires his site manager Mr Parr for being caught unaware. Steve then lands the development contract in a 50-50 partnership with builder Pat Hegherty.
  • Tom Ferguson continues to reject Duggie, passing up a visit to his mother's grave with him on her birthday. With the Victoria Street development ongoing, Tom realises that his dad is sticking around and leaves the street to get away from him, giving up his job at Audrey's salon.

February[]

  • Steve finds some Victorian fireplaces inside one of the houses being converted. He and Pat rip them out, sell them and split the proceeds before discovering that Duggie has already claimed them for himself. Duggie forces the pair to hand over their £1,500 profits from the sale to keep their jobs.
  • Linda persuades Mark to stay in Weatherfield by promising to leave him alone in future.
  • Amy returns with bandaged wrists and tells everyone that she lost her baby and tried to kill herself. When the neighbours blame Dev for her mental state and boycott the corner shop, he changes tack and gets back with Amy. He waits until they're in public before pulling off her bandages, showing everyone in the Rovers that she hasn't cut herself. The residents turn on Amy for deceiving them and she leaves the street in disgrace.
  • Les's hearing hearing for working while claiming benefits takes place. The magistrate sentences him to 150 hours of community service and he's ordered to repay the money. Put to work with convicted Hell's Angel Dennis Stringer, Les is made to scrub graffiti off walls. However, the graffiti keeps re-appearing after he finishes the job, causing the community service officer Mr Weir to report him to the courts for skiving. Les is vindicated when he catches Tyrone Dobbs in the act of re-spraying the graffiti, and the court accepts that he's been the victim of a prank.
  • Kevin and Alison return from honeymoon. Sally tells Kevin to forget about what happened between them.
  • Linda throws Mike a birthday party to prove she's a capable host. When she wins round factory client Mr Hollands in Mike's absence by flirting with him, Mike gives her the task of getting an order from hard-nut Helen Cooper.
  • Leanne repays £50 she stole from Mike's flat the previous year. Mark is impressed by her efforts to turn her life around after her coke addiction, and they start going out again, with Mark dumping Clare to be with her. Mike is displeased when he sends Mark to a textile trade fair in Brussels and Mark brings Leanne along.
  • Sarah Platt thinks she's getting fat and stops eating her meals. When Gail hears Sarah being sick after she forces her breakfast down her, she takes her daughter to see Dr Wilson and is stunned to be told that her thirteen-year-old daughter is pregnant. Sarah breaks down and confesses to Gail that she had sex once, but refuses to divulge the father's identity. As Sarah is five months gone - too late for an abortion - Gail and Martin do their best to prepare Sarah for the reality of being a teenage mother. Martin is angry when social worker Lydia Summers calls at No.8 and insinuates that he's the father.
Episode 4774

Martin's plan for new life with Rebecca Hopkins is derailed by some life-changing news

  • David Platt hurts himself while fetching his ball from a skip in Victoria Street. Rebecca helps Martin patch him up at Weatherfield General, and seeing her with his son further convinces Martin that he wants to be with her. Later, when Rebecca arrives at Bessie Street School to watch David play football, seeing Martin with his family makes her awash with guilt, and Martin has to convince her that their future together is worth the pain it'll cause. When a row erupts over the fact that Martin is still sleeping with Gail, Martin decides it's time to tell his wife the truth, but when he sits her down to break the news, Gail drops the bombshell about Sarah's pregnancy. His plans in disarray, Martin cools things with Rebecca in order to focus on Sarah for a while. He confesses his affair to Danny Hargreaves.
  • Natalie's sister Debs Brownlow arrives in the area and moves into No.6. She takes a fancy to Duggie and gets him to take her to a rugby function, and later to a charity auction. When Duggie humiliates her in the Rovers, he apologises, explaining that she's the first woman he's been out with since his wife Laura died. Audrey takes Debs on at the salon to replace Tom.
  • Alma gets her decree absolute and reverts to her maiden name, Halliwell. Meanwhile, Audrey thinks her council colleague Bob Bradshaw fancies her, but he admits to Alma that it's her he likes. He flatters her, and they start going out. Bob shows his true colours when he makes a pass at Audrey while going through her council accounts. Audrey throws him out.
  • As the Rovers is a barmaid short, Vinny takes the initiative by hiring his ex-colleague Geena Gregory without informing Natalie. He's humiliated when Natalie reprimands him, reminding him that he's just an employee. When Vinny has Valentine's flowers delivered to Natalie during opening hours and Natalie isn't happy with the public display of affection, he tells her he's sick of being treated like a lackey and quits as cellarman, taking a job at the building site. Natalie gives Geena a permanent job.
  • Gwen makes up with Jim. Jim realises that Gwen is in debt when her phone is cut off, and Gwen admits that she used his money to pay her electricity bill. When he catches Gwen giving money to debt collector Mr Mason, Jim forces her to write down everything she owes, causing her to realise that she earns as much as she needs to pay each week.
  • Rita receives post office training.
  • Fred starts seeing Mrs Mawdsley, a professional masseuse, to help with his back pain. He's having a massage at her house when the police raid the property and the masseuse is arrested for running a lewd house. While walking Monica, Tyrone sees Fred being ushered into a police car and tells everyone back in the street, setting tongues wagging about why Fred was at Mrs Mawdsley's house. Fred publicly announces that the police haven't charged him with anything.
  • Ken accepts a sponsorship deal from Freshco to finance the publication of his book on the history of Weatherfield. Discovering that Victoria Street was renamed from Cartwright Street after shopkeeper Bernard Cartwright was hanged for murder, he decides to investigate the killing for his book.
  • Jack Duckworth helps Tyrone with his driving test theory.
  • Nita returns to her parents' house. Dev moves into the shop flat.

March[]

  • Gwen gets an evening job at the shop. Vikram Desai is peeved that Dev didn't hire someone more attractive, and skives off while Gwen does all the work. She resigns after just two weeks. Meanwhile, Jim refuses Gwen's gift of expensive aftershave, preferring that she use the money to pay her debts. Annoyed that her arrears are stopping her from living her life, Gwen takes out a loan to pay them off, telling Jim she's won £2,000 at the bingo. When she discovers that her debt has been sold on, Gwen accepts a previous offer from Jim to move into 11 Coronation Street, but doesn't explain her change of mind. Steve moves out to give them space.
  • Sarah tells Candice that she's pregnant and the father is their schoolmate Neil Fearns, but swears her to secrecy. Meanwhile, Gail starts making plans for the birth which will allow Sarah to have a normal life. Martin is initially against her idea of having the baby in Canada and passing the child off as theirs, but supports it when he realises he could remain in Weatherfield and be free to see Rebecca. Later, David Platt gets into trouble for fighting with local boys who said Sarah was having a baby. Candice is found to be the source of the gossip, and as word about the pregnancy starts to get out, Gail and Martin abandon their Canada plan. The Platts break the news of the pregnancy to Audrey, who calls Sarah the town tart and makes her cry. Regretting her harsh words, she promises to support Sarah and convinces her not to have the baby adopted by relating the pain she felt giving up Stephen Reid. The neighbours then find out the truth when Audrey hears them gossiping about pregnancy and assumes they're talking about Sarah. Returning to school, Sarah is heckled by her fellow pupils. Candice sticks up for her, but her mother Marion forbids her from having anything more to do with Sarah. Mr Fearns offers to share in the responsibilities towards the child, but is seen off by Gail.
  • Audrey tells Alma about Bob's pass but her friend doesn't believe her. Bob encourages Alma to move out of Grasmere Drive, away from jealous Audrey. Audrey later hears from Duggie that Bob is on the fiddle at the Town Hall. When Bob is arrested for defrauding the council, Alma realises she was a fool to believe him over Audrey and makes it up with her.
  • Hayley Cropper is flattered when the builders from Victoria Street flirt with her at Roy's Rolls. When Stuart Leigh badgers her to go out with him, Les delights in informing him that Hayley is a trans woman. Stuart turns on the Croppers, calling Hayley a freak and Roy a pervert, leading Jim to eject him from the cafe.
  • Linda stuns Mike by clinching the Cooper order, worth £33,000 to Underworld. Having proved her business acumen, she's furious when Mike puts her back on a machine until new start Bobbi Lewis takes it over. To keep her sweet, he starts planning the wedding with her, booking a country house hotel and recruiting a reluctant Mark as his best man. Linda keeps on at Mike until he makes her his official salesperson. After a difficult day chasing an order, Linda goes drinking with Mark. Tempted to resume their affair, they agree not to meet up again for Mike's sake.
  • Tyrone passes his driving theory test.
  • Sally decides to give up the market and set up a hardware shop in one of the new units in Victoria Street. Danny is unenthusiastic, but when Sally invites him to move into 13 Coronation Street with her and the girls, he accepts both proposals. Kevin gives the pair his blessing.
  • Vinny falls down a hole on the building site and finds a dead body. Duggie is frustrated when the police stop all work at the site while they investigate. The dead man is eventually identified through dental records as Tony Horrocks, Natalie's estranged son. Natalie is disturbed to learn that he was beaten to death, but struggles to grieve having never forgiven Tony for getting Des killed. Conflicted over his death, she lashes out at everyone who offers her sympathy.
  • Ken's research into Bernard Cartwright uncovers the fact that he was Fred's grandfather. Concerned that Ken is writing an expose on Cartwright that will ruin him, Fred gets Curly to withdraw Freshco's sponsorship of the book. However, buoyed by the discovery of the Victoria Street body which is initially suspected to be Cartwright's murder victim, Ken decides to finance the publication himself. Fred is relieved when the police determine that the corpse is not linked to his grandfather.
  • Geena winds Les up by pretending she has psychic powers and knows which horses will win. Les keeps pestering her for tips, even though her predictions keep failing. He realises he's been had when Geena puts him onto a couple of horses which aren't running that day.
  • Martin is promoted to charge nurse in A&E. Rebecca promises to wait until he's able to leave Gail, and buys him a mobile phone so they can talk in secret.
  • Gary Mallett puts Billy and Becky into nursery to resume his window cleaning business, working for the first time since Judy's death.
  • Curly deals with irate Freshco customer Colette Graham who holds the firm responsible when her car is damaged in their car park. Later, when he joins a singles club, he and Colette are paired up and forced to have dinner together. Afterwards, a mystery man watches Curly dropping Colette off at her house. Strange things begin happening to Curly, such as a note saying "keep away from her" being left on his car windscreen, and the vehicle being moved down the street at night.
  • Duggie takes Debs back to his house after a date. Debs leaves disappointed when Duggie kisses her but doesn't take things further.
Episode 4794

Audrey hears the patter of tiny feet. And also, mice

  • When Maxine sees a mouse at the salon, Audrey employs Pat Hegherty to remove the infestation, paying him by the rodent. She's forced to cough up £50 when he 'catches' ten mice he brought with him. Admiring the scam, Tyrone borrows Pat's nest and tries to pull the same trick at the Kabin, but is caught by Rita. Audrey hears of this and demands her money back from Pat.
  • Vik decides to set up his own mini-cab firm. Nita refuses to sell their house to raise the capital.

April[]

  • Curly puts a clamp on his car after it's again moved in the night. The police get involved when the vehicle is caught on CCTV doing 85mph while supposedly clamped outside No.7. Curly is also accused of sending Colette unwanted flowers. When someone lets themselves into No.7 and moves Curly's furniture around, PC Emma Taylor advises Curly that she suspects his stalker is the detective on his case, Simon Cavanagh. He and Colette help trap Cavanagh by letting him think the house is empty and confronting him there after he uses his copied back door key to get inside. Cavanagh tries to flee, but is tackled to the ground by Duggie and taken into police custody.
  • The builders finish the Victoria Street development and Duggie starts selling off the units. Sally and Danny take possession of 18 Victoria Street for their shop "D & S Hardware", opening for business by month's end with Duggie performing the ceremony.
  • Emotions run high at Tony's funeral, with Des's brother Colin Barnes brawling with Nick Horrocks. The police question Natalie and Colin about Tony's murder; Colin is dropped as a suspect when he tells them he was in bed with Natalie at the time. Natalie offers a £10,000 reward for information on Tony's killer. Meanwhile, Vinny feels out of sorts as Natalie refuses to let him comfort her, especially after she opens up to Duggie instead. When the neighbours slate Natalie for sleeping with Colin, Natalie accuses Vinny of telling them to get at her, but Leanne admits that she was the one who let slip.
  • Vik moves Steve into his parents' old house in an effort to push Nita to sell. Dev persuades Nita to give in, and loans Vik £8,000 for the mini-cab business to be paid back once the property is sold. Steve persuades Vik to go into partnership with him, borrowing £8,000 from Jez Quigley to come up with his half when his earnings from the re-development are held up. The entrepreneurs buy their fleet at auction and sign the lease on 15 Victoria Street, naming the business Street Cars. Meanwhile, Leanne becomes convinced that Jez killed Tony after seeing him react to one of Natalie's reward posters. After she warns Steve, he tries to give Jez his £8,000 back but Jez refuses it and tells him to do what he says or he'll end up like Tony, the last person who crossed him. Steve reluctantly takes on one of Jez's lads, Rich Raven, as a driver.
  • Gwen reverts to her maiden name, "Davies", in order to evade her creditors. She persuades Jim to redecorate No.11 to remove all signs of Liz and even gets him to buy a £600 bed on credit. Jim leaves Gwen to finish the job when he goes to Belfast for the funeral of his uncle John.
  • Hayley helps Sarah make costumes for the school production of Grease. Sarah starts confiding her problems in Hayley, finding her easier to talk to than Gail. Gail asks Hayley to back off before apologising and thanking her for the support.
  • Linda exceeds her authority at the factory as they work on the Cooper order, sacking Bobbi for producing substandard work. Her actions lead Janice to call the girls out on strike until Mike sorts her out. Hayley puts their case to Mike, and he agrees to reinstate Bobbi and keep Linda out of the sewing room in future. To prevent further incidents, he promotes Hayley to supervisor, with responsibility for quality control. Hayley proves to herself that she has the gumption to challenge the other girls by tackling Gwen about her shoddy work. Meanwhile, Linda convinces Mike to implement performance-related pay at Underworld and the staff sign new contracts, thinking they'll be better off.
  • Tyrone's driving practical test goes awry when the examiner, Mr Boyce, has a heart attack. Tyrone drives him to the hospital, saving his life. On his second test, the car breaks down and Tyrone has to fix it. He gets it working again and goes on to pass.
Episode 4803

Les is stranded overnight in a lake

  • Doing his community service at North Cross Park, Les winds Tyrone up by turning his hosepipe on Monica. Tyrone gets his own back by stealing Les's rowing boat, stranding him on an island overnight until the police rescue him. Tyrone vouches that he isn't a flasher to stop the police from arresting Les.
  • Martin uses his new authority at the hospital to make sure he and Rebecca are always working together. Sick of sharing him with Gail, Rebecca takes a six-month contract in Dubai, devastating Martin. He refuses to pass on her resignation and convinces her to stay. To prepare for when he leaves Gail, Rebecca initiates divorce proceedings against Jerry, causing him to lash out at her physically, with Martin defending her. Martin and Rebecca start looking for a flat to live in as a couple.
  • Maxine becomes a vegetarian after hearing from Toyah Battersby about how animals are treated. When she refuses to serve Ashley any more meat, Ashley protests at first but he defiantly follows his wife's example when Fred accuses Maxine of disloyalty to the family business. Fred ultimately gives the couple his blessing. The Peacocks later entertain Toyah and Spider Nugent to a vegetarian feast.
  • Dev's aunt Maya Desai comes out of retirement to help him out at the shop.
  • Debs and Duggie have another disastrous date where Debs invites Duggie up to her bed, and Duggie has a panic attack and runs off. Humiliated, Debs drops Duggie and accepts Dev's offer of dinner. They spend the night together at No.6, but the following morning Dev gives Debs the brush-off. Natalie overhears Dev telling Maya that Debs isn't wife material, and informs her sister.
  • Curly is stunned when Emma asks him out for a drink. They go on a date - Curly's first one in years - and swap life histories. After visiting Alice in France, Curly feels ready to get on with his life and goes on a second date with Emma, which ends with a tender kiss.
  • Gary struggles on his earnings from window cleaning and gets a job as a cabbie at Street Cars.
  • Jack is taken on as a lollipop man. Vera is concerned to hear he'll be stationed outside Skinner's Bookies.
  • Mike gives Linda a gold credit card to use for wedding preparations.

May[]

  • Street Cars opens for business. Vik picks up Eileen Grimshaw in his cab and, impressed by her extensive local knowledge, he hires her as radio operator.
  • The hardware shop gets off to a rough start, taking just £39 in a week. Danny helps his brother Kieran on a haulage job to earn more money and starts drinking heavily, thinking the shop will ruin him. Sally warns him that she won't put up with another drinker after Greg Kelly.
  • Jez gets Steve to deliver a package for him in his cab; the first of many. Desperate to extricate himself, Steve tells Natalie that Jez murdered Tony, while Leanne informs her that he robbed the Rovers. Natalie repeats Steve's allegation to the police, but keeps his name out of it for his protection. Meanwhile, Vik puts a stop to Jez's free taxi rides and ejects him from the cab office. In order to get him off their backs, Steve goes to the police and tells them what he knows. Questioned and released, Jez accuses Steve of grassing him up and demands his £8,000 back. Steve is about to pay him when he witnesses Jez being taken away by the police. Jez is charged with Tony's murder. Steve visits Jez in prison and is relieved to find that he thinks Lee Sankey is the grass.
  • The factory staff move over to the new pay system. Hayley earns more than she used to, but Janice and Gwen only just break even. When their next pay packets are down, they accuse Linda of conning them, but she reveals that she made up their quotas the previous week and won't be doing so again.
  • Duggie manages to smooth things over with Debs, but avoids having sex with her due to his impotence. Debs drags him off to bed and this time their lovemaking is successful.
  • Martin's affair is nearly exposed when he and Rebecca get their mobiles mixed up. He convinces Gail that she dialled the wrong number when she calls him and a woman answers. Meanwhile, Rebecca finds a flat, with Martin paying half the rent. They're horrified when Gail arranges a meal and invites Rebecca and Gary in order to matchmake. Rebecca makes it clear over dinner that she isn't ready to date. Planning a night with Rebecca, Martin gives Gail a cover story about being at a stag do and gets Danny to pretend he's going too. However, Sally catches Danny out and accuses him of having being unfaithful, forcing the truth out of him. Sally orders Rebecca to pack in the affair or she'll tell Gail.
  • Spider and Toyah have the Peacocks over for dinner, where Ashley and Maxine are insulted by the other guests. Maxine realises that she was wrong to bully Ashley into becoming a vegetarian and tells him he can eat meat again.
  • Sarah worries that she'll lose her friends after Candice ditches her for Kirsten Grant. When she's told that she can't go to the end of play party, Sarah announces that she's having the child adopted once it's born. Gail changes her mind by offering to give up work and raise the child herself, with the family relying on Martin's salary. Allowed to go to the party, Sarah doesn't enjoy the experience as she can no longer relate to her preteen peers.
  • Jim returns from Ireland to find Gwen has bought all new furniture on credit. He forces her to cut up her store card, but opens a joint bank account to show that he trusts her. When debt collector Mrs Gardner looks for Gwen at the factory, Janice tells her that Gwen doesn't work there anymore. Jim later discovers he's the sole beneficiary to his uncle's will.
  • Alison works as late as possible before starting her maternity leave. She worries that she's put the baby's health at risk when she collapses and is rushed to hospital with high blood pressure. Meanwhile, Kevin decides to sell his half of the garage to buy a house. Tyrone persuades Jim to make an offer to secure their jobs.
  • Curly goes on a walking weekend in the Peak District with Emma, pretending to enjoy the experience for her benefit. When they stop off at a luxury hotel, Emma reveals that she was having him on and they were booked there all along.
  • Vik moves into the flat above Street Cars with Steve as he and Nita complete the sale on their house. Nita gets a job managing a store in Inverness, promoted over Curly who is relieved not to get it as he'd have to leave Emma. Nita leaves the street for Scotland after a farewell party at the Rovers.
Episode 4824

Tyrone with the love of his life, and Maria Sutherland

  • Having only £120 to put towards a car, Tyrone arranges to have Monica impregnated at Sutherland's Kennels, taking up Jack's suggestion of selling the pups to raise more cash. He falls for the owner's daughter, Maria, but is heartbroken when he spots her at the Red Rec with a lad. When it turns out to be just Maria's brother Kirk, a relieved Tyrone asks her out. They go dog-walking together, but Tyrone doesn't get to kiss Maria as Monica whines every time he tries.
  • Geena and Bobbi move into the salon flat and hold a flatwarming. When they find out about a wager between Steve and Vik on who will bed them, they get back at Vik by putting makeup and false nails on him while he's asleep. Maxine locks Ashley out of No.4 after he neglects her at the party. He's accused of sleeping with Debs when he stays the night at No.6, but they make up when Maxine sees how ridiculous she's being.
  • Reflecting on her own experiences as a teenage mother, Audrey reveals to Gail that her father's name is Ted Page and that she got pregnant in the hope that he would marry her and she'd be able to get Stephen back, but it didn't work out.
  • Vera gets a job behind the counter at Roy's Rolls and gives up her cleaning job at the Rovers.
  • Vinny rejects Natalie's request to start afresh with her. He changes his mind after seeing Natalie go out with a brewery rep, and the couple get back together.
  • Mike gets Mark to start giving Linda driving lessons. Forced to spend time together, the pair give into temptation and have sex at the Red Rec.
  • Toyah spends her eighteenth birthday revising for her exams.

June[]

  • Tyrone feels insecure in his relationship with Maria due to the fact that he's a virgin and doesn't have much money. To impress her, he borrows Mark's BMW from the garage to take her out for the day, making out that it's his, but Maria guesses the truth. When they're pulled over by the police, Maria saves Tyrone from himself by being honest with the PC.
  • Blanche upsets Sarah by rowing with her in the Kabin, calling her indecent. Sarah goes into labour that day and, with Gail by her side, gives birth to a healthy girl at the hospital. Martin is late getting there, with Sally interrupting his and Rebecca's lovemaking to deliver the news. Bringing the baby home, Sarah considers calling her daughter Britney before settling on Bethany Britney Platt, while Neil Fearns's name is left off the birth certificate. She struggles to build confidence in her ability as a mother.
  • Martin spends his birthday with Rebecca, telling Gail he's working late. After Bethany is born, Martin's time is again taken up by his family. He's stunned when news reaches him that Rebecca has resigned from the hospital and gone to work in Dubai. Rushing to Manchester Airport to stop her, Martin catches Rebecca in time. He pleads with her to stay, but she refuses to listen, unwilling to rip the Platts apart now that she's gotten to know them. Devastated, Martin goes home and confesses everything to Gail. Gail is deeply hurt but, as Rebecca has left, she offers to let Martin stay on at No.8, suggesting that they pretend everything is normal and that she'll try to forgive him in time. Martin agrees, but his betrayal knaws away at Gail, and when Audrey and Sarah heap praise on him, she tells them about his affair. Audrey encourages Gail to throw Martin out, while Martin sleeps on the sofa, angry with her for telling them.
Episode4834

Kevin is hit by a double tragedy

  • Kevin and Jim strike a deal on the garage, with Kevin agreeing to continue working there under him. Alison goes into labour a few hours after Sarah and gives birth to a son, Jake. However, the Websters' joy turns to grief when doctors discover Jake has a fatal Group B Strep infection. The child is christened by the hospital chaplain before passing away in his parents' arms. Alison tries to cope by helping an exhausted Sarah with Bethany but, when the young mother falls asleep, Alison snatches the baby and walks out of the hospital. As the police search the streets for the pair, Tyrone encounters them while out walking Monica, and alerts Kevin. Alison tells Kevin that she can't face not having a baby and, once Bethany is safe in his arms, she runs out into the path of a lorry and is killed. Kevin is an emotional wreck after losing his wife and son, and relies on Sally to get him through the funeral, much to Danny's chagrin. In his confusion, he kisses Sally, which adds to his guilt. Eventually, the sight of Sally and Danny playing happy families becomes too much for Kevin and he shuts himself away in the garage. He contemplates ending his life but, carrying on for Rosie and Sophie's sake, he goes to Germany to convalesce at Bill Webster's, leaving Jim in charge of the garage.
  • Linda and Mark use Mike's absence at a week-long trade fair Cologne to go out in public together. They're seen kissing at a club by Geena, but Linda persuades her to keep their secret. On Linda's birthday, Mike gives his fiancée a Toyota MR2 convertible, while Mark can only afford to get her a watch. Linda considers leaving Mike for Mark, but torn between her love for him and the lifestyle and security she's acquired with Mike, she continues to keep both options open. Meanwhile, Mark ends his relationship with Leanne, and tries to force Linda to make her mind up by threatening to leave the country for Thailand with Craig Brennan. His ultimatum failing to extract a commitment from Linda, Mark leaves a letter for Mike saying goodbye and departs Weatherfield.
  • Eileen lays on discounted trips from Street Cars to Freshco to spite Maya, who is taking advantage of Vik with free taxi rides for family. Vik puts a stop to it when Maya tells him what's going on, but his aunt grudgingly agrees to pay her way in future.
  • Gwen pays off Mrs Gardner with £1,000 from the joint account, telling Jim that the money is for a honeymoon. Jim, who had accused her of stealing from him, proposes in order to stop her from walking out. Meanwhile, Jim takes out a bank loan to get the money together to buy the garage. As the debt agencies now know where she lives, Gwen decides to run off to London and clears out the account. She's out shopping when her bag is stolen. Jim is stunned when the police inform him they've recovered Gwen's bag, along with £35,000. Realising that she's taken him for a mug, Jim throws Gwen out of No.11, and she leaves the street. He rids himself of her by piling her furniture up in the street and setting fire to it, resulting in him receiving a formal caution from the police.
  • The builders, including Pat's nephew Sam Kingston, start work on the new medical centre at the former Graffiti Club site. Sam pockets his workmates' cash when they ask him to put their money on a horse, thinking it'll lose. When the horse comes in, Pat makes him pay the builders what they would have won.
  • Steve is called as a witness in Jez's court case.
  • Linda's old friend from Wheelers, Karen Phillips, and Edna Miller from packing start in the sewing room at the factory.
  • Geena recognises Sam as a male stripper with the stage name "The Masked Python", and books him for a Ladies Only night at the Rovers. The show is cut short when Sam, unmasked by Janice, is recognised by his disapproving mother Brenda and marched home.
  • Jeff and Doreen Horton offer the Duckworths their house in Blackpool while they go on holiday. Jack and Vera go along to look after Tommy, inviting Gary and the twins, and bringing along Tyrone, Maria and Norris so that they can close the Park Road B&B for the week.

July[]

Episode 4851

Vera and Norris compete at the Tower Ballroom

  • Vera and Norris enter a dancing competition at the Tower Ballroom. In his determination to win, Norris pushes Vera too hard and she cries off with exhausted feet. He finds a replacement in Celeste Pickersgill, but when Celeste has a fall which leaves her unable to dance, he bribes Vera with a new frock to get her to be his partner again. At the dance-off, Jack ensures that they win by spiking their competitor Grace Kershaw's drink with vodka.
  • Tyrone admits to Maria that he's a virgin and tells her he wants to wait until they're married before having sex, causing her to think he isn't keen on her. Advised by Gary to make a gesture to show how much Maria means to him, Tyrone takes her to the top of Blackpool Tower and gives her a matching ring to his as an engagement ring. Maria accepts, and after Tyrone amuses Eric Sutherland by formally asking formally asking for his daughter's hand in marriage, they go public with the engagement.
  • Gary saves a young boy, Warren Shipley, from drowning at Blackpool beach. When the incident makes the papers, Warren's mother Paula tracks Gary down to thank him. They go to the fair together but Gary thinks he's been used when a photo of them appears in the newspaper. Paula responds by getting the journalist to tell Gary that she had nothing to do with the photograph. The couple accept the paper's offer to pay for them to go to a posh restaurant, where they share a kiss. They agree to keep in touch when Gary returns to Weatherfield, but when Gary finds her with a man, Lewis Martin, he feels deceived and walks out on her. Paula follows Gary to Weatherfield and convinces him that she isn't seeing Lewis. They begin a relationship. Meanwhile, Vik fires Gary for taking the day off, but when Eileen points out to Maya that the twins could be taken into care, she makes her nephew give him another chance.
  • The local area is hit by a spate of burglaries. Emily becomes terrified when Nos. 1 and 3 are broken into and ransacked, and spends the night in her armchair in case they return. Roy starts a neighbourhood watch scheme to catch the thugs, while the hardware shop starts stocking burglar alarms, though Les undercuts them by selling empty alarm boxes on the cheap. When No.7 is hit, Curly and Les detain the burglars long enough for Emma to arrest them.
  • The burglars steal Ken's laptop containing the final draft of his book. Recovering the floppy disk containing the book after placing an ad in the Weatherfield Gazette, Ken hands it to the publishers, and Weatherfield Yesterday hits shelves later in the month.
  • Monica has her pups on Norris's bed. Horrified that his grandmother's bedspread has been defiled, Norris moves out of the Park Road B&B. He tries to move in with Rita, but she refuses to have him and he is taken in by Emily. Later, Norris gives Emily £7.50 for an old train set meant for the charity shop.
  • Mike suffers a minor heart attack and is forced to rest. Linda uses the incident to lure Mark back from Amsterdam, and they resume their affair. Alma gets suspicious when she sees them talking intimately together. Visiting Mike, who can't understand why Mark wants to give up the life he's offering him, Alma helps him see that he needs to forge his own identity. Mike decides to let his son go and offers to buy him a ticket to Amsterdam on the condition that he returns in September to be his best man. Desperate to stop Mark from leaving, Linda tells him that Mike is dying. She's caught out when Mark speaks to Mike's doctor and finds out that he should make a full recovery. Mark takes up Mike's offer to get away from Linda and returns to Amsterdam.
  • Ken is hired as a columnist in the Gazette. He alienates Audrey when, after hearing that the medical centre is going to be named after Alf Roberts, he uses his column to criticise fat cat councillors. Meanwhile, Alma plans a surprise 58th birthday party for Audrey and Ken helps her trace Gladys Moorcroft, her best friend from school. When Audrey patronises dowdy Gladys, her friend responds by revealing that she's actually sixty. Ken wins Audrey round by writing an article in the Gazette honouring Alf's memory.
  • Toyah takes a summer job at Weatherfield Radio. At a belated birthday party for her and Leanne, Les tries impress her new boss, Paul Beck, with his DJing skills. Toyah start to drift away from Spider, accusing him of selling out when he's put up for a promotion at the DSS and tells her he's going to make something of himself. Her words hit home and when Spider is forced to deny benefits to a single mother, he leaps onto his desk and makes an impassioned speech to his colleagues about condemning the poor. Toyah regains her love for him but when he resigns from the DSS and decides to go on a year-long spiritual journey to India, she chooses to stay in Weatherfield with her family.
  • Janice goes to her mother's to look after her when she breaks her ankle. Meanwhile, Dennis Stringer returns to the street and parks his camper van outside the salon. When the vehicle is towed away, Les invites him to stay at No.5. The pair start renovating a motorbike dredged from the canal, which Dennis identifies as a rare Vincent-HRD Series C Black Shadow.
  • Rita starts looking into her family tree. Stephens Bookshop owner Anthony Stephens locates a genealogy book for her.
  • Maxine befriends Curly and Emma, keen to have more couples in her social circle. On her advice, Curly asks Emma to move in with him, but she isn't keen on the idea.
  • Linda declines to invite her family to her wedding, telling Mike she doesn't get on with them.
  • Sarah decides to have Bethany christened at St. Paul's Church, with Candice and Hayley as godmothers. Martin makes her ask David to be godfather, but he refuses the honour, jealous of the attention and money that is being spent on the newborn.
  • Jez's thugs threaten to kill Steve if he gives evidence against Jez. Steve decides to stay away from the trial for his own safety.

August[]

  • Norris admits to Emily that his train set is worth £160. She reacts by making him pay £170 for defrauding the charity shop.
  • Curly is thrilled when Emma moves into No.7 after all.
  • Ken uses Edna's intel to write in his Gazette column about factory owners running sweatshops. Reading the column, Mike realises it's about Underworld and accuses Deirdre of betraying him to Ken. When he starts locking drawers and entrusts the keys to Linda, Deirdre resigns from the factory, refusing to work somewhere where she isn't trusted. Ken reveals to Deirdre that Edna was his source, but she doesn't tell Mike. Edna, feeling guilty for losing Deirdre her job, confesses to Linda herself. Mike then tricks her into telling her colleagues in order to sack her without provoking a strike.
  • Jack and Vera take Tommy in at the Park Road B&B when Doreen Horton leaves Jeff for Carl Mason. Doreen makes several attempts to take Tommy from the Duckworths, citing her right as his legal guardian, but they manage to see her off. She eventually snatches Tommy from the garage while Tyrone is minding him. Feeling that he's let Jack and Vera down, Tyrone goes to Blackpool and snatches the boy back, with the help of a reluctant Maria. The Duckworths' time with Tommy comes to an end when the Hortons reconcile and make them hand him back over to them.
  • Bethany's christening takes place. David, persuaded to be godfather, runs away during the ceremony, resulting in Roy being godfather in his place. He's brought home by the police after being caught shoplifting. Unremorseful, David later tries to get Tommy to steal some sweets from the corner shop; he thinks he's succeeded, but unbeknown to him Tommy has secretly paid for them. Gail and Martin are particularly troubled when David says he wishes his whole family were dead. To please him, they let David take a dog home with them from the rescue centre. David chooses a rabbit instead, and calls him Barney.
  • Candice attends the christening with her boyfriend Darren Michaels. Disapproving Marion Stowe causes a scene at the party by showing up and dragging her daughter away.
  • Linda passes her driving test.
  • Gary continues to fall for Paula, but grows increasingly frustrated by the distance between them.
  • Les hatches a plan to steal shopping trolleys from Freshco and sell them back to the store after finding out that they're worth £80 each. To amuse himself, Curly refuses to buy them back and then returns the trolleys to Les's yard after he and Emma see him dump them on waste ground. Les is fired from his council job after being spotted dumping the trolleys in the canal.
Episode 4874

Steve fears for his life after testifying against Jez

  • As Jez's murder trial begins, Steve plucks up the courage to give evidence. However, defence barrister Ms Deakin uses the fact that he owes Jez £8,000 and is due reward money from Natalie to cast doubt on his testimony. Jez is ultimately found not guilty of murdering Tony. Afraid for his life, Steve decides to leave Weatherfield but Jim and Natalie convince him that Jez won't seek revenge as the police will be watching him. When Jez confronts him for testifying against him and admits that he did kill Tony, Steve pays the drug dealer off, hoping it'll be enough to mollify him.
  • Anthony looks Rita up and they start seeing each other, bonding over their shared interest in the stage. However, when Anthony reveals that he's a married man, Rita feels she's been lead on and refuses to see him again. She relents when he explains that his wife Isabel is in a nursing home with Alzheimer's, but insists that they can only ever be friends. After a lovely evening at Emily's, Rita lets Anthony kiss her.
  • Dev offers Deirdre a job at the shop. Deirdre accepts, and impresses her new boss by organising his business correspondents.
  • Dennis starts up a motorbike repair shop in the garage.
  • Tyrone interviews the prospective buyers for Monica's puppies, asking them probing questions to make sure they go to good homes.
  • Maxine puts herself forward for membership of Greenside Golf Club and starts taking lessons with pro Brett Grundy. Fred, who hates female golfers, is annoyed when she proves to be a natural.
  • Janice returns from her mother's. Finding No.5 spotless thanks to Dennis, she lets him carry on lodging there.
  • Leanne is puzzled when a bunch of flowers and a gold necklace are delivered to her. Jez eventually reveals himself as the sender and tells Leanne he wants her as his girlfriend. When she demands he leave her alone, Jez has her bundled into a car by Chris Jacobs and taken to his flat, where she's forced to spend time with him. Leanne escapes by threatening Jez with the police. Scared of what he might do next, Leanne sells the necklace and uses the money to buy a ticket to Amsterdam. She leaves Weatherfield after bidding an emotional farewell to her family.
  • Toyah records an interview with Ken about his book for Radio Weatherfield. When the DJ Jason Ross refuses to put it on the air, she commandeers the studio and broadcasts it, earning her the sack. She gets her job back when Ken pleads her case with Paul Beck. Meanwhile, Toyah rethinks her plans to study media after getting only three 'E' grades in her A-Levels. She applies and gets into Weatherfield University, studying journalism, and takes an evening job behind the bar at the Rovers to replace Leanne, where she annoys Natalie by refusing to flirt with the customers.
  • Linda recruits Geena to be her best woman, with the task of making sure she marries Mike.
  • The builders finish work on the medical centre. Duggie takes them out to celebrate and they get very drunk. When he antagonises Vinny by suggesting they hold an arm-wrestling competition with Natalie as the prize, Duggie makes amends by promising him a job for life. After sobering up, he regrets making the offer but honours his word by making Vinny his property manager.
  • Fred hears that a supermarket is opening near his butcher shop in Nelson Street. Worried that it'll put him out of business, he decides to relocate to 14 Victoria Street and takes out a two-year lease on the unit.
  • Kevin returns from Germany and tells Jim he's no longer selling the garage.

September[]

  • Vinny is annoyed to learn that his "job for life" is a hired heavy removing difficult tenants from Duggie's properties. Toyah's outraged to see him using force to evict her neighbour Phil Simmonds, and after finding Phil sleeping rough, vows to get back at Duggie. After being evicted herself for falling behind with the rent, Toyah accepts Natalie's offer of a room at the Rovers.
  • Betty Williams gets tired of filling in as Rovers cleaner and demands Natalie hire someone permanent. Edna gets the job.
  • Anthony tells Rita that they shouldn't see each other again if they can't be more than friends. Relenting after Norris advises her to take happiness where she can, Rita spends the night with Anthony.
  • Emma applies to join the Armed Response Team. Curly is against it as he'll be worrying constantly about her.
  • Kevin celebrates his birthday with Sally and the girls, with Rosie making a cake as a surprise. Danny feels left out of the proceedings and later accuses Sally of still being in love with her ex-husband. Sally wins Danny round by going to the Canary Islands with him, leaving the girls with Kevin.
  • Anthony suggests to Ken that he should consider applying to be a JP after reading an article he wrote on the justice system. Meanwhile, Fred thinks about becoming a magistrate.
Episode4889

Mike discovers that his new wife has been cheating on him with his son

  • As Mike and Linda's wedding day approaches, Mark returns to the UK while Alma leaves for Florida, not wanting to be around for the occasion but wishing her ex-husband well. Before she sets off, Mark confesses his affair to her. Alma is disgusted with him but doesn't tell Mike. No longer able to deny his love for Linda, Mark abandons his best man duties and begs her to run away with him. Linda rejects Mark and marries Mike at the De Lisle House, with Roy standing in as best man. When they arrive at the bridal suite, the newlyweds find Mark drunk in their room. Mark reveals the affair to Mike, telling him that he and Linda are in love. Linda confirms it but makes out that Mark was obsessed with her and wouldn't accept that she'd chosen Mike over him. Mike, believing his wife, tells Mark he never wants to see him again. The quarreling couple set off for their honeymoon as a broken-hearted Mark leaves Weatherfield.
  • With the summer holidays ending, Gail takes over Bethany's care during school hours but pointedly hands the child over to Sarah as soon as she gets home each day. Sarah gets sick of having no fun in her life and starts getting Hayley to babysit so she can join an after-school club, pulling rank as Bethany's mother when Gail criticises her. When Bethany is left on her own while in David's care, Gail accuses Sarah of neglect. As she continues to get at Sarah, Martin attempts to calm the waters, causing Gail to row with him for not backing her up. Sarah eventually tires of their arguments and leaves home with Bethany, dumping herself on the Croppers. She returns after one night in order to keep the peace back home but, having had enough of their sham marriage, Gail tells Martin she wants a divorce. Sarah and David are devastated by the development.
  • Steve lowers his guard when Jez tells him there's no hard feelings. However, while dropping off a glamorous fare at the Rusholt Estate, he finds Jez and his heavies waiting for him, complete with dogs. He's beaten mercilessly and left for dead. Jim and Vik manage to find Steve the next day after getting worried about his disappearance, and he's rushed to hospital. After getting a barely conscious Steve to confirm that Jez was the cause of his injuries, and getting the address from Vik, Jim retaliates against the drug dealer by beating him with a baseball bat. Ending up in the same hospital as Steve, Jez makes his way to Steve's room and tries to finish the job by suffocating him. However, he ruptures his spleen while leaning over Steve and dies himself. Steve and Natalie try to persuade Jim not to confess to beating Jez, but adamant that he deserves punishment for his crime, Jim gets dressed in his smartest clothes and goes to the police station to turn himself in. He's charged with manslaughter and kept in custody. Meanwhile, Vik refuses Dev's entreaties to buy Steve out of Street Cars, standing by his friend. Natalie decides to give Jim the reward money so that he knows his friends care, but Vinny warns her that it'll look like she paid him to kill Jez. He accuses her of using Jim to hang onto Tony.
  • Gary tells Paula that he loves her and wants to live with her. They agree that Gary will sell No.9 and move to Blackpool with the twins. Meanwhile, Eunice Gee puts the Park Road B&B on the market. As the Duckworths can't afford to buy it, Jack interests Vera in buying No.9 from Gary, and they strike a deal. Tyrone agrees to move with the Duckworths, as has has nowhere else to go.
  • After babysitting Bethany, Hayley suggests to Roy that they adopt a child. They apply, and are pleased to find out that Hayley being a transsexual doesn't rule them out.
  • Edna finds an emerald ring while cleaning the Rovers. Les claims it as one of Janice's, and gives it to his wife as an anniversary present. However, he's forced to return it when Toyah sees Janice wearing the ring and recognises it as the one Edna found. When Janice sees it on Emma, the real owner, Toyah tells her about Les's deception. Dennis, who moved out of No.5 when Janice accused him of stealing the ring, returns when they have a heart-to-heart, with Janice confiding in him about the state of her marriage. Dennis makes Les buy champagne to make amends.
  • Harvey Reuben takes over Underworld while the Baldwins honeymoon. Karen and Bobbi fall for him, and he agrees to go out with Karen.
  • Fred gives Ashley and Maxine the Victoria Street shop as they celebrate their first wedding anniversary.
  • Kevin takes Sam on as an apprentice mechanic at the garage to replace Jim. Tyrone is unfriendly towards him, worried that Maria will fancy him as he was a stripper.

October[]

  • The Duckworths take possession of No.9 as Gary and the twins leave the street. When Monica goes missing from her new home, Norris finds her asleep on his bed at No.3.
  • After selling Monica's pups, Tyrone buys a Vauxhall Nova and a diamond engagement ring for Maria. He's upset when Jackie cries off from his engagement party after getting arrested for stealing their present, the guests, including Kirk Sutherland, enjoy themselves.
  • Roy and Hayley attend an adoption preparation class. Roy feels inadequate among the other parents, thinking he's too strange to raise a child.
  • Gail rows with Sally after discovering that she knew about Martin's affair months before she did, but ultimately forgives her for the sake of their friendship. As the Platts initiate divorce proceddings, Martin moves into the flat over the hardware shop. David is devastated by his departure and plays truant from Bessie Street School, thinking his parents don't care about him. Following Kevin's advice, Martin tells Gail he wants custody of David, but unable to bring himself to ask David to choose between him and Gail and tells his son that he has to stay at No.8 and look after his mum. Despite Sarah telling him about the affair, David blames Gail for driving Martin out of the house.
  • Toyah continues her campaign against Duggie, giving the Gazette a list of tenants who were unlawfully evicted. When the paper names and shames Duggie for his business practices, the council drops him as their developer, forcing him to sell his house to raise capital. Dev snaps up the property for £50,000 below the asking price and sells at a huge profit. Duggie pays Phil off to avoid being taken to court and tries to turn things around by putting the hardware shop's rent up by 25%. Meanwhile, Debs puts him up at No.6, but he rapidly wears out his welcome by treating the house like his office and Debs like an employee. She finishes him with, but Duggie charms her into taking him back. When Vinny resigns over withheld wages, Duggie scapegoats him, telling the Gazette that he was to blame for the evictions in a bid to salvage his reputation.
  • Ashley accidentally gives Maxine's dry cleaning to Emily's jumble sale. After he buys it all back at £25 an item, Maxine refuses to wear them again and demands a new wardrobe.
  • Karen and Bobbi discover that Harvey Reuben is seeing them both. After finding out that he's engaged to Saskia Benson, they invite her to his farewell party at the factory, where they get Harvey drunk, sew the words "Slime Ball" to the back of his suit jacket, and tell Saskia about his womanising.
  • Mike and Linda return from their honeymoon, still arguing over Mark. Mike is hurt to learn that Alma knew of the affair when Mark writes to him and reveals that he confessed to her.
Episode 4908

Curly, Alma, Mike, Ken, Fred and Ashley are held at gunpoint

  • Two youths, Dean Sykes and Lenny Parkin, hold up Freshco with a gun at closing time. When Curly convinces them that all the money is in safe which won't open until morning, the lads sit it out all night with Curly, Alma, Mike, Ken, Fred, Ashley, security guard Frank O'Connor and assistant Wendy Jones as hostages. Ashley gets the word out to Maxine before his mobile phone is confiscated, while Ken and Mike are locked in the storeroom together when they bicker on the shop floor. They agree to put their differences aside when Mike suffers chest pains. Allowed to cook a barbecue, the hostages set off the fire alarm, alerting the fire brigade. When the police arrive and surround the building, Dean starts to crack and is about to surrender the gun to Curly when the armed response team storm in. Dean is shot dead by Emma and Lenny grabs the gun as all but Ashley escape. The siege ends with Ashley jumping Lenny and Fred grabbing the gun. Emma is cleared over Dean's death, but is embarrassed to be treated as a hero. Curly struggles to support her, feeling that Dean needn't have died, but apologises when she breaks down.
  • Linda identifies the gunman Dean as her younger brother. She and Mike are a loggerheads as she mourns Dean, with Mike thinking he got what he deserved. Linda has an unhappy reunion with her father Ray and other brother Jimmy, who she resents for treating her like a skivvy after her mother Evelyn walked out. When Eve shows up at the funeral, Linda rails at her for abandoning the family and causing Dean to go off the rails.
  • Alma goes out with Frank O'Connor after he admits during the siege to having feelings for her.
  • Martin tries to get word of his divorce to Rebecca in Dubai.
  • Liz returns to the street and is stunned to learn that Jim is on remand for manslaughter. Visiting him at Strangeways and seeing how defeated he is, she decides to stay on at No.11 and support him, refusing her partner Michael Wall's entreaties to return him in to Milton Keynes.
  • Anthony introduces Rita to his children, Gregory and Amanda. They're polite but she senses their dislike of her. Rita and Anthony go to see a play in York, sharing a bed at their hotel.
  • Gail signs up for a computer course to improve her job prospects.
  • Dennis sells the Vincent motorbike for £8,500. Les hides his £3,500 share from Janice in his camel coat, but Janice finds it and is told about the deal from a sympathetic Dennis.
  • Following the siege, Curly and Emma convalesce at Raquel's château in France. Curly enjoys spending time with Alice but annoyed when he talks up an absent Raquel, and thinking he'd rather still be married to her, Emma abandons him and heads into Paris.
  • Fred, Audrey, Ashley and Maxine go on holiday to Paris, meeting up with Curly and Emma. Ashley embarrasses his wife by having a panic attack at the top of the Eiffel Tower and having to be carried down, but makes it up to her by hiring Olivier Madar to paint her portrait. In the romantic setting, the Peacocks decide to try for a baby, while Audrey accepts a marriage proposal from Fred.
  • Candice does work experience at the salon during half-term, upsetting Sarah who is stuck at home with Bethany for the duration. Vik goes out with Candice, thinking she's older than she is.

November[]

  • Audrey has second thoughts about marrying Fred, knowing she doesn't love him. She breaks the engagement and Fred, deeply hurt, ignores her when they return to Weatherfield. Their friendship is restored when Audrey twists her ankle on the cobbles and Fred instinctively rushes to her aid.
  • Curly tracks Emma down in Paris and convinces her that what he felt for Raquel was obsession, not love. He proposes on a boat trip down the Seine and she accepts, with the couple booking All Saint's Church for Christmas Eve. Ashley agrees to be best man.
  • Maxine poses nude for Olivier. Ashley happily buys the painting when it turns out to be abstract, and Olivier gives Maxine an enormous bum.
  • Vik finds out from Rita that Candice is only fourteen when he takes her to the Rovers. He dumps her on the spot.
Episode 4926

Vinny and Debs leave the street after being burned by Natalie and Duggie

  • The Gazette prints Duggie's rebuttal to Toyah's claims about the unlawful evictions. Debs is furious when he mentions his late wife to win sympathy, and finishes with him for making a fool of her. Meanwhile, after Natalie refuses to employ him at the Rovers, Vinny shares a bottle of wine with Debs, bonding over their grievances with Duggie and Natalie. When Duggie calls at No.6 and finds them making love, he tells Natalie, who slaps her sister in the face. Vinny finishes with Natalie, accusing her of being too hung on Des to love again. He gets back at Duggie by collecting rent off his tenants and pocketing the money. Debs is mortified by what she's done, but when Natalie sees Vinny kissing her goodbye and throws her out of the Rovers, she goes to bed with Vinny again. Natalie disowns her sister when she goes round to patch things up and catches them together. With nothing left for them in Weatherfield, Debs organises jobs for her and Vinny with her old cruise firm and they leave for Southampton. Natalie later discovers she's pregnant, but decides not to tell Vinny.
  • Janice gives Les's coat to David for his guy and confronts her husband with the bike proceeds when he frantically searches for the garment. Having had enough of Les's lies, Janice kicks him out of No.5, but lets Dennis stay on as a lodger. Her actions lead Les to brawl with Dennis in the street, convinced he and Janice are having an affair. Deciding to enjoy his freedom, Les books a room at the Imperial Hotel and goes out with June Meadows, but he's wiped out when he runs up a huge bill and June reveals herself to be a prostitute and charges him for her time. Toyah puts him up at the Rovers while he convinces Janice to take him back. Meanwhile, Janice enjoys being treated with respect by Dennis but when they realise that they're attracted to each other and share a kiss, the guilt makes Janice accept Les's grovelled apologies. Knowing that Eileen fancies Dennis, Janice sets the pair up on a date. Dennis is initially resistant but warms to Eileen when she helps him buy a new motorbike. They spend the night together at No.5 after trouncing Les at strip poker.
  • Out at the pictures, Sarah and Candice are chatted up by Glen Middleham and Liam Clarke. Glen later takes Sarah out bowling and kisses her. As they continue to date, Sarah avoids telling Glen about Bethany and passes her off as Hayley's when he sees the child.
  • Roy reconsiders his desire to adopt after listening to a foster parent, Jean Stewart, talking about her charges. Realising that they could help more children by becoming foster parents, Roy persuades Hayley that they should put their own needs aside. The Croppers have home assessments, where Hayley struggles to say how she would explain her sex change to a child.
  • Rita is branded a homewrecker by Anthony's family, with Isabel's brother George Docherty spiting Anthony by refusing to continue paying half of his sister's care home fees. When Anthony decides to sell his house and move in with Amanda, Rita decides that he's sacrificing too much for her and ends their relationship. She returns to him after seeing a minister and being advised to listen to her heart.
  • Deirdre looks after Dev when he falls ill. He shows his gratitude by making her his assistant, keeping an eye on his other shops.
  • Audrey officially opens the medical centre. Dr. Matt Ramsden starts there, with Molly Hardcastle as practice nurse and Gail as receptionist. Matt takes out a six-month tenancy on No.6 for him and his wife Charlie. Audrey also does the honours at Elliott & Son butchers when the mayor fails to arrive to open the shop.
  • Natalie goes on holiday, leaving Liz in charge of the Rovers. After holding a flop karaoke night at the pub, Geena organises a Mr and Mrs Contest, co-hosting with Sam. Ken and Deirdre pull out when they discover that each of them thought that the other put their names down when it was actually Blanche. Les cries foul when Roy and Hayley win, saying they're ineligible as they're both men. A brawl breaks out when Martin sticks up them, with Natalie returning in the middle of it.
  • Linda confides in Geena that she might be pregnant. With the paternity of any child uncertain, she's relieved when the test is negative.
  • Ashley takes to sleeping at the butcher shop when Maxine wears him out with her sexual demands.
  • Les gets a job at the council.
  • Michael Wall follows Liz to Weatherfield and finds her committed to helping Jim. She ends their engagement and stuns Jim by saying she'd like to give their relationship another go. He happily agrees and later accepts her proposal of marriage. Andy McDonald arrives for their prison wedding, with Steve acting as best man after grudgingly giving his parents his blessing.
  • Jack wins £59,631 after putting £100 on a five-horse accumulator. While the Duckworths bask in their fortune, Terry's ex Andrea Clayton tracks them down and reveals that their 14-year-old grandson, Paul, needs a kidney transplant, revealing to Vera that Jack lied to her about Paul being adopted. Hoping that Terry will donate one of his kidneys, Vera gets her son's address in Huddersfield from Emma, but Terry refuses to help a son he's never met. To stop Vera from giving one of her kidneys, Jack makes an agreement for Terry to have the operation in exchange for £25,000.
  • Geena goes out with Dev, ignoring a warning about his treatment of women from Natalie.
  • Ken hears Audrey telling Fred that the council are planning to tarmac over the cobbles. Appalled that the street is being robbed of its heritage, he rallies the residents against it.
  • While in Weatherfield, Andy takes Toyah out clubbing and goes to bed with her.

December[]

  • Jim goes to court and enters a guilty plea. Expecting him to get no more than twelve months, the McDonalds are shell-shocked when the judge sentences him to eight years in prison. Liz visits Jim at Strangeways and is encouraged to forget that they were married and move on with her life, but she vows to stand by him. Andy heads back to Spain as Liz is taken on at the Rovers.
  • Maxine and Ashley befriend the Ramsdens as they move into No.6.
  • Determined to get pregnant, Maxine decides that she and Ashley will give up alcohol. After a fall off the wagon, she pours all of their alcohol away.
  • Terry forces Jack to pay him upfront by threatening not to go through with the transplant. Once he has the money, he does a runner from the hospital. In desperation, Vera volunteers to donate a kidney to Paul herself. She hands Jack a letter and her will before going into the operating theatre. In the letter, Vera confesses that she had an affair before Terry was born and isn't sure that Jack is his father. Jack, who knows all about the affair, asserts that Terry is definitely his as he's so much like him. Vera survives the op despite suffering an allergic reaction to the antibiotics. After returning home and enjoying a Christmas visit from Andrea and Paul, Vera and Jack go on a Caribbean cruise.
Episode 4945

After saving the cobbles, Ken leads the residents in a toast to tradition and community

  • Ken successfully lobbies Northern Heritage to put a preservation order on the cobbles, however the council brings the resurfacing forward, with the work now starting before the paperwork is ready. In order to buy themselves time, the residents form a barricade to stop the tarmackers from accessing the street. The council gets a court injunction allowing the police to move the demonstrators on, but Duggie manages to fool the police with a phony preservation order long enough for the real one to arrive. Les, working on the tarmacking team, finds out about the fake too late to blackmail Ken and Duggie over it.
  • Audrey is presented to Prince Charles when he visits Weatherfield to open a new planning office at the Town Hall.
  • Peter Barlow returns to the street after leaving the navy and splitting from his wife Jessica. Shown up when he slags off Mike to Linda only to find out she's his wife, Peter gets drunk and tries to force himself on Liz. His behaviour causes friction between Ken and Deirdre, with Deirdre arranging with Dev for Peter to rent the corner shop flat to get him out of No.1. At New Year, Peter borrows Ken's car to visit Susan in Scotland. When he crashes the vehicle, he gives Ken's name at the scene, as he's banned from driving, but Ken refuses to lie to the police for him.
  • Hayley is deeply hurt when Roy admits that that he doesn't think of her in the same vein as other women. She leaves him and moves in with Alma, but when he becomes so lost without her that he fails to open the cafe, she returns to him. Weeks later, the Croppers take in a malnourished young boy called Wayne Hayes after he breaks into the cafe to steal food. They find out that he lives in a children's home but is staying at his mother's over Christmas. Alex Swinton, his mother's boyfriend, arrives to collect him, but when Roy sees Alex hit Wayne, he refuses to let him take the him, returning the lad instead to the children's home. When Roy and Hayley visit with a present for Wayne, they're told by social services not to contact him again or their fostering application may be rejected.
  • Natalie decides to sell the Rovers rather than be a single mother with a pub to run. She keeps her plans from the regulars but when Betty finds out that the new owners, The Boozy Chain, plan to rebrand the pub the "Boozy Newt", she announces the news to everyone and quits. Natalie is lambasted by the neighbours for allowing the rebrand, with Kevin being the only one to side with her, understanding her need to move on. Natalie and Kevin get close again, with Kevin confiding in her that he slept with Sally. They share a kiss before agreeing to remain friends. When Sally tries to find out what's going on between them, Natalie throws her one-night-stand with Kevin at her, causing Sally to vow never to get back with Kevin. Natalie leaves the street on New Year's Eve to live in the Cotswolds.
  • The Rovers takeover bid is foiled when Duggie gets Fred and Mike drunk and convinces them to buy the pub with him as equal partners. Duggie becomes licensee when the men draw straws to determine who gets the honour, while Liz gets the job of bar manager and Betty agrees to return. The partnership is beset by in-fighting, with the three unable to agree on anything.
  • David spots Sarah and Glen kissing and uses his knowledge of their relationship to blackmail his sister. When Martin sees the lights go off in a supposedly empty No.8, he investigates and catches Sarah with Glen. Sarah's mortified when he tells Glen that Bethany is her daughter. Thinking he's put Glen off, she's relieved when the boy asks her out again.
  • Martin is stunned to see Rebecca while out shopping. She disappears before he's able to speak to her, but their mutual friend Carol Delaney confirms that she's back for a visit and puts them in touch. Both are keen to resume their relationship but with Rebecca refusing to give up her job in Dubai, and Martin not prepared to abandon his children, they say a sad goodbye to each other.
  • Tyrone gets a watch from Maria on his eighteenth birthday. Maria books the pair into a hotel for the night, but when they're checking in Tyrone panics and runs away.
  • Emma plays a joke on Curly on his stag night, getting two of her colleagues to arrest him for being drunk and disorderly. After their wedding on Christmas Eve, the Wattes leave on their honeymoon in New York.
  • Martin and Gail indulge David's complaints about his birthday being overshadowed by Christmas by giving him a new 'official birthday' on New Year's Eve this year and 25th June after that. David angers the household by demanding two sets of presents and burning his new toys.
  • Janice sours on the idea of having a big Christmas when Leanne writes to say she can't come back for the occasion. She changes her mind when Les presents her with an emerald ring. On the big day, the couple entertain Dennis and Eileen, with Eileen's 17-year-old son Jason Grimshaw gatecrashing.
  • Deirdre convinces herself that Dev is planning to take her out when she overhears him making a restaurant reservation for two. She gets dressed up only to see Dev set off with his real date, Geena.
  • Danny feels like a third wheel when Kevin spends Christmas with Sally and the girls. He shows his commitment to Sally by proposing to her in the Rovers, but she doesn't give an immediate answer.
  • Amanda sabotages Rita and Anthony's New Year dinner with Emily and Norris by showing up unannounced with Anthony's wife, Isabel.

Who lives where[]

Coronation Street

Victoria Street

Others

Awards and nominations[]

BAFTA
Ceremony held on 14th May 2000

  • Best Soap and Continuing Drama: Coronation Street (Nominee)

British Soap Awards
Ceremony televised on 31st May 2000

National Television Awards
Ceremony held on 10th October 2000

Coronation Street in the 2000s
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