Coronation Street's latest special episode, Debbie's Angels, proved that the soap's strength lies in its traditional storytelling about strong Northern women, not in the crime and medical plots that have dominated recent years.
The episode, written by long-serving scriptwriter Jan McVerry and directed by Vicky Thomas, centred on Debbie Webster and her friends Glenda Shuttleworth (Jodie Prenger), Christina Boyd (Amy Robbins), Sally Metcalfe (Sally Dynevor), Bernie Winter (Jane Hazlegrove) and Abi Webster (Sally Carman). Under the name of Debbie's Angels, the group enjoyed a boozy gathering with the hotelier as her battle with dementia continues.
The Story of Debbie's Angels
In the episode, Debbie presented her friends with hundreds of photographs and explained she needed their help to create a photo book for her son Carl's 40th birthday. Champagne flowed and music blared, but tension soon emerged.
Christina, who recently learned that her daughter Rachel had been murdered and that her long-lost granddaughter Lucy has been fostered by Sally and Tim, clashed with Sally over access to the girl. She eventually launched a verbal attack, telling dementia-stricken Debbie to "go back to Gaga land."
By the end, the women had made amends and candidly discussed what it meant to be a woman, with Glenda determined to find love, Bernie coming to terms with carrying the BRCA gene, Christina arranging to visit Rachel's husband in prison, and Sally embracing her home life.
A Shift Away From Crime Stories
The programme has faced criticism over its direction, with an onslaught of crime and medical stories in recent years. Over the last 18 months, there have been four murders and at least five residents have served time in prison.
Former actors Sally Ann Matthews and Charlie Lawson have both publicly criticised the show's direction, but creative director Iain MacLeod has insisted research shows those are the stories audiences want. The show is said to be pulling in just two to three million viewers, compared to almost double that a decade ago.
Before the screening, a short film celebrating the women of Weatherfield played, featuring icons like Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear), Rita Tanner (Barbara Knox), Raquel Watts (Sarah Lancashire), Gail Platt (Helen Worth) and Eileen Grimshaw (Sue Cleaver), moving several journalists in the room.
Special Episodes Under Kate Brooks
Debbie's Angels is the latest in a long list of special episodes under producer Kate Brooks, who claimed it was "easy" to continue the blueprint set by creator Tony Warren when depicting strong women. Other specials have included a flashforward based on Theo Silverton's murder, an episode dedicated to Asha Alahan's NHS work, a flashback set in 1990s Ireland, and an episode filmed through video doorbells, CCTV, dashcams and police bodycams.
While these raise awareness, they take the reality out of the show. Traditional storytelling, with sharp dialogue and no explosions or hospital scenes, is what soap should be. Debbie's Angels succeeded in highlighting that Coronation Street is about strong Northern women who deal with whatever life throws at them.
