Ian Wylie is a freelance journalist and, until recently,
was the London Editor & TV Editor of the Manchester
Evening News (MEN). He writes about television and Corrie for
national newspapers, magazines and the MEN, plus he blogs at
The Life of Wylie.
And there's something else
about Ian Wylie that he makes no secret about - he's a huge
Corrie fan. And as his articles are crucial, intelligent
reading for fans of telly and especially fans of Corrie, we
decided to quiz him about his love of Corrie and how it fits
in with being a TV writer.
Q: How
long have you been watching
Corrie?
Forever. Well, at
least for almost all of its near half century. My first black
and white memories as a little lad include Ena Sharples at the
Mission, Leonard Swindley's shop and Martha Longhurst's death
in the Rovers' Snug. It's a common experience, I know, but my
mum and dad in Tyne Tees land would let me stay up especially
to watch the Street before I went to bed. Perhaps Ken Barlow's
early writing efforts planted a seed in my brain. In which
case, I owe everything to William
Roache.
Q: How long
have you been writing about TV and especially about
Corrie?
My
first ever "TV" assignment was on the year-long National
Council for the Training of Journalists' course in Darlington
in 1975. It included work experience on the Northern Echo and,
now closed, Evening Despatch. One day I was sent along to
shadow a writer who was interviewing a telly star appearing
that week at the Civic Theatre - actor Ken Farrington, who
played Corrie's Billy Walker. Naturally, the newspaper used
the staff feature in the next day's edition rather than the
shadow one I wrote, even though as a keen cub reporter I
thought mine was better! I note now that Billy Walker once
left Weatherfield to work in Chiswick, where I now live, and
finally made Jersey his home, an island I visit every year.
Perhaps Corrie has had even more influence on me than I
realise... I've been writing extensively about TV, including
Coronation Street, ever since, as well as covering off screen
Corrie events from Jack Howarth's (Albert Tatlock) Memorial
Service in London to present day TV awards ceremonies via
William Roache's libel action at the High Court when half the
cast turned up to support him. Sitting on the press bench
immediately below Betty Driver, who plays Betty Williams, as
she gave her impassioned evidence from the witness box was one
of the more surreal experiences of my life. At one point I
felt sure she was about to serve the judge a hot
pot.
Q: In your
years as one of the UK's top TV journalists, you must have met
a lot of actors from Coronation Street. Do you ever get
starstruck? And how do you balance being a Corrie fan with
being a TV critic?
No, never starstruck.
My approach to everyone I interview - TV stars or not - is to
treat them first as human beings. I've been privileged to meet
and interview hundreds, if not thousands, of "stars". But even
the biggest names still have the same hopes, fears and
possible insecurities as the rest of us. The best interview
should feel like a chat over a pint in the Rovers. But within
that you are, hopefully, using your journalistic skills to draw out
whatever readers not sat at that table might want to know.
There are some seriously talented people both in front of and
behind the cameras at Corrie and, almost always, they have
interesting things to say. But I never forget that I must be
an objective reporter/writer first and Corrie fan second.
Otherwise how will I ever land my dream job on the
Weatherfield Gazette?
Q: Which
Corrie actors have you interviewed who have come across as
most like their characters? And which have been a million
miles away from the person they portray on
screen?
Ooh, that's a tricky one. Some cast members put
more of themselves into their characters than others, which is
possibly inevitable in long-running roles. But I have to say
that the vast majority of Corrie actors I have interviewed are
just that - actors. Not to be confused with their on
screen personas. And those who are a million miles away? Well,
the obvious ones from recent years, for example, would be the
likes of Gray O'Brien (Tony Gordon) and Brian Capron (Richard
Hillman). Thankfully they didn't try to bump me off when we
met. Sarah Lancashire was, and is, nothing like dizzy
Raquel and David Neilson is nowhere near as odd as Roy
Cropper, even if they do have remarkably similar
faces.
Q: Who are your favourite Corrie
characters - and
why?
Far too many to pick
out just a few. But from the past they include: Hilda and Stan
Ogden, Jack Walker, Minnie Caldwell, Jerry Booth, Eddie Yeats,
Mavis Riley, Vera Duckworth, Curly Watts, Reg Holdsworth, Alma
Sedgwick, Des Barnes, Raquel Wolstenhulme, Fiona Middleton,
Angie Freeman, Spider Nugent, Fred Elliott and, of course,
Spiros Papagopolous. From the current cast: Roy and Hayley
Cropper, Steve and Becky McDonald, Ken and Deirdre Barlow,
Norris Cole, Emily Bishop, Eileen Grimshaw, Julie Carp, Sean
Tully, Fiz Stape and Graeme Proctor. And a special mention for
Blanche Hunt, played by the wonderful Maggie Jones who very
sadly died last week.
Q: And
what have been your
favourite Corrie storylines over the
years?
How long have you
got? To save acres of space I'll pick out just four: The goods
train crashing off the viaduct at one end of the Street in
1967 shocked a lot of Corrie viewers, including me. I'd not
seen anything like it on TV before and certainly not in
Weatherfield; Rita's torment at the hands of Alan Bradley,
which finally ended via another form of transport on rails;
Any storyline involving Craig Gazey as Graeme, and whatever is
coming up next.
Q: Is there
any behind-the-scenes gossip from Corrie you can share from
your time spent interviewing members of the cast over the
years?
Now that really would
be telling. What I can share is my amazement when I first
walked into the producer's office. Aside from being full of
original (and obviously priceless) Weatherfield memorabilia,
it had an amazing view from a wall of windows overlooking the
exterior set from directly behind the older side of the Street
- just like a control tower on top of a runway. Soap
heaven.
Q: Do you
know any upcoming storylines or is it more than your job's
worth to share them?!
Yes and yes. I've
forgotten what it's like to watch Corrie without knowing
what's going to happen but still love it all the same. Also
with soap mags, sites like this one on the t'internet and
other sources, viewers who know where to look can find out
certain things in advance. I presume that's what Norris is
doing when he sits down at the computer in "the back" of The
Kabin. I also have to say that the Corrie press office is the
hardest working in the business and does a good job of
treading that fine line between promoting Coronation Street
and spoiling it.
Q: In 2010
Corrie will get a new Producer, Phil Collinson. What do you
hope he'll bring to Corrie?
I think Phil, like
every new Corrie producer, will bring a fresh eye to the job,
just as the departing Kim Crowther did. The pattern of recent
years is for producers to stay in post for around two years.
Each one refreshes and updates the production in ways that
some viewers might not even notice, as well as doing
everything else they have to do. Phil will, of course, be in
charge for the 50th anniversary next year. I've got no inside
information but I'd be surprised if 12 months from now he's
not welcoming the Queen back on to the
cobbles.
Q: And
finally, Ian, the answer to the question we all want to know.
What's your favourite restaurant dessert, the one you always
get excited about when you see it's on the
menu?
I usually want them
all. But my dilemma is solved if the selection includes bread
and butter pudding with custard. Or cream. Or
both.
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