Episode 7044 (30th March 2009)

Plot
Peter's cigarette sets fire to the carpet and soon the flat is filled with smoke. Simon wakes and phones Deirdre, telling her the flat is on fire, but as he desperately tries to drag his dad out, the pair fall. A drunken Peter falls on top of Simon, trapping him and as they breathe in the lethal fumes, they fall unconscious. Deirdre rushes to the bookies in a state of panic.

Smoke is billowing from the flat as Tony and Luke break the door down in a bid to rescue Peter and Simon. Ken blames himself for not recognising how serious Peter's drink problem has become as they wait to see if they're too late.

Dev defends Tara, while Umed pokes fun at her gallery and the amount of money Dev's wasting on her. Minnie then arrives with the three framed photos Dev asked her to buy. Panicking, he tries to hide them but it's too late as Tara arrives, clocking the artwork.

Tara demands to know what Dev is doing with the photos and he's forced to come clean about his secret purchase. Furious, Tara packs her things and leaves feeling totally humiliated. Dev's gutted and when he bumps into Prem's accountant Lisa, he pours his heart out over a drink. Dev's not moping for long, though, and with the alcohol pumping through his veins, he invites Lisa back to his flat.

Kirk lets on to Chesney that he knows he's been bunking off school. Fiz confronts Chesney about skiving off class, asking if anything's wrong, but Chesney tries to play it down.

Maria tells Tony that she wouldn't like to see Natasha get hurt. It's an awkward moment as Tony assures her he doesn't want to see anyone get hurt.

And Rita tells Eileen that she's thinking of planning a surprise party for Colin's 70th birthday.

Regular cast

 * Peter Barlow - Chris Gascoyne
 * Simon Barlow - Alex Bain
 * Deirdre Barlow - Anne Kirkbride
 * Blanche Hunt - Maggie Jones
 * Dev Alahan - Jimmi Harkishin
 * Umed Alahan - Harish Patel
 * Molly Dobbs - Vicky Binns
 * Minnie Chandra - Poppy Jhakra
 * Kirk Sutherland - Andrew Whyment
 * Chesney Battersby-Brown - Sam Aston
 * Tom Kerrigan - Philip McGinley
 * Maria Connor - Samia Smith
 * Rita Sullivan - Barbara Knox
 * Colin Grimshaw - Edward de Souza
 * Eileen Grimshaw - Sue Cleaver
 * Luke Strong - Craig Kelly
 * Tony Gordon - Gray O'Brien
 * Ashley Peacock - Steven Arnold
 * Fiz Brown - Jennie McAlpine

Guest cast

 * Lisa - Ruth Alexandra Rubin
 * Fire Fighter - Jason Ward
 * Paramedic - Sakinah May
 * Doctor - Kim Vithana