1988 was Coronation Street's twenty-ninth year.
Main characters[]
| Ranking | Character | Played by | Duration | Number of Episodes | Running total | Previous year's ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vera Duckworth | Elizabeth Dawn | Full year | 87 | 610 | 12 |
| 2 | Emily Bishop | Eileen Derbyshire | Full year | 80 | 1612 | 9 |
| 3 | Jack Duckworth | William Tarmey | Full year | 78 | 417 | 20 |
| 4 | Ivy Tilsley/Brennan | Lynne Perrie | Full year | 74 | 748 | 3 |
| 5 | Alec Gilroy | Roy Barraclough | Full year | 73 | 169 | 6 |
| 6 | Bet Gilroy | Julie Goodyear | Full year | 72 | 1343 | 6 |
| 7 | Mike Baldwin | Johnny Briggs | Full year | 70 | 748 | 6 |
| 7 | Betty Turpin | Betty Driver | Full year | 70 | 1326 | 24 |
| 9 | Sally Webster | Sally Whittaker | Full year | 69 | 190 | 12 |
| 10 | Percy Sugden | Bill Waddington | Full year | 66 | 318 | 22 |
| 11 | Ken Barlow | William Roache | Full year | 65 | 1854 | 9 |
| 11 | Alan Bradley | Mark Eden | Full year | 65 | 175 | 18 |
| 11 | Gloria Todd | Sue Jenkins | Full year | 65 | 231 | 9 |
| 14 | Kevin Webster | Michael Le Vell | Full year | 63 | 319 | 15 |
| 15 | Alf Roberts | Bryan Mosley | Full year | 62 | 1148 | 1 |
| 15 | Mavis Riley/Wilton | Thelma Barlow | Full year | 62 | 952 | 2 |
| 17 | Deirdre Barlow | Anne Kirkbride | Full year | 61 | 980 | 14 |
| 17 | Gail Tilsley | Helen Worth | Full year | 61 | 822 | 15 |
| 19 | Rita Fairclough | Barbara Knox | Full year | 60 | 1119 | 4 |
| 20 | Curly Watts | Kevin Kennedy | Full year | 53 | 289 | 18 |
| 21 | Don Brennan | Geoff Hinsliff | Full year | 50 | 59 | 34 |
| 21 | Shirley Armitage | Lisa Lewis | Full year | 50 | 137 | 33 |
| 21 | Martin Platt | Sean Wilson | Full year | 50 | 157 | 25 |
| 24 | Brian Tilsley | Christopher Quinten | Full year | 48 | 520 | 22 |
| 25 | Jenny Bradley | Sally Ann Matthews | Full year | 47 | 138 | 25 |
| 26 | Sandra Stubbs | Sally Watts | From May | 43 | 43 | - |
| 27 | Audrey Roberts | Sue Nicholls | January and from April | 42 | 244 | 15 |
| 28 | Phyllis Pearce | Jill Summers | From February | 34 | 179 | 30 |
| 29 | Terry Duckworth | Nigel Pivaro | From August | 26 | 272 | 27 |
| 30 | Gina Seddon | Julie Foy | March to April and September to November | 25 | 25 | - |
| 31 | Derek Wilton | Peter Baldwin | From August | 24 | 108 | 32 |
| 32 | Nicky Tilsley | Warren Jackson | February, May to June, August and November to December | 17 | 222 | 30 |
| 33 | Sarah Louise Tilsley | Lynsay King | February, April, June, August and November | 13 | 39 | 29 |
| 34 | Tracy Barlow | Holly Chamarette and Dawn Acton | February and March and from December | 10 | 316 | 28 |
| 35 | Ida Clough | Helene Palmer | January, May and June | 8 | 203 | 35 |
| 36 | Alma Sedgewick | Amanda Barrie | November only | 4 | 16 | - |
Production[]
The video age[]
1988 was Bill Podmore's last year as producer
Bill Podmore announced his retirement in 1988 and stood down as producer in December. The end of his 13-year association with the programme would be an important moment in Coronation Street history, and preparations for his departure began early; David Liddiment, Granada's commissioning executive for light entertainment, was appointed to replace him as executive producer and Mervyn Watson, Coronation Street's producer from 1983 to 1985, returned to the role at the end of the year.
Liddiment was keen to modernise the programme, feeling that it risked falling behind its rivals. He began by abandoning the use of film when shooting on location and instead recording everything on videotape using new lightweight OB cameras. This cut down the amount of time needed to set up shots, making more frequent location shooting possible.
The change occurred with Episode 2807 on 22nd February, with a preceding four week stint between episodes 2788 and 2796. For years, Coronation Street had gone on location when required but it was by no means a component of every episode; for example, all houses and workplaces were studio sets. Liddiment found out how ingrained the cost-saving mentality was at a story conference where John Stevenson described a scene in which Alf Roberts told another character about a humiliating incident where his credit card was cut up in a shop. Liddiment insisted that viewers should get to see the moment itself. The suggested scene eventually aired on 11th May (50 Years of Coronation Street: The (very) Unofficial Story, JR Books, 2010). However, Bill Podmore remained the main creative force behind the programme throughout the year, and Liddiment and Watson did not take full charge until the beginning of 1989.
Liddiment also arranged for the Street to be given more studio space, allowing more sets in each episode.
The new guard[]
Coronation Street carried on without its most famous star following the departure of Hilda Ogden on Christmas Day 1987. Just over a month later, another landmark passed when the final episode to bear the name of H.V. "Harry" Kershaw was transmitted. Kershaw was the programme's original script editor, later producer and now prolific writer. One of the people most responsible for shaping Coronation Street, Kershaw retired after penning his last script.
The cast which would take the programme into the 1990s took shape. In August, Derek Wilton re-entered Mavis Riley's life and they were married at the second attempt, 12 years after they met. The character of Derek was not widely popular among the writers, and Bill Podmore had been persuaded not to let their first wedding go ahead in 1984 - a mistake he wanted to rectify before he left the show. Meanwhile, Alma Sedgewick appeared for the first time since 1982, ahead of her full-time role in 1989, and Dawn Acton replaced Holly Chamarette as Tracy Barlow, becoming the third actress to play the role. The change occurred when Chamarette decided not to pursue acting as a profession. This time, Tracy was absent for a mere nine months between heads.
Other newcomers did not last so long, including new Rovers cleaner Sandra Stubbs, played by Sally Watts, and Sally Webster's sister Gina Seddon, played by Julie Foy. Both characters were written out in early 1989. Terry Duckworth was back, appearing for five months before leaving again at the end of the year. Future stints by Nigel Pivaro in the role were generally shorter as Terry was taken down a more villainous route.
The only departees were Sue Jenkins and Helene Palmer, who playing barmaid Gloria Todd and Baldwin's Casuals worker Ida Clough respectively. Ida was fired by Mike Baldwin over an argument about the factory switching from denim to curtains, becoming Baldwin's Curtains. She last appeared at Ivy and Don Brennan's wedding in June. The south side of the street saw another change when Percy Sugden was retired from his job as caretaker of the Community Centre, losing his flat. In May, homeless Percy became Emily Bishop's lodger. He would remain at No.3 for the next nine years, with the partnership of the militaristic pensioner and his exasperated landlady being another favourite of the writers. Although a replacement caretaker was said to be appointed, none was ever seen and the Community Centre was eventually demolished in 1989.
A three-month absence by Sue Nicholls in the early months of the year resulted in a secret son being invented for her character Audrey Roberts. Stephen Reid, who was two years older than Gail Tilsley, had been put up for adoption by a couple who emigrated to Canada in 1960. His existence was revealed to Gail when Audrey flew to Canada due to Stephen being involved in a serious car crash, though the character did not actually appear.
Another key character change followed a perceived lack of direction for Alan Bradley. Writer Peter Whalley came up with the idea that he would pretend to be Len Fairclough so that he could mortgage No.7 and set up a burglar alarm shop. The storyline would see Alan develop into one of Coronation Street's first major villains when it unfolded in 1989.
ITV telethon and studios tour[]
On 29th May, ITV held a 27-hour telethon, hosted from the studios of London Weekend Television and presented by Michael Aspel. Granada Television, along with the other ITV regions, had opt-outs from the London coverage to highlight events in their own area. Coronation Street was featured in a segment where Doris Speed returned to the Quay Street studios for the first time since 1983 and was interviewed from behind the Rovers bar by Michael Scott, before accepting a cheque for the telethon from Barclays bank to the sum of £100,000.
The Granada Studios Tour launched, giving fans an opportunity to visit the real sets used on some Granada productions. Its most popular feature was Coronation Street's outdoor set. The tour lasted until 1999.
Viewing figures[]
Ratings chart for the year
Ratings dropped by 400,000 viewers from 1987 to an average of 14.76 million viewers. This was the third year in a row with an overall decline. April, May and November saw slight increases year-on-year, while the biggest drops occurred in February and June, of over a million viewers. No other drops were significant.
The highest-rated episode of the year was Episode 2793 (4th January 1988), the first episode of the year, which gained an audience of 18.15 million viewers. As in 1986 and 1987, Coronation Street was kept off the top spot in the national ratings due to the chart dominance of EastEnders which was granted two showings, the audiences of which were combined by BARB.
Episodes[]
| # | Ep. No. |
Date | Writer | Director | Viewing Figures |
Chart Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2793 | Monday 4th January | Barry Hill | Tim Sullivan | 18,139,000 | 3 |
| 2 | 2794 | Wednesday 6th January | Brian Finch | Tim Sullivan | 17,696,000 | 4 |
| 3 | 2795 | Monday 11th January | Tony Perrin | John Michael Phillips | 17,263,000 | 3 |
| 4 | 2796 | Wednesday 13th January | John Stevenson | John Michael Phillips | 16,133,000 | 4 |
| 5 | 2797 | Monday 18th January | Peter Whalley | Gerald Blake | 17,240,000 | 3 |
| 6 | 2798 | Wednesday 20th January | Leslie Duxbury | Gerald Blake | 16,974,000 | 4 |
| 7 | 2799 | Monday 25th January | H.V. Kershaw | Tim Sullivan | 16,387,000 | 3 |
| 8 | 2800 | Wednesday 27th January | H.V. Kershaw | Tim Sullivan | 16,296,000 | 4 |
| 9 | 2801 | Monday 1st February | Adele Rose | Sarah Harding | 17,034,000 | 3 |
| 10 | 2802 | Wednesday 3rd February | Peter Whalley | Sarah Harding | 16,591,000 | 4 |
| 11 | 2803 | Monday 8th February | Leslie Duxbury | Ric Mellis | 15,244,000 | 3 |
| 12 | 2804 | Wednesday 10th February | John Stevenson | Ric Mellis | 16,369,000 | 4 |
| 13 | 2805 | Monday 15th February | Barry Hill | John Michael Phillips | 16,800,000 | 3 |
| 14 | 2806 | Wednesday 17th February | Brian Finch | John Michael Phillips | 15,944,000 | 4 |
| 15 | 2807 | Monday 22nd February | Adele Rose | Tim Sullivan | 16,532,000 | 3 |
| 16 | 2808 | Wednesday 24th February | Tony Perrin | Tim Sullivan | 15,871,000 | 4 |
| 17 | 2809 | Monday 29th February | Peter Whalley | Sarah Harding | 16,627,000 | 3 |
| 18 | 2810 | Wednesday 2nd March | Leslie Duxbury | Sarah Harding | 16,018,000 | 4 |
| 19 | 2811 | Monday 7th March | Brian Finch | Ric Mellis | 16,133,000 | 3 |
| 20 | 2812 | Wednesday 9th March | John Stevenson | Ric Mellis | 15,936,000 | 4 |
| 21 | 2813 | Monday 14th March | Bob Mason | Tim Sullivan | 16,049,000 | 3 |
| 22 | 2814 | Wednesday 16th March | Leslie Duxbury | Tim Sullivan | 14,548,000 | 4 |
| 23 | 2815 | Monday 21st March | Barry Hill | Sarah Harding | 16,565,000 | 3 |
| 24 | 2816 | Wednesday 23rd March | Tony Perrin | Sarah Harding | 14,927,000 | 4 |
| 25 | 2817 | Monday 28th March | Leslie Duxbury | Ric Mellis | 16,289,000 | 3 |
| 26 | 2818 | Wednesday 30th March | Stephen Mallatratt | Ric Mellis | 14,967,000 | 4 |
| 27 | 2819 | Monday 4th April | Tony Perrin | Tim Sullivan | 16,399,000 | 4 |
| 28 | 2820 | Wednesday 6th April | Peter Whalley | Tim Sullivan | 14,491,000 | 5 |
| 29 | 2821 | Monday 11th April | Adele Rose | Sarah Harding | 14,796,000 | 3 |
| 30 | 2822 | Wednesday 13th April | John Stevenson | Sarah Harding | 13,870,000 | 4 |
| 31 | 2823 | Monday 18th April | Adele Rose | Ric Mellis | 15,241,000 | 3 |
| 32 | 2824 | Wednesday 20th April | Leslie Duxbury | Ric Mellis | 13,943,000 | 5 |
| 33 | 2825 | Monday 25th April | John Stevenson | Tim Sullivan | 14,381,000 | 3 |
| 34 | 2826 | Wednesday 27th April | Barry Hill | Tim Sullivan | 13,414,000 | 5 |
| 35 | 2827 | Monday 2nd May | Brian Finch | Nicholas Ferguson | 11,960,000 | 8 |
| 36 | 2828 | Wednesday 4th May | Peter Whalley | Nicholas Ferguson | 13,251,000 | 4 |
| 37 | 2829 | Monday 9th May | Brian Finch | Ric Mellis | 14,703,000 | 3 |
| 38 | 2830 | Wednesday 11th May | John Stevenson | Ric Mellis | 13,908,000 | 4 |
| 39 | 2831 | Monday 16th May | Adele Rose | Tim Sullivan | 12,282,000 | 3 |
| 40 | 2832 | Wednesday 18th May | Barry Hill | Tim Sullivan | 13,834,000 | 6 |
| 41 | 2833 | Monday 23rd May | Kay Mellor | Howard Baker | 14,332,000 | 3 |
| 42 | 2834 | Wednesday 25th May | Leslie Duxbury | Howard Baker | 14,262,000 | 4 |
| 43 | 2835 | Wednesday 1st June | Peter Whalley | Ric Mellis | 13,961,000 | 3 |
| 44 | 2836 | Monday 6th June | Adele Rose | Ric Mellis | 12,550,000 | 5 |
| 45 | 2837 | Wednesday 8th June | Tony Perrin | Nicholas Ferguson | 14,135,000 | 3 |
| 46 | 2838 | Monday 13th June | John Stevenson | Nicholas Ferguson | 12,670,000 | 2 |
| 47 | 2839 | Wednesday 15th June | Bob Mason | Howard Baker | 8,325,000 | 16 |
| 48 | 2840 | Monday 20th June | Brian Finch | Howard Baker | 11,900,000 | 4 |
| 49 | 2841 | Wednesday 22nd June | John Stevenson | Ric Mellis | 10,350,000 | 7 |
| 50 | 2842 | Monday 27th June | Tony Perrin | Ric Mellis | 12,859,000 | 6 |
| 51 | 2843 | Wednesday 29th June | Leslie Duxbury | Nicholas Ferguson | 11,595,000 | 4 |
| 52 | 2844 | Monday 4th July | Stephen Mallatratt | Nicholas Ferguson | 13,738,000 | 3 |
| 53 | 2845 | Wednesday 6th July | Peter Whalley | Howard Baker | 13,022,000 | 5 |
| 54 | 2846 | Monday 11th July | Barry Hill | Howard Baker | 13,250,000 | 5 |
| 55 | 2847 | Wednesday 13th July | Barry Hill | Ric Mellis | 13,050,000 | 6 |
| 56 | 2848 | Monday 18th July | Tony Perrin | Ric Mellis | 12,640,000 | 3 |
| 57 | 2849 | Wednesday 20th July | Brian Finch | Nicholas Ferguson | 12,018,000 | 5 |
| 58 | 2850 | Monday 25th July | Peter Whalley | Nicholas Ferguson | 13,682,000 | 4 |
| 59 | 2851 | Wednesday 27th July | Leslie Duxbury | Howard Baker | 13,104,000 | 6 |
| 60 | 2852 | Monday 1st August | John Stevenson | Ian White | 13,057,000 | 4 |
| 61 | 2853 | Wednesday 3rd August | Barry Hill | Gerald Blake | 12,375,000 | 5 |
| 62 | 2854 | Monday 8th August | Adele Rose | Gerald Blake | 12,789,000 | 6 |
| 63 | 2855 | Wednesday 10th August | Peter Whalley | Nicholas Ferguson | 14,173,000 | 3 |
| 64 | 2856 | Monday 15th August | Brian Finch | Ian White | 13,222,000 | 5 |
| 65 | 2857 | Wednesday 17th August | Leslie Duxbury | Ian White | 12,425,000 | 6 |
| 66 | 2858 | Monday 22nd August | Leslie Duxbury | Richard Holthouse | 13,468,000 | 5 |
| 67 | 2859 | Wednesday 24th August | Bob Mason | Richard Holthouse | 13,432,000 | 6 |
| 68 | 2860 | Monday 29th August | Barry Hill | Ron Francis | 14,479,000 | 5 |
| 69 | 2861 | Wednesday 31st August | Peter Whalley | Ron Francis | 13,217,000 | 8 |
| 70 | 2862 | Monday 5th September | Tony Perrin | Ian White | 13,789,000 | 3 |
| 71 | 2863 | Wednesday 7th September | John Stevenson | Ian White | 12,419,000 | 6 |
| 72 | 2864 | Monday 12th September | Adele Rose | Howard Baker | 13,715,000 | 5 |
| 73 | 2865 | Wednesday 14th September | Peter Whalley | Spencer Campbell | 12,570,000 | 4 |
| 74 | 2866 | Monday 19th September | Tony Perrin | Nicholas Ferguson | 12,602,000 | 7 |
| 75 | 2867 | Wednesday 21st September | Brian Finch | Nicholas Ferguson | 13,598,000 | 5 |
| 76 | 2868 | Monday 26th September | John Stevenson | Ian White | 14,089,000 | 6 |
| 77 | 2869 | Wednesday 28th September | Leslie Duxbury | Ian White | 14,723,000 | 4 |
| 78 | 2870 | Monday 3rd October | Leslie Duxbury | Spencer Campbell | 14,911,000 | 4 |
| 79 | 2871 | Wednesday 5th October | Barry Hill | Spencer Campbell | 14,229,000 | 6 |
| 80 | 2872 | Monday 10th October | Stephen Mallatratt | Nicholas Ferguson | 15,632,000 | 4 |
| 81 | 2873 | Wednesday 12th October | John Stevenson | Nicholas Ferguson | 14,995,000 | 5 |
| 82 | 2874 | Monday 17th October | Adele Rose | Ian White | 15,494,000 | 5 |
| 83 | 2875 | Wednesday 19th October | Peter Whalley | Ian White | 15,144,000 | 6 |
| 84 | 2876 | Monday 24th October | Barry Hill | Spencer Campbell | 16,445,000 | 5 |
| 85 | 2877 | Wednesday 26th October | John Stevenson | Spencer Campbell | 16,162,000 | 6 |
| 86 | 2878 | Monday 31st October | Brian Finch | Nicholas Ferguson | 15,991,000 | 6 |
| 87 | 2879 | Wednesday 2nd November | Tony Perrin | Nicholas Ferguson | 16,857,000 | 4 |
| 88 | 2880 | Monday 7th November | Leslie Duxbury | Ian White | 17,028,000 | 5 |
| 89 | 2881 | Wednesday 9th November | Adele Rose | Ian White | 16,820,000 | 6 |
| 90 | 2882 | Monday 14th November | Leslie Duxbury | Spencer Campbell | 16,896,000 | 3 |
| 91 | 2883 | Wednesday 16th November | Peter Whalley | Spencer Campbell | 16,570,000 | 6 |
| 92 | 2884 | Monday 21st November | Brian Finch | Sarah Harding | 17,457,000 | 6 |
| 93 | 2885 | Wednesday 23rd November | Barry Hill | Sarah Harding | 16,389,000 | 8 |
| 94 | 2886 | Monday 28th November | Adele Rose | Ian White | 17,217,000 | 5 |
| 95 | 2887 | Wednesday 30th November | Tony Perrin | Ian White | 16,608,000 | 6 |
| 96 | 2888 | Monday 5th December | Leslie Duxbury | Spencer Campbell | 16,998,000 | 5 |
| 97 | 2889 | Wednesday 7th December | Barry Hill | Spencer Campbell | 16,688,000 | 6 |
| 98 | 2890 | Monday 12th December | Leslie Duxbury | Sarah Harding | 16,856,000 | 4 |
| 99 | 2891 | Wednesday 14th December | Peter Whalley | Sarah Harding | 15,984,000 | 5 |
| 100 | 2892 | Monday 19th December | Brian Finch | Ian White | 15,789,000 | 9 |
| 101 | 2893 | Wednesday 21st December | Tony Perrin | Ian White | 16,163,000 | 8 |
| 102 | 2894 | Sunday 25th December | John Stevenson | Ian White | 9,121,000 | 51 |
| 103 | 2895 | Monday 26th December | Adele Rose | Spencer Campbell | 15,600,000 | 5 |
| 104 | 2896 | Wednesday 28th December | Tony Perrin | Spencer Campbell | 16,550,000 | 4 |
Storylines[]
Who lives where[]
Coronation Street
- Rovers Return Inn - Bet and Alec Gilroy.
- 1 Coronation Street - Ken, Deirdre and Tracy Barlow.
- 3 Coronation Street - Emily Bishop. Curly Watts (until April). Percy Sugden (from May to July and August onwards).
- 5 Coronation Street - Ivy Tilsley/Brennan. Don Brennan (from June onwards).
- 7 Coronation Street - Rita Fairclough, Alan Bradley (until October and from November onwards). Jenny Bradley.
- 9 Coronation Street - Jack and Vera Duckworth. Amy Burton (until March). Terry Duckworth (from September to December).
- 11 Coronation Street - Alf and Audrey Roberts. Malcolm Reid (from July to August).
- 13 Coronation Street - Kevin and Sally Webster (from February onwards). Gina Seddon (from March to April and September onwards).
- Corner Shop flat (No.15a) - Kevin and Sally Webster (until February). Curly Watts and Shirley Armitage (from April onwards).
- Community Centre flat - Percy Sugden. (until May).
- The Kabin flat - Mavis Riley/Wilton. Derek Wilton (from November onwards).
- Flat 3, 44 Rosamund Street - Sandra and Jason Stubbs (from May onwards).
Others
- 37 Hillside Crescent - Betty Turpin.
- 46b, St. Mary's Place - Mike Baldwin.
- 33 Hammond Road - Brian, Gail, Nicky and Sarah Louise Tilsley.
- 4 Gorton Close - Phyllis Pearce.
- Nelson Street - Shirley Armitage (until March).
- 11 Parliament Street - Percy Sugden (from July to August).
- Flat 5, 12a Redwing Road - Alan Bradley (November only).
Awards and Nominations[]
BAFTA
- Best Television Actress: Jean Alexander (Nominated)
TV Times Awards
Announced in issue dated 27th February to 4th March 1988
- Best Actress: Jean Alexander (Winner)
| Coronation Street in the 1980s |
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