Coronation Street in 2020

2020 was Coronation Street's sixty-first year.

Main characters

Ranking	Character	Played by	Duration	Number of Episodes	Running total	Previous year's ranking
1	Geoff Metcalfe	Ian Bartholomew	Until December	125	235	51
2	David Platt	Jack P. Shepherd	Full year	113	2650	8
3	Leanne Battersby	Jane Danson	Full year	110	2262	40
3	Tim Metcalfe	Joe Duttine	Full year	110	878	15
5	Sarah Platt/Barlow	Tina O'Brien	Full year except for April	109	2157	2
5	Nick Tilsley	Ben Price	Full year	109	2104	3
7	Alya Nazir	Sair Khan	Full year	104	576	41
8	Sally Metcalfe	Sally Dynevor	Full year	98	3455	7
9	Steve McDonald	Simon Gregson	Full year	97	3393	10
9	Gary Windass	Mikey North	Full year except for September	97	1135	1
11	Abi Franklin	Sally Carman	Full year	95	264	38
12	Adam Barlow	Samuel Robertson	Full year except for April	94	665	27
13	Yasmeen Metcalfe	Shelley King	Full year	93	481	28
14	Daniel Osbourne	Rob Mallard	Full year except for May and October	92	603	13
15	Carla Connor	Alison King	Full year	89	1569	5
16	Peter Barlow	Chris Gascoyne	Full year except for October	88	1667	20
17	Billy Mayhew	Daniel Brocklebank	Full year except for July	83	523	29
17	Gemma Winter	Dolly-Rose Campbell	Full year	83	516	4
19	Jenny Connor	Sally Ann Matthews	Full year except for May and June	82	817	10
19	Tracy McDonald	Kate Ford	Full year	82	2310	25
21	Emma Brooker	Alexandra Mardell	Full year	81	242	17
22	Imran Habeeb	Charlie De Melo	Full year	78	269	34
23	Toyah Battersby	Georgia Taylor	Full year	75	1027	55
23	Paul Foreman	Peter Ash	Full year except for February	75	181	21
23	Nina Lucas	Mollie Gallagher	Full year	75	91	82
26	Ray Crosby	Mark Frost	Full year except for April and July	74	92	80
27	Roy Cropper	David Neilson	Full year except for August, September and November	73	2320	14
28	Ryan Connor	Ryan Prescott	Full year	72	602	26
29	Kevin Webster	Michael Le Vell	Full year except for June	71	3173	45
30	Tyrone Dobbs	Alan Halsall	Full year except for April and December	70	2129	29
31	Evelyn Plummer	Maureen Lipman	Full year except for August, September and November	68	184	34
31	Sean Tully	Antony Cotton	Full year except for December	68	1775	22
33	Shona Platt	Julia Goulding	Full year except for March, April and July	66	431	6
34	Chesney Brown	Sam Aston	Full year except for June and November	64	1290	12
34	Maria Connor	Samia Longchambon	Full year except for June, September and November	64	1776	23
36	Eileen Grimshaw	Sue Cleaver	Full year except for July, August and December	63	2155	43
37	Gail Rodwell	Helen Worth	Full year except for July, August and September	60	4400	43
38	Cathy Matthews	Melanie Hill	Full year except for October and November	59	417	53
39	Dev Alahan	Jimmi Harkishin	Full year except for July	58	1707	57
40	Michael Bailey	Ryan Russell	Full year except for August	56	111	57
40	Ken Barlow	William Roache	January to April, June and from December	56	4661	29
40	Mary Cole/Taylor	Patti Clare	Full year	56	834	33
40	Fiz Stape	Jennie McAlpine	Full year except for April, August and December	56	2117	66
40	Faye Windass	Ellie Leach	Full year except for March and April	56	600	73
45	Bernie Winter	Jane Hazlegrove	Full year except for February	54	105	60
46	Amy Barlow	Elle Mulvaney	Full year except for October	49	781	45
46	Johnny Connor	Richard Hawley	January to April, August and from October	49	531	18
46	Craig Tinker	Colson Smith	Full year except for January, April and July	49	459	53
49	Simon Barlow	Alex Bain	January, March to July and from November	47	708	77
50	Ed Bailey	Trevor Michael Georges	Full year except for June and August	46	96	61
50	Kirk Sutherland	Andrew Whyment	Full year	46	1431	37
52	Aggie Bailey	Lorna Laidlaw	Full year except for August, September and October	45	95	61
52	Todd Grimshaw	Gareth Pierce	From October	45	869	-
54	Oliver Battersby	Emmanuel & Jeremiah Cheetham	February to July and September to November	43	139	93
55	Debbie Webster	Sue Devaney	From August	41	81	94
56	James Bailey	Nathan Graham	Full year except for April, August and December	38	85	65
56	Brian Packham	Peter Gunn	Full year except for August, October and November	38	423	49
58	Bethany Platt	Lucy Fallon	Until March	37	889	23
59	Asha Alahan	Tanisha Gorey	February to June, September and November	32	266	68
59	Claudia Colby	Rula Lenska	Until April	32	144	56
59	Hope Stape	Isabella Flanagan	January to March, May and November	32	323	70
62	Alina Pop	Ruxandra Porojnicu	February to April, June to August and November	30	51	78
63	Aled Winter-Brown	Charlotte & James Holt, Arthur, Lily & Lucy Taylor and Harry & Harvey Thompson	January to April	29	39	87
64	Beth Sutherland	Lisa George	January to March, June to July and October to November	28	794	19
65	Bertie Osbourne	Ellis Blain and Elias & Rufus Morgan-Smith	January to April and June to July	27	100	45
66	Seb Franklin	Harry Visinoni	February to April and June to September	26	266	34
66	Carys Winter-Brown	Charlotte & James Holt and Arthur, Lily & Lucy Taylor	January to June	26	36	87
68	Liz McDonald	Beverley Callard	Until June	25	2420	57
68	Bryn Winter-Brown	Charlotte & James Holt and Arthur, Lily & Lucy Taylor	January to May	25	35	87
68	Llio Winter-Brown	Charlotte & James Holt and Arthur, Lily & Lucy Taylor	January to June	25	34	91
71	Aadi Alahan	Adam Hussain	April to June and September to November	24	223	85
71	Ruby Dobbs	Macy Alabi	January to March and May	24	265	67
73	Elaine Jones	Paula Wilcox	July, August and from December	22	22	-
73	Audrey Roberts	Sue Nicholls	Until June and from December	22	3210	50
73	Summer Spellman	Matilda Freeman and Harriet Bibby	January, March to June, August and from November	22	153	81
76	Kelly Neelan	Millie Gibson	April to July and from December	20	26	94
76	Lily Platt	Brooke Malonie	Until May and from December	20	239	71
78	Grace Vickers	Kate Spencer	Full year except for April, June, August and December	20	25	96
79	Ali Neeson	James Burrows	Until March	19	215	38
79	Max Turner	Harry McDermott	Until June and from December	19	492	67
81	Natasha Blakeman	Rachel Leskovac	From September	17	152	-
81	Sam Blakeman	Jude Riordan	October and from December	17	17	-
83	Norris Cole	Malcolm Hebden	March to April and June	16	1654	85
83	Rita Tanner	Barbara Knox	Until June and from December	16	3833	48
85	George Shuttleworth	Tony Maudsley	From September	12	12	-
86	Paula Martin	Stirling Gallacher	January to February and June	11	90	63
86	Alex Warner	Liam Bairstow	January and March to July	11	129	75
88	Dylan Wilson	Liam McCheyne	October to November	10	39	-
89	Daisy Midgeley	Charlotte Jordan	From November	9	9	-
90	Izzy Armstrong	Cherylee Houston	January to March and June	7	757	41
91	Joseph Brown	William Flanagan	January to March, May and November	6	181	72
91	Harry Platt	Freddie & Isaac Rhodes	January to March, May, July and from December	6	119	76
93	Jack Webster	Kyran Bowes	January to February and July	5	202	84
94	Liam Connor	Charlie Wrenshall	January to March	4	200	87
95	Sinead Osbourne	Katie McGlynn	January and March	3	591	32
96	Moira Pollock	Louiza Patikas	January only	1	74	82

Production

Pre-pandemic

Blackpool beckons in Coronation Street's 10,000th episode

Iain MacLeod produced Coronation Street in its landmark sixtieth anniversary year. The year would see the programme be severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with measures being put in place by ITV to protect the cast and crew, and their families. These changes were implemented after a three-month production break between March and June, with filming and transmission continuing as normal until then.

The programme's 10,000th instalment was broadcast in February. The episode saw Rita Tanner receive an urn containing ex-husband Dennis Tanner's ashes, and Jenny Connor organise a coach outing to Blackpool to scatter them. Producers hadn't originally planned to mark the occasion, but changed their minds when they realised that airing this and the 60th anniversary in the same year provided an opportunity to craft an episode that was "Corrie to the core", with a "laconic, comedic and character-driven vibe." [1].

The episode culminated with the revelation that Ken Barlow was leaving the street to live at Stillwaters luxury retirement complex with his partner Claudia Colby. Similar to Mayfield Court in the 1990s, Stillwaters was intended as an ongoing feature of the programme, with scenes being recorded on location at Colshaw Hall in Cheshire. As he settled in, Ken met a familiar face, Norris Cole, who had recently moved there with fiancée Freda Burgess. Following Malcolm Hebden's health troubles, Norris was re-introduced in a part-time role which would be less strenuous for the actor. The storyline ended with Ken and Claudia splitting up and Ken returning to Coronation Street. This followed Rula Lenska's decision to leave the programme after two years as a regular cast member [2].

Bethany Platt left Weatherfield in early March to work for a magazine in London, following a failed romance with Daniel Osbourne. Lucy Fallon had quit in 2019 in order to pursue other roles [3]. Daniel's late wife Sinead Osbourne made several appearances in videos recorded before the character's death. Some of these appearances included previously unaired footage, but all were shot prior to Katie McGlynn's departure from the show. For another scene, in which Daniel saw Sinead in Bethany's place, McGlynn returned to filming. Ali Neeson also left screens in March when James Burrows quit after playing the part for two years [4]. Ali departed after a failed attempt to expose Gary Windass's crimes.

Shona Platt went to rehab in February after being shot by Derek Milligan the previous December and losing her memories of her time with David. Although Shona was seen in rehab briefly in Episode 10004, these shots were recorded before Julia Goulding went on maternity leave. She returned to screens in May, with Shona's recovery taking the rest of the year.

The programme's youngest cast members were also subject to changes as Ellis Blain and Elias Morgan-Smith departed as Bertie Osbourne, with Rufus Morgan-Smith continuing in the part solo, while an increased focus on Aled Winter-Brown, particularly his hearing difficulties, led producers to cast twins Harry and Harvey Thompson in the role, with Charlotte Holt and James Holt and Arthur, Lily and Lucy Taylor continuing as the other three quads.

COVID-19: Hiatus

This message was posted on Coronation Street's social media accounts on Sunday 22nd March, in response to the developing COVID-19 pandemic

On 11th March, the coronavirus disease 2019 was classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation [5]. Seven days later, the total number of deaths from the disease in the United Kingdom exceeded 100, with hundreds of new cases being confirmed each day [6].

Amid concerns over the safety of cast and crew, ITV announced that Coronation Street's weekly output would be cut to three half-hour episodes beginning on 30th March, but that filming would continue with smaller production units and scaled back location filming [7]. However, it became apparent that upcoming episodes would be unfilmable in current conditions without heavy rewrites, and on 22nd March the network announced that recording on its soaps was being suspended with immediate effect [8]. A Stay at Home order was announced the next day by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, which imposed two-metre social distancing measures in shops and workplaces [9].

At the point where production stopped, the team had completed all filming up to Episode 10083, intended for transmission on 13th May, with a further eight episodes partially recorded. At half its usual output, Coronation Street could now remain on the air until 3rd July before running out of completed episodes. These would be edited slightly, with opening and ending credits added to instalments originally meant to air as double bills, although due to time constraints before the MediaCity studios were locked down, these credits were not remade but instead used those intended for both of that evening's episodes. Corrected credits would be broadcast from Episode 10066 onwards.

One unavoidable result of the staggered transmission pattern was that events such as VE Day and April Fools' Day were not marked on the appropriate dates. These were broadcast with the references intact. However, a disclaimer was added to Episode 10036 noting that the programme would continue to feature social gatherings due to episodes being recorded weeks in advance, and encouraging viewers to follow the current government health advice [10].

With storylines ramping up for Britain's Got Talent week when lockdown hit, Coronation Street had a strong set of episodes in the can to see it through to July. Chief among them was Geoff and Yasmeen Metcalfe's coercive control storyline, with Yasmeen stabbing Geoff following months of emotional abuse. James Bailey was outed in a storyline exploring homophobia in football, while Kelly Neelan returned as a full-time character, with Kel Allen appearing as her neglectful mother Laura. Kelly was quickly woven into the network of teen characters the programme had been nurturing in the past few years, alongside Corey Brent with whom she was responsible for sharing a pornographic video of Asha Alahan on the internet. The storyline saw Aadi Alahan appear for the first time in six months, now played by Adam Hussain. The previous actor, Zennon Ditchett had quit the show in 2019 in order to focus on his A-Level studies [11].

Episode 10042, the first to air as part of the reduced schedule, was the final script for the programme by its then-longest serving writer, Martin Allen.

No	Intended airdate	Actual airdate
The following episodes were recorded entirely before the production break
10042	Monday 30th March	Monday 30th March
10043	Monday 30th March	Wednesday 1st April
10044	Wednesday 1st April	Friday 3rd April
10045	Wednesday 1st April	Monday 6th April
10046	Thursday 2nd April	Wednesday 8th April
10047	Friday 3rd April	Friday 10th April
10048	Friday 3rd April	Monday 13th April
10049	Monday 6th April	Wednesday 15th April
10050	Monday 6th April	Friday 17th April
10051	Wednesday 8th April	Monday 20th April
10052	Wednesday 8th April	Wednesday 22nd April
10053	Thursday 9th April	Friday 24th April
10054	Friday 10th April	Monday 27th April
10055	Friday 10th April	Wednesday 29th April
10056	Monday 13th April	Friday 1st May
10057	Monday 13th April	Monday 4th May
10058	Wednesday 15th April	Wednesday 6th May
10059	Wednesday 15th April	Friday 8th May
10060	Friday 17th April	Monday 11th May
10061	Friday 17th April	Wednesday 13th May
10062	Monday 20th April	Friday 15th May
10063	Monday 20th April	Monday 18th May
10064	Wednesday 22nd April	Wednesday 20th May
10065	Wednesday 22nd April	Friday 22nd May
10066	Friday 24th April	Monday 25th May
10067	Friday 24th April	Wednesday 27th May
10068	Monday 27th April	Friday 29th May
10069	Monday 27th April	Monday 1st June
10070	Wednesday 29th April	Wednesday 3rd June
10071	Wednesday 29th April	Friday 5th June
10072	Friday 1st May	Monday 8th June
10073	Friday 1st May	Wednesday 10th June
10074	Monday 4th May	Friday 12th June
10075	Monday 4th May	Monday 15th June
10076	Wednesday 6th May	Wednesday 17th June
10077	Wednesday 6th May	Friday 19th June
10078	Friday 8th May	Monday 22nd June
10079	Friday 8th May	Wednesday 24th June
10080	Monday 11th May	Friday 26th June
10081	Monday 11th May	Monday 29th June
10082	Wednesday 13th May	Wednesday 1st July
10083	Wednesday 13th May	Friday 3rd July
The following episodes contain a mixture of scenes recorded before and after the production break
10084	Friday 15th May	Monday 6th July
10085	Friday 15th May	Wednesday 8th July
10086	Monday 18th May	Friday 10th July
10087	Monday 18th May	Monday 13th July
10088	Wednesday 20th May	Wednesday 15th July
10089	Wednesday 20th May	Friday 17th July
10090	Friday 22nd May	Monday 20th July
10091	Friday 22nd May	Wednesday 22nd July

In addition to the show itself, ITV kept Coronation Street in the public consciousness during lockdown with a series of clipshows entitled Coronation Street: Compilations and Coronation Street Icons. These were broadcast in the vacant 8.30pm timeslot usually occupied by the Street. Meanwhile, furloughed actor Colson Smith hosted a magazine-style show called Corrie Good News, in which he conducted virtual interviews about current storylines with members of the cast and prominent fans, with all participants recording their segments in their own homes. The series was released on Coronation Street's social media platforms and ran for ten episodes, with a 60th anniversary special released later in the year.

COVID-19: The new normal

After a ten-week hiatus, cast and crew returned to work on Monday 1st June, with filming recommencing a week later on Monday 8th June [12]. This followed the implementation of new health and safety protocols in accordance with the BFC's COVID-19 guidelines for film and TV drama productions, published on 1st June [13]. When filming resumed, Coronation Street still had twelve completed episodes awaiting transmission, making it the only UK soap not to either fall off the air or have its narrative interrupted by the pandemic [14].

Filming under COVID rules: All cast and crew members keep a two-metre distance from one another in accordance with government recommendations

The main change was introduction of a cohort system in which crew members worked exclusively on the exterior set, Studios 1 and 2, or Studios 3 and 4, with Studios 5 and 6 divided between the cohorts [15]. This was designed to keep any mixing to a minimum, with only the actors coming in from outside the cohort to record their scenes. Crew members used their own assigned equipment, while intensive cleaning and sanitisation took place on sets and props daily. Optional face coverings were also provided. In order to have as few people in the studios as possible, hair, make-up and costume departments worked with the cast remotely, while office staff continued to work from home with story conferences taking place virtually. The number of people on set at any one time was also regulated, with the show limiting its use of guest actors and background artists for the rest of the year. On entering the site, cast and crew had daily temperature checks carried out by specialised medical advisors [16]. A one-way system was already in place in the main building, while strict two-metre social distancing rules were enforced across the site both in front of and behind the camera, even in scenes involving characters who were related or lived together. Each filming unit was assigned a cohort manager to ensure that these rules were followed at all times.

As well as reducing the health risk to cast and crew, the cohort system minimised the disruption to the shooting schedule should any cast members test positive for the virus, as happened in September [17].

The first week of filming entirely comprised pickups for the eight partially-shot episodes, under the direction of Suri Krishnamma and Gill Wilkinson. Despite the cohort system producing episodes with multiple directors, it was decided not to reflect this on these or future episodes and to instead credit the director who made the biggest contribution. In this block, Krishnamma favoured wide shots in order to best hide the changes in actors' hair and make-up pre- and post-lockdown [18]. As these scenes would be mixed with others recorded before the hiatus, script changes were minimal and made only to reflect the new filming conditions, with no references made to the pandemic [19].

With Episode 10092, the first episode shot entirely after lockdown, Weatherfield changed to more closely resemble reality, with characters and businesses observing social distancing, the Rovers Return, Viaduct Bistro, Speed Daal and Roy's Rolls open for takeout only, signs and sanitisers on display, and masks and gloves being worn on occasion, while characters began mentioning COVID-19. The change followed top-level discussions on whether Coronation Street should incorporate the virus, and to what extent. Producers ultimately decided that the virus would exist, but wouldn't be exploited for storylines, arguing that while the show should reflect modern Britain, it should also provide viewers with escapism [20]. As such, while COVID-19 would be acknowledged, no characters would contract or die from the virus. The most overt references were by the Bailey family, due to Aggie being a key worker in her role as a nurse at Weatherfield General.

The change to a post-lockdown Weatherfield, described as "flipping a switch" by Iain MacLeod, created inherent continuity issues due to the lack of a time jump from the previous episode. Indeed, in later episodes characters would recount their activities during lockdown, despite this period being documented on-screen. MacLeod commented that he was aware of these issues but trusted the audience to "go with it" [21].

Some sets could not be utilized after the return to filming, either because they were too small to work in while employing two metre social distancing measures, or because the nature of the business involved close contact between staff and clientele. These included Preston's Petals, the Street Cars cab office, Prima Doner, Audrey's salon and Trim Up North.

Another result of COVID restrictions was that location filming was suspended indefinitely. All recording for the rest of the year was carried out within the studio complex, with scripts re-written to remove any planned location scenes. These restrictions caused Yasmeen's trial for attempted murder, due to take place on Britain's Got Talent week, to be delayed until later in the year, while a scene in which Gary Windass saves Sarah Platt's life at Beacon Woods was re-written to take place on the street. In the latter, described by ITV as the world's first socially-distanced stunt, Gary pushes Sarah - in certain shots, a mannequin dressed in Sarah's clothes - out of harm's way and is hit by an on-coming car [22]. Another storyline, a planned affair between Tyrone Dobbs and Alina Pop, was pushed back to 2021 so that the pair could be seen kissing [23]. Perhaps the most extreme example of the reality of the programme being impaired by COVID restrictions was Gary and Maria Connor's wedding at the Viaduct Bistro in August, at which the bride and groom stood two metres apart and didn't kiss upon being pronounced husband and wife. Ahead of transmission, Samia Longchambon told This Morning that she hoped viewers would cut them a bit of slack [24].

COVID-19: Returning cast members

While most actors were able to return to filming, many could not due either to shielding rules or on-set restrictions. In particular, those aged 70+ were classified as "at risk" by the government and urged to stay at home. William Roache, Barbara Knox, Sue Nicholls, Malcolm Hebden, Maureen Lipman and David Neilson therefore remained absent until shielding advice changed [25]. With the virus becoming less prevalent over the coming months, all characters with the exception of Norris Cole were back on-screen by the end of the year.

The under-18 age group had no shielding requirements, but rules stipulated that child actors had to have chaperones on set, increasing the number of people in the studio [26]. In order to avoid these issues, writers featured the younger cast as little as possible, especially the under-10s with Lily Platt, Joseph Brown, Hope Stape, Max Turner, and Harry Platt going unseen until the last quarter of the year, and Liam Connor, Jake Windass, Jack Webster, Ruby Dobbs, and Aled, Bryn, Carys and Llio Winter-Brown making no further appearances until 2021 (or, in the latter three cases, 2022). A notable scene in Episode 10170 saw cousins Hope and Joseph interacting without social distancing; this was allowed due to the actors - real-life siblings Isabella and William Flanagan - sharing a household.

Other characters were off-screen due to actors' underlying health conditions or other circumstances. Beth Sutherland was absent until October and from November due to Lisa George's diabetes, while Izzy Armstrong wasn't seen after June due to Cherylee Houston's Ehler-Danlos syndrome. Liam Bairstow was also shielding, resulting in Alex Warner being off-screen for over a year [27]. Aggie Bailey had a five-month absence due to Lorna Laidlaw caring for her elderly mother, but appeared in two episodes in video calls with Laidlaw shooting her segments at home [28]. While most of the aforementioned characters' absences were unexplained, Aggie was said to be self-isolating at a hotel due to a colleague testing positive for the virus, and working long hours at the hospital thereafter, while Izzy was shielding at home for the same reason as Houston.

Beverley Callard had decided to leave Coronation Street in 2019 after playing Liz McDonald on and off for 31 years [29]. An explosive exit storyline was planned for mid 2020 in which Liz would team up with armed robber Scott Emberton to steal money for her terminally ill grandson Oliver Battersby before leaving the street as a fugitive [30]. In March, Callard took time off to recover from a botched hip operation which left her unable to walk, and Liz was temporarily written out, with her sudden disappearance explained as a trip to Spain. Her role in Oliver's storyline was given to Emma Brooker [31]. The actress initially planned to return to record an on-screen exit, but decided after a positive lockdown experience that she never wanted to play Liz again [32].

Two other missing faces following the lockdown were solicitor Paula Martin and medical centre manager Moira Pollock. In these cases, the characters simply vanished from the programme with no official announcement that Stirling Gallacher or Louiza Patikas had left.

Castings and recastings

Official anniversary cast portrait: The seven oldest cast members together with the seven newest. Due to social distancing rules, each actor was photographed separately and the images composited together

In the shadow of the pandemic, Coronation Street continued to sign new actors as it would in any other year. Man About the House star Paula Wilcox was cast as Elaine Jones, a former victim of Geoff Metcalfe's and Tim's biological mother. Wilcox began filming within days of production shutting down in March [33]. In April, Tony Maudsley confirmed a report by The Sun that he was joining the programme. His role was that of undertaker George Shuttleworth, following in the footsteps of his late father Archie [34]. In November, the Rovers gained a new barmaid in the form of Jenny Connor's minxy stepdaughter Daisy Midgeley, played by Charlotte Jordan [35].

Rachel Leskovac reprised the role of Natasha Blakeman in September, ten years after she was axed from the programme [36]. Natasha was accompanied by her and Nick Tilsley's nine-year-old son Sam, played by Jude Riordan. Their storyline saw Nick struggle to balance his responsibilities towards Sam and Oliver as his three-year-old stepson battled an incurable form of mitochondrial disease. In November, following Leanne Battersby and Steve McDonald's legal battle against the hospital to stop their son's life support from being withdrawn, Oliver passed away. Coronation Street worked remotely with The Lily Foundation on the storyline, for which it was praised for raising awareness of the disease [37].

Todd Grimshaw appeared for the first time since Bruno Langley's firing in 2017, now played by Gareth Pierce. With Langley having appeared in over 800 episodes, this was the biggest recast in Coronation Street to date. Pierce played a battle-hardened Todd who had spent the preceding three years on the run from the police, thus explaining the change in the character [38]. Todd's former ward Summer Spellman was also recast following the resignation of Matilda Freeman. Freeman had quit over her lack of screen time and her inability to take other acting work while contracted with Coronation Street [39]. The new actress, Harriet Bibby, was six years older than Summer, broadening the range of storylines writers could give her [40].

Sue Devaney returned full-time as Debbie Webster following her short stint in 2019. Her storyline saw her revealed as Ray Crosby's secret business partner, playing a key part in the show's 60th anniversary storyline. Sean Tully's son Dylan Wilson appeared for the first time since 2012, still played by Liam McCheyne. On Twitter, Antony Cotton suggested that this was a full-time return but in the event it lasted only two weeks, with further appearances in 2021 and 2022 [41].

60th anniversary

Discussions on how to mark sixty years of Coronation Street took place in late 2019. A storyline suggested by two of the show's writers in which a form of bird flu originating in Tyrone's pigeon loft caused a global pandemic was rejected for being too far-fetched [42]. In January, Iain MacLeod told the Radio Times that the team was exploring ideas with elements of genre-bending [43]. He went on to state that there would not be a live episode, but that it would be no less ambitious [44].

By September, recording was far enough ahead for the programme to revert to its normal transmission pattern of six episodes per week, with a double episode on most Fridays [45]. The first double, Episode 10113/4 on 11th September, saw a sinkhole open up in the Platts' garden. At the time, a set-piece stunt involving the sinkhole was planned for anniversary week [46]. However, with two-metre social distancing rules still in place, the studio couldn't accommodate the number of design and construction personnel needed to create the sets required. It was decided to scrap the stunt and to elevate other storylines, with three planned to climax that week [47]. However, the sinkhole remained in place as Iain MacLeod hoped to use it further down the line once restrictions had eased [48].

Originally meant to feature a sinkhole disaster, the anniversary was rejigged due to the pandemic, with Yasmeen's trial for attempted murder being brought to the fore

Even scaled down, the transmitted anniversary week was challenging to film in the context of the pandemic. For Yasmeen's attempted murder trial, which in normal times would have been recorded on location, a set for Weatherfield Crown Court had to be built in studio [49]. After being found not guilty, Yasmeen was released from Norcross Prison, and a final showdown with Geoff followed. Episode 10189/90, the anniversary episode, culminated in a fire at No.6 and Geoff falling to his death from the roof. A purpose-built stunt roof was used for shooting these scenes, with the actors filmed against a green screen. As the script required their characters to be in close proximity, Ian Bartholomew, Shelley King and Sair Khan self-isolated before filming and were tested regularly throughout the shooting process. By "bubbling up" in this manner, the actors could perform scenes with each other without the two-metre rule. This process would be repeated many times over the next year as the pandemic continued. Although it was not his choice to exit the series, Bartholomew accepted that, as a villain, Geoff would have a limited shelf-life [50]. The actor made two further appearances as Geoff later in the month when Yasmeen, struggling to move on from her ordeal, hallucinated her dead husband.

The other main anniversary storyline was more community-focused and saw Ray Crosby and Debbie Webster stealthily buy up the properties on the south side of the street in preparation for a new hotel development. The sinkhole at No.8 was woven into the plot, with Ray engineering the hole in a bid to trick David into selling up. The anniversary week saw the street's residents, including Ken and Rita in their first post-lockdown appearances, successfully thwart Ray's demolition of Nuttall's Brewery.

Beyond the programme itself, retrospective documentaries 60 Unforgettable Years and Queens of the Street were broadcast on ITV during the week, while ITV3 repeated classic episodes that had originally aired on or around the anniversary date of 9th December at ten-year intervals. Coronation Street's social media accounts aired a series of short videos under the banner 60 for 60. These were messages of congratulations recorded by actors, production staff, celebrity fans, charities and rival soaps [51]. Abigail Kemp's official tie-in book for the anniversary, 60 Years of Coronation Street, was published in October, while the UK streaming service BritBox added classic episodes to its catalogue with newly-recorded introductions by William Roache, Sally Dynevor, Simon Gregson, Jack P. Shepherd, and Alexandra Mardell [52].

In the latter months of the year, after a summer of falling case numbers COVID-19 began to rise again in the United Kingdom, leading to a second national lockdown in England between 5th November and 2nd December. Ahead of the lockdown, ITV announced that production on Coronation Street would continue and that the government's production guidelines were being adhered to [53]. However, some actors with underlying health conditions were again absent the programme. John Whiston, ITV's managing director of continuing drama, stated that contingency plans were in place should filming be halted, with a possible Christmas bubble under consideration, although this ultimately was not needed [54]. The second lockdown was not referenced in the programme, with the pandemic continuing to be treated as a background element of the show.

Viewing figures

To be added

Episodes

#	Ep. No.	Date	Part	Writer	Director	Viewing Figures	Chart Position
1	9968/9	Wednesday 1st January		Damon Alexis-Rochefort	Michael Lacey	6,676,088	13
2	9970	Friday 3rd January	1	Chris Fewtrell	Michael Lacey	7,359,060	5
3	9971	Friday 3rd January	2	Chris Fewtrell	Michael Lacey	7,056,330	9
4	9972/3	Monday 6th January		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Karl Neilson	7,257,876	10
5	9974	Wednesday 8th January	1	Joe Turner	Karl Neilson	7,417,785	8
6	9975	Wednesday 8th January	2	Joe Turner	Karl Neilson	6,995,362	11
7	9976	Friday 10th January	1	Simon Crowther	David Beauchamp	7,496,267	7
8	9977	Friday 10th January	2	Simon Crowther	David Beauchamp	7,358,084	9
9	9978	Monday 13th January	1	Mark Wadlow	David Beauchamp	7,595,866	7
10	9979	Monday 13th January	2	David Isaac	David Beauchamp	7,290,186	9
11	9980	Wednesday 15th January	1	Jonathan Harvey	Nic Phillips	7,458,174	8
12	9981	Wednesday 15th January	2	Jonathan Harvey	Nic Phillips	6,644,580	14
13	9982	Friday 17th January	1	Ellen Taylor	Nic Phillips	7,249,768	11
14	9983	Friday 17th January	2	Ellen Taylor	Nic Phillips	7,279,454	10
15	9984	Monday 20th January	1	Jayne Hollinson	John Anderson	7,450,632	7
16	9985	Monday 20th January	2	Susan Oudot	John Anderson	7,426,645	8
17	9986	Wednesday 22nd January	1	Julie Jones	Kevin Boyle	7,347,877	9
18	9987	Wednesday 22nd January	2	Steven Fay	Kevin Boyle	7,131,335	10
19	9988	Friday 24th January	1	David Isaac	Sean Healy	7,085,558	11
20	9989	Friday 24th January	2	Joe Turner	Sean Healy	7,003,931	12
21	9990	Monday 27th January	1	Cameron McAllister	Sean Healy	7,265,180	7
22	9991	Monday 27th January	2	Chris Fewtrell	Sean Healy	6,943,053	11
23	9992	Wednesday 29th January	1	Sam Holdsworth	Pip Short	6,976,204	9
24	9993	Wednesday 29th January	2	Susan Oudot	Pip Short	6,729,979	12
25	9994	Friday 31st January	1	John Kerr	Pip Short	6,948,719	10
26	9995	Friday 31st January	2	Emily Gascoyne	Pip Short	7,217,888	8
27	9996	Monday 3rd February	1	Owen Lloyd-Fox	Matt Hilton	7,294,549	8
28	9997	Monday 3rd February	2	Simon Crowther	Matt Hilton	7,236,157	10
29	9998	Wednesday 5th February	1	Jonathan Harvey	Matt Hilton	7,219,315	11
30	9999	Wednesday 5th February	2	Jonathan Harvey	Matt Hilton	7,102,976	12
31	10000/1	Friday 7th February		Damon Alexis-Rochefort	Tim O'Mara	7,496,953	7
32	10002	Monday 10th February	1	Jan McVerry	Tim O'Mara	7,345,852	5
33	10003	Monday 10th February	2	Martin Allen	Tim O'Mara	7,328,856	6
34	10004	Wednesday 12th February	1	Mark Wadlow	Brett Fallis	7,064,905	8
35	10005	Wednesday 12th February	2	Debbie Oates	Brett Fallis	6,682,438	11
36	10006	Friday 14th February	1	Steven Fay	Brett Fallis	7,079,282	7
37	10007	Friday 14th February	2	Julie Jones	Brett Fallis	6,913,769	9
38	10008	Monday 17th February	1	Ian Kershaw	Sasha Ransome	7,192,776	5
39	10009	Monday 17th February	2	Mark Burt	Sasha Ransome	6,797,941	7
40	10010	Wednesday 19th February	1	Ella Greenhill	Sasha Ransome	6,752,606	8
41	10011	Wednesday 19th February	2	Carmel Morgan	Sasha Ransome	6,284,848	16
42	10012/3	Friday 21st February		David Isaac Mark Burt	Karl Neilson	7,163,052	6
43	10014	Monday 24th February	1	John Kerr	Karl Neilson	7,121,967	3
44	10015	Monday 24th February	2	Emily Gascoyne	Karl Neilson	6,794,634	10
45	10016	Wednesday 26th February	1	Martin Allen	Paul Copeland	6,873,175	5
46	10017	Wednesday 26th February	2	Alasdair Morrison	Paul Copeland	6,152,737	17
47	10018/9	Friday 28th February		Ellen Taylor	Paul Copeland	6,859,078	6
48	10020	Monday 2nd March	1	Damon Alexis-Rochefort	Chantelle Kayll	7,302,465	2
49	10021	Monday 2nd March	2	Sam Holdsworth	Jordan Hogg	6,894,558	6
50	10022	Wednesday 4th March	1	Owen Lloyd-Fox	Jordan Hogg	7,091,607	3
51	10023	Wednesday 4th March	2	Jonathan Harvey	Jordan Hogg	6,470,891	9
52	10024/5	Friday 6th March		Simon Crowther Cameron McAllister	Jordan Hogg	6,843,648	7
53	10026	Monday 9th March	1	Mark Wadlow	David Moor	7,287,671	2
54	10027	Monday 9th March	2	Julie Jones	David Moor	6,999,076	4
55	10028	Wednesday 11th March	1	Jayne Hollinson	David Moor	6,937,639	5
56	10029	Wednesday 11th March	2	Joe Turner	David Moor	6,118,904	14
57	10030/1	Friday 13th March		Ella Greenhill Ian Kershaw	Audrey Cooke	6,823,821	7
58	10032	Monday 16th March	1	Chris Fewtrell	Audrey Cooke	7,179,830	11
59	10033	Monday 16th March	2	Jan McVerry	Audrey Cooke	6,947,352	14
60	10034	Wednesday 18th March	1	Carmel Morgan	Gill Wilkinson	7,445,816	6
61	10035	Wednesday 18th March	2	Steven Fay	Gill Wilkinson	6,995,659	13
62	10036/7	Friday 20th March		Susan Oudot	Gill Wilkinson	7,301,044	9
63	10038	Monday 23rd March	1	Emily Gascoyne	Sarah Kendell	7,694,739	8
64	10039	Monday 23rd March	2	Ellen Taylor	Sarah Kendell	6,720,585	22
65	10040	Wednesday 25th March	1	Cameron McAllister	Sarah Kendell	7,670,976	10
66	10041	Wednesday 25th March	2	John Kerr	Sarah Kendell	7,044,932	15
67	10042	Monday 30th March		Martin Allen	Matt Hilton	7,978,281	2
68	10043	Wednesday 1st April		David Isaac	Matt Hilton	7,662,963	3
69	10044	Friday 3rd April		Joe Turner	Matt Hilton	7,623,460	4
70	10045	Monday 6th April		Sam Holdsworth	Matt Hilton	7,770,500	3
71	10046	Wednesday 8th April		Alasdair Morrison	Matt Hilton	7,883,394	2
72	10047	Friday 10th April		Chris Fewtrell	Mickey Jones	7,445,623	5
73	10048	Monday 13th April		Susan Oudot	Mickey Jones	7,227,836	8
74	10049	Wednesday 15th April		Debbie Oates	Mickey Jones	7,570,506	6
75	10050	Friday 17th April		Debbie Oates	Mickey Jones	7,560,514	7
76	10051	Monday 20th April		Simon Crowther	Brett Fallis	7,628,151	2
77	10052	Wednesday 22nd April		Steven Fay	Brett Fallis	7,362,774	4
78	10053	Friday 24th April		Mark Burt	Brett Fallis	7,404,332	3
79	10054	Monday 27th April		Jonathan Harvey	Brett Fallis	7,890,688	4
80	10055	Wednesday 29th April		Jonathan Harvey	Brett Fallis	8,075,638	3
81	10056	Friday 1st May		Jan McVerry	Diana Patrick	8,164,894	2
82	10057	Monday 4th May		Jan McVerry	Diana Patrick	8,002,715	4
83	10058	Wednesday 6th May		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Diana Patrick	7,953,917	5
84	10059	Friday 8th May		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Diana Patrick	7,427,468	6
85	10060	Monday 11th May		Damon Alexis-Rochefort	Kevin Boyle	7,561,296	3
86	10061	Wednesday 13th May		Mark Wadlow	Kevin Boyle	7,725,870	2
87	10062	Friday 15th May		Julie Jones	Lee Trevor	7,436,092	4
88	10063	Monday 18th May		Julie Jones	Lee Trevor	7,582,465	2
89	10064	Wednesday 20th May		Ian Kershaw	Lee Trevor	6,982,866	4
90	10065	Friday 22nd May		Ian Kershaw	Lee Trevor	7,181,878	3
91	10066	Monday 25th May		Joe Turner	Steve Finn	6,987,280	2
92	10067	Wednesday 27th May		Emily Gascoyne	Steve Finn	6,978,523	3
93	10068	Friday 29th May		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Steve Finn	6,930,340	4
94	10069	Monday 1st June		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Steve Finn	7,146,519	3
95	10070	Wednesday 3rd June		Simon Crowther	Abe Juckes	7,469,295	2
96	10071	Friday 5th June		Simon Crowther	Abe Juckes	7,510,683	1
97	10072	Monday 8th June		Jan McVerry	Abe Juckes	7,796,169	3
98	10073	Wednesday 10th June		Ian Kershaw	Abe Juckes	8,095,825	2
99	10074	Friday 12th June		Alasdair Morrison	Emma Lindley	7,170,284	4
100	10075	Monday 15th June		Cameron McAllister	Emma Lindley	7,215,970	3
101	10076	Wednesday 17th June		Sam Holdsworth	Tim Finn	6,996,877	4
102	10077	Friday 19th June		Damon Alexis-Rochefort	Tim Finn	6,833,077	5
103	10078	Monday 22nd June		David Isaac	Tim Finn	7,192,615	1
104	10079	Wednesday 24th June		John Kerr	Tim Finn	6,297,911	3
105	10080	Friday 26th June		Debbie Oates	David Moor	6,369,598	2
106	10081	Monday 29th June		Debbie Oates	David Moor	7,324,577	1
107	10082	Wednesday 1st July		Susan Oudot	David Moor	7,033,150	3
108	10083	Friday 3rd July		Susan Oudot	David Moor	7,139,650	2
109	10084	Monday 6th July		Steven Fay	Gill Wilkinson	7,090,200	2
110	10085	Wednesday 8th July		Jayne Hollinson	Gill Wilkinson	7,126,739	1
111	10086	Friday 10th July		Mark Wadlow	Gill Wilkinson	6,719,635	3
112	10087	Monday 13th July		Ella Greenhill	Gill Wilkinson	7,208,564	1
113	10088	Wednesday 15th July		Julie Jones	Suri Krishnamma	6,908,966	2
114	10089	Friday 17th July		Mark Burt	Suri Krishnamma	6,526,359	3
115	10090	Monday 20th July		Jonathan Harvey	Suri Krishnamma	6,778,845	2
116	10091	Wednesday 22nd July		Jonathan Harvey	Suri Krishnamma	6,798,621	1
117	10092	Friday 24th July		Joe Turner	David Kester	6,593,405	3
118	10093	Monday 27th July		Owen Lloyd-Fox	David Kester	6,853,864	3
119	10094	Wednesday 29th July		Jan McVerry	David Kester	6,870,838	2
120	10095	Friday 31st July		Jonathan Harvey	David Kester	6,896,795	1
121	10096	Monday 3rd August		David Isaac	Mickey Jones	7,253,152	1
122	10097	Wednesday 5th August		Simon Crowther	Mickey Jones	7,172,894	2
123	10098	Friday 7th August		Susan Oudot	Mickey Jones	6,703,647	3
124	10099	Monday 10th August		Cameron McAllister	Clive Arnold	6,899,189	1
125	10100	Wednesday 12th August		Sam Holdsworth	Clive Arnold	6,628,326	3
126	10101	Friday 14th August		Carmel Morgan	Clive Arnold	6,870,864	2
127	10102	Monday 17th August		Julie Jones	Steve Finn	6,916,479	2
128	10103	Wednesday 19th August		Ella Greenhill	Steve Finn	7,038,752	1
129	10104	Friday 21st August		Emily Gascoyne	Steve Finn	6,672,829	3
130	10105	Monday 24th August		Mark Wadlow	Audrey Cooke	6,910,597	2
131	10106	Wednesday 26th August		Ian Kershaw	Audrey Cooke	6,721,365	4
132	10107	Friday 28th August		Mark Burt	Audrey Cooke	6,813,232	3
133	10108	Monday 31st August		Jayne Hollinson	Audrey Cooke	6,610,586	4
134	10109	Wednesday 2nd September		John Kerr	Suri Krishnamma	7,036,656	2
135	10110	Friday 4th September		John Kerr	Suri Krishnamma	6,614,522	3
136	10111	Monday 7th September		Ellen Taylor	Suri Krishnamma	6,948,644	2
137	10112	Wednesday 9th September		Ellen Taylor	Suri Krishnamma	7,168,416	1
138	10113/4	Friday 11th September		Alasdair Morrison	Steve Finn	6,676,492	3
139	10115	Monday 14th September	1	Chris Fewtrell	Tim Finn	6,850,240	4
140	10116	Monday 14th September	2	Chris Fewtrell	Tim Finn	6,438,631	6
141	10117	Wednesday 16th September	1	Susan Oudot	Tim Finn	6,799,422	5
142	10118	Wednesday 16th September	2	Susan Oudot	Tim Finn	6,057,852	8
143	10119/20	Friday 18th September		Debbie Oates	Abe Juckes	6,370,573	7
144	10121	Monday 21st September	1	Emily Gascoyne	Abe Juckes	6,497,455	4
145	10122	Monday 21st September	2	Alasdair Morrison	Abe Juckes	6,255,545	6
146	10123	Wednesday 23rd September	1	David Isaac	Tim Royle	6,713,354	3
147	10124	Wednesday 23rd September	2	Ian Kershaw	Tim Royle	5,976,300	8
148	10125/6	Friday 25th September		Sam Holdsworth	Tim Royle	6,290,882	5
149	10127	Monday 28th September	1	Cameron McAllister	Tim Royle	6,757,920	2
150	10128	Monday 28th September	2	John Kerr	Abe Juckes	6,408,556	5
151	10129	Wednesday 30th September	1	Owen Lloyd-Fox	Nickie Lister	6,644,983	3
152	10130	Wednesday 30th September	2	Owen Lloyd-Fox	Nickie Lister	5,819,820	9
153	10131/2	Friday 2nd October		Chris Fewtrell	Nickie Lister	6,581,889	4
154	10133	Monday 5th October	1	Jan McVerry	John Anderson	6,773,465	4
155	10134	Monday 5th October	2	Carmel Morgan	John Anderson	6,536,781	6
156	10135	Wednesday 7th October	1	Ella Greenhill	John Anderson	6,832,059	3
157	10136	Wednesday 7th October	2	Jayne Hollinson	John Anderson	6,133,495	7
158	10137/8	Friday 9th October		Damon Alexis-Rochefort	Neil Alderton	6,723,080	5
159	10139	Monday 12th October	1	Mark Wadlow	Neil Alderton	6,594,380	5
160	10140	Monday 12th October	2	Julie Jones	Neil Alderton	6,304,757	9
161	10141	Wednesday 14th October	1	Simon Crowther	Nickie Lister	6,494,990	7
162	10142	Wednesday 14th October	2	Steven Fay	Neil Alderton	5,663,075	13
163	10143/4	Friday 16th October		Cameron McAllister	George C. Siougas	6,508,489	6
164	10145	Monday 19th October	1	Damon Alexis-Rochefort	George C. Siougas	6,653,875	3
165	10146	Monday 19th October	2	Damon Alexis-Rochefort	George C. Siougas	5,988,992	7
166	10147	Wednesday 21st October	1	Ella Greenhill	David Beauchamp	6,458,070	4
167	10148	Wednesday 21st October	2	Ella Greenhill	David Beauchamp	5,591,791	14
168	10149	Friday 23rd October	1	Susan Oudot	David Beauchamp	6,381,733	5
169	10150	Friday 23rd October	2	Susan Oudot	David Beauchamp	5,954,793	8
170	10151	Monday 26th October	1	Emily Gascoyne	Mickey Jones	6,997,587	7
171	10152	Monday 26th October	2	Emily Gascoyne	Mickey Jones	6,618,001	9
172	10153	Wednesday 28th October	1	John Kerr	Mickey Jones	6,976,232	8
173	10154	Wednesday 28th October	2	Jan McVerry	Mickey Jones	6,066,429	13
174	10155/6	Friday 30th October		Julie Jones	Sasha Ransome	6,520,776	5
175	10157	Monday 2nd November	1	Ellen Taylor	Sasha Ransome	6,867,909	5
176	10158	Monday 2nd November	2	Ellen Taylor	Sasha Ransome	6,359,111	9
177	10159	Wednesday 4th November	1	Jonathan Harvey	Ian Barber	6,442,117	8
178	10160	Wednesday 4th November	2	Mark Wadlow	Ian Barber	5,923,385	14
179	10161	Friday 6th November	1	Chris Fewtrell	Ian Barber	6,442,117	7
180	10162	Friday 6th November	2	Chris Fewtrell	Ian Barber	5,796,928	15
181	10163	Monday 9th November	1	Carmel Morgan	Ian Barber	7,051,268	5
182	10164	Monday 9th November	2	Steven Fay	Sasha Ransome	6,394,610	9
183	10165	Wednesday 11th November	1	David Isaac	Clive Arnold	6,782,750	6
184	10166	Wednesday 11th November	2	David Isaac	Clive Arnold	5,829,210	16
185	10167/8	Friday 13th November		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Clive Arnold	6,238,138	12
186	10169	Monday 16th November	1	Simon Crowther	Tim Royle	6,672,089	11
187	10170	Monday 16th November	2	Simon Crowther	Tim Royle	6,224,726	16
188	10171	Wednesday 18th November	1	Cameron McAllister	Tim Royle	6,623,149	13
189	10172	Wednesday 18th November	2	Ella Greenhill	Tim Royle	5,837,867	19
190	10173	Friday 20th November	1	John Kerr	Abe Juckes	6,511,522	14
191	10174	Friday 20th November	2	Carmel Morgan	Abe Juckes	6,118,686	17
192	10175	Monday 23rd November	1	Sam Holdsworth	Abe Juckes	6,695,690	12
193	10176	Monday 23rd November	2	Mark Burt	Abe Juckes	6,643,849	14
194	10177	Wednesday 25th November	1	Mark Wadlow	Brett Fallis	6,673,759	13
195	10178	Wednesday 25th November	2	Susan Oudot	Brett Fallis	5,845,272	21
196	10179	Friday 27th November	1	Ellen Taylor	Brett Fallis	6,749,981	10
197	10180	Friday 27th November	2	Joe Turner	Brett Fallis	6,591,274	15
198	10181	Monday 30th November	1	Emily Gascoyne	Nickie Lister	7,084,507	9
199	10182	Monday 30th November	2	Julie Jones	Nickie Lister	6,625,944	12
200	10183	Wednesday 2nd December	1	Steven Fay	John Anderson	6,766,218	11
201	10184	Wednesday 2nd December	2	Owen Lloyd-Fox	Neil Alderton	6,454,780	13
202	10185	Friday 4th December	1	Jayne Hollinson	Neil Alderton	6,893,848	10
203	10186	Friday 4th December	2	Jonathan Harvey	John Anderson	7,106,081	8
204	10187/8	Monday 7th December		Chris Fewtrell	Neil Alderton John Anderson Nickie Lister	7,070,329	3
205	10189/90	Wednesday 9th December		Jan McVerry	Neil Alderton John Anderson Nickie Lister	6,810,923	5
206	10191/2	Friday 11th December		Debbie Oates	Neil Alderton John Anderson Nickie Lister	6,934,803	4
207	10193	Monday 14th December	1	Ian Kershaw	George C. Siougas	6,932,938	3
208	10194	Monday 14th December	2	David Isaac	George C. Siougas	6,446,638	7
209	10195	Wednesday 16th December	1	Alasdair Morrison	George C. Siougas	6,702,240	5
210	10196	Wednesday 16th December	2	Damon Alexis-Rochefort	George C. Siougas	6,139,846	8
211	10197/8	Friday 18th December		Simon Crowther	Steve Finn	6,708,824	4
212	10199	Monday 21st December	1	John Kerr	Steve Finn	6,850,894	5
213	10200	Monday 21st December	2	Sam Holdsworth	Steve Finn	6,228,776	13
214	10201	Wednesday 23rd December	1	Emily Gascoyne	Matt Hilton	6,321,102	12
215	10202	Wednesday 23rd December	2	Susan Oudot	Matt Hilton	6,052,849	14
216	10203	Thursday 24th December		Joe Turner	Matt Hilton	6,661,602	8
217	10204/5	Friday 25th December		Owen Lloyd-Fox	Matt Hilton	6,610,669	9
218	10206/7	Monday 28th December		Julie Jones Ian Kershaw	Peter Rose	6,774,191	4
219	10208/9	Wednesday 30th December		Alasdair Morrison David Isaac	Peter Rose	6,689,940	5
220	10210	Thursday 31st December		Ella Greenhill	Duncan Foster	6,535,260	8

Storylines

January

• Tracy McDonald wakes up in bed with Paula Martin. Guilt-ridden she attempts to cover for her activities, but Amy Barlow finds out when her mother attempts to bring a halt to her work placement at the solicitors. Appalled at Tracy’s betrayal of Steve McDonald, Amy declares she is moving in with Emma Brooker at the salon flat. A clueless Steve asks Emma to find out what’s happened and is only told that Amy thinks her mother is homophobic. Steve orders Tracy to persuade Amy to return. Leanne Battersby overhears Paula and Tracy discussing their tryst and enjoys keeping Tracy on tenterhooks with what she knows. Steve realises from Leanne and Paula’s reactions that they know his wife has been unfaithful and is astonished to find out it was with another woman. Steve and Tracy find it hard to repair their marriage as the gossip spreads about the fling and they attempt marriage counselling. They’re advised to spend quality time together and Claudia Colby invites them along to her and Ken Barlow's book club. They accept as they have nothing else to do.
• Gary Windass demands three months' advance rent on the Underworld premises as per the contract and changes the locks until his demand is met. The factory staff vote to pay him. He is jealous when Adam Barlow goes down on one knee to make a proper proposal to Sarah Platt in front of her family and they start planning their wedding. A twelve-week scan shows that Gary and Maria Connor's baby is doing fine. They move into 5 Victoria Court. Sarah and Carla Connor warn Maria that Gary will only end up hurting her.

David finds out that Shona has no memory of him.

• Fully occupied with concern about Shona Platt’s continuing coma, David Platt is in no mood to appear as a witness at Josh Tucker's trial for raping him. Nick Tilsley makes him see that he must attend as Shona would want Josh convicted. David's distracted state makes him think he didn't appear as a convincing witness on the stand, but nevertheless Josh is found guilty and sentenced to fifteen years in jail. Shona's condition stabilises and her breathing tube is removed. After a week, she opens her eyes after listening to taped messages from Max Turner and Lily Platt. She has no memories of recent years and thinks Max is Clayton Hibbs. She is moved to a specialist unit in Leeds to help with her continuing recovery. Marion Logan looks after Max to enable David to work at the Trim Up North and visit his wife.
• No one except Jade Rowan believes Hope Stape when she says that Ruby Dobbs hurt her arm. She takes the girl to Weatherfield General where a fracture is diagnosed. Jade convinces Hope to tell a false story about the injury so as not to get Ruby into trouble. She reveals to Hope that she is her half-sister before moving to a flat at 5 Talbot Road. She lies to Dr Gaddas that Fiz Stape is abusing Hope and produces the faked photographs of the bruises that she took two months earlier as proof. Social services insist that Hope and Ruby are put into care. Fiz and Tyrone Dobbs are staggered when a supposed family member comes forward to house Hope and they discover Jade’s true identity as John Stape’s daughter. They realise she has been setting them up all along. To strengthen her case, Jade tells the police that Fiz brought the gun into the furniture shop that was used to kill Robert Preston. When questioned, Fiz and Gary deny all knowledge, but Tyrone points out that Fiz is putting at risk the return of the girls by hiding something from the authorities. She comes clean and receives a four-month suspended sentence and a £500 fine, but social services say the girls can only return if she is not living at No.9. She moves into a B&B as the neighbourhood turns on her and Hope becomes withdrawn from her family. When Ruby mentions to her father that Jade applied the fake bruises, and Dr Gaddas confirms that two days afterwards there were no bruises when she herself saw her, the investigation against Fiz is dropped and turns on Jade instead, especially when they find her text messages to Hope on the secret phone. She is told to have no contact with her sister. An upset Hope runs away and Jade finds her, frozen with the cold, at John Stape's grave. She does the right thing and returns her home. Pushed beyond her limits, Fiz attacks Jade who lets her off by claiming to the police that she was mugged. Nevertheless, Fiz refuses her request for her to see Hope who gets herself expelled from Bessie Street School, hoping that it will bring Jade home. Fiz and Tyrone reluctantly agree to supervised visits from Jade hoping that it will make their daughter behave.
• Finding out how rich Ray Crosby is, Abi Franklin is delighted that she has bagged herself such a catch and enjoys the nights’ out with him. She gains a C in English and a B in Maths after her exams. Kevin Webster grows jealous of her relationship with Ray and takes it out on her by claiming her workmanship at Webster's Autocentre is shoddy.
• From comments made by Ray, Bethany Platt thinks she is in pole position to be made the Viaduct Bistro's new manager and is hurt when the job is given to Alya Nazir. Bethany grows suspicious of Ray when he asks Alya to stay after hours and finds out from Carla about his sexual harassment of Michelle Connor. Daniel Osbourne pushes her to take up a creative writing course.
• Freshco photographs Chesney Brown, Gemma Winter and the quads in an Oakhill house, supposedly because No.5 is too small. Gemma’s suspicions that they are being looked down on are confirmed when good-looking parents are substituted in the final pictures. Dev Alahan sees them coming home from the shoot in a Freshco car and sacks Chesney for disloyalty. The neighbourhood turns on him as he starts to find it hard to cope in his shops. Freshco ditches the models, but Gemma and Chesney’s satisfaction is short-lived when the adverts appear showing them to be heavily photo-shopped. Unable to get out of the contract, Gemma starts to have concerns that she’ll be a good mother. Joseph Brown is forgotten by Chesney when he has to dress up for an environmental day at school and Billy Mayhew has to help him with an appropriate costume.
• Daniel calls off Bertie Osbourne’s injections when the pain makes the infant cry out too much. A couple of weeks later the boy falls ill and Maria thinks he has a temperature as she holds him. Bertie is rushed to hospital when he falls unconscious and is diagnosed with measles. Daniel blames himself for not proceeding with the vaccination but feels even worse when Maria also contracts the disease and miscarries her baby. When Gary returns from a visit to see Zack Rubinstein in Bristol, he thumps Daniel and has to be warned off taking further action by Adam. Bethany gives Daniel her support, despite being warned off by Bethany Platt. Drenched in a downpour, Bethany gets dry at the corner shop flat where Daniel momentarily sees her as Sinead Osbourne. They kiss but Daniel immediately regrets his actions.
• An uncomfortable Aggie Bailey is nominated for the Weatherfield Gazette ’s Golden Heart Award for her attempts to save Robert’s life. As a result, bad memories resurface of a patient who died under her care when she was a nurse. Michael and James Bailey make her consider returning to her vocation.
• Exercising further control over Yasmeen Metcalfe, Geoff Metcalfe makes her buy herself a whole new wardrobe and tries to prevent her seeing friend Cathy Matthews. She grows suspicious about what is happening with her friend. Claiming he has a dust allergy, Geoff draws up a cleaning rota and then criticises Yasmeen’s supposed sloppy work after she interrupts her “duties” to drink with Cathy. Seeing Geoff, belittling her friend, Cathy voices her concerns to Brian Packham. He spreads the word that Yasmeen is verging on alcoholism and makes her stop drinking altogether, and takes possession of her bank cards to stop her buying booze. Yasmeen acquiesces to keep him happy while all the time he belittles her, saying her clumsiness is adversely affecting his health. Alya Nazir is shocked that her gran thinks of herself as an alcoholic. Peter Barlow pushes Yasmeen to attend an AA meeting where she is relieved to find she doesn’t have a problem. Geoff acts quickly and gets her drunk to persuade her otherwise.
• Michael leaves more messages for Grace Vickers. When he misses Tianna’s birthday, he hires Geoff to perform magic tricks at a special party.
• After Richard Lucas’s funeral, Nina Lucas starts to become closer to Roy Cropper when she suffers a dispute with a violent drug-dealing neighbour and needs a sewing machine for her design coursework.
• Sally Metcalfe goes to stay with Gina Seddon, saying she needs to get away from the mess that Tim Metcalfe has created. He files for divorce from Charlie Wood. As she has been evicted and is unemployed, she asks him to pay her legal fees and give her £5,000 for her not to contest the matter. Desperately hiding the fact that he has remarried, he borrows the money from Steve and thinks everything is sorted. He is subsequently staggered to see Charlie working behind the bar of the Rovers. He tries to get her fired by having Abi lie to Jenny Connor that her new employee is light-fingered. Charlie gets a job at a flight attendant based at Gatwick Airport but on the eve of her departure admits to Tim that she’s delaying signing the divorce papers as she wants to give things another go - just as Sally returns and overhears her. Unable to see a way out, Tim confesses he’s a bigamist to the police, only to find that Charlie has signed the papers after all. Humiliated by the story when it appears in the Weatherfield Gazette, Sally throws Tim out of No.4.
• Bernie Winter’s entrapment of Kel Hinchley works, and he meets her on the Red Rec with a carrier bag with lager and condoms, thinking she's a 14-year-old boy. He runs off when he sees her and Paul Foreman broadcasting the event over social media. The police inform her she may have jeopardised the case they are trying to build up against him. Vigilantes set fire to petrol poured through No.5’s letterbox. No one is harmed but the quads are checked in hospital. Feeling guilty that she may have precipitated matters, Bernie decides to move on. Billy suggests to Paul that he tries to get over his ordeal and not seek revenge for everyone else’s sake. The police catch the arsonists and Paul puts a old barn door on the house.

February

• Maria apologises to Daniel for what Gary did while Gary himself reaches an guarded understanding with Daniel.
• Bethany says she is going to wait for Daniel to want to have a relationship with her. Pushing her towards doing her writing course, Daniel makes her apply to a college in Preston. Bertie finishes his course of injections. Daniel and Bethany are caught kissing again by Beth Sutherland who refuses to babysit Bertie anymore. Feeling initially ashamed, Daniel then changes his mind and announces to everyone that they’re a couple. Sarah gives her daughter a short-term job at the factory where Beth makes her life difficult. Turned down by the college, she instead gets offered a six-month internship at a magazine in London. Sick of everybody's disapproval of them, Daniel offers to go with her. Beth and Sarah are appalled when they discover the plan and Sarah interrupts Adam's stag night to rail at the couple, bringing an early end to the proceedings.
• Ray decides to give the bistro a makeover and appoints designer Cassie Ennis. He invites Alya to join a meeting with the two of them at one of his hotels, but it is a pretext to get her there on her own. Bethany finds out and bursts into their suite, recording what is happening. Ray hurriedly calls off the assignation. Alya subsequently finds out that Cassie knew nothing about the meeting and resigns in disgust. Daniel and Bethany steal a file of the women that Ray has paid off from the offices of his solicitor, Miles Ingham, and contact them to find out their stories. The Gazette refuses to publish the results of their investigations. Abi’s eyes are opened to her boyfriend being a sex pest and, given the details by Bethany, invites three of his previous victims to a charity gala at the bistro. Humiliated, he labels her a “junkie slag” and she torches his car in revenge. Reported to the police, Kevin gives her a false alibi which brings the two together as a couple though Sally warns them that they face prison if they are found out. Jack Webster overhears the arguments and worries about his father, causing Abi and Sally to row. Ray obtains dashcam footage from a friend showing Abi stealing his car and blackmails her to sleep with him, taking photographs of her undressing before throwing her out of the hotel room, saying he was testing how far she would go to protect Kevin. He then blackmails Kevin, wanting him to sign over Webster's Autocentre to him for the low price of £90,000 or the footage will go to the police. When Kevin makes Tyrone acquiesce, Ray still maliciously gives Kevin the photograph of Abi. Sally makes Kevin see that Abi did what she did to protect him.
• Faye Windass ignores the rumours about Ray and continues working for him at the bistro. Ed Bailey is given the job of the alterations to the establishment.
• Geoff further restricts Yasmeen’s spending, telling her to look upon it as a challenge. She messes up his magic trick at Tianna’s party, earning his intense anger which he hides from the audience. He is further humiliated when Tim posts a video of the gaff to social media, and it goes viral. Geoff takes his anger out on Yasmeen, goading her into extreme distress and recording her anguish on his phone. As a punishment, he locks her up inside one of his magic boxes and leaves her alone in the house, suffering intense claustrophobia. Tim finds and releases her, demanding to know from his father what he was doing. Geoff comes up with plausible excuse which Yasmeen reluctantly backs up. Left alone, she accuses her husband of cruelty and only relents when he breaks down with false tears about how much he suffered in his previous marriage. Eileen Grimshaw starts to have suspicions about him, not believing that Yasmeen is an alcoholic. Yasmeen is pleased when Alya asks to be taken back on at Speed Daal. Geoff pretends to be happy to have her back but blames her for a bad online review of the restaurant. Furious that Yasmeen hasn't made him a proper dinner, he kills her favourite chicken, Charlotte Brontë, and serves it up to her before telling her exactly what she's eating. Gail Rodwell sees her crying over the chicken coop.
• Michael’s efforts for Tianna’s birthday earn him only a perfunctory thanks from Grace.
• Sally remains furious with Tim who stays at No.6 and fails to woo his wife back.
• Nina is evicted from her flat and spends a period of time on the streets, without revealing to Roy and Carla what has happened. Eventually desperate, she has to confess, and they gladly invite her to live with them in the cafe flat. Carla stops Nina being so cold and distant with the pair of them. Nina begins working at the cafe and suggests changes that meet with Roy’s approval.
• Steve and Tracy reach an understanding after spending the night at the Chariot Square Hotel where Steve ends up being locked in the bathroom, and they are reconciled.

Ken and Rita set off to say goodbye to an old resident.

• Rita Tanner receives a parcel containing Dennis Tanner’s ashes. He has died of dementia and asks that she scatters his ashes in Blackpool. Seeing how upset she is, Jenny organises a luxury private coach to take them and their friends and neighbours there for the day. On the way, Disco Des, the incontinent coach driver suffers a heart attack, and his ambulance summoned for him drives over the urn containing the ashes. Mary Taylor drives the coach back to Coronation Street. Several of residents return determined to make changes to their lives: Rita decides to return to her own flat; Sean Tully returns to No.11; Ken and Claudia make arrangements to move to Stillwaters, a luxury residential home; and Sally and Tim are reconciled.
• Constantly travelling to Leeds, an exhausted David writes his car off when he falls asleep behind the wheel. Shona states that she no longer wants to see him, and David is forced to agree to her wishes.
• Seb Franklin moves in with Emma in the salon flat. Eileen applies for a telesales job at Underworld and is surprised to find that Alina Pop is also applying. Sarah gives Alina the job after a bad interview by Eileen. Seb is surprised to see Alina back. Needing somewhere to stay, Seb offers her the spare room in the flat and Emma agrees, going out of her way to make the girl feel welcome.
• Fiz and Tyrone enter into an uneasy arrangement of supervising Jade’s visits and outings with Hope. Fiz insists that Ruby is included in these trips. Hope shows a preference for Jade and Fiz feels left out. Hoping to reconnect with her, they go on a family break to Liverpool.
• Peter and Tracy react badly to Ken’s news that he’s selling No.1. They both compete to buy it and Adam suggests sealed bids. Carla tricks Tracy into putting in a bid well over both Ken’s asking price and their own bid which she does without consulting with Steve first.
• Wanting to get out of the loan shark business, Gary gives customer Ike Rodgers free money. Maria sees the transaction from afar and thinks he’s back up to his old tricks. Feeling betrayed, she sleeps with Ali who thinks they are back on as a couple. Gary produces evidence that he has turned a corner and asks Maria to marry him. After thinking over the matter for several days, and against Carla’s advice, she accepts. Ali is upset at the news.
• Danny Tomlinson begins work as the bistro's temporary manager. An ex-lover of James, he confesses to Ed that he’s gay and encourages James to do the same, citing Ed’s positive reaction to his own news. The two resume their relationship which initially James hides from his father. When he admits that he is gay, Ed has trouble accepting the news and accuses Danny of corrupting his son. Ed apologises to Danny, saying he is simply afraid for his son's footballing career. Danny finishes with James, saying he doesn't want to be with someone who is still in the closet, but James thinks his father has put him up to it.
• Johnny Connor takes Ryan Connor on as the Rovers' barman.
• Gemma and Chesney face a clash of priorities when they have a Freshco publicity launch and Aled Winter-Brown’s check-up for his hearing at the same time. They make the Frescho event just in time but as there is no time for make-up and hair, marketing rep Tara Swift presents the quads to the press with the parents stood well away at the back of the room. Chesney sees the distress this causes Gemma and interrupts the proceedings telling everyone how false it all is. A social media stream of the event makes Chesney a popular figure, especially with Dev as he was wearing his Prima Doner shirt at the time, and he gives him his job back but on limited shifts. Freshco cancels their contract. Although initially pleased with Chesney's defence of her, Gemma is less so when Aled is diagnosed with a profound hearing loss, and she realises that they could have used the extra money. She feels profound guilt for the child’s condition. Plans are made for the infant to have a cochlear implant. Gemma attends baby senses classes where she thinks she has made friends with two posh mums, Vanessa Finney and Imogen Tatum.
• Joseph continues to feel left out, especially so when a harassed Chesney hurriedly drops him off outside his football club practise when the event isn’t actually on that week.

March

• Adam and Sarah are married but their ceremony is dominated by the rancour caused by Bethany and Daniel’s relationship. Wanting a fresh start, Daniel leaves Sinead’s things in bags outside Beth and Kirk Sutherland’s flat but they think it's rubbish and it is taken away by the bin men before being later recovered. When, in his role as best man, Daniel reads a poem about love at the wedding, he breaks down crying and Bethany starts to heed the warnings that he is not yet over Sinead. Daniel gets drunk and proposes to Bethany but mortifies everyone when he calls her by Sinead’s name. Telling him that things would never work out between them, Bethany leaves for London alone. The Barlows realise that Daniel needs time to recover and offer him a paid holiday in Scotland. Despite her anger at his behaviour, Beth sees that he needs genuine help and accompanies him to look after Bertie while he recovers.
• Alya suspects Geoff is isolating her gran. He panics when Yasmeen momentarily goes missing, thinking that she's left him. He suggests a holiday in Cyprus but when Yasmeen says they cannot afford it, he starts to pilfer money from Speed Daal’s till. He also offers to pay for Tim and Sally's wedding when his son complains about the cost he’s incurring. Speed Daal receives another poor review and Alya decides to track down the source. She spots a spelling error in another bad review which is replicated in a new menu drawn up by Geoff and accuses him of being the author. Yasmeen feels she has no option but to stand by her husband. Geoff maintains that he and Alya cannot work together and lies to Yasmeen that his business adviser has suggested that they sell up and retire to Cyprus, away from toxic family members. After hearing from Eileen about the incident when her gran was locked in the magic box, Alya tries to get through to Yasmeen about Geoff, but she is in denial about his treatment of her. Alya finds the missing sums in the restaurant’s accounts and only finds out about the Cyprus move when a valuer walks into the restaurant to assess it. Alya investigates Geoff’s past and finds a charge of affray involving another named Jocelyn Walkey. Livid when Yasmeen asks him about it, Geoff spends the night with a prostitute. He is angered when Alya persuades her gran to delay the Cyprus move. Ryan moves in with Alya at the builder’s yard flat. Alya invokes Clare’s Law to get the police to reveal if Geoff has a history of abusing women but Yasmeen refuses to listen to their findings. Zeedan Nazir announces he’s getting married in Alicante. Alya says only immediate family are invited but Geoff ignores her and invites himself. He then fakes a heart attack to prevent Yasmeen making the trip.
• David mischievously provokes Maria into telling Gary that she wants to go through with their wedding as soon as possible. Carla has suspicions that something has happened between Maria and Ali and informs Adam. He tricks Ali into a full confession and delights in telling Gary before leaving for his honeymoon. Gary discovers that the allegation is true and finding out that Sharon Geary is herself operating as a loan shark, Gary offers her Rick Neelan's client list in return for her spiking Ali’s drink in the Rovers with diazepam. The dosage is too high though and Ali is hospitalised. Gary is terrified that he could die when he only wanted him labelled as a drug addict. After visiting Ali in hospital, a guilt-ridden Maria confesses her fling to Gary who forgives her. Dr Gaddas finds out that Toyah Battersby was covering for Ali’s addiction and dismisses her. After Ali is discharged, the GP also reports him to the General Medical Council. Ali realises what must have happened and forcefully drives Maria off in his car to make her listen to his suspicions about Gary. The strategy does not work, and Gary provokes Ali into punching him in front of witnesses. Arrested and then released on bail, Ali decides he's had enough and leaves the area.
• Jade tells Tyrone that she is upset she cannot see her sister when it is her birthday. Tyrone helps Hope to choose a bracelet to give her and a supposedly grateful Jade leans in for a kiss with him, telling Fiz they are in love with each other. Fiz refutes the claim, pointing out to Jade how close they are as a family and is delighted when Hope, having witnessed what she’s up to, tells Jade she loves her mum more than her. With everyone united against her, a sobbing Jade leaves for good.
• Trying to get Nina out of the flat, Carla persuades the girl to go bat watching with Roy. The two thoroughly enjoy each other’s company on their vigil. Roy angrily resigns from the Weatherfield Bat Society when the other members take a dislike to Nina behind her back. She thinks her uncle is ashamed to be seen with her until Carla puts her right.
• Aggie has her first day back at nursing and is withdrawn about how it went. Ed apologies to James who agrees to try and get along for his mother’s sake. Aggie wins the Golden Heart award.
• Craig Tinker decides to take up a fitness routine and Toyah insists that Imran Habeeb joins him but on their very first run, the solicitor quickly drops out and goes to the cinema instead.
• James is outed when Danny posts a private message to him in a public forum, supposedly in error. Weatherfield County FC offers James their full support, whatever he chooses to do, James opts to deny the story. He is made to sit on the benches as the club claims that his mind is not on the game.
• An apartment suddenly becomes available at Stillwaters and Claudia pushes Ken to snap it up. He makes arrangements to sell to No.1 to Steve and Tracy and reluctantly moves into his new home where he meets residents’ chairman Charles Moore. He is surprised to find that Norris Cole and Freda Burgess are also residents. Norris is desperate to leave, saying that the place is like a cult with social suicide being the price to pay for dissent towards Charles who is ripping off his fellow residents. On a visit back to the street, Ken is unhappy when he finds out that Eccles will be left alone for the evening and smuggles her into Stillwaters. Charles finds the dog has made a mess and issues Ken with an extortionate fine for specialist cleaning, despite the usual cleaner saying the job was a standard one to carry out. Ken and Norris wonder what Charles is doing with all the money he takes in.
• Tracy makes arrangements to help No.1 redecorated and “generously” allows Peter to stay on until he can find somewhere else to live.

Bernie rips into Gemma's snobby detractors.

• Vanessa and Imogen see that Gemma is shattered and suggests she needs help. Gemma leaves a guarded message for Bernie, without directly asking her to return. However, she does so as she has been thrown out by her flatmates. Bernie tries to make herself useful, but senses that Vanessa and Imogen are not to be trusted. She is proven right when the two women organise a mums’ get-together but deliberately exclude Gemma. Vanessa feels guilty when Bernie rips into them. She invites Gemma to join her and the other mothers for lunch but grows uneasy when the snobby Imogen plies her with alcohol. Staggering home, Gemma almost pushes the quads pram into the path of an oncoming vehicle. She finds the pressure of motherhood increasing and is disturbed when a health visitor tells her she is not producing enough milk. A nightmare in which she places Aled in the washing machine leads her to believe she may be capable of self-harming her babies. Her fears are increased when she locks herself out of the house with the quads alone inside and Bernie has to break a window to let her back in. Bernie tries to get her to seek help for post-natal depression but Gemma begs her not to let Chesney know.
• Taking Cerberus to the vet, Evelyn Plummer is taken aback when she meets old flame Arthur Medwin who emigrated to Canada years before when he thought she had stood him up. The two agree to meet in the Rovers and Evelyn is disappointed when he fails to turn up. The mild and nervous man later explains that he was feeling insecure and this time the two enjoy a proper date.
• Gail asks Nick for some hours at Underworld where she proceeds to try and lord it over the staff.
• Grace isn't pleased when Michael suggests a formal access request to Tianna.
• Eileen is upset when another Mother's Day passes with no word from Todd Grimshaw.
• Emma grows concerned that Seb still has feelings for Alina who tries to satisfy her that she has no interest in her boyfriend, but she notices his disappointment when Alina snubs his offer of a drink.
• David is hurt went Shona asks to see Clayton but still refuses to see him. He visits Clayton in prison to try and persuade him to keep away from his mother but Clayton merely gloats that he is the one who has now been frozen out. Shona asks for a divorce. Feeling it is all over, David gets drunk and spends time with Alina, going back to her flat for sex. Seb interrupts them, telling Alina that David is married and has children. David senses that Seb is jealous and enjoys riling him in the Rovers to the point where Seb punches him. Emma has to warn Seb to decide whether he wants to be with her or Alina and that he has no further chances after he apologises. When she walks in on an argument between Seb and Alina, she mistakes his motives and orders him to move out. David walks out of the house when Gail tries to reason with him and drinks on the streets. He is confronted by a gang of muggers.

April

• David evades the muggers and finds he’s achieved an enjoyable adrenaline high from the occurrence. He starts to confront strangers, keen to replicate the thrill.
• Alya finds proof that Geoff’s claim that he made a five-star hotel booking in Alicante is false and tells her gran to check his emails. She does so and finds his correspondence with the prostitute. He lies that he was carrying out research for his radio show on a dating agency and accuses her of not trusting him. At the same time, he admits that the story about the hotel booking was a lie and panics when she plans to attend Zeedan’s wedding. To stop her going, he threatens to kill himself, so Alya goes to the wedding on her own. Yasmeen takes the decision to ask the police about the result of their Clare’s Law enquiry and finds out that Jocelyn claimed her assaulted her. Saying she hasn’t encountered any physical threats herself, she refuses to leave him. To Geoff's delight, Yasmeen has been has a fallout with Cathy. Feeling unwell, Yasmeen consult Dr Gaddas and discovers she has chlamydia. Geoff insists she must have caught it years before from Sharif but Yasmeen realises that Geoff can be the only source. Behind her back, Geoff also gets himself tested and finds out he too has the STD, caught from his prostitute. Yasmeen packs a holdall to leave him, unaware he is watching her actions on the security camera. He burns her clothes to stop her leaving the house and tells her he would rather see her dead than with another man. A puzzled Sally sees the bonfire.
• Ken suggests that it's time for re-election of the residents' chair since the last was held seven years ago and is pushed into standing in opposition against Charles by Norris. Norris and Ken find proof Charles has been fleecing the residents and presents the evidence to them. Ken is elected the new chair but immediately hands over the responsibilities to Norris. Ken realises that he is homesick for Coronation Street and breaks up with Claudia as he moves back home. Tracy is disappointed that she won’t be the new owner of No.1 and unsuccessfully tries to reconcile the couple. She is forced to abandon her plan to buy the house when a new boiler costing £2,500 is needed which she cannot afford.
• Cathy starts to try and help Gemma, mistakenly thinking Bernie isn’t pulling her weight. Aled is successfully fitted with his hearing aids, but the progress makes little impact on a depressed and exhausted Gemma. Only Bernie realises her state of distress until Gemma leaves the quads on a bus in a daze. With help from Rita and Chesney, Gemma is seen by Dr Gaddas who prescribes anti-depressants and details of a self-help group. Bernie takes over Chesney’s shifts at the kebab shop in return for a roof over her head in order that he can support Gemma.
• Emma moves into No.1 when Seb refuses to vacate the flat. She is in charge of Eccles when she falls ill, and the vet diagnoses an inoperable tumour. Unable to contact any of the Barlows, she gives permission for Eccles to be put down, incurring the wrath of Tracy. She moves back to her flat and agrees to tolerate Seb until he can move out elsewhere.

Gary puts pressure on Laura Neelan to do right by her daughter.

• Gary discovers that Kelly Neelan is now at Weatherfield High instead of Oakhill School. Kelly takes a fancy to Corey Brent. In a video chat with Asha Alahan, Corey persuades her to reveal her body to him and he records the footage. Kelly obtains a copy and distributes it to all of their social group when they gate-crash a pizza and movie night that Amy’s organised at No.1, turning a quiet event into an alcohol-driven party which results in the police being called by the Baileys. Asha is devastated by Corey’s seeming betrayal. Aadi Alahan labels his sister a slag for her actions. Dev is initially apoplectic when he finds out but then sees how upset his daughter is. He promises not to report Corey and Kelly to the police but changes his mind when the video is uploaded to a porn site. Corey realises that Kelly must have been responsible and with the police unable to take any strong action, Dev reports Kelly to the school. A protective Gary finds out that Kelly was kicked out of Oakhill as the fees from her father dried up. He realises that Laura Neelan has been pocketing the money he has been sending and orders her to sort the matter out or he will tell Rick. Laura flees, abandoning Kelly, and Summer Spellman persuades Billy to take the girl in. He does so provided she apologises to Asha, but Dev refuses to let her see his daughter.
• Evelyn, Mary, Nina and Toyah protest the council's refusal to set a zero-carbon target at the Town Hall where they are all arrested. Toyah and Michael get jobs in the Underworld sales team. Arthur is impressed by Evelyn’s direct action.
• Oliver Battersby has a fit when Summer babysits him while Steve is preoccupied with Emma’s problems. Dr Gaddas prescribes a febrile convulsion. Leanne rows with Steve for not making his son a priority and threatens to withdraw access to him.
• Jenny takes in Scott Emberton as a B&B long-term guest. Eileen and Liz McDonald take a fancy to him but Johnny panics when he sets eyes on the man and tries to avoid him while frantcially organising a visit to France for himself and Jenny under the pretext of visiting Eva and Susie Price. Finally crossing paths with Johnny, Scott assures him that there are no hard feelings about what happened to them in the past. Peter and Carla look after the pub while the Connors are abroad.
• Sally takes a fancy to an expensive wedding dress and Abi suggests that Tim sells Tiny to raise the funds. Kevin volunteers himself as Tim's best man even though he has asked Geoff already.
• Kirk joins Beth in Scotland as Daniel returns early with Bertie, feeling much better for the break.

May

• Gary guilt-trips Billy into letting Kelly stay when Paul insists that her presence is dangerous to Summer. Adam is intrigued to see Gary stepping in to defend Kelly when Dev admonishes her in Victoria Street and later finds out that the unknown girl’s surname is Neelan. Gary asks Sharon to trace Laura's whereabouts.

Yasmeen retaliates when Geoff goes too far.

• Geoff’s coercive control of Yasmeen peaks when he won't even allow her to feed the chickens without his permission. Sally invites them to join her and Tim at a bistro meal. With no more suitable clothes left to wear, Geoff has to give her a hideous dress he bought for one of his prostitutes. On the night out, she discovers that they are paying for the Metcalfe’s wedding. Back at No.6, he continues to abuse her, waving a knife at her, until she finally snaps and stabs him in the neck with a broken bottle. Yasmeen is arrested and almost friendless until Irman steps forward to represent her. She is unable to fully account for her actions. Eileen and Cathy begin to have doubts about Geoff’s innocence. Alya returns from Spain to the news. Geoff recovers in hospital. Tim and Sally are present when DS Abey asks him about Jocelyn Walkey and a pattern of violent, alcoholic women in his life. Sally begins to doubt her father-in-law while an oblivious Tim is fully on his side. Yasmeen is charged with attempted murder and refused bail. She starts to decline in prison. Tim and Alya have a furious argument about the outcome in the cafe. Geoff is released from hospital and finds that Alya has changed the locks on No.6. He has to move in with Tim and Sally.
• Nina punches a lad on the nose who makes suggestive comments to Asha when she ventures out of the house. She tries to boost Asha’s self-esteem. Asha receives a drawing of herself from an unknown admirer. Dev harangues the school for not giving his daughter enough protection from abuse when Aadi gets into a fight with Corey.
• David hides a ripped T-shirt from the family and sleeps through a speech given by Max at a youth awards as he has been up all night seeking more adrenalin thrills. He attacks the car of a gang of drug youths on the Hylda Baker Estate and is saved by an unwitting Craig. David confesses about what is really going on and Craig pleads with him to stop before he causes real harm to himself. David continues thrill-seeking when he hears that Shona wants to visit Clayton and not him. He is only just saved from a severe beating by the police when he provokes another gang of youths. In the meantime, a visit to Clayton goes badly when Shona doesn't recognise the grown man in front of her and he tries to take advantage of her confused state. Sarah pleads with her to help David and she agrees to a supervised visit to Coronation Street so long as he is not present. Shona is thrown when she remembers the slight detail of where the tea bags are stored in No.8. Her mind in turmoil, she absconds out of the back.
• Oliver's key worker at nursery is worried that he isn't developing physically at the same rate as the other children. He has another fit and is given tests at hospital. Before the results come through, he suffers yet more fits and is sent to intensive care where he is brought under control. An MRI scan shows a change to his brain’s occipital lobe and blood tests indicate a mitochondrial disease. The child is in a catatonic state and the fits have caused brain damage and affected his eyesight. Leanne resolves to give up work to look after him. The family grow concerned that she is in denial about the full seriousness of her child’s situation.
• Gail has a rotten birthday when David isn't interested, and Sarah is preoccupied with other matters.
• Cathy gets annoyed with Bernie’s lax attitude at the kebab shop. The two women bond over several drinks and Cathy suggests to Bernie that she and Dev would make a good couple.
• Danny leaves the bistro job and moves back down south. Ray employs Don in his place who quickly reveals his racist attitude towards Ed, complaining about his workmanship while the builder struggles along with his refurbishment work without retorting. On the bistro's re-opening night, Ed is provoked when he overhears Don making further comments and silences the room with an impassioned speech about the treatment he has received over the years. Ray fires Don.
• A reluctant Gemma finds the depression support group helpful when she listens to the comments from kindred spirits. She takes up Sean’s suggestion of recording vlog for women in the same situation and is delighted when it receives positive feedback.
• Evelyn enjoys herself when Arthur takes her to a dance. She starts to thaw in her behaviour towards others but insists that she and Arthur are just good friends.
• James is almost involved in a fight with a homophobic fan who makes comments towards him and is dropped from the team. Pushed by Aggie, Ed gives his son his full support. James comes out to his fellow team members and received strong support from Tommy Orpington. Selected for the next game, he performs well on the pitch.
• Delivering Tianna for more visits, Grace begins to get closer to Michael.

June

• The Platts find Shona at the cafe where she has calmed down in Roy’s comforting company. He agrees to David's suggestion that Shona move into the flat with him. Excited that familiar surroundings may help her recovery, David agrees to let Shona decide how much she wants to see him. She arrives with her support worker, Aaron Faraday, who she has obviously taken a fancy to. Her personality has changed, and she has no filter on what she says. Shona finds out that Ray is a sleazebag and David is amused that she repeats history by stealing the businessman's wallet. She tries to rediscover the spark between her and David and is annoyed when he refuses impromptu sex with her.
• Tim reports Alya and Craig forces her to hand over the keys to No.6. Geoff wastes no time in taking possession of the security camera and deleting all the footage, including the night of the attack. Tim finds him at the task, but Geoff spins a plausible. Yasmeen plans to plead guilty. Looking through her bank statements, Imran finds bar bills and Yasmeen tells him about Geoff’s prostitute. He passes the information on to Alya, who in turn tells a repulsed Sally. Tim confronts his father with the allegation who claims he was refused his conjugal rights. Geoff admits his actions to the police before they find out from another source. Alya visits her gran and gets her to admit to all of the ways in which Geoff controlled her. In doing so, Yasmeen changes her mind and pleads not guilty at her hearing. Without going into details, Alya tells Geoff that she knows everything that he did in front of Sally, who comes to the conclusion that he isn’t as innocent as he makes out and demands that Tim throws his father out of the house. Geoff feels he isn’t wanted and moves back into No.6. Tim is shocked when Eileen tells him that she’s on Yasmeen’s side. An angry Faye moves in with her grandfather in a show of support. Alya and Imran think that Sally knows more than she’s letting on.
• Dev enrols the twins at Oakhill School, though he knows the payments will be a struggle and he has to give Aadi shifts at the kebab shop to help his financial situation, cutting Bernie and Cathy’s hours. Asha finds that her reputation has preceded her at Oakhill. Nina continues to offer her support. Dev is pleased when Asha angrily rejects Corey’s attempts to say sorry to her, but the lad perseveres in texting her. She begins to find her new school easier while Dev continues to fret about the costs involved and tries to economise.
• Aggie presses Michael to arrange proper visits with Grace and he pulls out of a holiday with James to concentrate on his daughter.
• Imran is interested when he hears from Adam that Kelly is Rick’s daughter. Gary tells her not to tell the solicitor anything when he hears that she was questioned by him about her father’s whereabouts. Gary takes hapless private investigator Lenny Isaacs back on to find Laura. He succeeds and Gary engineers a reconciliation between mother and daughter in return for money for Laura, thinking they are going to be living in Rochdale out of the way of Adam and Imran, but little realising that they are only moving nearby to Inkerman Street. Adam flirts with Laura, hoping to get information out of her about Rick. Gary is shocked when he discovers that the mother and daughter haven’t moved away, while Adam promises to get maintenance money for Laura from Rick.
• Carla is surprised to find that Scott knew her mother from when he and Johnny worked together but her shock increases when a homeless woman, Chelsey, spots her by chance and blackmails her over her actions the previous year when she stayed in their squat and slept with her friend Jordan for money. The couple demand £1,000 from her, threatening to inform Peter of what she did. When Peter sees her nervous state, Carla admits the truth to him but is determined to pay the blackmail money to stop her reputation being publicly trashed. When the couple arrive for their money and insult Roy, Carla changes her mind and announces what she did and what the couple are demanding to all of the Rovers customers. She receives their full support and Scott and Abi forcibly evict the couple. Carla later discovers that her two tormentors have been found badly beaten up in a Brightwell Estate squat after Peter claims he worked late on a Street Cars shift. He is hurt when she asks him if he was behind the assault. Emma notices that Scott has cut and bruised knuckles.
• Leanne makes Nick return to work to get him out of the way. She admits to Toyah that Oliver has regressed in his behaviour and she’s searching for solutions on the internet. Uptight, she enjoys a day out with her child and the family at a petting zoo. Her hopes that Oliver is improving are dashed when Dr Ward informs them that Oliver has an incurable life-limiting form of mitochondrial disease. Leanne lashes out at the people around her and Toyah delays telling her that she and Imran plan to become foster parents. Imran is annoyed when Toyah joins another environmental protest, thinking she’s risking another arrest and jeopardising their plans. They agree that Ryan and Alya will have to move out of the flat to give them room for the child. Craig moves back in with his mum and Kirk for the same reason.
• Ken thinks he’s neglected Daniel of late. Adam takes his uncle to a solicitors’ drinks reception to get him out and about. There, Daniel meets Nicky Wheatley and enjoys her company. He's disappointed when he discovers that she is an escort but begins to use her services to talk about Sinead to a seemingly sympathetic ear.

Norris makes his final visit to the street.

• The residents celebrate the anniversary of VE-Day in the cafe, corner shop and the Rovers. Norris attends and admits that he and Freda have postponed their wedding.
• Seb and Alina admit they have feelings for each other, but she doesn't want to upset Emma by taking up with him again, especially when she sees how upset Emma is over Oliver’s news.
• Fiz realises that Evelyn has a better social life than her and Tyrone and thinks they’ve become too much like Jack and Vera.

July

• Leanne gently informs Oliver that he is ill. She hurts Simon Barlow when he overhears her saying that she will have no one after Oliver dies, and then Toyah when she tells her sister that she will never know what it is to lose a child. After rows with Peter and Imran, Nick loses his temper and makes her see that her behaviour is unacceptable. She apologises to those she’s hurt. Toyah introduces her to Josie MacGyver who lost her own nine-year old son. What she hears makes her decide to make Oliver’s remaining days as best as they can be. She also gives Toyah her blessing over the fostering application after she and Imran had put it on hold.
• Fiz plans a romantic night in with Tyrone and advises Chesney to do the same with Gemma, but he misinterprets the words as an invitation to come to dinner. Feeling bad for them, Fiz and Tyrone let them stay.
• Arthur and Roy find they share an interest in trains. Evelyn is teased by Tyrone about going out again with Arthur and invites Roy along as a wingman. Made to realise what he did by Nina, Roy persuades Evelyn that she isn’t too old for romance and encourages her to contact him for another date, this time just between the two of them.
• Jenny returns unexpectedly from France, annoyed with Johnny for deciding to stay on there for a while.
• Sally hears from Cathy about Geoff locking Yasmeen in the magic box. Alya asks Sally to help her gran and she visits Yasmeen in prison where she is told the full story of her abuse. Upon her return, Sally is seen by Geoff giving Alya a hug. He angrily confronts her in No.4 until Tim walks in and orders him out. Sally tells her husband all that she now knows but he stays loyal to his father. Geoff returns to work at Speed Daal against Alya’s will. He steals Alya’s phone to intercept a booked call that Yasmeen is making to her granddaughter, telling his wife that he loves her and is willing to drop the charges if she returns to him. His mind games confuse her. Sally and Tim’s relationship teeters when she tells him she’s going to be a witness for the defence. Geoff makes a public declaration of love via his radio show. Yasmeen receives a visit from Geoff's first wife, now known as Elaine Jones, who tells her that she suffered in an identical way to her years before. During another call with Geoff, Yasmeen realises she is the latest in a long line of such victims. Her trial is postponed when she suffers a heart attack. Hearing about Elaine, Alya begs the woman for help and is stunned to find out that she is Tim’s mother. Having long been told that she had died, a disbelieving Tim throws Elaine out of the cab office when she introduces herself. A shocked Geoff begins to follow her when he finds out that she is back.
• Michael blames Aggie when Grace gives him the brush-off and insists that they should just be friends. Aggie gets Grace to give her son another chance. Ed has an internet socially-distanced 30th wedding anniversary party with Aggie as she is working at the hospital through the pandemic.
• Laura asks Adam for legal advice about her maintenance payments from Rick. She also demands more money from her husband, via Gary. Needing to meet her demands, he puts up the rent on Underworld, making Adam suspicious about his financial matters. Adam finds out that she gets her money from a safety deposit box and discovers that it’s in Gary’s name. He confronts a momentarily discomposed Gary with his suspicion that Rick is dead. Gary panics when he finds out that metal detectorists are working in Beacon Woods. He tries to prevent Brian and Bernie joining them, unaware that an unwitting Bernie has already found Rick’s watch. She sells it to Sarah who suspects who its true owner was. She realises that Gary killed Rick and buried his body. He confesses and she rings 999, just before he saves her from being run down by a passing car which strikes him. Hearing him declare his love for her, Sarah hides his secret as he recovers in hospital though Adam is suspicious that his wife is concealing something.

Daniel finds comfort with Nicky.

• Adam offers Daniel work at Barlow Legal Services covering for Leanne. Daniel pays Nicky to wear Sinead's cardigan and perfume and lie on the bed with him, finding peace of mind in her presence.
• Kevin discovers that Charlie and Lexi Boulter are about to emigrate to Australia with their adoptive parents and tells Abi who isn’t sure she wants to meet them for one last time, disturbing them before they embark on a new and better life. Seb is disgusted with her. Kevin understands though and asks her to move in with him. Emma persuades Seb to accept an invitation from Kevin and Abi for dinner.
• Peter asks Jenny about Scott’s background with Johnny after Scott hints that he dealt with Jordan and Chelsey.
• A bored Carla returns to the factory, leaving Nick to help with Oliver but making Sarah think her brother doesn’t trust her. Carla makes things worse when she takes over from Adam with the rent negotiations with Gary.

August

• The police don't believe Sarah and Gary's story about the circumstances of the accident. Gary reminds Sarah that he covered up Callum Logan's death for her and she continues to cover for him. He cancels the rent increase on the factory. Adam and Maria both suspect their partners of having an affair with each other. Sarah claims she sold the watch to a charity shop, but after a tip-off from Bernie about an inscription on the back which reads “To Rick”, Adam finds it in his wife’s handbag. When she refuses to hand it in to the police, Sarah as good as confesses that Gary murdered Rick to protect her but Adam finishes with her, convinced there is more to it than that. Moments before his wedding to Maria, David overhears him declaring his love for Sarah. Under a cloud, Gary marries Maria, and they go on honeymoon. Adam moves into their new home, 7 Redbank Apartments, by himself when Sarah refuses his demand that she reports Gary to the police.
• Sally meets Elaine and believes her story. Geoff gets a frightened Elaine on her own and warns her to stay away from the area. Faye witnesses the encounter from afar. Elaine disappears and Alya and Sally report her as a missing person to the police. They question Geoff who insists his first wife died. Faye is puzzled when he denies even seeing Elaine to the police and tells Tim what she saw. His belief in his father starts to waver. Geoff tries to convince Tim that Elaine is an imposter. Yasmeen successfully undergoes a bypass following her heart attack. Alya wants to buy Geoff out of Speed Daal and Sally gives her their wedding money to do so. Geoff refuses to go along with the deal and the matter causes another breach between Tim and Sally. He refuses to go ahead with the remarriage, saying there's no point. Faye is shocked when she overhears her grandfather taunting Sally for her marriage breakdown, and she breaks off contact with him. Sick of being piggy in the middle, Tim goes with Sally to stay with Gina for a few days. Alya is horrified when Geoff invokes a power of attorney that Yasmeen signed months’ before and applies for Speed Daal to have an alcohol licence.
• With Liz having left for Spain, Steve feels the pressure getting to him. Toyah restarts her fostering application and asks Leanne for a reference.
• Cathy encourages Gemma to continue her vlogs. To her surprise, one of her followers is Vanessa who tells her that her husband has left her, Imogen has ghosted her, and she is struggling with loneliness. Gemma feels sorry for her, but Bernie warns her to keep away from her daughter. Gemma continues to support Vanessa behind her mother’s back and begins online mother and baby chats.
• Gemma apologises to Abi after clumsily insinuating that she didn’t love the twins because she let them go. Abi changes her mind about meeting the twins and asks Seb to arrange it. She injures herself when working alone in the garage and misses the meeting, trapped beneath a collapsed engine. Collecting a serviced taxi, Peter rescues her. The twins go to Australia, leaving a devastated Abi in the hospital without seeing them. She tries to steal morphine for the pain of her mental and physical injuries, but Peter spots her. He disposes of the drug and makes her attend counselling. Carla is suspicious as to what is going on, as is Debbie Webster who returns to the area, saying she has business to transact. Peter is upfront with Carla as he continues to support Abi. Debbie begins to keep a close eye on her brother’s girlfriend.

The twins celebrate their 30th birthday.

• Billy helps Gemma to plan a secret surprise party for her and Paul’s 30th birthday. At the same time, he makes his own arrangements and thinks Gemma is depressed again when she shows little interest. Paul is delighted when the surprise is sprung on him.
• With Eileen in Thailand visiting Jason Grimshaw, Mary checks her emails and finds one from Todd, desperately asking for £1,000. She, Billy and Sean leave a bag with torn-up paper inside it in Victoria Gardens and keep watch for when Todd turns up. A girl, Safia, attempts to take it, insisting she found Todd’s mobile by the canal, before she runs away. Billy and Sean report Todd as a missing person and are momentarily concerned when a body is pulled out of the canal, until they discover that it was a man in his fifties, dressed in a security guard’s uniform.
• Daniel has a need to see Nicky again, but with a full diary, she tries to palm him off on another, less understanding friend of hers. Daniel seeks out Nicky and embarrasses her when she is with a man who has no idea that she’s an escort, leading to a row during which Nicky is arrested. Adam represents her and is shocked to find out that his uncle is seeing a prostitute.
• Johnny returns from France to find that Scott has moved out of the B&B but is lodging nearby. Jenny gives him a cold welcome for abandoning her. Scott buttonholes Johnny and they discuss a crime they committed in their youth when a security guard, Grant Newsome, was injured. Johnny expresses his regret that Scott was arrested and did time for it, while his name was kept out of it. He sighs with relief when Scott promises that he isn't after revenge.

September

The truth finally revealed, Tim rages at his father.

• Alya refuses Geoff's offer to let him buy her out. He starts to increase the pressure on her at work causing her to break and threaten him with a broken bottle. Back from Gina’s, Tim wonders what drove Alya over the edge and mentions to Sally about the CCTV camera, giving it as an example of how his father tries to look out for his loved ones. Having had an idea, Sally sneaks Geoff's laptop out of No.6 and obtains Faye’s help in looking through its files. After some time searching, they find the long-forgotten phone footage from February of Yasmeen being goaded by her husband. Tim is finally convinced of his father’s guilt and tells him in no uncertain terms that he wants nothing more to do with him. Knowing that Elaine is really his mother, he joined in the search for her. Imran considers the footage inadmissible in court as it was stolen from Geoff.
• Ryan hears that Ali has been given four months for assaulting Gary.
• David finds it hard to cope with Shona's personality change and eccentric behaviour. He has to persuade her not to leave Weatherfield when she begins to think that he hates her. His mind is on other matters though when a huge sink hole appears in the back garden of No.8. Colin Enderley, a water engineer, advises David that a sewer collapse caused the depression and has made the house unstable. Unknown to David, Colin has been paid to engineer the sinkhole by Ray in an effort to get him to sell his property. He gives the Platts rooms to stay in at the Chariot Square Hotel. Shona enjoys spending the night there with David. Her wish to be reunited with him at No.8 makes David refuse to sell up the house to a builder friend of Ray’s, frustrating the businessman.
• Daniel admits to Adam about the true nature of the services he receives from Nicky. Adam pays her to keep away from his uncle. Daniel starts to harass Nicky with phone calls even though she makes it clear that she wants nothing but a professional relationship with him. Even though Adam tries to distract Daniel, he asks Nicky to go for a drink with him where they are spotted by Kirk and Beth. Kirk asks if they are a couple and Nicky admits to him that she’s a prostitute. She and Daniel grow closer and have sex, but Nicky is devastated when she overhears Daniel assuring Kirk that he has no intention of replacing Sinead with a prostitute. She demands £200 for services rendered from Daniel and leaves him. To force her to call on him, Daniel makes a booking through the agency and hears how she needs the money to support her sick mother and daughter Maisie. A violent client beats Nicky up and Daniel resolves to help her. He pockets an envelope containing £5,000 cash that Geoff inadvertently left in the solicitor’s office and hands it over to Nicky to help her clear her debts. Geoff accuses a puzzled Alya of the theft and she wonders where the money came from in the first place. Adam tricks Daniel into revealing he stole the money. Geoff sees Nicky handing the remaining money back to Daniel in his envelope before she leaves for Lytham St Annes and reports him to the police. Trying to curry favour with Tim, Geoff accepts repayment of the sum to drop the matter and an understanding Craig lends Daniel the money out of his flat deposit savings.
• Corey persuades Asha to forgive him, and they begin to see each other again. Nina warns Asha that Corey is no good for her. Faced with the prospect of selling the kebab shop, Dev is livid when he finds his daughter with Corey and throws him out of the house. Even though she feels guilt about Dev’s financial situation, Asha refuses to stop seeing Corey and announces that the two of them are getting a flat together as soon as she reaches sixteen. Dev’s efforts to scare Asha off the financial implications are thwarted when he is told that Corey’s parents are wealthy.
• Oliver shows signs of stabilising, but on the eve of a family trip to Cornwall he suffers another fit and is taken into intensive care. Steve and Leanne are told that there is no way to stop the seizures and life support is the only thing keeping their son alive. They refuse to accept the worst, even when a second opinion confirms the diagnosis, and they seek out a Dr Schmitz in Germany. Leanne initially lies to him about the severity of the case and she and Steve are shocked when they are told that experimental treatment could cost £500,000. Emma begins a sponsored silence to help raise the funds but her mute manner puzzles the Rovers’ customers. Leanne's overwhelmed when Nick offers to sell his shares in Underworld to raise cash for Oliver's treatment. Steve decides to do the same with Street Cars, and to persuade Tracy to sell Preston's Petals. Emma counsels her that it’s the right thing to do. Steve manages to negotiate a quick cash sale. Ray turns down Nick’s offer on the factory, saying he’s only interested in bricks and mortar.
• Imran and Toyah’s fostering application hits a snitch when he reacts badly to questions about his parents’ attempt to remove Rana Habeeb to Pakistan. Despite additional concerns that Toyah could become too attached to any children they foster, social services approve the application.
• Brian writes a play that he wants to stage. He and Mary bar each other from their respective shops when Mary sides with Cathy over a dispute concerning the identity of some wildflowers that Tyrone gets for Fiz, but Cathy makes Brian make his peace by threatening to bar him from his own place of work.
• Nick is surprised to see Natasha Blakeman at the hospital while they're waiting to see Oliver’s consultant, Dr Howarth. He later overhears her discussing her nine-year old son’s sprain with a doctor and that she’s had reminders of the boy’s father that day. Natasha admits that Sam Blakeman is his son but will only allow him access if he is willing to give a full commitment to him. She understands when Nick turns down the offer, having to give all his attention to Oliver. Having discovered what’s happened, Sarah and David try to encourage Nick to put himself first and meet Sam.
• Billy’s suspicion that the man in the canal is Kel is proved to be true. The news brings Paul’s traumas back to the surface and he drinks heavily. He is questioned as a possible suspect in his death until CCTV footage shows the predator fell into the water on his own. Paul is annoyed to realise that Billy suspected him of killing Kel.
• Undertaker George Shuttleworth, son of Archie, apologises to Mary when he inadvertently upsets her when complaining about some ordered flowers. Emma thinks Mary has a crush on him and the florist is delighted when he buys a bouquet for her.
• Jack wins two races at an athletics event. After Debbie urges her to be honest, Abi comes clean to Kevin about her morphine addiction and Peter’s support. She is delighted when he supports her, but he begins to have doubts when he overhears her telling Debbie that the twins once got hold of class-A drugs she left lying around. He orders Abi to leave the child-rearing to him when she intervenes following a fight between Hope and Jack and she realises that all is not well between them after all. Peter has to stop her drinking, and also to prevent her from trying to seduce him. When Kevin apologises to Abi, she tells Peter that it’s best that they don’t meet again but the end of their clandestine meeting is witnessed by a suspicious Debbie who annoys Peter by telling him to keep his distance from Abi or Carla will find out. When Abi has to attend a hospital appointment in Peter’s cab, Debbie jumps to the wrong conclusion and tells all she knows to Kevin and Carla. Told the full story, Kevin resolves to stick by Abi, but Carla argues with Peter who also hid from her his own struggles with his addiction while living in a pub. During a row, she is angry when he throws her fling with Jordan back in her face. The two are reconciled after Peter buys Carla flowers and Carla sees the desperate state of Sarah and Adam’s relationship after she finds him having sex with Naomi, an ex-girlfriend.
• Billy hires Lenny Isaacs to hunt for Todd. He finds out that Todd and Safia were attempting to scam gangster Mick Chaney and now Todd has disappeared. Paul gets Suki Waters to write up on the matter for the Gazette. Eileen reads it on-line in Thailand and makes a video call, demanding an explanation.
• While Sarah is held up with a broken-down car, client Tom Reed calls into Underworld from London. Michael and Toyah try and cover for their boss's absence, but he gets bored with their competing amateurish sales patter. Carla saves the day by rescheduling the appointment. At the subsequent meeting, Mr Reed sees that the designs have scribbled alterations made to them which impress him. Realising that the modifications were made by Nina who labelled the previous versions old-fashioned, Carla offers her a temporary job at the factory.
• Michael is delighted when, on a day out with Grace and Tianna, the little girl calls him daddy. He shocks Grace by proposing to her and she tells him that she’s moving to Spain imminently with Tianna. He abducts the child to try and prevent her leaving. Arrested, he is shell-shocked when informed that Grace is Tianna’s nanny, and she was never his child. The child’s true parents drop the charge against him while still looking for Grace. Michael wonders what happened to the child she was expecting by him.
• Fiz and Tyrone sabotage each other’s efforts when they enter into cake-baking contest between each other in an effort to make money for Oliver’s fund.

October

• Tim discovers that his and Sally’s wedding booking was never formally cancelled. Sally agrees to go ahead with the event provided that Geoff doesn't find out about it, but he overhears Faye and Abi discussing the matter. He threatens to attend so on the day itself, so Abi lures him to No.4 with a text from Faye’s phone and locks him in the conservatory for the duration. After the nuptials, Geoff reports Abi to the police, but everyone gives her a false alibi.

Sam meets his dad for the first time.

• Still trying to offload the factory business, Nick's mind is changed about seeing Sam when he receives a letter from his son. They meet and Nick is instantly taken with the hyper-intelligent boy. Gail is staggered to find she has a grandson. Although initially frosty with Natasha, the two women bond when Gail sees how well she has brought up Sam.
• Imran and Toyah delay having their first foster child until Oliver is on the mend.
• Dr Schmitz rescinds his offer of treatment as Oliver's condition has deteriorated too much. The hospital refuses to allow Oliver to be moved as it’s against his best interests and Leanne pulls out of mediation when she thinks the appointed official is biased against her. With court action threatened by the hospital to allow the life support to be turned off, Imran finds barrister Elliot Newell to act for Leanne and Steve. Seeing the matter is hopeless, Tracy refuses to sell the florists to help fund Elliot, causing her and Steve to fall out. Remonstrating with Nick for seemingly being distracted, Leanne finds out about Sam and asks to meet him. Despite herself, she likes the boy but cannot help holding it against Nick that he will have a son once Oliver dies. They are reconciled as she still needs Nick’s support. The court appoints Wendy Caple as a guardian. Leanne instantly clashes with her. Steve and Tracy travel to Germany to try and persuade Dr Schmitz to change his mind but fail in their task. Leanne gives an interview to Suki Waters but ends up losing her fractured temper with her too. Natasha offers Nick £50,000 towards Oliver's fund which he takes when Leanne orders him to. Nick confides in Gail that he fears Leanne is fighting a losing battle but he can't tell her as she would see it as a betrayal. Leanne and Nick try to convince Wendy that Oliver is responding to noises.
• Billy finds out that Paul is working for a volunteer helpline assisting troubled teenagers and is concerned whether he can handle it. He ends up encouraging Paul to continue after he considers quitting when the roleplay exercises mirror his own experiences with Kel.
• Gary gets nervous when Sarah gets drunk on a night out with Maria, worried that she will talk about Rick.
• Grace turns up at No.3 and tells Michael she lost the baby boy that they were expecting. He turns her over to the police, not realising that she is pregnant again. Michael sadly agrees when Tianna’s father asks him to drop all contact with his daughter so as not to confuse her.
• Eileen returns from Thailand and makes a radio appeal to find Todd. Mary introduces her to George. Todd asks his mother to meet him at a warehouse where they are cornered by Mick Chaney. Todd clubs him to the ground and they escape. He asks Eileen to identify a dead body that has been found as being himself to allow him to disappear for good. Instead, she scrapes together the money to pay Mick off, who she finds had a fling with her son. The gangster is still intent on revenge though. In the meantime, Mary and George stage a mock funeral for Todd to put Mick off the scent. When Mick breaks into No.11, a passing Gary hits the gangster over the head with a baseball bat but pays for his interference by later being beaten up by Mick and one of his heavies. Maria makes her husband tell Craig everything but, to protect her son, Eileen refuses to back up his story, and Sarah refuses to hand over a photograph that Gail took of Mick's van speeding away, saying Gary had it coming to him. Eileen hides Todd in the attic to keep him away from Mick and he scares Mary and Billy when he emerges. Eileen tries to contact Mick but instead speaks to his husband Erik who arrives at Street Cars thinking a puzzled Tim has had a fling with his loved one. Eileen reads Mick the riot act, stating that her idiot son isn't worth his time or energy. As she didn't drop Mick in it with Erik over his fling, he agrees that the matter is over.
• With Gary in financial difficulties due to the lockdown, Maria makes plans to sell her share of the salon and put it towards buying the barbers from Audrey. Ray offers him £150,000 for the factory premises, but Gary turns it down. He then discovers that Ray has bought the body shop from Kevin and theorises that he is buying up properties in the street. Angered by his disloyal treatment from Eileen and Sarah, he sells the factory to Ray for £450,000, telling him he can bulldoze the entire street for all he cares. Ray reveals to him that he's building a regeneration zone to put the area on the map with everything except the terrace being knocked down. He gets a job with Ray and on his instructions persuades a cash-strapped David to sell No.8 to an intermediary under a rental agreement, with David not realising he will soon be evicted. Gary masks his guilt.
• Gary suggests to Alya that No.6 is sold to pay Yasmeen’s legal fees. She discovers that her gran signed over half the house to Geoff. Alya thinks Geoff is setting up his next victim and follows him. She is embarrassed when she finds him in the company of Doris Braithwaite, an elderly lady who is a fan of his radio show. Afterwards, Geoff meets up with his new and oblivious girlfriend, Christine, and lays on the charm.
• Back in circulation, Todd wants to resume his relationship with Billy and starts to stir things up between him and Paul. Billy assures a disbelieving Paul that he loves him and he's well rid of the chaos that Todd caused in his life. Todd tells Billy that he's going to get him back, labelling Paul as “a bit of rough”. Billy is upfront with Paul over what Todd said but a frightened Paul can see that Todd is getting under his skin. Todd realises that George fancies his mother and not Mary.
• Shona moves back into No.8 where David is overwhelmed by the responsibility of looking after her. She invites a bunch of strangers to Audrey Roberts’s 80th birthday party where they consume all the food but her husband steps in to defend her when she cuts the top knot off the hair of an arrogant model who condescends to use Trim Up North. David confides his difficulties with Aaron who announces he's reducing his hours with Shona as he has other patients. David is livid with Shona when she blurts out to Aaron about his rape, but they reach an understanding when she apologises, saying she can't help not being the person she once was. David tries to get a loan to sort out the sinkhole and plans to fill it in as cheaply as possible.
• Johnny suspects Scott of being behind a break in at the corner shop when he makes a generous donation to Oliver's fund. He has to apologise when the real culprits are caught. Hearing that Ray is considering employing Scott, Johnny informs the businessman that he is an ex-con, losing his erstwhile friend the contract. In retaliation, Scott blackmails Johnny into helping him spring a robbery on Ray at the bistro, threatening to tell Jenny all about their dubious past. Jenny thinks Johnny needs a break when she sees his high stress levels. Scott stirs things up to get Jenny to cancel a trip away that she planned for her and Johnny and which coincides with the planned heist. On the night of the robbery, Johhny panics when he sees a gun that Scott is having and has a sudden MS attack. Scott goes on alone, but Craig ends up being shot in the attempt. As he recovers in hospital. Johnny is devasted to find out from Grant's mother Margaret that her depressed son died of alcoholism three years after the 1980 robbery. He confesses all to an appalled Jenny. Emma finds the gun in Scott’s holdall, and he gives her £5,000 to buy her silence, which she gives to Oliver’s fund. Johnny goes to the police station to confess everything. Scott tries to get him to change his mind by taking Jenny hostage, but Johnny carries on regardless in contacting the police, and Scott gives himself up after a brief siege in the pub.
• After the shooting, Beth realises that Craig fancies Faye and berates him for putting his life in danger just to impress the girl. Craig is disappointed that Faye has a new boyfriend, Noah, who she met online.
• Jenny and Evelyn get drunk on free wine samples. Evelyn and Arthur go to the Lake District for a break, with her in the caravan and him in a tent but return after just one day when his inflatable mattress has a hole in it. Arthur makes a secret visit to Weatherfield General. Nina makes Evelyn realise that she is putting up barriers against Arthur and agrees to go to Norfolk with him, quitting her job at the corner shop when Dev won't allow her time off. Arthur suddenly cools towards Evelyn, and he confesses that he has a wife, Beryl, who’s in a permanent unresponsive state after suffering a stroke four years ago. Angry at his lack of honesty, Evelyn finishes with him. Dev gives her her job back.
• Billy's encouraged to apply to become the new archdeacon.
• Sean's excited when Violet Wilson agrees to let him have Dylan over half-term. Todd bonds with the boy when he arrives and confides in him that he is afraid that his mother and her boyfriend are going to split up soon. Todd encourages a reluctant Sean to play football with his son. Dylan confides in Sean that his girlfriend in London has dumped him.
• Sarah, Nina and Carla celebrate when they land their first big department store order.
• With more money needed at No.5, Gemma gets shifts at the Rovers, Chesney gets a part-time job at Underworld and Bernie gets taken on at the cafe. They then realise that there will be no one left to look after the quads, so Chesney gives up his job, which Kirk had given to him without authority anyway.
• Debbie announces that her business transaction is taking longer than expected and Abi wonders about the exact nature of her work.

November

• Johnny hears nothing from the police. They question Emma about Scott’s donation, but she is unwilling to assist as Oliver’s fund needs the money. After Imran advises her to come clean, she confesses to the police and is fined for money laundering. Carla sense that something is troubling her father and Jenny fills her in on his past life of crime. The stress of the situation exacerbates Johnny’s MS and he confesses his part in Grant’s death to Margaret. Expecting her to inform the police, Johnny decides to cut Jenny free of the obligation of standing by him and begins divorce proceedings, bitterly hurting his wife. Jenny is visited by her stepdaughter Daisy Midgeley who takes an instant dislike to Johnny when she sees how he’s treating his wife. Johnny signs the Rovers over to Jenny before he is arrested and taken away. Daisy stays on to help Jenny run the pub. Johnny is released on bail pending his trial. Jenny insists she’s not leaving him.
• Imprisoned, Grace tells Michael she’s expecting his baby. He doesn’t believe her and demands a paternity test, whilst at the same time being reluctant to have anything to do with her again.
• Sean tries to find favour with Dylan by buying him expensive tickets to a County match. Dylan makes him see that he doesn’t need to make such gestures and he genuinely likes him, but Sean worries that he needs to do something with his life to make his son look up to him. Meeting a fresh start, both he and Michael sign up to be salesman for a range of beauty products named Double Glammy not realising it's a pyramid scheme. A mass of the cheap products arrive at No’s. 3 and 11 and Sean organises a make-up party at Speed Daal to try and outdo Michael.
• Corey buys Asha expensive trainers. Amy advises Asha to take precautions and she gets the pill from Dr Gaddas but plans to wait until she is sixteen before taking them. Mary sees her coming out of the medical centre and Dev doesn’t believe her story, even though she tells him the truth. He humiliates his daughter by rowing with Corey in the middle of Victoria Street about having sex with an underaged girl. Seeing is mistake, Dev tries to get closer to his children, re-enrolling them at Weatherfield High, and inviting Corey round for dinner where he warms to him when he finds out that his dad is a golfer.
• Faye’s boyfriend dumps her by text. Craig comforts her and she asks him out.
• Abi sees Debbie skiving when she’s supposed to be in a business meeting and gets Kevin to investigate. She confesses to her brother that she’s homeless, penniless and jobless. Abi tries to bond with her, mentioning that Kevin lost the garage to blackmail from Ray. Debbie is livid about her brother’s treatment and marches over to see Ray, who in reality is her business partner in the redevelopment. The two next set their sights on No.4 and Debbie stirs things up between Tim, Sally and Geoff next door which erupts at a back garden barbeque into an altercation over the fence. Debbie suggests to Sally that the only way to escape their difficult neighbour is to move away. Sally takes the bait and puts the house up for sale to Ray’s intermediary Roxy Hackland, tempted by thoughts of a new house in Hale Barns. Calling to see Ray about enhanced security, Craig catches sight of the redevelopment plans. Ray buys the uneasy lad’s silence by giving Faye the role of trainee manager across his entire hotel and restaurant chain. He then threatens Craig’s career using his police contacts if he talks about what he’s seen. Craig asks Sally to find out from her council contacts if any redevelopments are in the offing and she replies in the negative, though she admits the people she spoke to were cagey. Abi recognises Roxy leaving No.4 and smells a rat. She finds proof in the bistro office of Ray’s plan to buy up half the street and presents it to Kevin and an alarmed Debbie. Ray’s libido is undiminished as he next sets his sights on Faye and he summons her to his hotel room, seemingly for a business meeting, but instead tempts the teenager into his bed. She feels guilty afterwards. Ray and Debbie are told that the pre-planning permission for the development has been accepted in principle and Sally’s contacts confirm the move when she again questions them.

A sad goodbye after a hard-fought battle.

• Leanne aches to know what’s on Wendy’s recordings of her interviews with everyone concerned in Oliver’s case and Simon sees an opportunity to steal her Dictaphone. She listens to Gail’s interview where she apologises for Nick standing by Leanne when he knows there's no hope for Oliver. Feeling betrayed, Leanne orders Nick to keep away from her son and the court. The hearing begins with Dr Howarth making a convincing statement. Deeply depressed by the day’s events, Leanne is buoyed up by Steve’s support and makes a pass at him, instantly regretting it. Steve is honest with a suspicious Tracy who, to Leanne’s surprise, forgives her and praises her strength in her current situation. On the stand, Leanne is pushed into admitting that any responses that Oliver makes may be involuntary. She takes out her temper on all around her. The judge rules in the trust’s favour. Everyone is devastated. Leanne plans an appeal, but Steve tells her he can no longer support her as they’ve reached the end of the line and he’s going to appoint his own solicitor. Amy suggests they gather together a memory box for Oliver. Steve wants to include a lock of the boy’s hair in it which causes a further breach with Leanne. She decides to sue the hospital for negligence but can find no one to represent her on those grounds. After attempting to read up on the law herself, another deterioration in Oliver’s condition makes her face up to reality and she gives up the case. Oliver's life support is switched off as his family gathers around him. Afterwards, Leanne plans an intimate funeral but without consulting Steve who takes to his bed, unable to face the outside world. She also plans her formal separation from Nick.
• Todd apologises to Adam for leaving him in the lurch when he fled the area three years ago. Sarah takes Todd on as Underworld’s new sales executive, on a month's probation. Paul is annoyed that he has to work alongside him. Todd invites Paul for lunch, supposedly to get to know him, but Paul declines. Todd then sets up Paul for a fall at work by swapping products in boxes packed for despatch and then intercedes with Sarah on his behalf, making himself to be the good guy. With Paul now onside, Todd begins to interfere in his relationship with Billy, getting Paul drunk and dressed up in Billy’s robes to make the vicar angry. Summer returns from a stay at Geraldine’s. She refuses to talk to Todd and an oblivious Paul intercedes on his behalf, seemingly bringing a harmony to the situation but behind their backs Todd prepares the next part of his plan to separate Billy and Paul.
• Adam asks Alina out on a date. Sarah tells her that she's welcome to him as they are over as a couple, but Carla can see that she is jealous and warns Alina off Adam. Carla then tries to reconcile Adam and Sarah, but the couple are soon arguing again over Gary. After a couple of weeks, Adam accepts Sarah’s invitation to hang out as friends and take it from there. Both David and Sarah continue to struggle with Shona’s erratic behaviour. When Adam helps Sarah cope with her sister-in-law, the couple are reconciled.
• Billy gets the Archdeacon job, even though the bishop finds a half-naked Paul in his flat. He turns down the large house that goes with the job, having it on his conscience after having just encountered some homeless people.
• Mary finishes with George after he flirts with Eileen.
• Peter and Carla argue when he tries to reassure Simon that Oliver’s appeal will succeed, and he won’t face the reality of the situation. Bitter words are exchanged. Peter is mugged and badly beaten up. A drink of whisky proffered from the hipflask of friendly passer-by Barry Noakes starts him drinking again. Abi alerts Carla to the problem but Peter rudely pushes her help away. Hurt, Carla has a fling with Adam in a room at the Chariot Square Hotel. Peter is hospitalised after he consumes an entire bottle of whisky and is told he's possibly one drink away from a fatal internal bleed. Released after tests, he takes a phone call for Carla from the hotel telling her they’ve found the wallet of the man she was with. Peter pushes Carla into admitting she slept with someone at the hotel, but she won't name the man. Peter considers drinking again, Daniel stops him, hearing all about the other man and the wallet. Although Peter and Carla each apologise to each other for their rash actions, Peter rings the hotel, unsuccessfully trying to find who the owner of the wallet was. He and Carla reach an uneasy truce, though he starts to wonder about her movements when she is not at the factory, despite claiming she is snowed under with work. She worries what it will do to Peter if he finds out who she slept with.
• With Gemma still struggling for money, Eileen gives her some of Jason and Todd’s old clothes for Joseph.
• Geoff is furious to receive a letter from the court of protection telling him that he no longer has power of attorney over Yasmeen, but he sells No.6 from under her to Ray in a crooked deal that gets Geoff more than half the proceeds. Tim visits Yasmeen to apologise for not believing her and puts himself forward as a witness for the defence. Geoff goads Tim into punching him in front of Craig, removing him as a credible witness in the case. Alya and Ryan grow suspicious as to why Geoff makes so many trips to Oldham and suspect he’s holding Elaine there and find out about Christine who claims she is being helped by Geoff with her rent. Elaine is found by the police but she's been admitted to a psychiatric ward, scuppering her chances of appearing in court.

December

• Craig is devastated when a guilt-ridden Faye finishes with him.
• Leanne is touched when Nick presents her with the memory box but still wants to separate. She grants Steve his wish to continue fundraising in Oliver’s name. She plants a tree in her son’s name in Victoria Gardens just before facing the ordeal of the funeral. Planning to go to France for a while, she is drawn back to stay by Sam who charms her when he gives her a list of reasons why she will grow to like him.
• Yasmeen’s trial begins with Geoff painting her as a violent alcoholic. The prosecution barrister cast doubt on aspects of Yasmeen’s defence. Tim visits Elaine at the hospital who is delighted that he now recognises her as his birth mother. She refuses to give evidence at the trial, saying she's not strong enough to face Geoff, but then changes her mind. Geoff gains access to the psychiatric wing and terrifies her into recanting. She summons the courage to attend the court where she lays bare her life with her husband and his recent threats. Imran recalls Geoff to the witness box with video evidence of him visiting the hospital. He provokes Geoff into a vile rant against his estranged wife. She is found not guilty. Released from prison, Yasmeen is tormented by her husband who wants her to sign over the remainder of the house to him so he can move to Cyprus with Christine. Collecting her belongings from No.6 when she thinks he is out, he locks her in the house with him and sets fire to it. She escapes through the dormer room skylight to the roof. Geoff follows but falls to his death. Tim coaxes Yasmeen back inside. After a few weeks living with Alya in the builder’s flat, Yasmeen moves back into her own house. Neither she nor Tim can bring themselves to attend Geoff’s funeral. Yasmeen suffers flashbacks that Geoff is still alive.

The residents take a stand against the destruction of their community.

• Sally and Abi find further proof that Ray is behind the development. Abi stirs up the neighbours who protest at a press launch that Ray organises and he offers them an extra £50,000 each to drop their objections. Audrey reveals she’s already sold the salon flat, and Maria and Claudia have done the same with the business below it, leaving few properties for him to mop up. At Roy’s suggestion, the residents consider getting the Nuttall's Brewery building listed. Debbie plants heroin in Kevin’s car for him to find and think Abi is on drugs again. Abi manages to persuade Kevin she’s innocent. A digger turns up on the street to begin the demolition of the brewery and the residents blockade it with a hastily erected camp. Abi hijacks the bulldozer, destroying an electric junction box in the process and knocking out the power supply to the area. Kevin gets the council to issue a temporary stop order, but Ray's lawyers are already trying to oppose it, having been forewarned by Debbie. Abi points out to Kevin that only his sister knew what they were planning with the order. Debbie admits to her angry brother that she's Ray's business partner. He is disgusted with her and tells her to leave his house. Gary interrupts Ray as he attempts to rape Faye in the bistro office and, in anger, tears up the contract to sell the factory. Faye refuses to let the police be involved but Debbie is furious that Ray has endangered the project. Gary tries to help David trace Colin, the water engineer, and prove the sinkhole was manufactured but he has disappeared without trace.
• Peter continues question Carla about her one-night stand. Daniel learns that Adam has lost his wallet and realises who Carla’s fling was with. He is about to tell his brother when he discovers that Peter and Carla have become engaged. Peter sees his fiancée and Daniel in close conference and jumps to the conclusion that he is the other man. To save Daniel’s neck, Adam confesses. Sarah and Adam’s family turn on him. Gary gloats to his face about his downfall, only to be shocked when Adam hits back by making a reference to a body being buried in the woods. Late at night, someone attacks Adam whilst he is drinking alone in the bistro. Peter, Sarah Gary come under police suspicion while Adam is in an induced coma with a fractured skull and bruising on the brain. Daniel finds threatening texts from Sarah to husband on his phone, making him suspicious of her. Peter is unable to provide himself with a satisfactory alibi. He tells a sobbing Carla that her fling with Adam has killed everything between them. Simon makes his hatred of her crystal clear. She packs her things and moves into the cafe flat. Peter plans to flee the area but is hospitalised before he can go with irreversible liver damage. Ken talks his son out of giving up on himself.
• Maria provides Gary with a false alibi for the night of Adam’s attack, but Sarah saw him at the same time out on the street at night and knows his wife is lying for him. Thinking it’s time that Gary got his just desserts, Sarah makes an anonymous call, directing the police to the location of Rick’s body in Beacon Woods. They dig up the area and find evidence that a body was in the site indicated, but recently moved, and any DNA is too degraded for a positive result. Maria hears about both the search and retracts her alibi for her husband. Gary is questioned but released when he is adamant that he knows nothing. Maria makes Gary be upfront with her and he admits he killed Rick. She demands a divorce. Kelly Neelan turns up looking for her dad as her mum has abandoned her. She tells the police that Gary is the only person who has had any contact with him.
• Adam comes to and tells Daniel that he is certain that Peter was his attacker. He is released and lodges with Daniel while he recovers. He and Sarah warm to each other again and she tries to persuade him that Gary must be his attacker. Daniel begs Adam not to accuse Peter to the police, revealing his perilous medical state. When questioned, Adam names Gary as his attacker. Faye is upset when she hears the news, admitting to Gary and Maria that she was the one who attacked Adam, thinking it was Ray in the darkened bar.
• Getting increasingly frustrated with Ray’s illegal activities, Debbie announces an alternative plan which just involves the demolition of the houses. Ray is livid with her takeover. Kevin rejects her offer of trying to get his garage back for him.
• Simon takes a liking to Shona. He vandalises the front of the solicitors’ office with abusive graffiti and is almost caught with the paint can by Shona who understands his anger. Shona pockets the bistro's keys when Ray accidentally drops them and takes Simon for a drinks session inside the establishment. She isn't happy when Daisy flirts with David who warns Shona that he’s at the end of his tether with her. When Ray shows David CCTV footage of Shona and Simon in the bistro, threatening to pass it on to the police unless he drops his opposition to the development, David reaches the end of the line and tells Shona that their marriage isn't working. On Christmas Day they each realise that they've both been under the impression that they make the other unhappy. They agree to give things another go and re-enact their wedding.
• Tim is determined to make up for the lost years with his mother and asks Elaine to move into No.4. Sally hides her unease. Elaine asks her son if they can take things a step at a time. Tim suggests to Faye that now she's out of work, they should resurrect their family window cleaning round. He is touched when Elaine gives him all the Christmas presents that she saved up over the years when she wasn’t able to see him. Thinking he has his mum’s blessing, he gives them to a jumble sale, but then discovers some of the mint items are worth a lot of money and his giveaway has also upset Elaine. He buys them back from Bernie who purchased them at the sale.
• Todd inveigles himself with Paul, offering to assist at the helpline. His real motive is to get Paul into trouble with his own prepared contact: Will, a troubled teenager who is posing as a youth being abused by his violent father. Will pressures Paul for his personal phone number to obtain help outside of hours and rings him when he is in supposed need. Even though he is at risk of losing his job, Paul meets Will face to face and feels wretched when he says he can offer the lad no help. Paul comes clean to Billy who warns him that Todd is up to something. Todd riles Paul into attacking an innocent man, believing he is Will’s dad. He is arrested. Todd puts on a show of supporting him.
• Jenny refuses to discuss Johnny's forthcoming plea hearing with him.
• Toyah and Imran’s fostering application is approved and a week later are given Mason, a six-month old baby to look after. Toyah feels a sense of loss when he is returned to his mother and Imran asks social services for a break before they take in another child. She’s livid when she finds out.
• Natasha announces she is moving to London and taking Sam with her. The boy begs Nick and Leanne to take him in. Unable to have Sam near Oliver’s things, Leanne suggests that Nick moves into Natasha’s local flat while she works in London, and he looks after his son. Assured by Leanne that it doesn't mean they are splitting up, Nick gets Natasha’s agreement. Leanne tells everyone she is spending Christmas in France but in reality she holes herself up in the flat by herself, unable to face the outside world.
• Needing extra money for Christmas, Gemma and Chesney set up a stall on the Christmas market on Victoria Street selling Double Glammy make-up but their stock and takings are stolen when Kirk is minding it for them.
• Evelyn reluctantly accepts a Christmas present that Arthur gives her.
• Getting closer again, Adam and Sarah see in the New Year together.

Who lives where

Coronation Street

• Rovers Return Inn - Johnny and Jenny Connor. Adam Barlow (until April). Charlie Wood (January only). Scott Emberton (from April until July). Peter Barlow (from April). Carla Connor (from April to December). Simon Barlow (from December).
• 1 Coronation Street - Ken Barlow (until March and from April). Peter Barlow (until April). Simon Barlow (until March). Claudia Colby (until March). Steve and Tracy McDonald and Amy Barlow (all from March).
• Audreys Salon flat (No.2a) - Maria Connor and Liam Connor (until January). Emma Brooker. Bethany Platt (until March). Amy Barlow (January only). Seb Franklin (from February). Alina Pop (from February).
• 3 Coronation Street - Ed, Aggie, Michael and James Bailey.
• 4 Coronation Street - Sally and Tim Metcalfe. Faye Windass. Abi Franklin (until July).
• 5 Coronation Street - Chesney and Joseph Brown. Gemma Winter. Aled, Bryn, Carys and Llio Winter-Brown. Bernie Winter (until January and from March).
• 6 Coronation Street - Yasmeen Metcalfe. Geoff Metcalfe (until December). Alya Nazir and Ryan Connor (from December).
• 7 Coronation Street - Dev, Aadi and Asha Alahan.
• 8 Coronation Street - Gail Rodwell. David, Lily, Sarah Platt/Barlow and Harry Platt. Max Turner. Adam Barlow (from April to August). Shona Platt (from October).
• 9 Coronation Street - Tyrone and Ruby Dobbs. Fiz and Hope Stape. Evelyn Plummer. Jade Rowan (until January).
• Kabin flat (No.10a) - Rita Tanner.
• 11 Coronation Street - Eileen Grimshaw. Seb Franklin (until February). Mary Cole/Taylor. Sean Tully (from February). Todd Grimshaw (from October).
• 12 Coronation Street - Brian Packham, Cathy Matthews. Alex Warner.
• 13 Coronation Street - Kevin and Jack Webster. Abi Franklin (from July). Debbie Webster (from August to December).
• Corner Shop flat (No.15a) - Daniel and Bertie Osbourne.

Rosamund Street

• Preston's Petals flat (No.19a) - Billy Mayhew. Summer Spellman. Sean Tully (until February). Paul Foreman. Kelly Neelan (from April until June).

Victoria Street

• Jamila House flat (No.14a) - Empty.
• Street Cars flat (No.15a) - Steve and Tracy McDonald and Amy Barlow (all until March). Liz McDonald.
• Roy's Rolls flat (No.16a) - Roy Cropper. Carla Connor (until April and from December). Nina Lucas (from February). Shona Platt (from June to October).
• Prima Doner flat (No.18a) - Kirk and Beth Sutherland. Craig Tinker (from June).
• Builder's Yard flat (No.19a) - Craig Tinker (until June). Imran Habeeb. Toyah Battersby. Alya Nazir (until December). Ryan Connor (from March until December).

Victoria Court

• 5 Victoria Court - Maria and Liam Connor. Gary Windass (from January).
• 9 Victoria Court - Ryan Connor (until January).
• 12 Victoria Court - Leanne Battersby. Oliver Battersby (until November). Nick Tilsley (until December). Simon Barlow (from March to December).

Redbank Apartments

• Unknown apartment - Paula Martin.
• 7 Redbank Apartments - Adam Barlow (from August) .

Others

• 2 Conifer Avenue, Oakhill - George Shuttleworth.
• Crimea Street - Gary Windass (until January).
• 5 Grasmere Drive - Audrey Roberts.
• 28 Grayling Street - Izzy Armstrong and Jake Windass.
• Stillwaters - Norris Cole and Freda Burgess (from February). Ken Barlow (from March until April). Claudia Colby (from March).
• Unknown address - Natasha and Sam Blakeman. Nick Tilsley (from December).

Awards and nominations

BAFTA
Ceremony held on 31st July 2020

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

British Soap Awards

• No awards were held this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Broadcast Awards
Ceremony held on 5th February 2020

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

Inside Soap Awards
Virtual ceremony held on 16th November 2020

• Best Soap: Coronation Street (Nominee)
• Best Actor: Ian Bartholomew (Winner)
• Best Actress: Shelley King (Nominee)
• Best Newcomer: Mollie Gallagher (Winner)
• Funniest Performance: Maureen Lipman (Nominee)
• Best Partnership: Dolly-Rose Campbell and Sam Aston (Nominee)
• Best Show-Stopper: Yasmeen fights back against Geoff (Winner)
• Best Villain: Ian Bartholomew (Winner)
• Best Family: The Barlow/McDonalds (Nominee)
• Best Feel-Good Moment: Gemma gives birth to quads (Nominee)

National Televison Awards
Ceremony held on 28th January 2020

• Best Serial Drama: Coronation Street (Nominee)
• Best Serial Drama Performance: Katie McGlynn (Winner)
• Best Newcomer: Peter Ash (Winner)

Royal Television Society
Livestream ceremony held on 17th March 2020

• Soap and Continuing Drama: Coronation Street (Nominee)

Television and Radio Industries Club ("TRIC") Awards
Ceremony held on 10th March 2020

• Soap of the Year: Coronation Street (Winner)
• Best Soap Actor: Jack P. Shepherd (Nominee)

TV Choice Awards
Winners announced on 7th September 2020

• Best Soap: Coronation Street (Winner)
• Best Soap Actor: Jack P. Shepherd (Winner)
• Best Soap Actress: Shelley King (Winner), Dolly-Rose Campbell (Nominee)