Plot[]
Minnie is delighted to get a Christmas card from Jed Stone in London. Albert tells Ena and Minnie he's spending Christmas with Ken - his first without Val. Dave tells Elsie he needs to see Alan urgently. Lucille tells Albert that Ken has to catch the 9.45am train for Glasgow. Annie asks to see Bet and Betty separately. Dave rings Alan at the garage and asks him to join him at the Rovers to discuss a business proposition. Elsie hears he's on the way to the pub and leaves to avoid him. Stan asks Dave for a tip to help him restock the cocktail bar - he tells him to sell it. Bet and Betty are displeased with Annie's request - she plans to go to Kitty Stonely's Boxing Day Ball and wants them to work until 1.00am with no extra money. Eddie Duncan asks Bet out on a date for the same night and Cyril also has tickets for him and Betty to go out. Albert sulks that Ken is going to Glasgow. Maggie tells Ena and Minnie about Ken's trip and they find out that Albert has no choice but to spend the festive season with Beattie. Stan tries to get hold of Hilda's Christmas club money from Maggie but she refuses. Annie tells Nellie and Kitty she can't go to the ball as her staff need her. Stan sells the cocktail bar in order to buy drinks for Christmas. Hilda is pleased at his enterprise. Ena takes Albert in for Christmas when it's obvious he doesn't want to go to Beattie's. Annie hears that the chief guest at the ball will be naval officer Lt Commander Gerald Prince. A Salvation Army band plays outside the Rovers. Elsie refuses to let Alan in the house.
Cast[]
Regular cast[]
- Lucille Hewitt - Jennifer Moss
- Bet Lynch - Julie Goodyear
- Betty Turpin - Betty Driver
- Stan Ogden - Bernard Youens
- Hilda Ogden - Jean Alexander
- Elsie Howard - Patricia Phoenix
- Alan Howard - Alan Browning
- Albert Tatlock - Jack Howarth
- Annie Walker - Doris Speed
- Maggie Clegg - Irene Sutcliffe
- Minnie Caldwell - Margot Bryant
- Ena Sharples - Violet Carson
Guest cast[]
- Eddie Duncan - Del Henney
- Dave Smith - Reginald Marsh
- Nellie Harvey - Mollie Sugden (Credited as "Nelly Harvey")
- Kitty Stonely - Stella Moray
- Charlie - George Malpas
Places[]
- Coronation Street
- Rovers Return Inn - Public/snug
- 11 Coronation Street - Back room/kitchen
- Corner Shop
- Community Centre flat - Living room
- Canal Garage
- Robin Hood - Bar
Notes[]
- Doris Speed as Annie Walker was only seen in the filmed sequences at the Robin Hood pub, made as part of the major Christmas 1971 four-episode location shoot, and not in any studio scenes.
- Some three years before making her debut as Vera Duckworth, Elizabeth Dawn appears as an extra in scenes in the Rovers. This is her first identified appearance in the programme.
- The end credits to this episode are set against a band performing outside the Rovers, with their performances of God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen and O Little Town of Bethlehem in place of the usual theme tune, carrying on from the final scene where Alan Howard forlornly watches them (pictured above). This scene was OB recorded on the Grape Street set.
- TV Times synopsis: Separation - frustration - capitalisation - organisation.
- Viewing Figures: First UK broadcast - 7,350,000 homes (5th place).
| December 1971 episodes |
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