Episode 392 (14th September 1964)

Plot

Everyone has returned to their homes for the evening. Hilda continues to nurse Florrie. She's introduced to Tickler Murphy, the Irishman whose pay packet Florrie found and sent back to him. He's come over to thank her in person for her honesty. Jack is laid up in bed with rheumatism. Annie buys a round on the house to celebrate the Rovers not being destroyed by the bomb. Albert is nervous that Wormold will want to know why he was lifting the yard flags in the first place. Elsie wonders where Dennis has got to. Hilda buys a bottle of Irish whiskey for Tickler from the Rovers and Stan steps in to deliver it, supposedly to save Hilda's feet. Tickler tells Florrie that he plans to stay in England until he has made his fortune. He shocks her by suggesting he moves in. Stan meets Tickler and takes up his offer of a glass of the whiskey. Florrie cheers up at the company. Hilda finds Trevor has returned after being missing during the bomb scare, working on his latest business deal. Tickler goes with Stan to explain his absence after the two make large inroads into the whiskey, but his real intention is to blag a supper from Hilda. Irma helps Annie close up for the evening. Annie checks the till and finds that £2/4/7 in silver is missing. Stan arranges for Minnie to meet Tickler to see if she has room for another lodger. She's duped into it when Tickler offers to sleep on a park bench instead. Hilda is outraged to find out that Annie has questioned Irma about the missing money. Charlie agrees to Tickler sharing his room, sleeping on an inflatable bed. Stan questions Annie who assures him she has no firm suspicions about Irma and is keeping an open mind. Florrie has to dissuade Hilda from confronting Hilda. She's grateful for what she's done for her and tells her to help herself to a couple of packets of cigarettes, but Hilda discovers the stock is missing. They realise someone went on the rampage during the bomb scare. Tickler cons Charlie into sleeping on the airbed. He reveals he has a wad of notes in his pocket and offers Charlie a cigarette from his packet.

Cast

Regular cast

• Annie Walker - Doris Speed
• Albert Tatlock - Jack Howarth
• Minnie Caldwell - Margot Bryant
• Elsie Tanner - Patricia Phoenix
• Florrie Lindley - Betty Alberge
• Len Fairclough - Peter Adamson
• Charlie Moffitt - Gordon Rollings (Credited as "Charlie Moffit")
• Hilda Ogden - Jean Alexander
• Irma Ogden - Sandra Gough
• Stan Ogden - Bernard Youens

Guest cast

• Trevor Ogden - Jonathan Collins
• Tickler Murphy - Patrick McAlinney

Places

• Rovers Return Inn - Public
• 5 Coronation Street - Charlie's bedroom and landing
• 13 Coronation Street - Back room and hallway
• Corner Shop - Shop and back room

Notes

• Len Fairclough paraphrases the full title of the 1964 film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb when he jokes with a worrying Albert Tatlock that ought to sell his story to the Sunday papers with the headline "How I earned to accept it and lived with the bomb."
• H.V. Kershaw began the second of his eight stints as producer with this episode, leaving the role on this occasion with Episode 429 on 20th January 1965.
• From Episode 172 (6th August 1962) to Episode 459 (5th May 1965) the programme featured a standardised cast list for the regular characters. This means that in this episode the following were credited but did not appear: Jack Walker (Arthur Leslie), Ena Sharples (Violet Carson), Lucille Hewitt (Jennifer Moss), Valerie Barlow (Anne Reid), Kenneth Barlow (William Roache), Miss Nugent (Eileen Derbyshire), Dennis Tanner (Philip Lowrie) and Mr Swindley (Arthur Lowe).
• TV Times synopsis: Tickler Murphy settles in, and money is missing in the Street
• Viewing Figures: First UK broadcast - 8,150,000 homes (1st place).