Inside Soap UK September 19, 2015

Soap goes live again this week, as Corrie beams a dramatic episode from its Salford base directly into our homes! I bloomin’ love live episodes, and all the surprises they bring. There’s a real unpredictability to proceedings, and I don’t just mean the fact that someone could fall over at any minute! This one looks set to be a corker, as Corrie’s Callum – the best Street villain in simply yonks – has a shock showdown with the Platts. We’re lucky enough to have a huge telly in the Inside Soap office (honestly, it’s bigger than my flat!), so for the last couple of live episodes we’ve stayed late in the office, got some booze and food in, and made a proper party of it. (Would it be cheeky to…

The battle between the Platts and evil Callum reaches a shocking climax this week – with the jaw-dropping conclusion playing out in a nail-biting live episode on Wednesday! With Callum threatening to harm the family unless they pay him £20,000, David desperately tries to raise the cash and get the bad boy out of their lives for good. But when David takes matters into his own hands, and plots to play Callum at his own game, events spiral out of control – and everyone is pushed to their very limit… “Every story must come to an end, and what better way than in a live episode?” grins Jack P Shepherd, who plays David. “Kylie and David know that Callum is capable of making good on his threats – we’ve seen…

When soaps go live, it’s unpredictable, exciting and utterly compelling. It’s not the first time stars Jack P Shepherd and Paula Lane (David and Kylie) have been in a live episode of Corrie , but it is the first time their story has been the centre of the action. Understandably, they are taking the whole thing very seriously indeed… How are you feeling ahead of this live episode? Jack I’m so excited! When I did the live episode for the 40th anniversary I was just 12, and I was the first person you saw in the episode. I had to kick a football – and I’ve no ball skills whatsoever! Just before we started, I was messing about and I kicked it and smashed a light. And…

Karma comes a callin’ for ruthless Robert Sugden this week, when he’s gunned down right in the middle of the village! Robert is embroiled in a heated exchange with Chas when a shot rings out of nowhere and he crumples to the ground – a serious bullet wound in his chest. But as horrified Chas clutches his bloodied body and screams for help, which of Robert’s many foes pulled the trigger? TERRIBLE TRUTH This shocking event comes at the end of a week from hell for twisted Robert, after he’s arrested for Katie Sugden’s murder following an emotional confession to brother Andy. The penny finally drops about Robert’s role in Katie’s demise after Andy points the finger at Aaron. As panicked Robert tries to protect his former lover, he ends…

As his callous character’s life hangs in the balance, Ryan is keeping his fingers crossed that Robert hasn’t been written off… “I try not to get involved with what people think of me or my character – but hopefully not everyone sees Robert as a monster, and they empathise with him,” says Ryan. “Maybe he divides opinion – some people hate him, some people love to hate him, or maybe some people feel sorry for him because he’s troubled. He’s a layered character who is very unpredictable, and I’m extremely lucky that the Emmerdale team has trusted me to play him – so I’d like to think there are some people out there who hope that he doesn’t die!”…

Wrongly accused Max Branning cuts a lonely figure in the dock this week, as his trial for the murder of Lucy Beale continues. One by one his loved ones have turned against him, and Max is about to resign himself to life in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. That’s until nervous Jane Beale steps into the witness box and prepares to give a statement… “She just rocks up at the trial and surprises everyone,” reveals Laurie Brett, who plays Jane. “She thinks, ‘Max is my best friend Tanya’s ex-husband, and I can’t possibly let him go down for this’.” Guilty Jane has known from the start that it was actually her adopted son, Bobby, who killed his half-sister. But now that an innocent man looks set to take…