Inside Soap UK 36 - 2022

We hope you’ve been enjoying our recent Inside Soap Awards themed photo shoots? Some of the prettiest cast of Corrie lay claim to our centre pages this week, and I’m as delighted to see them there as anyone. In fact, ‘relieved’ would be the more accurate word! Photo shoots such as these were just one of the uncountable aspects of the TV and publishing business that had to be put on hold through Covid, and we were rather worried that – like returning to busy trains or the cinema after lockdown – we had lost the knack. Happily, all four soaps generously glammed-up in force to support us, and it turned out to be just like riding a (quite complicated) bicycle. I hope you agree that – whatever your favourite…

First with the week’s HOTTEST headlines Kat’s dream wedding turns into her worst nightmare this week – after she’s caught in the crossfire of Phil’s dealings with DCI Keeble! The ruthless detective puts the hard man in an impossible situation when she orders him to grass on a shock new target. And when torn Phil struggles with her request, Keeble issues a stunning ultimatum: do as she asks, or innocent Kat is going to face the consequences… Kat is trying on her dress when the cops knock on the door” “Phil meets Keeble for a top-secret rendezvous, and she gives him the name of the next person on her hit list,” shares our Albert Square insider. “He’s astonished to learn the identity of the fish Keeble wants to fry –…

BBC1 MONDAY Phil sets off on a trip down memory lane this week, as his war with Keeble triggers a flashback to 1979 – where we learn more about the Mitchell family’s chequered past. Mum Peggy has her hands full running a busy household while the cracks in her marriage to Phil’s dad Eric are beginning to show. Meanwhile, the gangster dad takes Phil and his brother Grant out ‘on a job’, which will explain how the brothers ended up on the wrong side of the law when viewers first met them in 1990. “Everyone knows Phil now as Mr Macho; a gangster that is feared by many – but it’s his journey from a teenage boy that made him that way,” explains actor Daniel Delaney, who plays young Phil.…

There are violent scenes on the cobbles this week, as a group of Toyah’s mates stage a rowdy protest outside Underworld – and Craig is injured when one of the rabble hurls a weapon! It’s after Toyah’s new pal Griff hears that Carla is about to do a deal with a dodgy local businessman that he mobilises the protesters, who set up camp outside the factory. But when the demonstration turns nasty, terrified Toyah is caught up in the ensuing chaos… “Toyah was hoping for a peaceful protest, not a full-on riot!” gasps our cobbles spy. “She’s heard about this guy Nadeem’s shady business practices, and she agrees that he needs to be stopped. But Griff’s brutish actions make him just as bad as the man he’s protesting about.” Griff…

Toyah and Spider make their romance official this week – little realising that Imran’s furious mum Saira has caught them in the act! As Spider reveals that he’s in love with Toyah, and commits to a future with her, the pair celebrate with a steamy kiss on the balcony of Leanne’s flat. But as Saira watches from the cobbles below, she becomes more convinced that Toyah killed her son to be with Spider! “The way Saira sees it, this is proof positive that Toyah murdered Imran!” splutters our Corrie insider. “She’s long suspected that the car crash was no accident, but instead some wicked plot by Toyah to get her husband out of her life for good. As far as Saira is concerned, she now has all the evidence she…

This is the moment that confused Faith goes to clobber Cain with a frying pan – as she sadly edges ever closer to losing her battle with cancer. Faith starts the week as the madcap mum we know and love, plotting a harebrained scheme to spend time with her grandchildren. But when Cain faces the task of discussing Faith’s final wishes with her, the conversation pushes his mum over the edge… “Faith is so distressed that she thinks that Cain is his late father, Shadrach,” explains our Dales insider. “It’s clear that she is suffering a hallucination as a result of her illness, and terrified Cain is powerless to help.” At the start of the week, Faith is already struggling. She’s in denial about dealing with the effects of her…