Becky Swain’s (Amy Cudden) Coronation Street story is utterly nuts. I say that with deep affection – and as someone who wrote for Hollyoaks for seven years.
An undercover cop. Faking her death to escape the wrath of Spanish gangsters. Threatening and hospitalising the corrupt D.I Costello (Daon Broni) who helped her pull the whole thing off. All to win back the affections of her ex-wife Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers) and daughter Betsy Swain (Sydney Martin) by ousting Carla Connor (Alison King) from their home. That sounds like a Netflix Original, not Coronation Street.
But it is Coronation Street, and maybe that’s why seeing such a bonkers, heightened, gothic Sunset Beach style story within the grounded, everyday environs of the Cobbles has made the ‘Psycho Swain’ Saga such a joy to watch.
Viewers have howled and groaned at their screens to see Becky play on Lisa’s sympathies and pull the wool over her eyes, until a frustrated Carla could take no more and finally called time on Swarla.
However, Carla still loved Lisa and didn’t give up without a fight. Teaming up with cobbles cobber Kit Green (Jacob Roberts), the unlikely detective duo were determined to prove that Becky was behind the attack which hospitalised Costello…only they couldn’t. Because there was no proof.
Giving up all hope, Carla gave up on Lisa and departed Weatherfield for a last minute holiday in the sun…
…or did she? Because this is Soapland. And the one ingredient this off-the-wall story needs is a dash of Gone Girl. With Carla out of the picture, a heartbroken Lisa resigns herself to her loss and finally accepts Becky’s proposal to move to Spain with Betsy and start afresh. Kit, on the other hand, thinks Carla’s sudden radio silence is suspicious, and does some digging to track her down.
See what I mean? Brilliantly bananas, right? Alongside Todd Grimshaw’s (Gareth Pierce) domestic violence nightmare, Debbie Webster’s (Sue Devaney) battle with dementia, and David (Jack P Shepherd) and Shona Platt’s (Julia Goulding) difficult pregnancy dilemma, the Ballad of Becky Swain has been a welcome addition to our evenings and a much-needed spot of tonal variety.
But all good things must come to an end, and it seems Becky’s revenge against Carla is finally reaching its climax in the epic hour-long soap crosser Corriedale, where the lives of the Coronation Street residents and Emmerdale villagers collide – literally!
A deadly crash on the road will mean death for at least one major character, and those who survive will never be the same again.
After getting a tip off about where Becky’s car was last seen, Kit makes a shocking discovery which finally leads him to Carla. After a relieved reunion, the duo realise that Becky is heading for Rotterdam and set off in hot pursuit.
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As the car speeds towards the port, Carla makes a frantic call to Lisa. When Lisa takes the call, a distracted Becky realises who is on the phone and takes her eye off the road…with catastrophic consequences.
Not just for Becky, either. The road will be full of dangers that night. Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank) is driving a busload of Weatherfield residents back from Debbie and Ronnie Bailey’s (Vinta Morgan) wedding including his ex Todd and his abusive boyfriend Theo Silverton (James Cartwright) who’s just waiting to unleash his jealous rage.
Not only that, but drunken Carl Webster (Jonathan Howard) is behind the wheel of a car again, keen to disappear after the dramatic events of his sister’s wedding.
Meanwhile not far from Emmerdale, Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) is driving Sarah Sugden (Katie Hill) and Jacob Gallagher (Joe-Warren Plant) to the airport with a frantic Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins) and Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb) in pursuit – possibly because Charity’s secret that their surrogate baby is actually the result of her fling with Ross Barton (Michael Parr) may have just been revealed?
Will Becky have her revenge against Carla…or pay the ultimate price?