Coronation Street confirms chaos as lives are changed forever in special Debbie episode

Conversations get deep (Picture: ITV) There’s a special episode of Coronation Street coming on Monday. We here at Metro absolutely love anytime Debbie’s (Sue Devaney) angels come together on screen, so naturally, we’re already anticipating next weeks offering when we’ll be given an entire episode dedicated to them, as they take centre stage for a long night of the souls. Debbie wrangles her girl gang of matriarchal Northern Queens as she looks to put together a special present for son Carl Webster’s (Jonathan Howard) 40th birthday. When asked how easy it is to keep Coronation Street’s legacy of strong female characters alive, Corrie boss Kate Brooks said: ‘It’s easy to do when you’ve got women like this to work with. ‘It’s easy to do because there’s some incredible actors on the show, we’ve got incredible female writers on the show, incredible female directors. ‘What makes Corrie for me so special and, growing up on Corrie, are these really strong, northern, funny, complicated, messy women who you know and love. Inviting Abi Webster (Sally Carman), Christina Boyd (Amy Robbins), Bernie Winter-Alahan (Jane Hazlegrove), Glenda Shuttleworth (Jodie Prenger) and Sally Metcalfe (Sally Dynevor) over for the evening, she empties a box of old photographs all over the floor. The goal? To collate a picture book for Carl to celebrate his 40 years of living, something she’ll struggle to do alone, hence calling in the big guns! While the art and craft-ness of it all is eventually a fun bonding experience for the women, it isn’t long until issues among the group begin to surface, and the tension surrounding them starts to rise. Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. How did the episode come about? ‘It came about in a story conference,’ Kate said. Debbie has a project for her angels (Picture: ITV) ‘I like telling special episodes, I like trying to make it really character focused and character driven. ‘I know how special this friendship group is on screen, it’s just electric, I thought, let’s dedicate a whole episode to these women and these stories, there’s no stunts, there’s nothing like that. ‘This is just about their relationship with each other, with the outside world, and a little snapshot into what it’s like when you’ve got that female friendship group.’ Of course, each member of the gang have their own private battles they’re facing. Debbie is currently battling with vascular dementia, something that has impacted her life in immeasurable ways as she faces her mortality, while also coming to terms with the fact that her condition is terminal and will ultimately end her life. Girls night gets underway! (Picture: Danielle Baguley/ITV) Abi’s life was thrown into abject chaos when she entered into an affair with Carl, destroying her home life with husband Kevin Webster (Michael Le Vell) as she pledged her future to the since-reformed worst Webster, completely unaware he was only really in it for the ilicit sex, eventually binning her off. Christina has dealt with her past coming back and slapping her around the face recently, learning that the daughter she gave up for adoption so long ago had been murdered by her husband, Richie (Nathan Sussex), with her granddaughter Lucy (Anya Dewin) now living across the street with Richie’s cousin Tim Metcalfe (Joe Duttine) and fellow angel, Sally. Speaking of Sal’, she’s struggled immensely with Lucy’s behaviour, with the traumatised young girl going out of her way to make Sally’s life as difficult as possible, including accusing her of mistreating her and forcing an investigation by social services. Bernie learned recently that a faulty BRCA gene runs in her family, leaving them more pre-disposed to various forms of cancer, something she’s had to face with her son Kit Green’s (Jacob Roberts) breast cancer diagnosis and the testing faced by the other members of the family, confirming she also carries the gene. Glenda’s story has seen her seek romance, yet have it stay at arm’s length from her, something she’s struggled with as the other members of the group have all found love in various forms. So, with a plethora of issues within the framework of the squad, some intermingling, it seems that a gathering is a prime setting for a firework or two to go off. Past trauma, family history and fraught relationships are brought up as they descend into squabbles, and the celebratory mood is in major threat of being entirely killed. Though some of the group find true comfort in sharing their issues with friends, receiving love and support in return, others realise that they’re faced with enormous decisions to make and battles that lie ahead. Though tensions soon rise… (Picture: Danielle Baguley/ITV) By the end of the night, the women stand united – much to our relief – and pledge their allegiance to one another, but it’s clear that some of them have some major obstacles to come, and choices that they can only make alone. Sally Dynevor spoke on how it feels to be a part of this legacy: ‘It’s really beautiful to capture something like that on screen. So we all feel like that.’ Sue added: ‘I’m doing an episode of all women with my mates, it’s just amazing. I’m doing it with my best mates as well.’ Sally gushed: ‘You know when birds fly in a formation, there’s always one at the front, and there’s always one at the back, supported by the ones at the front, it felt like that. ‘It felt like I was at the back just watching these powerhouses smash it. And I got to be a little part of it. I couldn’t have been happier.’ For her own part, Amy said: ‘Doing this episode, it’s like coming home: you sit around, you say your lines, but in between, we’re playing fantasy dinners. ‘Then we were playing sing your theme tunes from your childhood. It’s not like work. It’s one of the best things ever.’ …and difficult conversations are had (Picture: Danielle Baguley/ITV) Jodie added: ‘I think it’s vital. I grew up with these women, and we watched these women to make us feel seen in a way. ‘I love it when you see women who are flawed, who are funny, who are brave, who are silly, who are heartbroken, I think it’s so vital. ‘Floods and fires and everything and car crashes are great, but I think to these women, that’s their issue going on, and I think it’s vital to tell these stories because it’s just a beautiful thing in a very traumatic way.’ We can’t wait! Deals of the Day Cold mornings are coming and this is the dressing gown I want to live in We're adding this discounted NEOM gift set straight to basket Want an LED face mask for less? 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