Corriedale: FIVE STARS

Rating:

When you consider that the village of Emmerdale was once devastated by a plane crash, while Coronation Street’s Weatherfield survived a tram disaster, having the residents of both encounter one another on the Transpennine road is hardly far-fetched.

Throw into the mix the fact that most characters have been kidnapped, in a coma and/or unwittingly married to a serial killer at some point, you could say it’s positively humdrum.

However, Corriedale, where the rival northern soaps joined forces in a dramatic one-hour special, was anything but dull. Instead, it provided explosive, groundbreaking drama that more than lived up to the hype.

In recent weeks both soaps – the Manchester-based Corrie, now 65 years old, and the 53-year-old Emmerdale, set in the Yorkshire Dales – have been teasing us with subtle clues about their temporary merger. 

At Weatherfield Police Station, a wanted poster of Emmerdale serial killer John Sugden was on display. Over in Emmerdale, wedding planner Belle Dingle was organising the nuptials of Debbie Webster from Coronation Street.

The action unfolded on a dark, windy road where assorted characters were in assorted cars. Nobody was out for a leisurely drive.

There was Emmerdale’s Charity Dingle, pregnant and supposedly acting as a surrogate for her granddaughter Sarah. 

She was being driven at speed by her husband Mac, who had discovered the baby might be his (though it was far more likely to be another bloke’s).

Meanwhile Aaron Dingle had been kidnapped at gunpoint by his killer husband, Sugden.

There was also the minibus full of Corrie revellers heading home after Debbie’s Yorkshire wedding.

Then… disaster! Crash, bam! They all piled into one another. 

As luck would have it, passengers included a paramedic, a medical student and a GP who were able to save the lives of those not out of contract and about to be killed off.

Unlike the BBC’s EastEnders, ITV’s soaps have always thrown humour into the mix and last night’s drama was no exception.

At Emmerdale’s Hotten General, Charity Dingle and Coronation Street’s Carla Connor had an encounter in a lift. Carla confided that she and her injured girlfriend had a ‘big issue’ to deal with.

‘Is it her very bad coat?’ asked Charity in a beautifully timed exchange. If only they’d had more time to chat, they’d have realised how much they had in common. Both bisexual, with seven husbands between them and an array of illegitimate half siblings.

Written by Owen Lloyd-Fox, who’s scripted for both shows, and directed by soap veteran Duncan Foster, Corriedale could so easily have turned into an overblown mess. 

However, it was superbly done with a perfect blend of action, comedy and suspense – every bit as thrilling as TV’s top dramas.