As Happy Valley fever continues to grip the UK, with fans loving the conclusion of the BBC One drama, viewers are now comparing the ITV soap Coronation Street to the Sally Wainwright show. The comparisons come after a dramatic armed robbery at the Viaduct Bistro on the cobbles.
On Monday's episode, (February 6) of the soap viewers watched as Nick Tilsley (Ben Price) continued to work with known drug dealer Damon Hay (Ciaran Griffiths). The pair have recently been in business after he agreed to take money from villainous Harvey Gaskell (Will Mellor) in order to fund the Bistro.
This week the restaurant owner took things one step further after he agreed to house an order of drugs in the back of his kitchen safe, despite being unsure about doing so. Later in the episode, armed robbers targeted the bistro screaming "Where are the drugs?" Nick's young son, Sam, was at the Bistro a little more than a year after his mother, Natasha, was shot dead by drugs gangster Harvey Gaskell.
As the dramatic scenes unfolded, fans couldn’t help but compare the soap to the popular BBC One crime drama online. One said: “Jeez, #Corrie seems to have turned into #HappeyValley this evening [shocked emoji].”
Another added: “OMG @itvcorrie I didn’t see this coming! [shocked emoji] My nerves are still shot from #HappyValley last night! #Corrie #MondayDrama.” A third asked: “Am I watching #corrie or #happeyvalley??”
Happy Valley concluded Sunday, February 5, after three series during which Sarah Lancashire's Catherine Cawood dealt with drug dealers, addicts, crime families and, of course, main villain, Tommy Lee Royce, a rapist-murderer-kidnapper.
If you are looking for a new TV show to fill the Happy Valley-shaped void, there is plenty of great TV coming in February 2023. The month kicks off with Nolly on ITVX.
Helena Bonham Carter leads the cast of Russell T Davies' latest show playing the titular character of Noele 'Nolly' Gordon. The show will explore the all-powerful reign, and fall from grace, of the inimitable TV legend Noele Gordon, Queen of the Midlands, a darling of the establishment until it turned on her and betrayed her. Nolly premiered on ITV's new streaming service, ITVX, on Thursday, February 2, and you can read more about it here.
The drama on Coronation Street continues and we'll see if Nick and Leanne continue to put up with Damon's dodgy dealings to ensure they keep their business going.
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