2 days ago

Georgie DockerNorth West

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Coronation Street’s Julia Goulding said night-time shoots went by quickly because of the dynamic between the two casts on set

Coronation Street star Julia Goulding said working on a special crossover episode with the characters from Emmerdale made the cast feel like they were "one big family".

The worlds of the two major soap operas will collide in "Corriedale", a one-off episode where Weatherfield locals come face-to-face with their Yorkshire equivalents when they are involved in a fatal collision on the M62.

After months of preparation, the hour-long episode will air at 20:00 GMT on ITV1.

Goulding, who plays Coronation Street's Shona Platt, told BBC Radio Manchester it was "great" to work with Emmerdale colleagues, with lots of stunts involved.

Her character plays a key role in the episode in which a minibus crashes with a car on the motorway between Leeds and Manchester.

She said filming involved "a lot of me lying on the floor for about three weeks of night shoots."

"I had a big preganacy bump on, so it wasn't the most comfortable but it was so much fun," she said.

Executive producer Iain MacLeod said the Corriedale special will be a 'really good bit of television, whether you like soaps or not'

Emmerdale's Isabel Hodgins, who plays Victoria Sugden, also spoke to BBC Radio Manchester ahead of her feature in the crossover episode.

She said it had been "surreal" to be a part of the Corriedale team.

"When we heard they were doing it we all wanted to be involved - so I feel extremely privileged that I get to be in it," she said.

The cast are not the only people able to take part in the show, as up until 15 minutes before transmission, viewers are able to get involved in the running order of the special by voting for one of four pre-shot scenes via social media.

ITV

A coach goes up in flames as the centrepiece of the stunt

Iain MacLeod is the executive producer of both Emmerdale and Coronation Street and the mastermind of the operation.

He said it was his unique position, with a foot within each world, that enabled him to bring the "Marvel" style multiverse to life - with a plotline inspired by his commute.

"I was inspired by my hatred of sitting on the M62 between Manchester and Leeds in stationary traffic," Mr MacLeod said.

"That gives you a lot of time to think.

"Once I'd started thinking we might want to blend the two shows, the M62 is kind of the physical connection between the two fictional worlds.

"It was inspired by that, you know, a bunch of people that might otherwise never encounter each other forced into the same space."

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Corriedale stars at a premiere for the episode in Bradford last month

Whilst the episode's premise begins with a car accident, Mr MacLeod said there would also be lighter elements to the special.

"It's also really funny, it's really heartfelt, it's really joyous in places," he said.

"I couldn't be more excited, honestly," he told Radio Manchester. "It's been rattling around my imagination for about a year.

"It's fantastic - I've seen it nine times now and I still get goosebumps.

"Tonight will be the 10th time and yeah I'm just really thrilled with it, hope the viewers like it, and I'm excited to see what the reaction is."

Mr MacLeod also assured fans that there are no current plans to make Corriedale a permanent fixture - squashing rumours that a joint show might replace the original soaps.

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