When I started recapping Corrie almost a whole year ago, I was like the Grinch, leaning against my perch atop Whoville mumbling about, “Why for 53 years, I’ve put up with it now! I must stop another mediocre lesbian soap storyline from coming – but how?”
For months and months I waited for the writers to botch it all up. For Sian to go back to Ryan. For Sophie to disappear. But that’s not what happened at all. Sophie and Sian fell in mad, passionate love with each other, and I fell in mad, passionate love with their story. They made me a believer, is what I am saying. So when we found out Sophie is going to fall off a roof this month, I didn’t worry; I summoned the strength of 10 recappers (plus two), and said, “Bring on the publicity!”
The last week has been a lot like Christmas for Sophie and Sian fans, really. Inside Soap, All About Soap and Soaplife all ran features on Sophie’s pending plummet. Even better than that, though, is Diva‘s cover story and interview with Brooke Vincent and Sacha Parkinson. (What I mean is: In all your wildest shipping dreams, you never imagined the possibility that they’d be photographed together in the bath.)
The interview is one of my favorites ever, actually. The pair talk about the privilege of playing such beloved lesbian characters, about how nice it is to know that they’re doing something that helps people, and about the nearly universal positive feedback from the gay community about their storyline. They even have a little scuffle about who’s going to get to wear what to Sophie and Sian’s eventual wedding because they think their characters are obviously soul mates.
I like this part best:
DIVA: Would you like to see more lesbians on the show? Maybe Sian could get a job at a bar on Canal Street.
Brooke: No…
Sacha: No! It would be good for the characters but for us – we’re selfish, so …
Brooke: We like being the nation’s favourite lesbians!
Sacha is also featured in this month’s Fabulous magazine, where she talks about feeling a special connection to Sian because of her own gay family members, and about how protective she is of her storyline:
I had a taxi driver tell me he thought it was ridiculous that the show felt it needed to grab viewers with the whole lesbian thing. I got angry and told him it was nothing to do with ratings. It’s about two people who have fallen in love. Surely it’s important that soaps are realistic? So many people are going through the same situation – why shouldn’t they be represented on the show? I get very defensive of the plot, I’m really protective over the characters.
In all my time writing for AfterEllen, I’m not sure I’ve ever been prouder of a show or of a pair of actors. So I’m going to dig in and hold onto this warm, fuzzy feeling in my chest – because here’s a promo from this Friday’s episode of Corrie:
Sian’s home from holiday with a new pal, and Sophie’s getting closer and closer to the ledge of that church roof.
How do you feel about the recent publicity for Sophie and Sian’s storyline? Is your heart ready for the fall?
