"There's the four thousand I owe you, plus a thousand compensation..."

Corrie time again, then. Despite its success at the NTV Awards, it hasn't been the most amazing of eras lately, but it's picking up again. Observations I would have right now include...

1: The "Sylvia falls for over-tanned American" storyline was absolute garbage, and I'm glad it's over.

2: Becky will be missed for a very, very long time. In terms of providing the character of the troubled, feisty, demonised young woman that Coronation Street always needs, there isn't another candidate on the cobbles at all.

3: Brian is very funny, but Julie gets right on my nerves.

4: The actress who plays Lesley the Alzheimers sufferer is playing a blinder.

5: Nobody cares that Rosie Webster has gone, and the storyline leading to her exit was suitably useless and vacuous.

6: With the show about to move to the MediaCity complex in Salford, it's no wonder that suddenly characters are making references to their Salford "heritage" in scripts.

7: Since when has Gail been seen drinking too much? It was always a "port and lemon for Phyllis and an orange juice for me" in her days of having a quick one after a day's work at the cafe. There's rarely a bottle of wine open at home, she's never drunk spirits and I can't recall any past storyline which has shown her roaring drunk. Suddenly though, she's a borderline alcoholic who is stealing her mum's gin during the day...

8: Nigel Havers is ace squared. Hope he's back for a good while. Though it's a surprise that he hasn't (yet) been told that Audrey has since seen off a wine-loving transvestite since he did one to the Caribbean.

9: Tina can't be only just 21, surely? It feels like she's been in the show forever, and in a good way. Time for her and Tommy to do the business. They would threaten to be the best looking couple in Corrie history if so.

10: I'm sure it's in the pipeline, but at any point is there going to be an acknowledgement that Betty isn't coming back?