This Hayley storyline is rather bittersweet. She's one of the best Corrie characters in a very long time and it'll be sad to see her go but I'm already loving how the cancer storyline is developing in regards to her relationship with Carla.

Ali King is another great actress and it's always nice to see her softer side. I'm sure we'll have more touching Carla/Hayley scenes before Hayley bows out. I suppose that's one thing to look forward to regarding her exit.

(And of course the Hayley/Sylvia relationship is wonderful too)

I completely agree. They have a very special friendship that is absolutely wonderful to watch - I really loved their scenes together on Monday. Like you said, the storyline is bittersweet because Corrie is losing a very special character so it will be heartbreaking but the story will be beautifully told and the acting will be exceptional. I have no doubt about that.

In recent interviews, Alison King and Julie Hesmondhalgh talked about how much they enjoy working together and they both seem to genuinely love Carla and Hayley's friendship as much as viewers do. So fingers crossed they will have more scenes together throughout this very moving story.

Its amazing really, who would have thought these two would be friends, but they have a huge respect for each other.
I don't think I will ever forget that scene in the factory when Hayley broke down and when Carla realised what this meant.

"it's just yack yack yack with you int' it Cropper?!"

I noticed the other night at the start of the episode Hayley was still calling her Mrs Connor, but by the end of the ep she was calling her Carla.
That was a lovely touch I thought, it fair brought a lump to my throat.

It reminds me of when Sally told Carla about her cancer

Carla is ageing brilliantly as a character.. like a fine wine imo. The scenes with Carla and Hayley have always been watchable but have been quite superb lately.

Good to see Carla's nice side. If she keeps that up, I may get to like her!

I loved their scenes this week - from Carla knowing she has a reputation, to Hayley asking her to live up to it: it was all great viewing. I too noticed the change from Mrs. Connor to Carla, and put it down to Hayley knowing the difference in relationship based on the situation - a work conversation vs two friends talking.

With this and all of the Deirdre friendship starting, Carla could be heading in the right direction. I ca see Alison King staying forever, so maybe she's the new Rita? lol

Sometimes Corrie can set up these unlikely friendships, but if you analyse the characters it is very understandable why Hayley means so much to Carla. She has been a devoted and hardworking employee, she is a completely lovable person, and most of all Carla's relationships with a lot of other women have been defined by Alpha female type conflicts and jealousies over men and power. Hayley is completely unthreatening to Carla. Alison King has done a great job here, it has been great to watch her character turn into something far more complex and nuanced. Julie Hesmondhalgh is fantastic always, I will be really interested to see her future work!

it's no secret that i'm always left so completely mesmerized by Carla Connor/Alison King. she absolutely divine in many ways possible and such a unbelievable actress. Julie Hes also is a brilliant actress and they have such a sweet on/off screen friendship that shines through when they are in scenes together.

one of my favourite friendships on soap atm

Another good line on Friday: "Will you behave? I can see I'm gonna have to ban you from that factory."

Her name is Alison

You dont know her so have no right to call her Ali

The Carla and Hayley scenes have been brilliant.

How do you know the poster does not know her?

My name is Alison but people call me Ali, it's just a shortening of the name that's all.

Maybe if you stop making fake Photoshopped images, passing them off as real and quoting Twitter as the source, people would feel more inclined to listen to you.

Until then, I for one will continue to call her Ali as much as I want.

she sure doesn't mind people calling her ali, most people do and that's what she calls herself

You really need to get out more.

I love the unlikely friendship of Carla and Hayley.

Carla and Hayley's friendship is lovely. It is so unusual but works so well. It was especially sad when Carla broke down in Peter's arms deeply breaking inside but not wanting to show it, it was such beautifully written and Alison King's acting made the scene 10x better. You can clearly see how much they care about one another and I hope Carla is going to continue to be involved in Hayley's exit as they have such a beautiful friendship and both fantastic actresses.

I don't know what else to say but yes, I agree about Carla and Hayley having a fantastic friendship and how brilliant both actresses have been with this storyline.

Hayley is going to be a big loss for the show and I rarely think that way about characters, even ones I enjoy but losing Hayley will be very sad.

It sounds like also a depressing year for Carla now that her friend is going to die and peter will cheat on her around that time

It is truly lovely to see they both have huge respect for each other and the acting is great to see. Haley is one of those characters that you don't realise how good she is until now she is going imo anyway. She will be a huge loss to the show and can't imagine Corrie without her.

I may hate a lot of what Stuart Blackburn and the writers in general have done lately, but this cancer storyline, and the Carla/Hayley friendship especially, is one thing I am thankful to them for. They've always had this wonderful, mostly unspoken respect and understanding for each other, and I was worried that amongst everyone else rallying to help Hayley, Carla would be forgotten about, but I've been pleasantly surprised by all these wonderful scenes we've had lately. Long may they continue!