Sally's transformation is completely believable. Even before they turned her into the snob she is now, the seeds have been in place for quite some time. She has always wanted to live on the 'posh' side of the street and sent Rosie to the private school (Oakhill?) around 12-15 years ago, but it has only been the last few years where she has became the character she is now. And I think shes pretty good at it, I love her character at the moment.

Deirdre is also another one that was also believable, she was simply turning into the complete opposite of her mother, probably after years of compensating for her behaviour. And whilst that was going on, she definitely was developing traits of Blanche too.

As for Gail, at times its believable, at times it isn't. Tonight was ridiculous for example, but scenes where she's doing 'normal' things in a comedic way work, e.g. her singing scenes. I also like her character in unintentional comedy scenes when shes putting her foot in it, e.g. when she interrupted the fight between Sally and Anna in the garden to announce that Kylie had given birth. If they made her a little less slapstick, it would come across a lot better and be more relatable to viewers. Everyone knows a 'Sally' and a 'Deirdre', but does anyone really know a 'Gail'?

It's such a shame that Gail has turned into an idiot. Helen worth plays the real Gail very well and if people are ever in doubt look on YouTube to see some of the scenes of her vs ivy in the early 90s.

Gail was a very believable character who had a lot to contend with yet got on in life. Even through to as late as the windass' arrival Gail was a normal and serious character. But the writers seem to have done a very massive u-turn on the character to the point that Gail would go to a cash point and not know what to do for 'comedy effect'.

She should be a character that everyone can relate to, raising a family, being strong in adversity and yet even when life is too much has a cup of tea and gets on with it. Her first husband was stabbed to death, second left her, third tried to kill her and her family, fourth killed himself and the fifth estranged. And where in that did the writers go 'let's make her 'hilarious' so she has longevity!

There was never a point where Gail would become a deadwood character as she is integral to the Platt family and so many other families.

Her friendship with Sally needs to be acknowledged at least once a month, she should go back and work with Roy in the cafe and she should be again taken as a real and naturalistic character not this frigging imbecile we have now! but it's all fine as we have about 10 other characters who more or less do the same job, but Gails an untouchable so until the writers and storyliners take her more seriously then Helen worth will play her as this idiotic being with less common sense than a carrot!

It's insulting to older viewers. Such a shame

It's a bit hit and miss sometimes they go too far, whereas when they changed Sally she has remained spot-on

That's because the dreadful Jonathan Harvey wrote it.

Had it been me - I would have had Gail compare it unfavourly to when she lived there with Elsie and Suzie - obviously it wasn't glam or particularly homely - but Eileen wouldn't know that. Gail could have gotten in quite a few jibes

Gail is acting like somebody in the early stages of Altzheimers. This would make a very good storyline.

It was obviously meant to be one of the great Gail/Eileen clashes, but as people have said, it fell well short of a classic. Let's draw a tactful veil

I don't think Helen Worth is a bad actress. I just think what she's being asked to do is so beyond any recognisable human behaviour or experience, that the only thing she can do is play it for broad comedy, which is not really her thing. Most characters in Corrie suffer the same fate, with characters that lurch from one unlikely extreme to the opposite.

Some of Gail's 'simpering sweetheart' moments set my teeth on edge but mostly I like the character, especially in scenes with David. I think that's due to a documentary which showed them having an affectionate/exasperated mother-and-son type relationship. It seems he's better at the stagecraft, and is always subtly trying to wheel her on to her 'mark' and so on!

BIB - totally agree, Sally's change and development has been slowly happening over a long period of time but only in the last fews years have they stepped her trying to be upper class up a notch which makes it believable and enjoyable.

Whereas, Gail was nowhere this type of character she was a decade ago, even 5 years ago when she was married to Joe. She still had the fighting back power and stood up for what she believed in like during Sarah Lou's pregnancy, Martin's affair or when she was wrongly accused of murder etc. Last night scenes were total cringe especially the chocolate cake scenes.

She gets well paid, indeed, considering her very limited acting ability, and getting worse over the years, she is grossly overpaid.

A joke character played by a joke actress.

For me this is Helen Worth at her best (from 2 minutes 18 seconds onwards):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owcl5aWyMqo

'Tabard' Gail / 'Lost Property Druggie Gail' / 'Borderline mental deficiency Gail' is not a patch on this other character who Helen Worth played for 30 odd years. There is so much fire and complex emotion here - what a great piece of drama. Why has she let them 'devolve' her character into a cardboard cut-out joke?

I think she's a great actress given the right material - it seems to be the dreadful Jonathan Harvey that sends her on this buffoon tangent.

It is so odd you have said that, I was thinking the same thing. Jonathan Harvey definitely has an issue with the character of Gail and blatantly takes the piss out of her in his episodes, or has other characters treat her with derision and mockery. I think it began with the whole Todd-Sarah coming out story where Gail was painted as a quasi-homophobe. Harvey has been on the creative team for about a decade now, presumably making him a fairly influential voice at the story conference. He also has the highest profile away from the show, particularly in the theatre, where he is very well respected. Maybe he is responsible for 'slack-jawed moron Gail' that we have been getting in the 'teenies'?

I find his writing incredibly dull and totally devoid of the type of camp that Corrie is well known for. He dishes it out with the subtlety of a sledgehammer.
I usually have a far wittier and subtle lines in my head when watching one of his episodes. I would love him to leave

I found this interesting. It is a fact that older people become invisable in the eyes of the young. You are passed over and dismissed as not worth talking or listening to. So the writer has decided to turn Gail into a comic character because he just doesn't really want her around anymore. Gail has always had rose coloured spectacles on as far as her family are concerned. She really believes they are perfect despite the dreadful things they have put her through. Eileen on the other hand has no illusions about her brood. She loves them and forgives them, but she also knows they are not perfect. If I had to live in the street I would rather be Eileens friend than Gail's any day.

Gosh yes ....THe change is considerable

Isn't the real problem the fact that Gail has been such a long standing character that now Helen often appears to be just going through the motions. Not, though, the emotions, she is very limited in that area.


She, like the late Anne Kirkbride, was good and compelling at one time but, over the years the essential commitment and performance has, (or had, in Anne's case, sadly), slowly but surely faded away.

Can't always blame the writers, the actors are professional and should be giving 100%, or very near, every time.

I was delighted to see this thread, as this is something I have noticed more and more with Gail. For a time too, I noticed a similar thing happening with Deirdre, before Anne Kirkbride sadly passed away.

"Buffoon Gail" is embarrassing, cringe inducing and frankly, insulting to Gail Platt. There is a difference between mellowing with age and just becoming a simpering, doe eyed, idiot. At present, the character of Gail looks and seems older than Audrey, her mother, who hasn't gone under any such transformation. She isn't as haughty as she used to be, but she's still more or less the same Audrey.

We've had glimpses of Gail's comedic side in the past. In 2004, during that infamous Cobble scrap with Eileen, Gail standing shouting in the Street in her dressing gown was quite humourous. The sight of her shouting to teen mum Sarah "We've nothing to be ashamed of Sarah!!" as she stands roaring in the Street half dressed, wet hair, was classic.

The scene was delivered with some cracking dialogue, as Gail and Eileen went to battle for their respective children. The physical fight was also excellently done. Throughout, Helen Worth delivered some brilliant lines, as did Sue Cleaver.

This was yet another classic scene, of Gail fighting for her family. Head of the family Platt and nobody would mess with her children, who let's face it, were hardly angels.

Fast forward eleven years, Gail has become the child in the Platt house. David and Kylie are the parents, with Gail, Max and Lily as the children. Gail is the dotty, simpering, mother in law. Her ruck with Eileen just the other day was embarrassing. If Blackburn hoped to recreate the infamous 2004 brawl "Oh look, it's the rest of the village people!" he was deadly wrong. And that is down to how Gail is written these days. She starts slagging off the man she married, "forgetting" that she was actually mad at Eileen and trying to win him back.

Some very awkward dialogue thrown in, with Nick later standing over his mother, as she sat shamefaced at the table and gave her a stern rebuke. I half expected Gail to be grounded.

It is a shame really, because Gail is not that old and yes, she's great at the comedy when it's needed. But to be a stock idiot character like Kirk, is insulting to a character who has given such great service and delivered some amazing Corrie moments over the years.

Something I would love to know ( knowing zilch about the acting profession myself) if I ever got the chance to talk to a soap actor, is how much of the 'personality' of their character is down to them as the player of he role & how much is down to the current producer at the time telling them how to play the role!!
In Gail's case she is so completely unrecognisable from the brilliant character she's been for the previous 38 years or whatever that I have to wonder exactly who is responsible for this horrendous change into a character who acts like she's escaped from the nearest mental institution!! Gail has always had a superb 'angry face' but some of her expressions during Monday's episode were more like a vacant stare followed by some forced dialogue, oh and let's pretend to throw a few things as well!! It was AWFUL!!
The worst scene for me though, and one that sums up the 'new Gail' was a couple of months ago with the "...reverse...beep, beep, beep" scene when she was trying to shove Michael's sister back into the house to stop her from seeing Michael!! That scene made me embarrassed for the once wonderful Helen Worth, to be honest!!

The type of comedy Helen does well is delivering humourous lines deadpan in the middle of dramatic circumstances - this is what made lines like "You're Norman Bates with a briefcase" and "Here comes the other one - the rest of the village people" so memorable. (This type of humour also used to be a trademark of Corrie).

The type of slapstick, third rate sitcom forced comedy they've been writing for Gail in recent years is childish and just an insult to the actress and to viewers. Sometimes they just about get away with it - the power walking scenes with Gail and Audrey a few years ago, while contrived, sort of worked as you could see the actresses were enjoying playing it. But when the writers set out to deliberately make Gail the clown of the situation, it just falls flat.

Yes - Gail and Eileen as two matriarchs, strong single mothers protecting their families, battling it out in the Street to defend their children was fascinating. 10 years+ down the line, watching them squabble like a couple of teenagers over a man who's not worth the time of day isn't.

The Gail/Eileen feud is tired and should have been put to rest years ago. They are no Ena and Elsie or Ken and Mike - just two women who fell out over their kids' love lives and who, realistically, would have moved on years ago (the kids did) - but if the writers really want to keep this one going, maybe they should take inspiration from Ena/Elsie and Ken/Mike and reposition them as frenemies as they grow older and wiser.

Watching that scene is actually quite depressing, because is makes you realise exactly how bad current Corrie actually is. I watched that from start to finish like I'd never seen it before, and say what you like about Helen Worths acting, the emotion she delivers as well as the tension you can actually feel in that room is palpable. Even Sarah is unrecognisable! The Platts were a family, like the Websters, who most of us could relate to, yes they would suffer hardships we could never dream of, but they were essentially a 'normal' family struggling with life and we identified with them and sympathised.

I'm afraid to say that Corrie is so unrealistic and contrived now, and the characters so far removed from what they once were, that I cannot relate. Watching Corrie now is like watching a parody of what it once was, it's very disappointing

+1 to all of this, and particularly he piece about whine bag Michael. Two women squabbling because of him, not a chance.

Gail is a character in desperate need of rehabilitation (obviously nothing will happen while Blackburn is still at the helm so Helen Worth will just need to keep her head down till his gone)

She need's to be split up with Les Dennis obviously.... It would be good to see her come back as a business woman again, IMO - Maybe have her come into some money (there's her elderly father who could conceivably leave her a large inheritance ?) and buy half the Bistro or the Rovers or the factory, etc...)

She should also be given the dignity of getting her house back so that she isn't just David and Kylie's lodger.... That way she can start speaking up to her awful brood when they are horrible to her - Especially the ghastly Bethany!!!!

And given how disastrous her love life has been, once Les Dennis is gone she should probably spend 2-3 years without a man... Build her up as a strong woman again and then maybe find a man for her (hopefully not a serial killer, insurance fraudster/drug addict, con man, etc...)

Great points - I agree with everything you have said. It is this idea of 'dignity' isn't it? For some weird reason the Corrie team like to make their long-standing female actresses into figures of cringe comedy when they reach middle-age. In some cases this works ie Sally and her wince-inducing social climbing, but in others it doesn't, like Gail and Deirdre. This is a recent thing, as Corrie was renowned for writing some of the most complex characters on TV for women in middle age, all starting with Elsie Tanner. What on earth has happened? When did 'buffoonery' become a viable option for character development when women reach the menopause? Does anyone else think it is slightly creepy?

Past Corrie is indeed another world entirely.

The script in that clip and the way it was executed is a world away from what they are dishing up now.

It really is very sad indeed

I miss this Gail. Laying down the law, putting David in his place.

Helen Worth is a capable actress (how good was her performance in the two-hander with Brian Capron?), but the writers seem intent her best fit is a jester.

I agree with all the comments so far but it does give a good insight into the mindset of the current writers/production team though doesn't it. Maybe whatever school writers attend have also suffered a fall in standards hence the downward spiral ...