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Should Ken Barlow die on screen?


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Old 05-04-2016, 15:02
Corrie_Fan2
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I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I know Bill Roach has said that he'd stay in the role until he was 120 if they'd have him but would it not be much better for Ken to die on the street, it's the kind of death that would hopefully affect every character in the show and him dying of natural causes in his home would be a fitting end. I'm not saying do it any time, but if Bill Roach's health declines would it not be better to do that than have Ken go somewhere for years. I find it very unlikely he'd leave the street, he belongs their the same way Albert Tatlock talks about in the original series of 13 episodes.
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:02
Callum_Brown
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Maybe. There's a whole generation of characters whose time is coming to the end. Maybe one big car crash with Ken, Rita and Emily?
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:05
ramraideruk
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Maybe. There's a whole generation of characters whose time is coming to the end. Maybe one big car crash with Ken, Rita and Emily?
It would have to be a tram crash.
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:09
Corrie_Fan2
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Maybe. There's a whole generation of characters whose time is coming to the end. Maybe one big car crash with Ken, Rita and Emily?
Absolutely not. Rita could move away realistically, as could Emily (she's just done it).

You'd be hard-pressed to see Ken want to see his days out with Peter, his brother is dead, Tracy's a liability and lives on the street anyway. So it would make sense for Ken to go on the street. If Bill Roach's health does take a decline it would just seem unrealistic for Ken to move, I know they wrote him out for his trial (which you could argue means he would move, he's done it before) but he's lived there his entire life. It would seem odd for a character who's spent his entire life in one space to just leave it behind.
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:16
rollockingbat
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It would obviously be better to get a proper onscreen death for Ken, like Jack Duckworth's for example, but if Bill's still working by then, there's nothing really stopping them doing what they did with Stan back in the 80s - having him become housebound then admitted to hospital before his screen death. That'd save Ken moving away and it would keep the character alive and remembered until they decide to pay tribute onscreen.
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:19
David the Wavid
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Would it make any difference? Some of the off-screen deaths have been the most moving, such as Stan Ogden's.
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:20
J-B
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Yes, soon hopefully.
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Old 05-04-2016, 21:40
callumfreeman
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I just hope when the character does die he passes away while still living on the street.
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Old 05-04-2016, 22:21
sloe_gin
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I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I know Bill Roach has said that he'd stay in the role until he was 120 if they'd have him but would it not be much better for Ken to die on the street, it's the kind of death that would hopefully affect every character in the show and him dying of natural causes in his home would be a fitting end. I'm not saying do it any time, but if Bill Roach's health declines would it not be better to do that than have Ken go somewhere for years. I find it very unlikely he'd leave the street, he belongs their the same way Albert Tatlock talks about in the original series of 13 episodes.
I'm not sure if there is a complex implication here which is easy to miss. Are you suggesting that when the time comes and Bill Roach is in his last moments he should incorporate his own death 'on camera' with that of Ken, so the two pass away simultaneously? Or have I misunderstood this?
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Old 05-04-2016, 22:25
davads
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I'm not sure if there is a complex implication here which is easy to miss. Are you suggesting that when the time comes and Bill Roach is in his last moments he should incorporate his own death 'on camera' with that of Ken, so the two pass away simultaneously? Or have I misunderstood this?
Eek. I hope you have. A "snuff soap" would be of dubious taste!
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Old 05-04-2016, 22:34
Lady Voldemort
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Eek. I hope you have. A "snuff soap" would be of dubious taste!
Imagine if it was a live episode and all
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Old 05-04-2016, 22:36
davads
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Imagine if it was a live episode and all
I'm getting a bit of deja vu about this thread, I'm sure the idea of Ken "dying live" has come up before, though possibly not via the OP (and I'm sure/I hope that's not what they mean in this case...)
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Old 06-04-2016, 09:43
Corrie_Fan2
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I'm getting a bit of deja vu about this thread, I'm sure the idea of Ken "dying live" has come up before, though possibly not via the OP (and I'm sure/I hope that's not what they mean in this case...)
Just to clear this up that is not what I mean at all. Bill Roach should be afforded the decency and privacy to die as he sees fit and off screen, anyone who even considers him and Ken "dying at the same time" wants a ****ing head check, could you imagine being his family watching that .

The character of Ken Barlow is so rooted in the street that it would seem odd for him to move away, although then again in the 60s he had ambitions for Australia and he recently went to Canada to attend to his sick grandson, so it's plausible. You'd expect Ken to die in the street, doing a Stan Ogden with him is difficult because Dierdre is no longer there, the Stan and Hilda stuff worked because they had such a lasting and close relationship. Who would fill the Hilda role? Tracy, who's shown no interest in any human being and isn't actually his daughter? Which is why I suggest killing the character before his health declines, personally I'll never understand why Bill Roach still does Corrie but we'll leave that.

I mean if he and Audrey get together and last a decade or two it might work (but then Bill'd be in his mid 90s to early 100s).
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Old 06-04-2016, 09:53
Zeus89
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I don't mind an offscreen death with Ken. Im not a fan of Bill, but i do admit that would be wrongn for the character. So to kill him onscreen would be huge, it would be a huge momment in soap Genre, and i would love it if we all got to say goodbye to him after nearly a 1000 years.
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Old 06-04-2016, 11:42
sloe_gin
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What would the storyline be though? It has to be appropriate somehow. Could they work in that cat who used to be in the credits in the 80s as a nod to long-term viewers? Maybe he could trip up and smash his cranium on a wobbly cobble? It would be a hard task for ther story team thats for sure.
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Old 06-04-2016, 11:46
Corrie_Fan2
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What would the storyline be though? It has to be appropriate somehow. Could they work in that cat who used to be in the credits in the 80s as a nod to long-term viewers? Maybe he could trip up and smash his cranium on a wobbly cobble? It would be a hard task for ther story team thats for sure.
I think this is one of those occasions where he should just die of old age. No stunts, gimmcks etc. Have his family and friends round him and pass on.
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Old 06-04-2016, 11:52
Zeus89
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I think this is one of those occasions where he should just die of old age. No stunts, gimmcks etc. Have his family and friends round him and pass on.
I agree a bit like Pats death, no stunts just emotion, thats enough for us.
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Old 06-04-2016, 12:25
MR_Pitkin
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Once any character gets to a certain age, unless the actor wants to go, they're very nearly all set up for life. There seems to a bit of a taboo about killing off older characters.
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Old 06-04-2016, 12:29
Zeus89
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Once any character gets to a certain age, unless the actor wants to go, they're very nearly all set up for life. There seems to a bit of a taboo about killing off older characters.
Ken Barlow should be an exception, he has managed to make it to Legend status by basically being the longest serving cast member, but has not had a decent storyline for about 25 years, were he has actually shown us he deserves his legendary status.
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Old 06-04-2016, 13:12
Corrie_Fan2
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Once any character gets to a certain age, unless the actor wants to go, they're very nearly all set up for life. There seems to a bit of a taboo about killing off older characters.
It seems to work the same way as you don't kill of kids. If you're under 18 or over 75 you might get written out but not killed.

Ken Barlow should be an exception, he has managed to make it to Legend status by basically being the longest serving cast member, but has not had a decent storyline for about 25 years, were he has actually shown us he deserves his legendary status.
Emily Bishop is in a similar boat. Her last proper story-line was 2003 (2009 if you count the Jed Stone stuff). Although Eileen Derbyshire is by far and away a superior actor to Bill Roach, hollywood compared to his unique brand of playing himself.

I'll always have a massive respect for the way Eileen Derbyshire has managed to completely maintain a private life and only ever given one out of character interview. Whatever her reasons for doing it it's remarkable. Apparently, it's two now. (but Barbara Knox absolutely dominates that interview, constantly cutting Eileen off).
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Old 06-04-2016, 13:18
FM Lover
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Imagine if it was a live episode and all
December 9th 2020 for the soaps 60th.
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Old 06-04-2016, 13:20
davelovesleeds
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Would it make any difference? Some of the off-screen deaths have been the most moving, such as Stan Ogden's.
Yes indeed. Hilda opening Stan's possessions the hospital had sent her and breaking down when she opened his glasses case can still bring tears to my eyes.
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Old 06-04-2016, 13:26
Andybear
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Yes indeed. Hilda opening Stan's possessions the hospital had sent her and breaking down when she opened his glasses case can still bring tears to my eyes.
Same here, largely because we knew that Jean Alexander was grieving over the death of a beloved friend as well as Hilda grieving over the death of her husband - the tears were all genuine. For anyone who wants to see it (again if you're old enough!) here's a link to a Youtube video of it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXhp1J0Usng
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Old 06-04-2016, 13:29
Corrie_Fan2
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Yes indeed. Hilda opening Stan's possessions the hospital had sent her and breaking down when she opened his glasses case can still bring tears to my eyes.
As I said above, the only way that could be anywhere near as powerful with Ken is if Diedre was still around. It'd just seem odd coming from his murderous step-daughter and his alcoholic bigamist of a son Peter who he packed off to Scotland as a lad.
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Old 06-04-2016, 13:30
James_Langan
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What would the storyline be though? It has to be appropriate somehow. Could they work in that cat who used to be in the credits in the 80s as a nod to long-term viewers? Maybe he could trip up and smash his cranium on a wobbly cobble? It would be a hard task for ther story team thats for sure.
What about him standing at the bar when liz gets desperate, as he reaches for his half pint she lifts the flap and drags him through. In her haste his scarf gets caught on the flap as she slams it down and he is strangled to death because liz won't give up. It would be a fitting end because liz and Ken were always close, not as close as the cheeks of my arse, but close.
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