CORONATION Street must have been thanking their lucky stars when they secured Paula Lane to play
their feisty new character Kylie Turner back in 2010.
The brassy troublemaker arrived in Weatherfield without a care in the world as the estranged half-sister
of Becky McDonald, played by acting heavyweight Katherine Kelly.
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Within weeks of making her debut, the soap had moulded Kylie into a personality you loved to hate.
Although she was willing to sell her son for £20,000, her masked vulnerability proved there was more to her than just a lousy money-motivated mother.
With her fantastic acting talent, it was no surprise that the soap quickly shifted their focus from Kylie just being Becky’s half-sister and a bit of a bad girl to place her at the centre of arguably the ITV soap’s most prominent families of the last few decades – the Platt’s.
When Kylie and David first revealed they were engaged, many fans thought the writers were nothing short of bonkers but the unlikely duo comfortably held the title of Weatherfield’s most formidable, and memorable, couples for six years.
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In 2016, Paula opted to leave the soap and her character was brutally killed off in gripping scenes.
Fast forward eight years and Emmerdale fans could not believe their luck when it was revealed Paula had signed up to the cast to play a mystery new character Ella Forster.
The hype was huge and Ella’s hidden secret was built up by bosses and teased as one of the soap’s most dramatic moments of the year.
But, they might as well have not bothered as Ella’s episodes couldn’t have been any more boring if they tried.
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What could have been the chance to debut a potentially iconic Emmerdale character has fallen embarrassingly flat for the soap.
We all know Paula can act the hell out of a scene when needed so why have the writers only had Ella moaning and mooching around the village for the past six months.
Ella Forster’s secret revealed in Emmerdale – and it’s more horrifying than anyone imagined
First of all, her ‘big secret’ turned out to be the most underwhelming so-called twist that Emmerdale have produced for a long time.
For the soap that is the best at keeping things under cloak and dagger, it wasn’t even worth the bother when it came to Ella being outed as a child killer.
Fans just did not care about the fact she had killed another child years ago.
Nobody knew Ella 20 years ago, nobody knew Ella’s victim or her family, nobody knew that Ella claimed she was a reformed and rehabilitated murderer – and often when nobody knows, quite frankly, nobody cares!
She has also been paired with Dr. Liam – the unlikely heartthrob who has just about managed to have sex with every single, and no so single, villager in the Dales.
Whilst Jonny McPherson can pull out a great performance as Liam when needed, being paired with him has done Ella no favours as she is now simply just an add-on to his persona.
I feel for Paula, she is a phenomenal actress oozing with talent and I was so excited to see her every night on the TV screens again but it just feels as though she simply hasn’t been given anything worthwhile to do.
Whilst Kylie Platt had cemented herself as one of Corrie’s greatest assets within six months, the reputation of Ella’s in the same time frame is that of being the worst and most boring character to arrive in the Dales in almost a decade.
Even John Sugden, played by another great ex-Corrie star Oliver Farnworth, has proved more enjoyable and captivating to watch in just a week on screen compared to dreary Ella.
Nobody will ever forget Paula’s award-worthy performance of Kylie in the 2015 live episode of Coronation Street when she whacked her ex Callum Logan over the head with a hammer, instantly killing him.
She was by far the stand-out performer in the hugely publicised hour-long special and it was in that moment that Kylie was confirmed to be going down in the history books.
Even to this day, Kylie is often referenced on the show proving testament to her legacy that bosses know eight years down the line that Corrie audiences would instantly know who is being referred too.
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Yet, I fear, if Paula was to opt to quit the Dales this year, it would only take a week before people would be asking…
“Who’s Ella again?”
Forgotten soap storylines
The nation’s soaps have had many gripping storylines play out over the years. However, some plots proved to be far less memorable. Here are some forgotten stories from Weatherfield, Walford and more…
Coronation Street
- Ken and Audrey’s romance (2015): After the death of wife Deirdre (Anne Kirkbride), Coronation Street original Ken Barlow (William Roache) started to move on in his life. He started to develop a spark with old friend Audrey (Sue Nicholls), with then-Corrie boss saying it would be like “Ross and Rachel”. In the end, nothing ever came of it and the two remained platonic pals.
- Beth’s bigamy (2016): Despite being happily married to Kirk (Andrew Whyment), a troubling secret came to light about Beth Tinker (Lisa George). It transpired that she had never divorced from her first husband, Darryl (Paul Loughran), father of her son Craig (Colson Smith). Although Craig and Kirk were shocked – and Beth was arrested – the storyline didn’t didn’t go much further.
EastEnders
- Kat Slater’s secret son (2017): Capitalising on the popularity of Kat (Jessie Wallace) and Alfie (Shane Richie), the two received a spin-off back in 2017. Titled ‘Redwater’, it saw the two travel to Ireland where they met long-lost son Luke, now called Dermott Dolan, played by Oisín Stack. Despite the high-tension events during Redwater, Kat seems to have put the experience behind her as Dermott’s not been mentioned since.
- Alfie’s brain tumour (2015): Having learned in 2015 that he had a brain tumour, Alfie kept the news from Kat until their trip to Ireland. At the time, actor Shane Ritchie revealed fans would see a change in Alfie as he battled the illness. It would appear that at some point after leaving the Square, was told the tumour was non-malignant. By the time Alfie returned in 2022, fans were left confused over what had happened to the storyline.
- Kathy and Buster’s affair (2016): In 2016, Walford legend Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) fell into the arms of convict Buster Briggs, played by Karl Howman. Buster was the long-time lover of Shirley Carter (Linda Henry) and fathered both her sons – Mick (Danny Dyer) and Dean (Matt Di Angelo). When Buster left, he begged Kathy to join him, but she refused for the sake of her family. Meanwhile Buster didn’t even stop to say goodbye to Shirley before exiting with a broken heart. Fans expected a showdown between the two women, but this never came to pass.
Emmerdale
- Jacob’s OCD (2016): After his dad, David (Matthew Wolfenden), was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2016, Jacob (Joe-Warren Plant) developed Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). This manifested in the form of cleaning. Jacob’s OCD made a brief return one year on, after David had another scare after finding a lump. Jacob frantically searched the bins for a “lucky coin” that had accidentally been thrown away. Despite stressful situations – such as being groomed by his teacher Maya, losing his fiancee Leanna to a serial killer, dealing with mum Leyla’s drug addiction, and surviving a stabbing – the condition doesn’t appear to have returned.
- Marlon and Charity’s fling (2003): Few fans would likely remember few will remember the one-night stand between Charity (Emma Atkins) and Marlon (Mark Charnock) in 2003. The pair slept together when Charity was staying with Marlon while still under suspicion for husband Chris’s supposed “murder”.
Hollyoaks
- Alex Browning’s revenge plot (2014): Fans expected a confrontation when Dr Browning’s son Alex (Ojan Genc) mer stepmum Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe). After all, Mercedes, with Cindy Cunningham (Stephanie Waring) and Lindsey Butterfield (Sophie Austin) had murdered Alex’s dad, double-murderer Dr Paul Browning, after he kidnapped and attacked his new wife. In fact, the soap teased Alex would seek revenge for his father’s death upon arriving. However, he instead gave Cindy’s son Hilton (his half-brother) a life-saving transplant, became his godfather, and leaving the village soon after.
