Brian Packham is delivering newspapers because The Kabin’s regular paperboy is off sick with a tickly cough. ‘Neither rain nor snow nor heat,’ Brian says to Mary Taylor, quoting ironically from the unofficial motto that describes the dedication of the US Postal Service. The phrase is taken from Herodotus’s 430 BC work The Histories, where the Greek historian wrote about the speedy couriers of the Persian Empire. You just can’t get the staff these days. ‘Balderdash,’ says Mary. Brian is baffled, until she explains the riposte she promptly delivered was an invitation to a board game session.
Carla Connor’s workforce at Underworld are wondering how she’s getting on at the private psychiatric hospital. Beth Sutherland and tact are strangers to each other, so it’s no surprise when she calls it a mental asylum. Sarah Barlow stresses that it isn’t Carla Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. Later, Stephen Reid lets everyone know the American deal has fallen through, minus the sordid details. Michel Bailey is sanguine about it. ‘All pendulums swing back. Be patient,’ he says, drawing inspiration from the words of Dragons’ Den investor Stephen Bartlett.
In a labour-intensive episode, Paul Foreman is doing some filing work at Barlow Legal Services. Dee-Dee Bailey asks how it’s going and he admits he expected a tad more glamour. Mike Ross from the US legal drama Suits was his benchmark, but Dee-Dee suggests Better Call Paul as a binge-watch. At the planned Balderdash binge, Brian and Mary are instead playing the Italian card game Scopa (‘The literal translation is “sweep”,’ he explains). Brian’s DNA ancestry test has revealed he’s eight per cent Italian, so he’s chasing la dolce vita. He’s also 28 per cent Scottish, but sweeps that under the carpet.
Coronation Street episode 10914/15. Originally aired 29th March 2023.
