‘An absolute ride!’ Coronation Street boss reveals huge year ahead for Carla Connor and Lisa Swain
It sounds like 2025 is going to be a good year to be a Swarla fan, as incoming Coronation Street boss Kate Brooks has confirmed a long term future for Carla Connor (Alison King) and Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers).
Viewers are still yet to come down from the high of seeing the pair give in to their obvious feelings for one another and, with Carla set to be attacked, there was always going to be the doubt that they could make it through the upcoming turbulence.
After all, a soap loves nothing more than giving us what we want then ripping it right away again!
However, Kate is as invested as everyone in this pairing, and told Metro that Swarla go official, with neighbours finding out about the relationship in the run-up to Christmas.
‘They’ve been circling each other for a while, the attraction is there, the chemistry’s palpable, they’re both very strong, independent, stubborn, brilliant women, and they found themselves drawn to each other,’ the producer, also known for her work on Emmerdale, explained.
‘They are the least likely person that they think this would happen with but they have a connection that they can’t deny, so we will absolutely play their relationship!
‘For Carla, this is quite huge, she’s had a lot of history with men, a lot of failed relationships, a very colourful past and then she’s found herself falling in love with a woman and it completely blows her mind, she doesn’t quite understand it at first but she kind of goes with it.
‘I think it’s important for us to show that, she’s not struggling with her sexuality, she’s very confident in her sexuality, but she has fallen in love with a person that she didn’t expect to fall in love with, and that presents many challenges.
‘Lisa has a lot of barriers up, she’s still grieving for the loss of her wife,she’s so committed to her job and if anyone’s got issues with the relationship, initially it’s Lisa who struggles to let Carla see that vulnerability.
‘You throw in Betsy, who is fabulous and feisty and a pain in many ways but so wonderful, and Carla’s in a completely different world. It’s really interesting watching Carla navigate this because we know Carla, we love Carla, and this is completely alien and unknown and unchartered waters but yet she navigates them really well and it’s just going to be an absolute ride!’
So it seems like we are well past the will they/won’t they side of things, then! And Kate has no plans to start throwing out split twists, either.
She continued: ‘We want to keep them secure, we want to keep them grounded, we want to make that relationship really believable and it is, what I’ve seen on screen is fantastic between the two of them.
At the heart of it is a relationship, it’s a love story and they will, inevitably, get a lot of curveballs thrown their way. 2025 is not a quiet year for themand there are a lot of hurdles that come their way, things that they didn’t quite anticipate that get in the way of their relationship, but ultimately they emerge from this strong and united.
‘I’m really excited to be with this couple on this journey, I think the drama and the story they’ve given us already is immense and there’s going to give us a lot more of that.’
Before we even begin to ponder what that busy 2025 looks and feels like, we’ve got some Christmas warmth to look forward to, with Kate divulging that the festive season looks pretty rosy for the couple – which is surely a culture shock to long suffering Carla!
‘You know what, they are happy during the Christmas period,’ Kate smiled. ‘Carla initially flinches a little bit at the idea of people gossiping, and it’s not about sexuality, but she’s a bit unsure.
‘But once she realises everyone is absolutely fine about it, then it’s all systems go, so Christmas will be when they really commit to each other, when they declare how they feel for each other and when they stop circling each other and touching each other’s hair!’
For Carla, Lisa and Swarla fans, Christmas truly has come early!