Corriedale airs 5 January 2026 at 8pm on ITV1
The upcoming Corriedale crossover is set to be one of the most ambitious events in soap history. In a new interview, Sue Devaney, who plays Debbie Webster, shared what it was like to bridge the gap between Weatherfield and the Dales.
From night shoots to high-octane stunts, Sue revealed why this ‘groundbreaking’ episode felt more like a Hollywood blockbuster than a typical day on the cobbles.
For the cast, stepping out of their usual routine was a major highlight. When discussing her reaction to joining the Corriedale lineup, Sue’s enthusiasm was clear: ‘I was thrilled. I was so thrilled. I’ll tell you why: because when we’re filming Corrie, we come to work, we come to the studio every day. Corriedale was on location. It was also being with Emmerdale. It was being with a new crew, a director who works between the two.
But it was exciting because we were doing night shoots, working with different cameras. We were on location and we were all staying in a hotel.
So it was like, “Oh, I’m on my holidays!” It was really good fun and it was exciting because it’s something fun to do. And also with all the stunts. It felt like doing a little movie or something.’
The drama escalates when Debbie and Carl make a frantic exit from the wedding. Sue explained that Debbie’s decision to jump into the car was born out of a mix of desperation and concern: ‘Yeah, because she doesn’t want Carl to leave. She doesn’t want Carl to leave the wedding. And also he’s drunk. So she doesn’t want him to drive off. She jumps in the car. That’s sensible.
Well, she jumps in the car thinking, “Well, you can’t go anywhere if I’m in the car.” And he thinks, “Well, I’m going somewhere,’ and carries on driving far too fast.’
While some actors might prefer a stunt double, Sue Devaney was eager to get involved in the action. Reflecting on her history with high-energy sequences, she shared a behind-the-scenes moment from the set: ‘If I wasn’t an actor, I would have loved to have been a makeup artist or a stuntwoman. I always loved stunts. I like doing my own stunts. So when I was a paramedic in Casualty, I used to like drive the ambulance really fast and do as many of my stunts as I could. Yeah. So on this, I was just getting excited, beside myself.
And there was one, there was one scene where Carl had to drive off really fast and they had a dummy for me, you know, with the hair and feathers in the hair and everything. And I said to our director, “Can I not speed off with the stunt guy?” And he said, “Yeah, go on then.” He let me do it! Just for the excitement of getting into the car and driving off really fast. Amazing.’
The fallout from Corriedale is sure to leave a lasting impact on Debbie Webster. Looking toward the future, Sue hinted that the road ahead remains rocky: ‘Well, it’s not going to be plain sailing. She’s going to be married, which she is very excited about. But I think there’s going to be some massive reveals, things that we didn’t know about Debbie, and also quite a bit of reflection.’
Catch up on ITVX, and for classic visits to Corrie, these episodes air weekdays on ITV3 as well as on YouTube.
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