Yes, he did.
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Yes, he did.
I think she's referring to the relationship situation between Paul and Lesley, and the possible affair. I don't remember a soap affair when one person is married to an Altzheimer's sufferer.Quote:
Originally Posted by parkerman
Interview with Tony Hirst
It’s a beautiful, hot, bright summer day in Manchester. In October! As if those two freaks of nature are not enough to confuse me, I’m about to film a scene putting up Christmas decorations. Christmas already?! It’s mine and Sue Cleaver's (Eileen) first day back after a couple of weeks off. Sue has been away on her hols and returns tanned, blossoming and bursting with stories of her Safari adventure.
As she sits in the make up chair, we try in vain to run through the lines of our scene but tall tales of her walking with elephants are far too great to wait. Besides her glowing looks and amazing stories, I think she may well have got very close to the elephants indeed, because I’m sure I can still smell their scent on her. She has literally just got off the plane. As I give her a morning cup of tea (she already has me well trained) all the perfume and hair spray can't quite take it away. And of course, when Sue and I eventually enter Stage 1 and the Grimshaws' front room there is indeed an elephant in the room for Eileen and Paul: The subject of Alzheimer’s. But more of that in a mo.
It’s strange for two actors who have been away for a time to get straight back to working on a scene. We need to learn lines, find a rhythm, bring it to life, even if our heads are still in far off distant places. Today is made easier though because we are working with director Noreen Kershaw. Noreen, besides being a fine director, is herself a brilliant actress of real pedigree (that makes her sound like a well bred dog, but you get what I mean, she’s class). She has an actor’s energy and humour on set that is stimulating and gets us back into the swing of things easily. Not that Sue and I need an injection of humour. If anything we need a laughter lobotomy. Working so closely with someone (our last day on set, two weeks previously, was spent lying on a sofa snogging for four hours) doesn't always mean you get on. Luckily Sue and I do and our own particular brand of stupid humour is a large reason for that.
Many people have asked me since I started 'what is Sue Cleaver like to work with?' I was well aware that Eileen is a Corrie institution and much loved by many, so it would be easy for her to keep a new actor at arm's length, keep herself to herself, or call the shots. Luckily for me she has been nothing but warm, generous and open. I hope she doesn’t read this though because I know she won’t stop going on about it!
So back to our storyline. After being rejected by Eileen when she found out about Paul’s wife who's suffering from Alzheimer’s, Paul and Eileen have tentatively entered a platonic friendship. Things have happened and things have been said and they find themselves in the Grimshaws' front room putting up her Christmas decorations. The fact that both are desperately looking for companionship and light in their lives is brought to the fore as the Christmas festivities approach. I can’t tell you what happens, obviously, but it is an intriguing story.
We know Eileen is a compassionate, caring women who has been unlucky and is desperate to love and be loved. Paul is very much the same, though his circumstances differ greatly. He is absolutely devoted to his wife Lesley but is more than aware that their love has changed and the impact on him is massive. He has been thrown in at the deep end of caring for his wife and sees her disappearing in front of him on an almost daily basis. Such is the often unrecorded and unnoticed plight of the caregiver. I think he is very near the edge. His loneliness and desperation great, his feelings of inadequacy overwhelming. And of course his guilt at feeling such things only compounds his problem. His suffering compared to the horror his wife is going through is nothing. But as the disease has progressed, so have his futile attempts to grin and bare it.
And what a disease. Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia, of which there are many. It attacks the chemistry and structure of the brain leading to the death of brain cells. The symptoms can be varied, including loss of memory, mood changes and communication problems. Up to 800,000 people in the UK alone have some form of dementia and it affects an estimated 35 and half million people worldwide. Although it mainly affects the elderly it can also affect younger people. Early onset Alzheimer's can be especially cruel because the sufferer is usually physically fit and otherwise healthy but the attack on their personality can be brutal.
The producers, writers and cast have been working closely with The Alzheimer’s Society who have been a great source of information, facts and detail. Whilst what we do will always be soap opera and ultimately a piece of fiction, the duty of care from our team of writers has been fantastic. There is a real rigour to portray our story with accuracy and credibility.
Personally my contact with a carer in a very similar situation to Paul’s has been invaluable. His partner was suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s and he eventually started a relationship with another woman, whilst still caring for his wife. What I found fascinating was that as a result, despite the difficulty and condemnation of others, he ultimately became a better carer for his wife. He was so low, so desperate, the stress and loneliness of being a full time carer so crushing, he was barley able to function for himself, let alone for someone else in greater need. But with hope and love and support and a light at the end of the tunnel he was far better equipped to provide the range of support, both physical and emotional, that his wife’s illness demanded.
So with our story who knows where it will lead? I know Paul is drawn to Eileen in desperate need of her companionship, fun and warmth and yet he remains committed to his wife as her devoted carer and husband. A unique triangle with conflict in all directions, for all involved. It is not a situation anyone ever planned or wished for but if I have learnt anything in meeting sufferers and their carers, it is that no matter how brutal and bleak this disease can be, people find incredible mechanisms to cope and continue with dignity and hope. Somehow the mighty human sprit will endure.
Coronation Street star Tony Hirst has opened up about his upcoming storyline.
Hirst's character Paul, whose wife Lesley suffers from Alzheimer's disease, has been struggling with his growing feelings for Eileen, played by Sue Cleaver, despite the fact that he is still married.
Hirst told the ITV website of the storyline: "Paul is drawn to Eileen... in desperate need of her companionship, fun and warmth and yet he remains committed to his wife as her devoted carer and husband.
"A unique triangle with conflict in all directions, for all involved. It is not a situation anyone ever planned or wished for.
"We know Eileen is a compassionate, caring woman who has been unlucky and is desperate to love and be loved. Paul is very much the same, though his circumstances differ greatly.
"He is absolutely devoted to his wife Lesley but is more than aware that their love has changed and the impact on him is massive. I think he is very near the edge.
"His loneliness and desperation great, his feelings of inadequacy overwhelming. And of course his guilt at feeling such things only compounds his problem."
Hirst said that he loves working with "Corrie institution" Cleaver, describing her as "warm, generous and open" and admitted that they need a "laughter lobotomy" because they have developed their "own particular brand of stupid humour" on set.
He also said that Coronation Street producers have insisted on presenting the Alzheimer's storyline with "accuracy and credibility", despite it being a "bleak" disease. The Alzheimer's charity that the writers worked closely with has since praised the plot.
Coronation Street's Eileen Grimshaw will agree to become a carer for Paul Kershaw's wife Lesley in an upcoming storyline twist, a report has claimed.
The factory worker, played by Sue Cleaver, steps in to help Paul in the New Year after Lesley's existing carer announces that she won't be able to look after her anymore, according to the Daily Star.
Coronation Street fans saw Eileen fall for firefighter Paul (Tony Hirst) earlier this year after he led her to believe that he was single. However, Eileen later received a shock when she found out about Lesley, who suffers from dementia.
When Paul is left in the lurch following the departure of Lesley's carer, he fears that he will have to quit his job to look after his wife full-time.
However, Eileen reportedly steps in to help by offering to care for Lesley (Judy Holt) while Paul is at work.
Although she soon realises that the challenge will be tougher than she thought, Eileen vows: "As long as Paul needs the help of his friends, then I'll be there for him."
Coronation Street's Eileen, Paul and Lesley storyline is expected to run well into 2012.
Coronation Street star Tony Hirst has said that his character Paul Kershaw's storyline is receiving a positive response from viewers.
In recent months, fans have seen Paul grow closer to Eileen Grimshaw while facing the challenge of caring for his wife Lesley (Judy Holt), who suffers from dementia.
Hirst and Sue Cleaver, who plays Eileen, recently met some real-life carers and dementia sufferers as they continued their research into the ongoing plot.
Speaking on Daybreak today, Hirst explained: "I think it's one of those things where you look at the script and think, 'This story is extreme or heightened'. But actually listening to those who are going through it on a daily basis, you realise that our story by comparison is absolutely nothing - it's tame.
"The brutality of what they're having to deal with is remarkable, so you just learn so much from their stories."
Of the public reaction to the storyline, he continued: "A lot of people will come up to me on the street and say, 'You better make sure you look after Eileen - you treat her right'. [But] those who have some experience of dementia are all remarkably positive, saying, 'You get what you need, you look after yourselves, you get yourself some happiness'."
Cleaver, meanwhile, added that meeting people who have been touched by dementia was invaluable.
"It's such a serious subject matter, and we wanted to make sure that we were honouring the sufferers," she explained. "Meeting the carers and sufferers, [we heard] about their day-to-day struggles and feelings of isolation."
Coronation Street continues on Thursday at 8.30pm on ITV1.
Coronation Street star Sue Cleaver has explained why her character Eileen Grimshaw reaches breaking point in upcoming episodes of the soap.
Eileen has allowed love interest Paul Kershaw (Tony Hirst) and his wife Lesley (Judy Holt) to stay with her in recent weeks, as the water pipes have burst at their own house. However, this has also meant Eileen taking on the responsibility of caring for Lesley, who suffers from dementia.
The factory worker finally snaps in this week's episodes, asking Paul to leave when he refuses to consider a care home for Lesley.
Cleaver told itv.com: "Eileen's getting pretty stressed. She obviously has very strong feelings for Paul and she wants to help out, but the reality of the situation is really kicking in.
"Being left to look after this lady, who you just never know what she's going to do from one minute to the next, is proving quite hard for her.
"I don't think she resents Lesley - I think she feels very, very sorry for her. But the actual day-to-day [situation of] living with it and dealing with it is frustrating. Paul is asking Eileen to look after Lesley more and more. They're leading separate lives. It's really making her start to wonder, what is she getting out of this?"
As revealed a few weeks ago, the situation comes to a head as Lesley does a disappearing act with Steve and Tracy's young daughter Amy.
Cleaver added: "There is a big panic, and people are not backward in expressing their feelings about the situation - which again, really makes Eileen question what she's doing in this situation and whether there is any future with this man.
"I think things are going to get a lot worse for Eileen before they get better."
There's a story in today's Daily Mirror that says medics were called to the Coronation Street set as Sue Cleaver, who plays Eileen Grimshaw, was filming a fight scene and got clobbered for real.
Sue, as Eileen, was having a “scuffle” with *Alzheimer’s sufferer Lesley Kershaw – played by Judy Holt – when she took an accidental smack in the face and fell to the floor. A doctor was asked to check a bump on the 47-year-old’s head.
Ashow source said: “They could have used stunt doubles but they did it themselves. It was a scene the pair did a number of times without any problems.But Sue ended up getting a glancing blow and feeling some real pain. She had a nasty bump on her head.”
Sue was given time to recover and a doctor later gave her the OK to carry on.
Coronation Street cast members have been spotted filming emotional funeral scenes for the character of Lesley Kershaw.
Tony Hirst, who plays Lesley's husband Paul, and Weatherfield regular Sue Cleaver (Eileen Grimshaw) shot scenes on location at a crematorium in Manchester for the upcoming storyline development, The Sun reports.
Over the past few months, Coronation Street viewers have seen Eileen grow close to fireman Paul, who has struggled under the pressure of his wife's early-onset Alzheimer's disease.
The plot recently came to a head as Paul agreed to move Lesley (Judy Holt) into a care home for a trial period, having finally conceded that he was finding it too difficult to look after her.
While Eileen and Paul have developed romantic feelings for each other, their relationship has sparked mixed feelings on the street due to the complicated situation.
As Paul will soon have to say a heartbreaking final farewell to his wife, viewers will be left to wonder whether he now has a long-term future with Eileen.
The Alzheimer's Society last year praised Coronation Street bosses for tackling the sensitive issue, which was researched by producers and cast throughout the filming process.
what, so she goes into a care home for a trial period and suddenly drops dead?