Corrie’s Craig: ‘A minor row becomes a feud’

Craig Charles warns Soaplife that Lloyd and Paul’s race row is only going to get worse in Coronation Street…

How did Lloyd feel when Paul made his ‘Play the white man’ comment?

"Maybe if his daughter Jenna hadn’t heard, Lloyd would have let it go. He’s heard worse; he grew up hearing words like ‘jungle bunny’ and ‘coon’. But Jenna is offended. Lloyd wants to be there for her so when Paul doesn’t apologise, Lloyd lets him know it’s a problem."

He calls Paul a racist! Does he mean it?

"Lloyd calls him a racist through exasperation, really. By saying what he said, Paul was defending a racist position. It may have been a throwaway comment – a throwback from colonial times - but 'play the white man' implies that only whites are fair while blacks are devious and creepy. When there’s no apology it all escalates and what was initially a fairly minor argument, escalates into a feud."

And it affects the whole street!

"Definitely. The only supporter of Paul’s position is Gloria, who is from another age – it’s a generational thing. Eileen thinks it was a stupid thing to say, but she’s Paul’s partner. Trouble is, Lloyd’s her boss, so she’s in an impossible situation – plus, of course, her son Jason is mixed race. Mandy seems unable to support Lloyd or Jenna on this so their relationship is on the rocks, too. It’s a real mess."