After all the wailing and gnashing of teeth following Maxine’s demise in Coronation Street, it was fantastic to see Fred and Ashley perform a comedy scene last night.

Boris, the little-seen assistant from Fred’s butcher’s shop, called at Ashley’s demanding the night off to take his girlfriend to the pictures, so Fred stepped into the breach to see to a troublesome leg of lamb, saying:

“It would be wonderful to get my hands mucky again.”

For one heart-stopping moment, we thought we was going to say it would be wonderful to get his hands on some meat again but, alas, it was not to be.

He returned a short while later enthusing about how he had thoroughly enjoyed “the feel of a good ‘eavy cleaver slicing through a beast”. Ahem.