Corriedale viewers in awe over ‘best bit’ in Coronation Street-Emmerdale crossover episode

Fans of Coronation Street and Emmerdale have been left stunned by a special crossover episode that killed off two characters, declaring it the best episode of TV in years.

The ITV soaps entwined on Monday, with characters from both shows involved in a deadly crash on a motorway between Leeds and Manchester – and viewers watched on in excitement as several familiar faces shared the screen for the first time.

But it was a knowing gag involving Coronation Street’s Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) and Emmerdale’s Jai Sharma (Chris Bisson) that has been hailed as the highlight of the episode.

The in-joke arrived when Steve suggested he recognised Jai, stating: “I just thought I saw somebody I used to work with, but it can’t be.” This was a nod to the fact that Bisson played Vikram in Corrie from 1999 to 2002. Vikram co-founded Street Cars with Steve.

“Favourite bit was Steve McDonald recognising Jai in Emmerdale cos he was Vikram in Corrie,” one fan wrote, saying they “screamed laughing”. Others called the moment, written by Owen Lloyd Fox, “incredible”, “genius” and “the best bit”.

“Steve recognising Jai as Vikram is by far the best thing in this madness,” a viewer reacted.

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Elsewhere, fans praised producers for crafting the action-packed episode, and have predicted the crossover will win many awards over the coming year.

“Think that was the single best episode of a soap I’ve ever seen in my life and I’m not even being dramatic,” one fan said.

“Absolute cinema. Everyone who worked on it, take a f***ing bow.”

Another long-time soap viewer praised the episode as “edge-of-the-seat stuff”, stating: “It’s been a long time since I’ve sat that tense for a full hour.”

Others demanded more crossover episodes in the future.

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Emmerdale serial killer John Sugden (Oliver Farnworth) was killed in the episode, as was Coronation Street’s vicar Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank), whose evil love rival Theo Silverton (James Cartwright) locked him in the blazing minibus he was driving, which collided with a car driven by Sugden and Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller).

Instead of helping Billy, Theo clipped him back into his seatbelt as fuel leaked towards the fire, leaving him to die in the wreckage.

Fans paid tribute to Billy, who spent 11 years on the cobbles: “Goodbye Billy Mayhew, what an exit – brought a tear to my eye, that did.”

Emmerdale fans were not only rocked by the death of serial killer John, but by the suggestion that he was shot dead by his sister Victoria Sugden (Isabel Hodgins) in a last-minute twist.

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Speaking about the episode prior to its airing, Hodgins told BBC Radio Manchester it was “surreal” to play a key role in the event.

“When we heard they were doing it, we all wanted to be involved – so I feel extremely privileged that I get to be in it,” she said.