When the Connor-Swain wedding eventually happens, Coronation Street have a chance to make history. Here’s Sarah’s thoughts on what our favourite couple truly deserve.
Last Friday’s episode saw Lisa propose to Carla after a devastating day at work, where she lost a colleague on the job. Whilst her timing may or may not have been right, the aftermath of the proposal confirmed both characters are on the same page. They both see marriage as part of their future, and let’s be honest, Coronation Street have been hinting at it since last New Year’s Eve.
In the often tumultuous world of Coronation Street’s cobbles, weddings are rarely just about love. From betrayals at the altar to secret affairs being exposed mid-vow, drama has long been the soap’s lifeblood. Weddings between two women on the cobbles have yet to succeed. With the drama of Sophie and Sian’s wedding, where Kevin revealed Sophie had kissed Amber mid-ceremony, and the devastating events of Kate and Rana’s wedding, where Rana died after the factory roof collapsed, it’s time to change the narrative.
Every so often, the show has the chance to do something different – to lead with heart instead of chaos. To make history. To honour love in the LGBTQ+ community. And that opportunity is going to come soon (well, we hope it’s soon!). Carla and Lisa, two characters whose storyline has resonated so deeply with fans, deserve a wedding that is not marred by scandal, drama or sorrow, but is instead a celebration of joy, authenticity, and groundbreaking representation.
Love as the leading storyline
What makes their story so special isn’t wild plot twists or drama – it’s the honest, respectful way their relationship has grown. It feels real, and that’s what has truly won people over. This is a love story rooted in understanding, in shared experiences, and in the kind of quiet moments that so often reflect real relationships, which for a soap, is actually incredibly rare. It wasn’t born from an affair, a one-night stand, or a dramatic event, the occasions which often give rise to soap relationships. Giving them a wedding that mirrors that same truth would not only feel earned, but necessary.
Carla and Lisa’s wedding could be that revolution – one that makes the bold statement that queer love doesn’t always have to struggle to be seen. It can simply exist.
Joy over drama
Imagine a ceremony where everything goes right (well, apart from someone losing the rings for five minutes, that’s the kind of drama we can cope with here). No interruptions. No sudden departures. No last-minute confessions. Just a community coming together to witness two people committing to each other (or a close group of family and friends if they really do jet off to Ibiza). That alone would be a powerful narrative decision, precisely because it breaks with the expectations the genre so often enforces. Eastenders has recently had a successful lesbian wedding on-screen, with Eve and Suki tying the knot. But their wedding day wasn’t without drama, thanks to the storylines they were already involved in.
Coronation Street have the chance to go one better here, and make history with the first drama-free wedding between two women.
I don’t mean they should abandon compelling storytelling. On the contrary, it’s a chance to tell a story about healing, about chosen family, and about joy – something that’s often in short supply in British soaps. There’s depth in serenity, in quiet celebration, and in the defiant happiness of two women who have finally found peace in one another.
Representation that matters
A joyful, unhindered wedding for Swarla would be one of the most powerful acts of LGBTQ+ representation Coronation Street has ever done. It’s not just about seeing a female couple onscreen – it’s about how they are seen. Historically, queer love stories in soaps have often been either sidelined, sensationalised, or tragically cut short. While those narratives do reflect real challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ community, they should not be the only stories told.
Carla and Lisa’s wedding can shift that narrative. It can show that queer couples deserve happiness, community support, and milestone moments just as much as any other couple. To present their union as joyful, respected, and central to the story is to validate the love stories of countless viewers who have never before seen themselves celebrated in such a way.
Honouring their individual journeys
Carla is one of Coronation Street’s most layered and iconic characters. She’s strong and sharp-witted, but of course no stranger to pain. Whilst we don’t yet know much about Lisa’s background, since she first stepped onto the cobbles in 2021, we’ve learned that she lost her wife, threw herself into work to cope, and never really grieved that loss in the way that she should have done. Throw in a teenage daughter, and all the drama that comes with her, and it’s clear to see she always looks after others before herself.
Of course, we all know what they’ve been through since they officially got together in November. Carla was attacked (cheers Betsy), developed sepsis, needed a kidney transplant, and been kidnapped and held hostage by her own brother. Lisa has been by her side through all of this, whilst also shooting her own daughter. Talk about trauma! I know that everything they go through is going to make them stronger, but it’s time for them to have something to look forward to, something to celebrate – themselves.
This is not about sanitizing the narrative, but about letting long-suffering characters finally breathe, and show that there is always hope, despite what’s happened in your past. After everything they’ve been through, they deserve to step into the sunlight.
A moment for the fans
The audience is ready. In fact, they’ve been pleading for it. Carla and Lisa’s relationship has struck a chord with so may fans across the globe who see their own stories, and their own love reflected on screen. They’re all yearning for a moment of true representation. To give these fans a wedding that is not tinged with tragedy, but filled with joy, is to show them that their stories matter. That their happiness matters.
Being truly seen has a powerful impact – not as a plot device, not as a problem to be solved, but as a person worthy of love and celebration. For LGBTQ+ fans, and especially lesbian viewers, Carla and Lisa’s drama-free wedding would not just be a storyline; it would be the ultimate moment of recognition.
Breaking new ground
A happy wedding between two women on one of the UK’s most beloved and longstanding soaps would be a pivotal moment. It would say to every other show, ‘this can be done.’
It would set a new standard for how LGBTQ+ relationships are portrayed on mainstream television. While Coronation Street has made strides in representation over the years, there is still more ground to cover. Carla and Lisa’s wedding could be a landmark, and literally make television history. A bold, clear message that love, in all its forms, deserves to be celebrated without caveats or compromises.
The power of joy
In a world where LGBTQ+ rights are still debated, where visibility often still has to be fought for, and where so many queer people grow up without seeing their lives reflected in the media, joy becomes an act of resistance. Letting Carla and Lisa stand at the altar, surrounded by love, is not just good storytelling – it’s radical, affirming, and essential.
Let them have the flowers. Let them have the music. Let them exchange vows under a sky that isn’t threatening rain. Let them dance. Let them laugh. Let them be whole. And let the viewers at home, especially those who never thought they’d see a love like theirs reflected on primetime television, finally exhale. Just make sure the roof is tightly screwed on, no trams are running, and that there’s no unwelcome surprises.
Carla and Lisa’s love is valid, and it is time for Coronation Street to give them, and the audience, a wedding worth remembering.
A wedding filled not with drama, but with love, representation, and of course, fireworks *cough* on New Year’s Eve 😉 .
Sarah xo
Images copyright of ITV