Editing Ken Barlow (section)

===Feud with Mike Baldwin===
Television researcher Helena Robson has discussed the appeal of soap operas, and suggests that "many soap stories are never finally resolved and conflicts between characters may run throughout the programme's history". She uses the "undying hatred" between Ken Barlow and Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs) as an example of this, suggesting that viewers "welcome the sense of stability this offers although the element of change offers as much enjoyment for viewers."<ref>{{cite web |last=Robson |first=Helena |title=Why are soap operas so popular? |url=http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/hlr9501.html |access-date=30 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100316142905/http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/hlr9501.html |archive-date=16 March 2010}}</ref> It was suggested in an ITV documentary in 2006 that Ken and Mike's hatred was a clash of cultures: "Barlow the lefty do-gooder versus Baldwin, the cut-and-thrust money grabber."<ref name="farewell">{{cite episode |title=Farewell Mike |series=Coronation Street |series-link=Coronation Street |network=ITV |airdate=7 April 2006 |time=20:00}}</ref> Briggs has claimed that Ken was envious of Mike because he was rich and successful while Ken was not, and Roache has claimed that the reason Ken disliked Mike was because he was a self-centred and self-made individual.<ref name="farewell"/>

[[File:Old Trafford inside 20060726 1.jpg|thumb|The [[Old Trafford]] football ground. During the Ken-Mike-Deirdre love triangle in 1983, fans watching a match were informed that Deirdre was staying with Ken. The scoreboard flashed "Ken 1, Mike 0".]]
Ken's feud with Mike—spanning over 20 years—began in 1983, when Ken discovered that his wife, Deirdre, was having an affair with Baldwin. His dislike for Mike pre-dated the affair, however, and Roache has stated:

{{blockquote|text="The truth was that Ken never liked him, but having his wife go off and have an affair with Mike turned dislike into hatred, which was wonderful for the programme. Just the mention of Baldwin's name was enough to get Ken twitching with barely contained anger, and for Johnny Briggs and me it was absolutely wonderful. At best the two characters sometimes tolerated each other in an uneasy truce, but at worst the two of them not only threw insults at each other, but punches too. It was a relationship that ran for many years, and although towards the end of Mike Baldwin's time on the show you might say there was a little mellowing going on, it was never a relationship that was going to be anything other than uneasy."|sign=William Roache|source=''50 Years on the Street''.<ref>[[#refMyLife|Roache 2010]], p.135.</ref>}}

Of the love triangle storyline, Briggs has said, "the way it captured the nation was amazing. Everyone was talking about it and the pubs were empty. Men were shouting out: 'Go on Mike, give her one.' People were disappointed when she went back to Ken".<ref name="feud">{{cite web|title=Mike's top 20 moments|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=16846346&method=full&siteid=66633&headline=mike-s-top-20-moments--name_page.html|first=Claire|last=Donnelly|work=Daily Record|access-date=30 April 2011|date=22 March 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012034628/http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/|archive-date=12 October 2012}} [http://www.thefreelibrary.com/MIKE%27S+TOP+20+MOMENTS%3B+EXCLUSIVE%3A+DAY+THREE+OF+THE+JOHNNY+BRIGGS...-a0143508294 Alt URL] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160514011411/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/MIKE%27S+TOP+20+MOMENTS%3B+EXCLUSIVE%3A+DAY+THREE+OF+THE+JOHNNY+BRIGGS...-a0143508294 |date=14 May 2016 }}</ref> The storyline had significant cultural impact, with the press claiming that the country was divided between those who thought Deirdre should remain with Ken, and those who thought she should leave with Mike.<ref>[[#refC4|Hobson 2008]], p.46.</ref> In her 2003 book, Hobson suggested that Ken "spent at least nineteen years unable to cope with the sense of rejection and betrayal" caused by Mike and Deirdre's affair.<ref name="Hobson129"/>

Scriptwriters capitalised on the rivalry between the characters when, in 1986, Mike married Ken's daughter Susan, a union that Ken strongly opposed.<ref name="feud"/> Numerous fights between Ken and Mike were featured, and Briggs has suggested that they became famous for their brawls. The first fight between the pair occurred in 1986, when Ken confronted Mike in his factory about Mike's maltreatment of his daughter.<ref name="feud"/> Of the confrontation, Briggs has said, "It was a classic&nbsp;– Baldwin getting it in his own territory, the factory. It took a lot to get Ken angry but after the way Mike had treated his daughter, he was furious. He marched into the office and let him have it. This was one of those rare times he caught Mike off-guard."<ref name="feud"/> Mike was shown to get revenge on Ken, though it took a further four years before he could do so on-screen. In a scene which aired in 1990, Mike punched Ken, knocking him over a table in the Rovers Return public house.<ref name="feud"/> Briggs has suggested that he and Roache became old hands at doing on-screen fistfights, and that both really enjoyed doing the stunts. According to Briggs, no choreographers were ever used. In 1998, one incident left Briggs with an injury after he fell backwards.<ref name="feud"/>

Ken and Mike were forced to work together in 2000, when they were featured in a storyline dubbed the "Freshco siege".<ref name="siege">{{cite web |last=Donnelly |first=Claire |title=Street siege's soul survivors. |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/LAST+NIGHT'S+VIEW+%3a+Street+siege's+soul+survivors.-a066000093 |work=Daily Mirror |date=12 October 2000 |access-date=30 April 2011}}</ref> Ken and Mike were among several series regulars held up at gunpoint in the soap's local supermarket, where Ken had been working as a trolley pusher. The episode was broadcast after the 9 pm watershed due to its depiction of violence. Ken and Mike were bound together by armed robbers, which facilitated an end to their feud; Ken helped Mike to combat a [[panic attack]].<ref name="siege"/> The pair resolved to put the past behind them; it was a temporary reprieve. Mike had unknowingly fathered a son, Adam, during his brief marriage to Susan Barlow; she kept the baby a secret from him. Mike discovered Adam's existence in 2001; Susan attempted to flee, but was killed in a motor accident. Then followed a battle between Mike and Ken for custody of Adam, with Ken adamant that Mike should not look after his grandson. The storyline led to the fifth fistfight between Ken and Mike in the soap's history, with the pair brawling at the funeral of Susan.<ref name="adam">{{cite web |last=Donnelly |first=Claire |title=CUSTODY STREET; Ken and Mike fight for orphan Adam. |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/CUSTODY+STREET%3b+Ken+and+Mike+fight+for+orphan+Adam.-a069369899 |work=Daily Mirror |date=22 January 2001 |access-date=30 April 2011}}</ref>

The feud came to an end on-screen in 2006, when Briggs quit the role of Mike. Mike was killed off, dying of [[Alzheimer's disease]]; he died in Ken's arms. In the final scenes, a disorientated and dying Mike was found wandering the streets by Ken, and as Ken cradled Mike in his arms, the rivals talked about old times before Mike died, signifying the end of their 20-year feud.<ref>{{cite web|title=Baldwin to die in arms of Street rival|url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/tv_and_showbiz/s/205062_baldwin_to_die_in_arms_of_street_rival|work=[[Manchester Evening News]]|publisher=([[Trinity Mirror]])|date=20 February 2006|access-date=22 April 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121112181521/http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/tv_and_showbiz/s/205062_baldwin_to_die_in_arms_of_street_rival|url-status=live|archive-date=12 November 2012}}</ref> To promote Mike's final scenes, ''[[Radio Times]]'' released a series of photographs with Ken and Mike re-enacting [[Arthur William Devis|Arthur Devis]]'s (1807) [[The Death of Nelson, 21 October 1805|painting]] of the death of [[Horatio Nelson]]—Baldwin was shown surrounded by his nearest and dearest during his final moments, with Ken prominently positioned next to him, taking on the role of [[Captain Hardy]], Nelson's trusted colleague to whom Nelson famously uttered "Kiss me" before he died. Producer Maire Tracey said, "The fact that Mike dies in Ken's arms says it all. For most of Mike's life, it was his battles with Ken that kept him going. Like two cowboys, they spent their lives sizing each other up. Behind the scenes Bill Roache has even suggested to Johnny Briggs that they should make a version of ''[[Brokeback Mountain]]'' for the two elderly cowboys. Both Ken and Mike will miss the bust-ups."<ref>{{cite web |last=McMullen |first=Marion |title=Johnny's long goodbye to Mike Baldwin |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Johnny%27s+long+goodbye+to+Mike+Baldwin%3B+Television+IT%27S+bye-bye+Johnny...-a0143950729 |work=[[Coventry Evening Telegraph]] |date=1 April 2006 |access-date=22 April 2011 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305091050/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Johnny%27s+long+goodbye+to+Mike+Baldwin%3B+Television+IT%27S+bye-bye+Johnny...-a0143950729 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Reflecting on the feud in 2006, Roache gave reasons why he thinks Ken and Mike clashed so often: "Ken felt threatened when Mike arrived on the street, but it made the part more exciting for Bill. Ken is a nice guy, a loyal guy, a reliable guy. But he isn't terribly exciting. So the exciting guy [Mike] comes along and he's a bit flash, isn't he? But I've always liked the physical side of acting, so my punch-ups with Johnny were probably the best bits. I shall miss those terribly."<ref>{{cite web |title=Drama: Bald truth as Street's stars reveal all |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DRAMA%3A+Bald+truth+as+Street%27s+stars+reveal+all...+NEW%21+FAREWELL+MIKE...-a0143937139 |work=Daily Record |date=1 April 2006 |access-date=22 April 2011 |archive-date=5 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130705090849/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/DRAMA%3A+Bald+truth+as+Street%27s+stars+reveal+all...+NEW%21+FAREWELL+MIKE...-a0143937139 |url-status=live }}</ref>