A POSTMASTER and his wife were tied up and subjected to a terrifying ordeal on the night Coronation Street Killer Richard Hillman gripped TV viewers by gagging and abducting his own family.

But the reality of cracking crime is far removed from television drama, where even serious crimes are committed before scores of witnesses and the culprit is caught in the act.

Reporters NICK EVANS and DANNY BRIERLEY piece together the real-life drama which has left police hunting for clues.

IF Roger Clarkson and his wife Marilyn had been watching TV on Wednesday night, they would almost certainly have been gripped by ITV's latest bid to increase its soap ratings.

But no sooner had the titles rolled up at the end of Coronation Street at 9pm than true life drama began to mirror fiction.

Just before the start of the couple's ordeal, TV villain Richard Hillman had tied up and kidnapped wife Gail and children Sarah-Louise, David and Bethany and driven them into a canal.

The Clarksons have told police how they were tied up and held at their home before being driven 25 miles and abandoned in their own car, while their post office in Burnley Road, Padiham, was raided.

Police said at least three men wearing dark clothing and balaclavas attacked the couple at their home, in the quiet village of Newchurch-in-Pendle.

They were then driven around for at least an hour in their blue VW Golf, registration number A6E WE, at 5.30am on Thursday, before being abandoned in Mill Lane, off Chorley Road, Walton-le-Dale. They were discovered tied up in the car by a passer-by at 8.50am.

Detectives said the men had weapons, believed to be knives, but are satisfied that no firearms were used.

People in Padiham today spoke of shock today. At Pat's Pantry, a sandwich and snack shop in Burnley Road, one woman said: "They have been in Padiham for a long time. They are lovely people and I'm sure they will be welcomed back."

Joseph Atkinson, landlord of the Bridge pub, in Burnley Road, said : "They must have been at the post office for close to 25 years. They are a smashing couple and well liked."

Staff at Stanley Racing, in Burnley Road, said the couple were always friendly and helpful and that people were stunned at what had happened.

Det Insp Mark Maxlow, heading the investigation, said: "We have been speaking to the couple in a bid to piece together the exact sequence of events. We are appealing for witnesses who may have seen any suspicious activity at the couple's home, or at the post office in Burnley Road, Padiham, and anyone who saw the couple's vehicle being driven around after 5.30pm on Wednesday."

Anyone with information, contact Burnley Police on 01282 425001 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.