Ken Morley joins Corrie criticisms
Ken Morley has joined the chorus of criticisms about Coronation Street but has also said he’d be willing to reprise his role of Reg Holdsworth to ‘save’ the soap.
Another former Coronation Street actor has come out against the ITV soap in the wake of recent criticism. Yesterday Johnny Briggs, who played Mike Baldwin for 30 years, slammed the soap for losing its way and its humour. Previous stars to criticise the soap recently include Jean Alexander and John Savident. Now Ken Morley, who played fan favourite Reg Holdsworth, has echoed those criticisms.
“I am sick and tired of people coming to me and saying how bad it is and asking if I know the viewing figures. It’s like it’s some kind of national tragedy and everyone at the moment wants to kick it. I turned on the other night and there was some nonsense about whether Fiz should have a baby in prison. It went on and on and it was a real turn-off. What they need to do is bring back comedy and topics that the viewers can relate to. – Ken Morley in The Sun
The actor also criticised the current cross-dressing storyline and the number of gay characters within the series – ala Brian Sewell in last week’s Daily Mail.
“It’s not traditional Coronation Street. It’s just another far-fetched step away from the real world. How many blokes do you know who dress up as women and then go out with women? The Street has gone too far with gay problems, gay shoes, gay fish and chips. They need to get back to square one and deal with people’s everyday problems in a humorous way. They need characters like Reg again. A Holdsworth in the Rovers Return would get people tuning in.” – Ken Morley in The Sun
Coronation Street has been on the receiving end of an increasing back-lash against some of its storylines – such as the John Stape saga. The introduction of Michelle Collins as new Rovers Return manager Stella has also been criticised by fans and press alike. Phil Collinson has appeared on Breakfast and This Morning to defend the soap. Original cast member William Roache has also defended the soaps performance on This Morning as well.