Phil Collinson hits out at Corrie Criticism

 

{jcomments on}The producer of Coronation Street, Phil Collinson, has hit out at criticism of the Manchester based soap which has recently come under firing for the casting of Michelle Collins, falling ratings and the number of gay characters.

 

Writing on the official Coronation Street website the producer addressed many of the stories which have appeared in the press over recent weeks. The casting of former EastEnders actress Michelle Collins has come in for lots of criticism in the press with her northern accent being a particular sore point. Over the past few days stories in the press have claimed Collins’ character will be involved in a car-crash in last bid attempt to get viewers to accept her. Collinson, who has previously defended the actress, once again addressed those criticisms.

“We are delighted with Michelle and her performance and hope that she will stay with us for a long time. Michelle is a well-respected actress and we’re lucky and pleased to have her as part of the cast……I’m a northerner myself. I was born and bred up here and I think her accent is great! Michelle has worked hard with a voice specialist and she’s doing an excellent job.” – Phil Collinson on the Corrie website

Collinson goes on to point out that the arrival of the McDonalds and later the Battersby’s were not initially welcomed by fans either but the characters soon became firm favourites once they had settled in. Stories in the press over the past week have concentrated on the supposed drop in ratings – some reports claiming three million viewers have switched off the soap.

“The ratings are healthy and the audience feedback is healthy. The show has never been better. Other genres are seeing audiences fall, but our audience is actually greater. The show is in rude health and forging along with some brilliant, brilliant stories.”  – Phil Collinson on the Corrie website

Finally the producer addressed the criticisms – especially from Brian Sewell in an article for the Daily Mail last week – about the number of gay characters in the soap.

“Sean and Sophie have consistently been among the most popular characters,” he says. “The character of Sophie has actually risen in popularity since she came out as a lesbian. Viewers are appreciating her storyline and enjoying it. We tell stories about characters audiences want to see.” – Phil Collinson on the Corrie website

Collinson’s defence of the soap will be seen, by some, as a desperate attempt to stop the negative publicity which has plagued Corrie for several weeks now. In the past week the negative publicity has shifted onto ratings and the number of gay characters – several tabloids picked up on Sewell’s article.

You can read my own article on Corrie’s ratings slump here >>