New Corrie boss’s hints about future

CORONATION Street’s new producer has ruled out a “hit list” of characters and said he wants to stay true to the show’s DNA.

Former Emmerdale producer Iain MacLeod has taken over from Kate Oates at the helm of the Weatherfield-based soap but said viewers should not expect a drastic change when his first episodes air in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

“Only an idiot would come in and think ‘Let’s re-brief everything, let’s turn it into something different, let’s rip up the rule book’ or try to somehow change the DNA of the show.

“I’m the custodian of that DNA and that tone, so, no, I don’t intend to do anything radically different.”

He said plans for a “producer cull” to get rid of characters were “not his style”.

MacLeod said he disagreed with criticism of his predecessor Oates, a friend who is now producer at rival soap EastEnders, by people who said the show had become too dark.

“I think she, in her time on this show, told some massive, really socially-important stories that changed people’s lives,” he said.

“That’s not, perhaps, the main reason people tune into Corrie but it shouldn’t be sniffed at and viewing figures speak for themselves. themselves.”

And he said darker storylines would continue under his reign, although they would be balanced with some of the comedy for which the show is loved.

He said: “The key thing is to achieve balance, which I think is the main thing I’m keen to do.

“When we do go into those hardhitting areas, we find balance and we give fans of comedy something to latch on to as well.”

During his time on fellow ITV soap Emmerdale, MacLeod oversaw experimental episodes such as flashbacks of Charity Dingle’s child abuse and an episode filmed from the perspective of dementia sufferer Ashley Thomas.

But he said he planned to stick with more traditional ways of storytelling on the cobbles.

He said: “It’s not about being conservative but I think, in terms of the way we package our storytelling, this isn’t the place for non-linear stuff or flashbacks or hallucinatory excursions into people’s mental inner landscapes.

“Corrie’s not about that for me; Corrie needs to keep one foot on the ground and remember the show which Tony Warren designed and not deviate from that too much,” he added.