ITV executive John Whiston hits back at claims Coronation Street boss Kate Oates may lose her job
Each soap takes its turn to be ‘in crisis’ in the media, and this week it has been Coronation Street which has found itself under the dramatic headlines, supported by a couple of ‘unnamed sources’ who claim that the show is in trouble due to dark storylines including the award winning Bethany Platt sex ring storyline and the also award winning Pat Phelan saga.
After a handful of people on Twitter and Bruce Jones (who has made no secret of his desire to return) speaking out to say they don’t really like Corrie at the moment, this has apparently thrown boss Kate Oates’ job into jeopardy, with claims that she is fighting to keep it.
With Coronation Street having increased its year on year viewership, achieving its highest ratings in 18 months in the summer and also picking up many awards for storylines, actors, villains, twists and newcomers, this naturally couldn’t be further from the truth.
Many of the cast regularly can’t praise Kate highly enough when they talk to us here at Metro.co.uk. And now ITV’s Creative Director John Whiston, who oversees Coronation Street and Emmerdale among other programmes, has rubbished the claims.
He told Digital Spy: ‘In the last two years Kate Oates has transformed Coronation Street in the same way as she transformed Emmerdale when she was there.The show is now chock full of gripping, talked-about storylines, is tackling ground-breaking social issues and, most importantly for a commercial channel such as ITV is delivering strong ratings, Corrie’s audience share is up year on year, an impressive feat for a 57-year-old soap on our screens six times a week.’
As Metro.co.uk pointed out this week, taste is subjective and negative comments on social media can never fully represent the opinion of a show given that the sample of fans who speak about the soap online is comparatively small.
While there is no denying that some aren’t enjoying Corrie right now, the show is by far the most watched soap in the country and continues to get fans talking, continues to raise important topics using its platform and is still winning accolades and critical acclaim.
One look on Twitter under any soap’s hashtag will undoubtedly find reams of negative comments – it is the nature of social media. And with Corrie having made a successful transition to six episodes and fast approaching its 60th year still as the most popular serial drama in the country, it’s clear that the execs won’t be wielding any axes or even cautiously considering it.
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