The Stage

Coronation Street moves under ITV schedule overhaul

Published Wednesday 8 July 2009 at 14:57 by Matthew Hemley

Long-running ITV soap Coronation Street is to move from Wednesday nights to Thursday nights as part of a revamped schedule being introduced by the broadcaster.

Coronation Street has been broadcast on Wednesday nights since it began in 1960, but will move to Thursdays from July 23.

As part of the new Thursday night schedule, there will also be two 30-minute episodes of Emmerdale, one at 7pm and another at 8pm. Its hour long Tuesday night episode will be cut by 30 minutes as a result.

Meanwhile, Thursday July 23 will also mark the start of The Bill’s new weekly post-watershed slot at 9pm.

Executive producer Johnathan Young said: “We haven’t sought to totally reinvent The Bill but we have wanted to create a more immersive experience for our viewers. We’re digging deeper into characters to tell stronger and more challenging stories which really examine the true causes and effects of crime. The later timeslot allows us to produce darker, grittier and more hard-hitting drama.”

Speaking about the revamped Thursday night schedules, an ITV spokesman said the changes reflected “ITV’s contracts for the Champions League, FA Cup and England internationals”, which will see live football broadcast on Wednesday evenings.

“We’re delighted that Thursday evenings on ITV1 will be a great showcase for soap from Weatherfield and the Woolpack,” he added.