50 years of Corrie and the over 50s are still gripped
Celebrating its 50th birthday on the 9th December, Coronation Street continues to draw over nine million Brits to their sofas each episode.
As the show reaches the ‘Saga age' of 50, Saga asked almost 13,000 people about their favourite memories and predictions for the future of the show.
Research from the Saga's poll of people over 50 found that one in four (26%) are avid "Corrie" fans. Of those, nearly a third (31%) voted Richard Hillman's canal crash as the programme's most dramatic moment. Other high impact events included Liam Connor's murder (13%) and Tony Gordon's death (10%).
Crowning Corrie's Characters
When asked about their all time favourite characters, the Saga panel said:
Favourite male character
Jack Duckworth (31%)
Ken Barlow (11%)
Norris Cole (10%)
Favourite female character
Blanche Hunt (23%)
Hilda Ogden (17%)
Rita Sullivan (16%)
Favourite baddie
Richard Hillman (21%)
Tony Gordon (18%)
Tracy Barlow (17%)
When asked what might happen to the programme in the next 50 years, over one in ten people (11%) fear that the Street may go the way of some real-life local high streets, and be knocked down to build a new branch of FreshCo's. However, almost one in five (18%) people imagine a more fanciful development, believing that, having discovered the secret of eternal life, Ken Barlow will still be there dreaming of intellectual fulfilment.
Katy Bravery, Editor of Saga Magazine, comments "It is testament to Coronation Street's unique and enduring appeal that so many of Saga Magazine's 650,000 subscribers should respond so enthusiastically to an opinion poll about their favourite moments and characters. And they're not alone. In the magazine's November edition the series' creator, Tony Warren, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, Lord Hattersley, and leading TV critic Andrew Billen offer their own fulsome tributes to the Grande Dame of TV soap operas as she celebrates her half century. As 'Corrie' is about to discover, life after 50 is an interesting place to be!".