Coronation Street fans have expressed their frustration after the long-running soap was pulled from the schedule to make way for the Rugby World Cup. The programme, which normally airs at 8:30pm on weeknights, has been replaced by coverage of the tournament, leaving viewers with a reduced number of episodes this week.
Instead of the usual half-hour episodes, Coronation Street will return on Friday at 8pm for a one-hour instalment, followed by another hour-long episode on Monday at 9pm. A further hour-long episode is scheduled for Tuesday at 9pm, compressing four episodes into two broadcasts. Episodes will also be available to stream on ITVX and YouTube from 7am on the day of linear broadcast.
Fans took to social media to complain about the changes, with some suggesting that the football should be moved to a secondary channel. One Reddit user commented: 'They have other channels, why not keep ITV as normal and show the football on ITV2 or ITV3? Not everyone likes football.' Another added: 'An hour of Emmerdale and an hour of Corrie is a lot for one evening, especially a Friday.'
The schedule shake-up has left many viewers disappointed, with some calling for ITV to consider the soap's schedule when planning future World Cup coverage. Coronation Street will return to its regular schedule after the tournament concludes.
