The Queen visits Coronation Street

Queen Elizabeth has paid a visit to the Coronation Street set to mark its 60th Anniversary year.

The Queen took a walk and stopped off in the Rover’s Return, visiting the cast and crew. The visit also acknowledged the production’s achievement of staying on air throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cast members including Bill Roache and Barbara Knox joined crew to chat about challenges of filming two metres apart while making it look like characters were much closer. They also discussed how the writers adapted the plotlines to reflect lockdown, how everyone had to adapt when key cast had to self isolate and how the show managed to still do stunts such as ‘hit and runs’ whilst maintaining social distancing.

Gifts presented to Her Majesty by cast members Mollie Gallagher (Nina Lucas), Liam Bairstow (Alex Warner) and Amy Barlow (Elle Mulvaney) included an original ‘Corrie Cobble’ from the set opened by HM back in 1981, specially engraved by a local stonemasons, an early edition bottle of 60th Anniversary ‘Weatherfield Spirit’ Gin with a pair of Meehart Manchester Skyline gin glasses and a bag of ‘Corrie’ goodies including a signed Anniversary book and some Newton & Ridley beer mats for the Royal table!

Younger cast members Kirsty Soames (Ruby Dobbs) and Harriet Atkins (Hope Stape) also presented a ‘Little Red Robin’ tree, which was gifted back to the programme for planting in the Victoria Street Garden.

John Whiston ITV Managing Director of Continuing Drama said: “For everyone who works on Coronation Street this was a very special and very personal event. We felt deeply honoured to have Her Majesty walk down the cobbles and visit The Rovers. I hope Her Majesty went away knowing how much her visit meant to us in the North after what has been a very difficult and dark 18 months. It has been a real morale boost for all of us as we come out of the pandemic and look to the future.

“And with so many doors in Buckingham Palace, we hope Her Majesty will find a use for an original Coronation Street cobble. They make very effective doorstops.”

ITV CEO, Dame Carolyn McCall, said: “It has been such an honour to have Her Majesty here today. The whole team has worked so hard through a very difficult period and it was very special for all of us to have Her Majesty walking the famous cobbles of Coronation Street. It will never be forgotten!”

Coronation Street screens in Australia on UKTV.