Coronation Street star Sally Ann Matthews, who left the show last year, has hit out at the ITV soap for focusing on crime plots.
The actor, 55, is best known for playing Jenny Bradley on the cobbles, having originally joined the soap in 1986. Over the past four decades, Matthews appeared in Weatherfield on-and-off, however her latest stint was an impressive 10 years.
Last year, Matthews announced that she would be leaving the soap to play roles that she “always hoped I would when I’d grown up”. In a new interview, she has shared her gripes with the ITV soap, criticising Coronation Street for abandoning “character-led” storylines.
“We, as a cast, have been having these conversations for three or four years, and the crew,” she told The Mirror on Sunday (22 February). “Their family and people in the street [are] saying they don’t watch it anymore. They said, 'Oh it’s all about the police, I don't know who anybody is.’
“But all the research was coming back saying audiences want spoilers, non-linear storytelling. They watch true-crime dramas on Netflix, so they want a lot of crime.”
She added that while the soap’s stories were being led by “audience opinion”, she was “yet to meet a single audience member that feels that way”.
“Now, stories aren’t character-led. If I wanted to watch a police drama, I'd watch Line of Duty. If I wanted to watch a hospital drama, I'd watch ER. I really think the soap genre should stick to its USP.” She continued by saying that the soap “needs to stay in its lane and be what it is – which is a soap”.
As for her exit, Matthews admitted that she decided to leave as she was no longer enjoying her time on the cobbles. “I’m very fortunate that I'm in a position where I can say, ‘I don't want to do that.’ It doesn’t excite me. It doesn't challenge me. It doesn’T spark joy,” she said.
“I’m 55 now, I don’t wanna waste my time doing stuff that I’m not enjoying with people that I am not enjoying doing it with.”
The long-time soap star said in August last year that she would BE leaving Coronation Street, telling fans: “Was supposed to stay for five months but ended up doing an extra 10 years because I loved it so much! Thanks Trafford Wharf Rd for the memories and endless laughter x.”
In January, the soap also announced Claire Sweeney’s exit after just three years as Cassie Plummer. ITV said: “Cassie will be on the cobbles until the summer during which time she will continue to make her presence felt in Weatherfield leading up to a great exit storyline.”
