01 November 2023 , 23:51
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Coronation Street boss, Iain MacLeod, has confirmed the Rovers Return Inn future after a turbulent time for the iconic cobbles boozer.
The Rovers was closed down last month for extensive refurbishment with all staff having their contracts terminated with immediate effect despite landlady Jenny Connor doing her best to keep the iconic boozer going amid the cost of living crisis. Revealing what is coming up with the Rovers, Iain told the press, including the Mirror: "We don't want the Rovers shut for too long because it's almost like a character in its own right.
"Closing it felt almost like a death – it's almost as big a deal for me as any of the people that might have met their sticky end at the hands of Stephen Reid. The idea that the pub is boarded up was horrifying – and even walking up the lot and seeing that, it's like a dagger to the heart.
"So it's not going to stay closed for that long. In fact, it reopens on New Year's Eve, but the interesting thing is that the circumstances of it becoming open again are all tied up with Stephen's legacy. Somebody will do something that is at best, naughty, at worst, slightly criminal to get their hands on the keys to the pub and reopen it. So it will reopen, but the reopening of it will be based on this slightly shaky foundation of a criminal act."
Coronation Street boss, Iain MacLeod, has confirmed the Rovers Return Inn future after a turbulent time for the iconic cobbles boozer (ITV/REX/Shutterstock)Iain added: "I suppose the viewers will be wondering: 'Well, okay, so the pub is open, but what disaster will befall the person that's allowed that to happen because it's all based on this misdeed that they've committed?' We didn't want it to just open up again and it was like nothing had ever happened. We wanted it to open up with this kind of buried bomb underneath it that we will explode later in the year."
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Elsewhere, Iain has teased Courtney Vance's future on the hit ITV soap after Wednesday's explosive episode. During the latest episode, Aadi Alahan's world came crashing down over a new Courtney bombshell. Soap watchers will recall that Aadi and Courtney embarked on an affair earlier this year.
However, it was soon rumbled in dramatic scenes with Courtney's husband, Darren, filing for divorce. Meanwhile, Aadi's father, Dev Alahan, was left disappointed with his son, especially as the affair could have ruined a huge business deal for the family.
On Wednesday night, Aadi celebrated his new job shelf stacking at Freshco and decided to invite his sister, Asha, and Nina Lucas over for afternoon tea with Courtney feigning enthusiasm. However, later on, Courtney was a no-show and Asha was running late so it was just Aadi and Nina at the afternoon tea.
Things then went from bad to worse when Darren showed up unannounced with news from Courtney. Darren explained that he and Courtney had decided to give their marriage another go with the businessman showing up to collect his estranged wife's belongings. A devastated Aadi was in disbelief and was left further heartbroken when he tried to ring Courtney, realising that she had blocked his number.
With Courtney's future on the cobbles now up in the air, ITV soap boss Iain has teased what's next. Speaking to the press, including the Mirror, about winter storylines, he said: "I should say, I love Steph [Davis, who plays Courtney]. And I love Courtney!
"I think she's just been a big, colourful glitter bomb that's gone off in the middle of that storyline. But the long-term direction for Aadi is Amy Barlow. So what Courtney's role, if any, might be going forward, I don't know definitively, but I don't see her and Aadi as being the forever couple."
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