Coronation Street in 1988

1988 was Coronation Street's twenty-ninth year.

Production
Bill Podmore announced his retirement in 1988 and stood down as producer in December. The end of his 13-year association with the programme would be an important moment in Coronation Street history, and preparations for his departure began early; David Liddiment, Granada's commissioning executive for light entertainment, was appointed to replace him as executive producer, and Mervyn Watson returned to produce the programme at the end of the year.

Liddiment was keen to modernise the programme, feeling that it risked falling behind its rivals. He began by abandoning the use of film when shooting on location and instead recording everything on videotape using new lightweight OB cameras. The change occurred with Episode 2807 (22nd February 1988). He also arranged for the Street to be given more studio space, allowing more sets in each episode. However, Bill Podmore remained the main creative force behind the programme throughout the year, and Liddiment and Watson did not take full charge of the programme until the beginning of 1989.

New Rovers cleaner Sandra Stubbs, played by Sally Watts, was the only main character introduced, while Dawn Acton replaced Holly Chamarette as Tracy Barlow, becoming the third actress to play the role. This time, Tracy was absent for a mere nine months between heads. Meanwhile, Peter Baldwin joined the main cast after 12 years playing Derek Wilton on an occasional basis, Nigel Pivaro returned as Terry Duckworth for five months before leaving again at the end of the year, Amanda Barrie returned after six years for another short stint as Alma Sedgewick, and Helene Palmer left after ten years playing factory worker Ida Clough.

The Granada Studios Tour launched, giving fans an opportunity to visit the real sets used on some Granada productions. Its most popular feature was Coronation Street's outdoor set. The tour lasted until 1999.

Viewing figures
Ratings dropped by 400,000 viewers from 1987 to an average of 14.76 million viewers. This was the third year in a row with an overall decline. April, May and November saw slight increases year-on-year, while the biggest drops occurred in February and June, of over a million viewers. No other drops were significant.

The highest-rated episode of the year was Episode 2793 (4th January 1988), the first episode of the year, which gained an audience of 18.15 million viewers. As in 1986 and 1987, Coronation Street was kept off the top spot in the national ratings due to the chart dominance of EastEnders which was granted two showings, the audiences of which were combined by BARB.

Who lives where
Coronation Street Rosamund Street Others
 * Rovers Return Inn - Bet and Alec Gilroy.
 * 1 Coronation Street - Ken, Deirdre and Tracy Barlow.
 * 3 Coronation Street - Emily Bishop. Curly Watts (until April). Percy Sugden (from May to July and August onwards).
 * 5 Coronation Street - Ivy Tilsley/Brennan. Don Brennan (from June onwards).
 * 7 Coronation Street - Rita Fairclough, Alan Bradley (until October and from November onwards). Jenny Bradley.
 * 9 Coronation Street - Jack and Vera Duckworth. Amy Burton (until March). Terry Duckworth (from September to December).
 * 11 Coronation Street - Alf and Audrey Roberts. Malcolm Reid (from July to August).
 * 13 Coronation Street - Kevin and Sally Webster (from February onwards). Gina Seddon (from March to April and October onwards).
 * Corner Shop flat (No.15a) - Kevin and Sally Webster (until February). Curly Watts and Shirley Armitage (from April onwards).
 * Community Centre flat - Percy Sugden. (until May).
 * The Kabin flat - Mavis Riley/Wilton. Derek Wilton (from November onwards).
 * Flat 3, 44 Rosamund Street - Sandra and Jason Stubbs (from May onwards).
 * 37 Hillside Crescent - Betty Turpin.
 * 46b, St. Mary's Place - Mike Baldwin.
 * 33 Hammond Road - Brian, Gail, Nicky and Sarah Louise Tilsley.
 * 4 Gorton Close - Phyllis Pearce.
 * Nelson Street - Shirley Armitage (until March).
 * 15 Parliament Street - Percy Sugden (from July to August).
 * 12A Redwing Road - Alan Bradley (from October to November).