Coronation Street is taking its drama to the shops with a new set for the famous residents to visit.
Characters will now be able to venture further afield from the cobbles and visit a dessert shop, bakery, pound store, charity shop, Chinese takeaway and pawnbrokers in Weatherfield Precinct.
The shops, 1960s-style units with a row of maisonettes above them, have been mentioned by those living on the street for years but have remained off screen, until now.
Coronation Street proudly unveils its latest edition to the soap’s ever-growing fictional universe – Weatherfield Precinct.
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On Thursday, actor Sally Dynevor, who plays Sally Metcalfe, cut a red ribbon to officially open the set as other cast members set off confetti cannons in celebration.
Daniel Brocklebank, who plays vicar Billy Mayhew, told the PA news agency: “It’s fantastic. It gives me an opportunity to play more stuff.
“There’s something brilliantly depressing about how rundown it looks.
“I think Billy is probably going to be spending time in the charity shop.”
The building work has been going on for nine months, while filming carried on around it, but Thursday was the first time the cast saw the final result.
Elle Mulvaney, who plays Amy Barlow, said: “It’s mint. It’s the first time I’ve seen it and I can’t get over the amount of detail, it looks like it’s been here for years.
“It’s so good for the younger cast to have the precinct. There’s a lot of fun to be had.”
James Craven, who plays Aaron Sandford, added: “It just looks like it has been cut out of Salford and brought here.
“Something’s bound to kick off here!”
At Thursday’s unveiling, props were already in place, including a mobility scooter with a copy of the Weatherfield Gazette and a Thermos flask in the basket.
The new set also includes a children’s play area.
One of the first storylines to be set in the precinct when filming starts there next week will be in the Gregory Pope Foundation charity shop, where Roy Cropper and Evelyn Plummer will volunteer their services.
Producer Iain MacLeod said: “Hats off to our design and construction teams who have conjured a totally convincing new precinct for our drama.
“They took their inspiration from Salford’s many real-world, late 20th century shopping areas and what they have created is a brilliant, characterful space to tell a diverse range of stories.
“Expect to see teens hanging out at the dessert shop, families enjoying the play area and, after dark, a rogues’ gallery, up to shady business in the ginnels.
“I am really excited by the arrival on screen of this much discussed but never seen corner of the Weatherfield universe.”