Street stories

Has Coronation Street fallen foul of politically motivated storylining? David Liddiment investigates in Media Guardian(free registration required).

The recent Claire Peacock do-gooding storyline is the culprit. Claire - taxi-driver and wife of Ashley - got involved in clearing the Red Rec (Weatherfield's version of the green belt) of the detritus of modern inner-city living, namely abandoned shopping trolleys and dumped sofas. In the spirit of good citizenship, Claire recruited the Street's residents to join in with, as they say, hilarious but ultimately uplifting consequences. Just another slice of life down Weatherfield way. But hang on. At the end of each episode viewers were invited to find out more about volunteering by contacting ITV's Britain on the Move campaign. This, apparently, is the Year of the Volunteer. So Claire's storyline was really a bit of social action working undercover in Britain's most popular show.