Coronation Street fans rinse soap for ‘trying to copy American sitcoms’ with ‘unwatchable’ new arrival
Viewers have been complaining about the character for weeks.
THE cobbles welcomed a new addition last year as one Weatherfield legend bowed out for a fresh start abroad.
One Coronation Street viewer recently took to a Digital Spy forum, blasting the newcomer and soap bosses for “copying” American TV.
ITV viewers are not happy and they aren’t afraid of letting producers know they’re expecting better from them.
Actor Chris Gascoyne aka Corrie’s Peter Barlow left the cobbles on Boxing Day as his on-screen wife Carla Connor (portrayed by Alison King) encouraged him to travel around the world.
But once the beloved cabbie boarded the tram that took him away from Weatherfield, a fresh face rocked up to fill the void.
Britain’s Got Talent star Jack Carroll was added to the line-up in late, 2023, as he took on the role of Carla’s secret nephew, Bobby Crawford.
Bobby shook things up upon his arrival, revealing to Carla that he was the son of her incarcerated brother, Rob Donovan.
But despite his quirks and undeniable sense of humour, viewers of the Manchester-based drama have been less than satisfied by the new arrival.
“Maybe the kid who plays bobby is now on the writing team as well. so sounds very unwatchable”, one soap watcher penned on the Digital Spy forum.
They added: “to be fair, Bobby is calming down with the 24/7 jokes, bit like Sam (Blakeman, played by Jude Riordan) when he first joined and his 24/7 fun fact because the writers liked Young Sheldon or something.”
“They need to stop trying to be other programmes, like the Friends references, being like carry on or what ever other shows they like.
Corrie is it’s own thing and needs to find that identity again”, the viewer then fumed.
Another soap fan jumped into the debate in agreement.
“With Bobby being a comedian, it makes you wonder if he does any writing. Newcomers in soaps are always OTT and it’s annoying.”
This isn’t the first time Bobby is receiving backlash online.
Some fans previously took to Reddit to share their frustrations with the new character.
“I wish he would have arrived when Stephen was still alive and he may have knocked him off and done all of us a favour”, one of them had penned on the platform.
“He’s just obnoxious and annoying with no redeeming qualities and just seems to be a habitual liar.”
“I’d rather sit through a double episode of Simon and Sean talking about their favourite hobbies.”
But viewers may see another side of Bobby’s character in upcoming scenes of the long-running show.
Spoilers for next week have teased Bobby is due to find out what really led to his father Rob’s incarceration.
Coming up, Bobby strikes up a conversation with Rita Tanner (Barbara Knox) and Mary Taylor (Patti Clare).
However, the pair are taken aback when they find out Bobby is none other than Rob Donovan’s son.
Regular viewers of the Manchester-based program will recall that Rita was particularly close to Tina McIntyre, who was tragically killed in 2014.
While Bobby know his father Rob is in prison for killing her, he feels the heat and tells Carla he’d like to know more about Tina.
The Underworld factory boss decides to lay her cards on the table and Bobby is shocked to learn that his father killed Tina in cold blood and not in self-defence like he’d previously been led to believe.
What will he do?
Could he pay a visit to his father Rob in prison?
Coronation Street airs every Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 8pm on ITV.