CORONATION Street bosses have been given the green light to build another Rovers Return for visitors of their popular studio tours.
They have been approved to build a second pub on their iconic set as part of their plans to improve the attraction – just weeks after cutting admission prices in a bid to boost visitors.
Fans had previously complained that the tour offered poor value for money, with the experience also beginning hundreds of yards away from the studios.
Now the set tours are being enhanced with plans to add a new visitor centre at the ITV studios.
HOAR Online can reveal that a planning application submitted for a three-storey Coronation Street Experience building on the main studio complex has just been given permission by Trafford Council.
It will include a dedicated entrance for soap fans coming to see the set, as well as a separate Corrie and ITV gift shop accessed through a replica Rovers Return frontage.
The ground floor will also house a cafe bar, with proposed opening hours from 8am to 11.30pm, and a 70-seat auditorium where studio tour introductions will take place.
An open plan exhibition space displaying sets from the soap, along with other ITV show memorabilia, will occupy part of the first floor.
It will also feature a multi-purpose projection room, the plans reveal.
The second floor will house conference facilities and a roof terrace covered with a canopy.
And rear of the building will have a changeable backdrop that can be used for Coronation Street filming.
The studios opened up for tours in 2018 after the closure of the visitor attraction at the old Quay Street set.
Guests can walk down the famous cobbles and see landmarks including the Rovers Return Inn, The Kabin and Roy’s Rolls as well as the recent Victoria Street expansion, which includes new shops, a police station and the Weatherfield North tram station.
But there have not yet been any dedicated visitor facilities on the working production lot.
Tour guests currently meet their guide at The Studios at dock 10, MediaCityUK, before walking over to the site.
The 90-minute tours are available on selected weekend days between 10am and 4pm when filming is not taking place.
The admission price has gone down from £35 to £32 after complaints about value for money, and tour guides have been warned to make sure that the experience lasts the full advertised 90 minutes.
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