We're all being told to support our local businesses these days, aren't we? And while we're making a conscious effort to swerve Starbucks and swap out Sainsbury's wherever we can, it seems the residents of Weatherfield aren't quite on the same page.
With *every establishment *they could possibly want approximately 100 metres from their doorsteps (we're talking a pub, salon and kebab shop to name a few), you'd think those living on Coronation Street would take advantage of a local enterprise. So obviously fans are FUMING Maria Connor and co. went on a coffee run to Costa in possibly the most ridiculous instance of product placement ever.
Oh, WON'T SOMEBODY THINK OF ROY'S ROLLS?
Viewers noticed some shameless product placement when Maria and David Platt sipped from those infamous Costa cups in Audrey's salon; with some even questioning if its inclusion was legal.
One Twitter user wrote '@itvcorrie @ITV..... guys whats going on??? First of all gone from #fresco to @coopuk shopping bags to now @CostaCoffee drinking out of Costa cups ... #endorsement??? Come on answer us please #CoronationStreet #corriefanclub,' with another pointing out 'Oh when did Corrie get a handy Costa coffee? Roy won't be loving this. #ad #CoronationStreet' [sic].
Maybe Roy hasn't kept up with consumer demand and offered a mocha choca extra hot skinny latte just yet, eh?
Shocked to their very core, some Corrie fans even asked 'Is advertising costa coffee on a soap allowed?' [sic]. Well actually, love, it is. That little 'P' symbol in the corner of the screen during the titles? Yep, that means you can expect product placement throughout.
Sneaky.
Mark Trinder, sales director at ITV, confirmed the deal with Costa (and Co-op, for that matter) saying: "The expansion of the Coronation Street set has given us a great opportunity to feature branded shop facades as more of Weatherfield is opened up to viewers.
"Incorporating product placement on this scale is something we have wanted to do for some time and we’re delighted with this exciting opportunity. We’ve worked really closely with the Coronation Street team to make sure we’ve got a great brand fit for Co-op and Costa Coffee with the nation’s favourite soap while still ensuring editorial integrity."
So there you go.