Coro St Scramble Unnecessary
July 10, 2018 
2 Comments
TVNZ 1 programmers are to be applauded for ensuring the continuity of Coronation Street having leap-frogged 18 months to catch up with the UK broadcasts.
But the programming verges on the peculiar. For instance, tonight the network’s running a half-hour instalment at 9.30 that will push back Under the Influence to 10.00 and force the cancellation of 1 News Tonight.
TVNZ says the re-sheduling is necessary to accommodate Tuesday’s 11.00 Wimbledon coverage.
“Wimbledon was originally down to start at midnight, but organisers brought the start time earlier,” a spokesperson says.
“We have a half-hour of Coronation Street on Tuesday as we only have time for a half-hour on the Friday due to an extended MasterChef Australia episode. We’ve undertaken to keep up with the UK broadcast and so do not wish to fall behind!”
That’s commendable but given Wimbledon doesn’t start until after midnight on Friday, why not screen the usual Coro St hour at a later time, postpone 1 News Tonight until 11.00 and run a filler at 11.30?
That way TVNZ 1 wouldn’t need a Tuesday edition of Coro St, 1 News Tonight could still screen and there would be no confusion for Coro St fans.
Expect more disruption to the Wednesday-Friday Coro St strip because of extra-long episodes of MasterChef Australia, which will add a Wednesday broadcast from July 25.
That week there will be an hour of Coro St on Tuesday, because the Friday episode is being dropped due to a two-hour edition of MasterChef Australia that will push back the start of A Place to Call Home to 9.20.
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July 10, 2018 at 8:03 pm
The risk if they bumped it to Friday is if it rains at Wimbledon tonight, tomorrow or Thursday then play could be brought forward again to 11pm. It does look messy and while not being a Coro viewer myself, I am interested in the scheduling and do think they would have been better either waiting until after Wimbledon at least to launch the acceleration. The other thing is canning the 1 News Tonight bulletin. Doesn’t sit well with me, perhaps that should have aired at 10:30 after a full hour of Coro and bumped Under the Influence.
Thanks, Clint. That’s a better explanation than TVNZ was able to tender! But given Wimbledon’s being simulcast in HD on Duke, and from an earlier hour, I still don’t understand why TVNZ 1’s schedule has to be so vulnerable.