Coronation Street stars sign letter to BBC boss as backlash grows over Archers plans

Dozens upon dozens of actors from the world of soap, wider TV and even Hollywood films have signed an open letter the BBC's new director general Matt Brittin over recently-announced plans for long-lasting radio drama The Archers.

The show was set to receive a new studio in Birmingham, its historical home, at the BBC's regional headquarters at the Tea Factory in Digbeth. The broadcaster has stated that it will look to record the 75-year-old series in an existing studio, but cannot guarantee it would remain in the West Midlands.

The letter, published by the union Equity, has called for the BBC to reverse its decision and argues for why investing in the studio would be cost-effective.

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"We are writing as the cast, scriptwriters, freelance directors and sound team of The Archers to express our deep concern at the BBC's recent announcement reversing its commitment to include an audio drama studio in the Tea Factory, its new base in the West Midlands, rendering the programme homeless when the lease ends on our current studio in the Mailbox," the letter reads.

"This decision is a shocking about-turn from previously stated commitments to invest in the area, and represents an economic and cultural abandonment of the Midlands, which contributes more to the licence fee than any other region in return for the smallest relative spend."

"The Archers leaving the Midlands is akin to Corrie leaving the north-west, or EastEnders the south-east," it continued. "It is born of the very fabric of the place, and deserves to stay at home. It risks ripping out the heart of Ambridge."

It stated that moving the production away and separating the production team from the cast would negatively affect the quality of the show, while the options of either relocating and housing the existing staff or training up a new team would be more expensive in the longer term.

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"This letter is not a group of spoiled creatives averse to change or demanding the shiniest new things, it's a determination to stand in solidarity with our colleagues and the region, and to safeguard this beloved programme for generations of listeners and artists to come," it concludes.

Among the many, many names signed on the letter, we have Dame Judi Dench, Ludwig's Mark Bonnar, Coronation Street's Gareth Pierce, Lorna Laidlaw and James Cartwright, EastEnders' Kellie Bright and Bharti Patel, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story's Felicity Jones, The Office's Lucy Davis, Bridgerton's Adjoa Andoh, and Casualty's Lisa Bowerman, to name just a few.

New episodes of The Archers premiere every day at 7pm except Saturdays on BBC Radio 4, and can be streamed on BBC Sounds.

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