IT’S not easy being a dedicated Coronation Street fan.
You have to organise your life to watch five – and sometimes more – episodes a week.
Then you have to contend with the fact that Corrie never starts at the advertised time.
Set your electronic programme guide to record an episode and you will almost certainly miss the closing scenes.
Thankfully, those dreadful Cadbury ads are coming to an end.
“Trudy lights!” – currently being endlessly repeated – has to be the worst sponsorship ident in the history of television.
It will finally disappear in October when furniture retailer Harveys takes over the £10m-a-year Street sponsorship contract.

Good or bad, fans will wade through the sponsor’s message to see their favourite programme.
We’ll even put up with the annoying squeezing of the end credits, in order to advertise some other programme we won’t watch.

But ITV1 has gone too far with its latest “innovation”.
Whoever thought up the “Next” and “Then” on screen trailers should be taken to the Red Rec and flogged with a copy of the Weatherfield Gazette.
Take Wednesday’s episode, for example.
Ashley and Casey were discussing Claire when up pop the trailers pictured here.
It’s like someone rudely interrupting a private conversation and destroys the moment carefully created by the cast and crew.
ITV executive chairman Michael Grade said recently: “Coronation Street remains the largest and most important programme brand on British Television.”
So treat Corrie – and its viewers – with a bit of respect, and ban those intrusive trailers.
* No, I’m not in the queue for the last Harry Potter book. Or following Tiger Woods at Carnoustie.
I’m actually on holiday this week but still keeping an eye on all things TV, as well as taking a keen interest in John Jeffay’s Exposure photography lessons.
I’ve also been to the Proms and a concert linked to BBC2’s forthcoming Summer of British Film.
More next week.
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