The Road to Coronation Street

British viewers have been tuning in to Coronation Street to watch the goings on in the fictional town of Weatherfield for more than 50 years (it’s the world’s longest running TV soap currently in production). As this delightful movie shows, it almost never saw the light of day as executives and artists struggled with an idea that was too shockingly original for most tastes back in 1960. After all, people wanted glitz and glamor on their TV shows: Who would tune in to watch a bunch of working class people from the North of England go about their business and speak in those outrageous accents? As it tuned out, everybody would. Even if you’ve never seen an episode, the way the movie captures the hectic insanity of what happens in a TV studio is a pleasure to watch. The addition of the original premier show of the series as a bonus only sweetens the deal.