ITV Coronation Street fans fume at ‘appalling’ storyline and plead with bosses to scrap it

Rowan Cunliffe’s crush on Leanne Battersby has left Coronation Street fans fed up as they grow tired of his manipulative behaviour. Emrhys Cooper’s character Rowan made a memorable entrance to the ITV soap in March 2024, meeting Leanne (Jane Danson) at The Chariot Hotel.

Leanne has been under Rowan’s influence ever since, spending large sums of money to be part of his ‘self-improvement’ group. However, her sister Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor) and partner Nick Tilsley (Ben Price) have expressed doubts about the Institute.

In recent scenes of the drama in Manchester, Toyah took steps to expose Rowan, but the Institute hit back by taking her to court for defamation. Toyah was ready to face the music until a call from Weatherfield General Hospital told her that Leanne had been in a motorcycle accident, which was plausible considering Rowan owns a motorcycle.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Toyah was shocked to discover that there was no record of Leanne being admitted. She desperately tried to contact her sister, who was actually in court with Rowan for Toyah’s trial, the Mirror reports.

Toyah soon realized that the accident was a ruse, likely orchestrated by Rowan to keep her out of the courtroom.

The beloved character faced courtroom drama, receiving an injunction that threatened her with jail time for any mention of the Institute. Compounding her woes, Toyah was faced with the financial strain of arranging a funeral for her stillborn daughter, along with mounting legal costs.

Nick urged Leanne to speak to Rowan in the hope of easing Toyah’s situation, while fans took to Twitter to express their desire to end the contentious storyline.

“Get rid of the story of Leanne and the Institute. Horrible!” expressed one viewer, while another shared his dismay: “Creepy AI Willow. This story must end soon. It’s ridiculous.”

The frustration was palpable among viewers, with tweets such as “This institute storyline is frustrating” and “I’m sorry but this Leanne and institute storyline is really stupid. It’s terrible”.

Following a conversation with Leanne, Rowan proposed a truce to Toyah, conditional on her signing a non-disclosure agreement. Initially hesitant, Toyah’s resolve wavered after noticing a mysterious man following her.

The episode ended with Toyah agreeing to sign the NDA, leaving viewers wondering if she would follow through.