<P> Influenced by the conventions of the kitchen sink drama, Coronation Street is noted for its depiction of a down - to - earth, working - class community, combined with light - hearted humour and strong characters . The show currently averages 8,000,000 viewers per episode on ITV . </P> <P> The first episode was aired on 9 December 1960 at 7 pm, and was not initially a critical success; Daily Mirror columnist Ken Irwin claimed the series would only last three weeks . Granada Television had commissioned only 13 episodes, and some inside the company doubted the show would last beyond its planned production run . Despite the criticism, viewers were immediately drawn into the serial, won over by Coronation Street's ordinary characters . The programme also made use of Northern English language and dialect; affectionate local terms like "eh, chuck?", "nowt" (/ naʊt /, from nought, meaning nothing), and "by' eck!" became widely heard on British television for the first time . </P> <P> Early episodes told the story of student Kenneth Barlow (William Roache), who had won a place at university, and thus found his working - class background - as well as his parents, Frank and Ida (Frank Pemberton and Noel Dyson) - something of an embarrassment . The character was one of the few to have experienced life outside of Coronation Street . In some ways this predicts the growth of globalisation, and the decline of similar communities . In an episode from 1961, Barlow declares: "You can't go on just thinking about your own street these days . We're living with people on the other side of the world . There's more to worry about than Elsie Tanner and her boyfriends ." Roache is the only remaining member of the original cast, which makes him the longest - serving actor in Coronation Street, and in British and global soap history . </P> <P> At the centre of many early stories, there was Ena Sharples (Violet Carson), caretaker of the Glad Tidings Mission Hall, and her friends: timid Minnie Caldwell (Margot Bryant), and bespectacled Martha Longhurst (Lynne Carol). The trio were likened to the Greek chorus, and the three witches in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, as they would sit in the snug bar of the Rovers Return, passing judgement over family, neighbours and frequently each other . Headstrong Ena often clashed with Elsie Tanner (Patricia Phoenix), whom she believed espoused a dauntlessly loose set of morals . Elsie resented Ena's interference and gossip, which most of the time had little basis in reality . </P>

Who has appeared in the most episodes of coronation street