Kate Oates has held talks about joining ‘EastEnders’.
The former ‘Coronation Street’ series producer is said to have been in negotiations with BBC bosses about taking the reins of the soap following successful stints at the ITV show and its rival ‘Emmerdale’, because channel chiefs are said to be keen to bring some "gritty drama" to Walford.
A source at the BBC said: "Kate went in to meet up with bosses earlier this month and they seemed to really like her.
"They love what she did with the recent ‘Corrie’ storylines, such as the suicide of Shayne Ward’s character Aidan.
"They would love Kate to bring some gritty drama to ‘EastEnders’."
While Kate – who departed ‘Corrie’ last month to join ITV drama ‘Bancroft’ for the show’s second series – is yet to sign on the dotted line to head behind the camera in Walford, show bosses are said to be quietly confident about her joining the show.
The source added to The Sun’s Bizarre TV column: "It’s still early days but producers are quietly hoping Kate will now decide to get on board."
While Kate’s ‘Corrie’ reign was praised by many after she raised awareness of male suicide and depression when Aidan Connor (Shayne Ward) took his own life, she came under fire for several dark storylines, such as Pat Phelan’s (Connor McIntyre) reign of terror.
TV presenters Sir Michael Parkinson, Fern Britton and Paul O’Grady have all hit out at the soap’s hard-hitting plots, which also included David Platt (Jack P. Shepherd) being raped by Josh Tucker (Ryan Clayton).
‘Life of Dogs’ host Paul compared the soap to war-torn Syria.
He said: "It was about working class life in a little street, but now it’s like Syria.
"There used to be these wonderful vignettes in the Rovers – a conversation over nothing."
Former ‘This Morning’ co-host Fern called for the soap to be "saved", claiming it is "unsuitable for pre-watershed".
She tweeted: "Is it looking for a post watershed slot? Not witnessing the graphic horror/degradation/shame/pain of sexual abuse is worse than seeing it. Unsuitable for pre watershed @ITV #SaveOurCorrie (sic)"
Michael said: "I never imagined I would recoil from watching ‘Coronation Street’, but the storyline of the kidnapping and torture of Andy and Vinny and their brutal murder by Pat Phelan had little to do with that gentle, funny reminder of life in the North Country I discovered and so admired in the early 1960s when I joined Granada Television."
Kate Oates ‘in talks about joining EastEnders’
