Coronation Street is reportedly experiencing a 'crisis' after Iain MacLeod left his position as producer after six years.
We reported in January that McLeod was moving to an executive producer position, overseeing both Corrie and fellow ITV soap Emmerdale following the departure of their own EP Jane Hudson.
During his time with the program, he has led successful storylines like the acid attack on Ryan Connor (Ryan Prescott) and Geoff Metcalfe (Ian Bartholomew) coercive controlling wife Yasmeen (Shelley King).
More recently, episodes have focused on the disappearance of Lauren Bolton (Cait Fitton) and the impact the departure of Peter Barlow (Chris Gascoyne) has had on son Simon (Alex Bain).
It’s understood that his wife, assistant producer Verity MacLeod, is replacing him in the interim.
A source told the MailOnline: 'ITV have had discussions with a number of television executives who are currently working on other serial dramas or have previously led big shows,'
'However, no one wants to take on the role. One factor deterring people is the fact that you’d be answering to Iain while having his wife as your deputy,' they continued.
'It’s a “MacLeod sandwich” that no one wants to be in the middle of and it’s now become even more of a headache for ITV.'
Nevertheless, it should be noted that the appointment of a new producer is always a time-consuming process, and in the soap’s first three decades, the role was often more variable and shared among several individuals who would take on the role for shorter periods.
The renowned boss Bill Podmore held the position across eight separate periods between 1976 and 1989.
Since 2013, there has been a succession from Emmerdale, with both Stuart Blackburn and Kate Oates moving across to take the reins. However, with Kate Brooks and Laura Shaw remaining in their current posts, it seems unlikely on this occasion.
The news comes just days after William Roache, who has played street stalwart Ken Barlow since the first episode in 1960, discussed how the show has to evolve to attract new viewers.
'The difficulty the producers have is you’ve got an older generation that’s getting older, there’s a younger generation that’s coming in and you’ve got to keep appealing to the younger generation and that isn’t easy,' he said to a fan in a personalised Cameo video.
'If it had remained what it was it would have been a dinosaur and would have died by now. It has to be an organic process, a living thing of drawing in the youngsters.'
