Coronation Street star adds fuel to the fire as soap hit with favouritism row

Daily Mirror

10-05-2025

Coronation Street star Sair Khan has been at the centre of a 'favouritism' row as some of her co-stars are said to be unhappy over the fact she is allowed to take up other opportunities
Corrie's Sair Khan has found herself in the midst of a 'favouritism' storm as some of her fellow actors on the ITV soap simmer with displeasure over her ability to snag extra gigs.
The cobbles are alive with whispers of discontent as certain stars, including Sair, 37, and colleague Samia Longchambon, 42, are apparently getting the green light for profitable brand promotions while others face a strict no-go from bosses.
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Adding fuel to the fire, Sair flaunted yet another partnership on Instagram this week, causing quite the stir among the cast with her post: "Lets give these a go! @purebornfamily. @mumandme_app #gifted."
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Notably, she was also allowed to endorse a swanky £2,500 Italian Bertazzoni oven online.
Meanwhile, Samia is basking in the limelight too, featuring in Marks and Spencer content with hubby and former ice-skating pro Sylvain Longchambon, reports the Daily Star.
Despite ITV's rulebook often stamping out any commercial activities by their soap personnel without top brass giving the nod, the visible endorsement deals by the two actresses have ruffled feathers backstage.
A fellow actress spilled the beans to The Sun, voicing her frustration: "It's one rule for the polished PR favourites, and another for the rest of us. If you're not part of the golden circle, forget it."
She blasted: "They wouldn't let most of us even do a teeth-whitening collaboration, meanwhile Samia's out there posing with pastries. It's a total p*** take.
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"We've been told time and time again: no ads, no endorsements - not so much as a candle on Instagram. But then Samia pops up in a full-blown promo for MandS and everyone's just supposed to pretend it's normal?".
"People are keeping quiet as they don't want to rock the boat or get the boot but there's a lot of anger. Why are some allowed to cash in while the rest of us struggle?".
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Both soap stars have had long-standing roles on the ITV show, with Samia gracing our screens as Maria Connor intermittently since 2000, and Sair portraying Alya Nazir since 2014.
According to internal policy, all outside gigs must receive prior sign-off and must align with ITV's commercial obligations and protect character integrity.
The behind-the-scenes friction comes at a challenging time for the long-running soap, which is said to be currently navigating significant financial constraints. As reported previously, producers are thought to be scaling back filming days, shifting actors to a part-time status, and even stretching scripts in an effort to control costs and boost profitability.