Coronation Street fans were baffled after a storyline saw a dead child 'brought back' with AI which some described as being in "bad taste" and "creepy".

The plot thread involved the character of Leanne Battersby, whose son Oliver died in 2020 after a battle with mitochondrial disease.

A newcomer to the area called Rowan Cunliffe has targeted Leanne with his "self-improvement group" The Institute which had pulled her away from partner Nick Tilsley and even her sister Toyah Battersby.

Leanne had created more concern by talking to a mystery person on her laptop, and that person was revealed in the episode that aired on Friday (June 7).

After Nick came back home he saw Leanne and Rowan holding hands and thought they might be having an affair.

However, they revealed that Leanne had been talking with an AI version of Oliver on the laptop at the age he would have been had he not passed away.

Coronation Street fans baffled by AI child storyline

Several fans of the ITV soap took to social media to criticise the storyline with some saying it was in bad taste.

One person shared on X (formerly known as Twitter): "Wow #coronationstreet, this is pure sick to do something like this. Actually to use #AI in a Storyline like this is sick to the core.

"Thousands of people lose Children/Loved ones all the time & cant bring them back. Bad bad taste, very disappointing."

Another wrote: "Sorry but this scene was absolutely dreadful last night ! Very distasteful and made a mockery of anyone who had lost a child imo #corrie What next an AI Ken Barlow for when he eventually pops his clogs."

Some others shared similar sentiments, with one posting: "Dead Child AI, not creepy at all! What next are they going to bring back Fred Elliott as an AI? #corrie."

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Alongside that, some people used the storyline to criticise the direction the programme was going, as one person wrote: "Honestly very disappointed with Corrie atm, you are ruining the show. This storyline is utterly ridiculous. Where has the humour gone?"

Another compared it to Black Mirror, sharing: "I physically cannot process what is going on with Coronation Street.

"The s*** acting and the way it’s trying to be Black Mirror. Truly one of the worst shows on television. Abysmal show!"