Soap fans, we bring you some disappointing news. Next month, the schedules for Coronation Street and Emmerdale will change, just weeks after the launch of ITV’s soap ‘power hour’.
At the start of January, Emmerdale and Corrie began airing from 8-9pm.
Following audience research, bosses concluded that 30 minute episodes attracted higher audience figures throughout 2024.
ITV’s Managing Director of Media and Entertainment Kevin Lygo previously said: ‘The new commissioning pattern is viewer-led. We already give more choice than ever to viewers on how they watch us through ITVX and we want to present their favourite soap to them, in the most digestible way.
‘In a world where there is so much competition for viewers’ time and attention, and viewing habits continue to change, we believe this is the right amount of episodes that fans can fit into their viewing schedule, to keep up to date with the shows.
‘Research insights also show us that soap viewers are increasingly looking to the soaps for their pacey storytelling. Streaming-friendly, 30 minute episodes better provide the opportunity to meet viewer expectations for storyline pace, pay-off and resolution.
‘Whilst viewing is growing on ITVX, we know a significant proportion of our soaps’ audience still watch us via the schedule. This new pattern is in the DNA of the soap genre – nobody else does 30 minute drama this successfully.’
It’s unfortunate that the scheduling is being impacted by sports already but alas, that will be the issue fans face again, this time at the start of February.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Why are Coronation Street and Emmerdale’s schedules changing?
In the week commencing February 2, both soaps will be off air for two nights. On Tuesday, February 3, the Arsenal v Chelsea match as part of the Carabao Cup will air from 7:30pm, meaning there won’t be any room for our usual trips to Weatherfield and the Dales.
Two days later (February 5), both soaps won’t be broadcasted due to a Six Nations match between France and Ireland.
Don’t miss a Soaps scoop! Add us as a Preferred Source
As a loyal Metro Soaps reader, we want to make sure you never miss our articles when searching for stories. We have all the latest soaps news, spoilers, videos, and interviews, with a vibrant community of highly engaged readers.
Click here and tick Metro.co.uk to ensure you see stories from us first in Google Search.
Of course, you don’t have to just watch the soaps as they air on ITV1, as they are uploaded to YouTube and ITVX each day.
What happened during Corriedale?
To kickstart the new scheduling pattern, ITV aired Corriedale, a massive crossover episode that saw the worlds of Coronation Street and Emmerdale collide.
The dramatic crossover event kicked off when Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller) and John Sugden (Oliver Farnworth) crashed into a car that was being driven by the Swains from Coronation Street.
Other characters from both soaps caught up in the crash included Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank), Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb), Cain and Moira Dingle (Jeff Hordley and Natalie J Robb), and Carl Webster (Jonathan Howard).
Billy sadly died in the ordeal, after becoming trapped in the minibus before it exploded.
The episode also confirmed that John had been murdered, with fans later discovering sister Victoria Sugden (Isabel Hodgins) killed him after injecting a drug into his system.
A storyline for Cain began, as a doctor revealed he needed tests to see if a newly discovered mass is cancerous.
We also saw the return of Emmerdale’s Graham Foster (Andrew Scarborough), who has supposedly been dead since 2020.
Becky Swain (Amy Cudden) was arrested by Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers) and we also met a woman called Jodie (Olivia Frances Brown), who we now know is Shona Platt’s (Julia Goulding) sister.
