Soapland was rocked with a real-life bombshell this week, as ITV announced that Coronation Street and Emmerdale will be cutting episodes permanently next year.
The long-running shows currently air six episodes per week, but will be shifting to five weekly episodes each from January 2026.
A new “soap power hour” on ITV will see Emmerdale air every weeknight at 8pm for 30 minutes. Coronation Street will follow at 8.30pm every weeknight, also for 30 minutes.
The changes have implications for both shows, as well as the wider soap industry, which we break down right here…
1. A change in storytelling style for Coronation Street
As Coronation Street has been given 11 months’ notice of the changes, it’s almost certain that the show’s storytelling style will shift in line with the new schedule from next January.
A typical week of Coronation Street currently follows three different “days” on the Street, which each play out across two episodes bundled together in an hour-long format. You know the drill: Monday’s double follows one day, Wednesday’s double starts a new day, and so on.
This was the case with the previous scheduling format too, back when Corrie used to air single episodes at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
With Corrie airing every weeknight from next year, it’s likely that the show will adopt Emmerdale‘s typical format of exploring five separate days for the residents to match the stripped weeknight schedule.
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This can only be a good thing, making the show more pacy and engaging. The current hour-long format – highly unusual for soaps – has never been popular with viewers and attracted complaints that it had become a slog to sit through in recent years.
ITV boss Kevin Lygo said this week: “Research insights 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.”
2. No more Thursday hospital hour for Emmerdale
Emmerdale often schedules dramatic storyline peaks for Thursdays, when the show airs two episodes. This was particularly noticeable back when the soap had separate 7pm and 8pm slots on Thursday evenings, with a strong cliffhanger needed to bring viewers back for the second episode.
Even with Thursday’s two episodes now airing in an hour-long format without a break, the day still tends to coincide with all manner of mysterious accidents and hospital trips for the long-suffering residents of the village.
From next year, Emmerdale will have single 30-minute episodes every weeknight, making every edition just as important as the last.
It’s possible that we’ll now see storylines play out more naturally, removing the need for a random bull rampage or deadly machinery malfunction just because it’s a Thursday.
3. An end to pesky EastEnders and Emmerdale clashes
ITV’s shake-up is arguably great news all round for soap fans. When the soap schedules last changed in March 2022, Emmerdale was pitted directly against EastEnders in the 7.30pm slot. The two soaps have repeatedly clashed in the schedules ever since.
Soap clashes are less of a big deal these days, with so much on-demand viewing and episodes being released on streaming in advance. Even so, they do still have a small impact on more casual soap fans who may not watch every episode and have their loyalties split by the clashes.
It’s worth noting that EastEnders‘ ratings have remained remarkably consistent during Chris Clenshaw’s reign as executive producer, while Coronation Street and Emmerdale have lost viewers in recent years but remain ahead of their BBC rival overall.
With all of the shows now out of each other’s way, could this benefit ratings for everyone? Speaking of which…
4. A reliable linear schedule…
For those who prefer to watch episodes as they air on TV, the new schedule is a soap fan’s dream.
Start early with a trip to Summer Bay as Home and Away‘s first-look episode airs on 5STAR at 6.30pm, followed by Hollyoaks on E4 at 7pm and EastEnders on BBC One at 7.30pm.
Emmerdale and Coronation Street will then follow at 8pm and 8.30pm respectively. Hands up – who’ll be sitting down to watch the full 2 and a half hours?
5. … but more competition
It’s fair to say that there are pros and cons to Coronation Street and Emmerdale‘s new “soap hour”. Airing from 8pm every weeknight puts the soaps at the heart of prime time and potentially creates more opportunity for fans to watch once they’re home from work and settled down for the evening.
There could be the risk of tough competition too, though. Annual shows such as The Great British Bake Off will certainly provide interesting scheduling competition on Tuesdays in the 8pm slot.
Certain episodes of BBC One’s ratings smash The Traitors also aired in the 8pm slot this year, as well as dramas like Beyond Paradise.
6. Changes behind the scenes
Sadly, ITV’s decision to cut back on soap episodes has an impact on the teams who work across Coronation Street and Emmerdale.
Behind-the-scenes staff are believed to be entering into a consultation process to discuss likely redundancies, with reports suggesting that 75 roles could be at risk out of the 600 who work on both soaps.
ITV boss Kevin Lygo said this week: “This new commissioning pattern will mean five hours of soaps a week, rather than the current six. We are conscious this will have an impact for the people who work on the soaps team.
“We will support our colleagues in ITV Studios as they work through these changes, and will do what we can to mitigate the impact on our people.”
Equity, the performing arts and entertainment union, revealed this week that it had received assurances from ITV that regular cast members won’t be directly affected by this decision.
This appeared to rule out a cast cull like the one we saw on Channel 4’s Hollyoaks last year when weekly episodes were cut from five to three.
However, Equity has highlighted concerns about a loss in opportunities for guest and supporting artists following the changes. Meanwhile, the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain and Bectu have released statements expressing concerns over the impact on soap scriptwriters and crew.
In its announcement this week, ITV pledged its ongoing commitment to the soap genre. A press release branded ITV the “premiere home of soap” and “the commissioning broadcaster that backs the genre more than anyone else in the market”.
Putting its money where its mouth is, ITV has promised to give Coronation Street and Emmerdale additional marketing support in 2026, “with the aim of maintaining [their] leading position into the future”.
8. A week of stunt drama
When the schedules change in January 2026, Coronation Street and Emmerdale will both air huge stunt weeks to kick their new eras off with a bang.
A statement read: “The start of the 2026 schedule will be marked in spectacular style, as both soaps embark on an ambitious, never before seen stunt as part of a week of special episodes.”
Some fans have even speculated about a possible crossover stunt which incorporates both shows – although with various cast who’ve appeared on both soaps, would ITV really open that can of worms?
