Huge Emmerdale update on show’s future from soap boss with major schedule change coming

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Corriedale will see Emmerdale legends share the same setting as Coronation Street characters

A major update on the future of Emmerdale has been revealed by a soap boss.

This comes ahead of a special episode which will air in January 2026. The Corriedale episode will air on ITV. It has been revealed that a multi-vehicle pile-up will be at the centre of the drama that sees the worlds of Coronation Street and Emmerdale collide for one night only.

Fan favourite characters from both soaps will appear in the episode – 2026 is sure to be a big year for Emmerdale with Corriedale at the forefront of it. Corriedale will air on Monday, January 5 at 8pm. To launch the crossover cast members, from both soaps, attended a glitzy première at The National Science and Media Museum – in Bradford.

The special Corriedale edition will launch ITV’s new ‘soap power hour’ scheduling pattern for Coronation Street and Emmerdale. As we’ve previously reported, in 2026, the ‘soap power hour’ will launch with episodes airing Monday to Friday.

This now means 30 minute Emmerdale episodes will air at 8pm and 30 minute Coronation Street episodes at 8.30pm. Episodes will continue to drop at 7am on ITVX – before transmission that evening.

Iain MacLeod, the Executive Producer for Coronation Street and Emmerdale, has addressed the changes. Appearing at a Corriedale launch press conference, Iain said: “What we are discovering is people are watching Emmerdale and Coronation Street more on ITVx. That has upped markedly since we started making the episodes available from 7am on the day of transmission.

“If you are trying to fit an episode into your day, if you work from home or part-time, it is much easier to do that if it is a half-hour transmission rather than an hour. It is way more digestible and it is the right length for soap, in my humble opinion. It is what soap started as and it will definitely be easier (for people to watch) as people move more to ITVx to pick up a half-hour of Corrie or half-hour of Emmerdale.”

He added: “The effort we are making is to try and align what we are offering with how people consume TV these days.” It is fair to say there’s lots of Corriedale excitement in the air with cast and crew providing teasers for fans.

There has been much discussion around whether Corriedale is a one-off or something which could be revisited in the future. Iain explained: “People love Corrie and people love Emmerdale. They are distinct entities and they have their own voice and their own sense of humour and their own way of telling stories – they wouldn’t blend long-term at all.

“It is brilliant to bring them together for this. But, there are no plans to do it in the future. Sorry to be a killjoy.”