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Glenn A Posts: 25,030
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05/02/25 - 15:08 #27
I think ITV are realising their two soaps aren't the massive hits they used to be and are in decline, hence the decision to cut the amount of episodes and the buidget for them. It's possible by the end of the decade, they could be down to three episodes a week, or even moved into the 5-6 pm slot before the news. I'm not saying Emmerdale or Coronation St are ibeing axed any time soon, as they still atrract 3-4 million viewers, but it's the start of their long farewell. If cancellation is to come for them, it will be when audience figures fall below a million and it's no longer economic to make them( ;possibly ten years time).
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omnidirectional Posts: 19,306
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05/02/25 - 15:14 edited 05/02/25 - 15:16 #28
Richardcoulter wrote: »
redmatt7 wrote: »
According to metro filming of both soaps was suspended yesterday with a consultation launched and likely redundancies (i would assume in the spring) as each soap moves from 3 hours a week to 2.5
Every single one says something akin to:
'I've had a wonderful time on the best programme in the world, i've learnt so much, but now i've decided to move on.
Yeah, right.
This will have been agreed to help them save face, whilst making sure that they don't air any negative feelings/comments in public.
The same happened with Hollyoaks last year, which had a cut in episodes and associated job cuts. The cast affected were offered the chance to say it was their own decision to leave rather than admit they'd been axed.
She then went on to give more details about what went on behind the scenes, saying: "I was given the chance to say I had chosen to quit the show to spare me any embarrassment of revealing that I’ve been axed, which was very kind.
"But I don’t want to lie to the fans who have followed Cindy’s journey for nearly 3 decades as I believe they know she nor I would ever have left the show by choice.
https://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/hollyoaks/a60432240/hollyoaks-stephanie-waring-cindy-axed/
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jazzydrury3 Posts: 27,984
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05/02/25 - 15:16 #29
I didn’t realise the 2 soaps had a combined staff total of 650, an£ 75 Jobs will go.
What do 650 staff do
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Glenn A Posts: 25,030
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05/02/25 - 15:18 #30
jazzydrury3 wrote: »
I didn’t realise the 2 soaps had a combined staff total of 650, an£ 75 Jobs will go.
What do 650 staff do
Does this not include the actors as well, which would boost the numbers?
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redmatt7 Posts: 293
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05/02/25 - 15:28 #31
Glenn A wrote: »
I think ITV are realising their two soaps aren't the massive hits they used to be and are in decline, hence the decision to cut the amount of episodes and the buidget for them. It's possible by the end of the decade, they could be down to three episodes a week, or even moved into the 5-6 pm slot before the news. I'm not saying Emmerdale or Coronation St are ibeing axed any time soon, as they still atrract 3-4 million viewers, but it's the start of their long farewell. If cancellation is to come for them, it will be when audience figures fall below a million and it's no longer economic to make them( ;possibly ten years time).
But at the minute they're still getting decent ratings relative to other offerings these days, so I think this move makes sense. Like you say, a long farewell, which would definitely be looming if they were to move them the other side of the news - I think they're probably too costly to do that but if they were to, then they might as well go the whole hog and put them a daytime slot, eg in the 2-3pm slot, with an evening repeat at 8-9pm on ITV2 or ITV3!
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lufcfan1998 Posts: 23,982
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05/02/25 - 15:53 #32
hyperstarsponge wrote: »
lufcfan1998 wrote: »
Nova8221 wrote: »
Do people still watch the soaps on ordinary channels? I've been streaming on ITVX for years.
I only watch Hollyoaks and Home and Away on normal TV now for the soaps.
We found the one person that does, Channel 5 would love to get rid of Home And Away ASAP
The only way they can do that is if Channel 7 decide to axe it in Australia, and at the moment that won't be for a while off yet as it's more popular over there.
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mavreela Posts: 5,289
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05/02/25 - 16:05 edited 05/02/25 - 16:08 #33
Comparing ratings today with a decade ago is dumb and pointless. Good and bad is relative to slot averages, relative to overall viewing, and the two I.T.V. soaps are still the main channel's most watched programmes with all episodes regularly in the top 25 most watched programmes of the week. They are rating very well.
The world has changed, there are way more ways for people to watch television and way more ways to use televisions and other screens. Relative to television i the 2020s they are performing fairly similar to the way they always have, a bit down but only a small bit.
They are not dying, television audiences are dying, they are still holding their own within that space. Every channel and streaming service would love to have something regularly draw the same sized audience as they do.
It seems to me I.T.V. is moving its most watched shows into the 8pm hour to guarantee ratings there, and provide a strong lead-in to 9pm. Far from being a long farewell it looks like it is centring the schedule around its strongest assets.
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Radiomike Posts: 8,142
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05/02/25 - 17:24 edited 05/02/25 - 17:30 #34
From a scheduling perspective this makes perfect sense to me. Gives a consistent start time and length for both soaps (for the bulk of the time) and removes the schedule clashes between Emmerdale and Eastenders to the benefit of both. The reduction from 3 hours to 2.5 hours per week for each soap is marginal. Probably feel 30 min slots work better than 60 min ones for soaps. The "Power Hour" moniker is purely marketing spin as part of selling the change.
Also gives ITV some flexibility pre 8pm. Will they keep the Evening News at 1 hour or return it to 30 mins I wonder. If the latter (and they likely wouldn't announce it until much nearer the date) they would I think most likely move a gameshow/quiz into the 7pm hour 4 or 5 nights a week, possibly with one night available for Martin Lewis or 2 x 30 min progs. If the news stays at 60 mins they could run a shorter format quiz/gameshow at 7.30 with possibly Martin Lewis at 7pm one night per week with a shorter news.
Effectively the ITV schedule would be stripped across Mon to Fri save for the 9pm hour and post 10.45pm.
Useful article on the changes - would concur with most of the points made as influencing the changes:-
https://cleanfeed.thetvroom.com/22505/opinion/surprise-soaps-scheduling-move-by-itv-1/3
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Glenn A Posts: 25,030
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05/02/25 - 18:26 #35
redmatt7 wrote: »
Glenn A wrote: »
I think ITV are realising their two soaps aren't the massive hits they used to be and are in decline, hence the decision to cut the amount of episodes and the buidget for them. It's possible by the end of the decade, they could be down to three episodes a week, or even moved into the 5-6 pm slot before the news. I'm not saying Emmerdale or Coronation St are ibeing axed any time soon, as they still atrract 3-4 million viewers, but it's the start of their long farewell. If cancellation is to come for them, it will be when audience figures fall below a million and it's no longer economic to make them( ;possibly ten years time).
But at the minute they're still getting decent ratings relative to other offerings these days, so I think this move makes sense. Like you say, a long farewell, which would definitely be looming if they were to move them the other side of the news - I think they're probably too costly to do that but if they were to, then they might as well go the whole hog and put them a daytime slot, eg in the 2-3pm slot, with an evening repeat at 8-9pm on ITV2 or ITV3!
I think Coronation St and Emmerdale will go when the audience has mostly died out anf they become uneconomic to produce. They still do well relative to other weekday programmes, but it is evident, like Eastnnders, their best days are behind them now and interest in the soaps among younger viewers is limited. Even a young skewing soap like Hollyoaks was moved to E4 with two espisodes a week cancelled and the budget slashed as it was rating badly.
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GeorgeS_2 Posts: 17,089
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05/02/25 - 18:35 #36
Not going anywhere with them driving huge traffic on itvx. The audience is just going to watch on demand.
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989 Posts: 2,461
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05/02/25 - 18:39 #37
Quite simple - they need better happier scripts with less depressing less violent storylines all the time on both Coronation Street and Emmerdale!
Like Eastenders they have become depressing!
On both BBC and ITV not enough happy TV and certainly good new comedy!
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neys Posts: 4,822
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05/02/25 - 20:21 edited 05/02/25 - 20:35 #38
ViewerUpNorth wrote: »
I think there are a few interesting points for me
The first one is ITV had now decided with this schedule move not to go up against the BBC EastEnders with its own soaps (which they have been doing for the last decade or so (if not longer)). EastEnders moved to 7.30pm a few years ago as its consistent time (previously moving between 7.30pm and 8.00pm) and now ITV are effecively saying if the BBC at 7.30pm, were at 8.00pm and 8.30pm. Their are audience who watches all three shows so that will be of huge benefit to them.
This might have been covered elsewhere, but how does the soap do in international sales to other broadcasters around the world these day? I know Corrie and EastEnders used to be shown across the world, but is that still the case? They feel like (to me a least) a somewhat dated view of Britain and British society that increasingly only resonates with British audiences.
Could some of ITV motivation to cut costs be because they don't recover as much of the cost from other broadcaster as they do with for example their 9pm drama?
It unfair to say these programs don't serve an audience. they do. It is just an increasingly smaller audience. Today audience is around 3 - 5 million (according to this forum's excellent rating thread). 25 years ago, they would have around 8 - 12 million nightly (and maybe higher for bigger stories of EastEnders and Corrie). They used to be what the BBC and ITV build their early evening programme around (especially in the BBC case when it had the albatross of the main evening news at 9pm) but they are not now. 9pm is the most important hour of TV for BBC1 and ITV.
Where in the late 80's and 90's it was about these soap increasing their weekly run time, I now think the rest of this decade will be about cutting the weekly run time off the soaps. It would surprise me if, in the next few years, the Friday edition of Emmerdale and Corrie are also dropped so we are back to around 2 hours for each show. It still going to be sad for the talent onscreen, and many more offscreen staff who will lose their jobs during these changes. Time do change, and I hope they find work elsewhere.
I think my question for ITV will be, what do you have to fill 5 X 30 slots at 7.30pm each night? Over the last decade or so, there has been so much focus on the soaps on ITV for their early evening viewing they have long since stopped developing other shows that work well in early evening timeslots (gameshow, travel shows, proper challenging current affairs strands). The show they do have feel cheap and uninspiring, not likely to get a large audience (but, will anything? Probably not).
I know Corrie still get shown in Canada on the CBC network and Easterners had since moved channels and is now shown on OneTV in Canada. OneTV is similar to ITV2 here.
Both Corrie and Eastenders in Canada are at lest a year behind with episodes.
@lufcfan1998 they could move Home and Away to 5Select channel. -
Glenn A Posts: 25,030
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05/02/25 - 20:58 #39
989 wrote: »
Quite simple - they need better happier scripts with less depressing less violent storylines all the time on both Coronation Street and Emmerdale!
Like Eastenders they have become depressing!
On both BBC and ITV not enough happy TV and certainly good new comedy!
This is probably another factor in the soaps decline, they're just so miserable and depressing and made worse by being made in a studio that never looks well lit. Younger viewers used to multi million dollar dramas shot on location on Netflix aren't likely to want to switch over to ITV to watch a depressing 90 minutes of soaps that look they were made in 1980. Also many long term viewers have given up on the soaps as they're so miserable.
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Antbox Posts: 5,401
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05/02/25 - 22:06 #40
malcy30 wrote: »
The soaps are going to be moved to fixed time slots with a soap hour 8 to 9pm every week night with Emmerdale fixed at 8pm and Coronation Street 8:30pm. Means no more 1 hour episodes.
Has a major broadcaster ever announced a schedule change like this nearly a year in advance before? I'm sure it doesn't happen very often.
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Darren Lethem Posts: 65,775
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05/02/25 - 22:22 edited 05/02/25 - 22:22 #41
Glenn A wrote: »
989 wrote: »
Quite simple - they need better happier scripts with less depressing less violent storylines all the time on both Coronation Street and Emmerdale!
Like Eastenders they have become depressing!
On both BBC and ITV not enough happy TV and certainly good new comedy!
This is probably another factor in the soaps decline, they're just so miserable and depressing and made worse by being made in a studio that never looks well lit. Younger viewers used to multi million dollar dramas shot on location on Netflix aren't likely to want to switch over to ITV to watch a depressing 90 minutes of soaps that look they were made in 1980. Also many long term viewers have given up on the soaps as they're so miserable.
You keep saying they are in decline but 8 out of ITV’s 9 most watched shows last week were either episodes of Corrie or Emmerdale. Numbers aren’t what they were but very few shows are. I haven’t watched Emmerdale since Matt was having trouble with sheep in t’top field. And Reg Holdsworth was running the supermarket in Corrie last time I watched. But people still do. I don’t think they are in decline even though not my, yours or many others bags. They still bring in the bucks for ITV
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Glenn A Posts: 25,030
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05/02/25 - 22:23 #42
Antbox wrote: »
malcy30 wrote: »
The soaps are going to be moved to fixed time slots with a soap hour 8 to 9pm every week night with Emmerdale fixed at 8pm and Coronation Street 8:30pm. Means no more 1 hour episodes.
Has a major broadcaster ever announced a schedule change like this nearly a year in advance before? I'm sure it doesn't happen very often.
It's odd as the changes in 2022 was only announced a couple of months in advance and the omnibuses on ITV2 were cancelled a year later with no warning. I wonder if something else is happening in ITV, like a major revamp of rheir main channel next year.
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radiofan28996 Posts: 3,921
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05/02/25 - 22:25 #43
James2001 wrote: »
davelovesleeds wrote: »
Nova8221 wrote: »
Do people still watch the soaps on ordinary channels? I've been streaming on ITVX for years.
Of course people watch 'on ordinary channels'!!!
Just because you don't, doesn't make it wrong.
We all have options and choose different ones.
Silly, condescending comment.
The picture quality's much higher watching it on broadcast than on ITVX as well, that alone keeps me watching it when it's shown on TV.
Yes... all de interlaced, un cropped and zoomed
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neys Posts: 4,822
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05/02/25 - 22:52 edited 05/02/25 - 23:02 #44
Glenn A wrote: »
Antbox wrote: »
malcy30 wrote: »
The soaps are going to be moved to fixed time slots with a soap hour 8 to 9pm every week night with Emmerdale fixed at 8pm and Coronation Street 8:30pm. Means no more 1 hour episodes.
Has a major broadcaster ever announced a schedule change like this nearly a year in advance before? I'm sure it doesn't happen very often.
It's odd as the changes in 2022 was only announced a couple of months in advance and the omnibuses on ITV2 were cancelled a year later with no warning. I wonder if something else is happening in ITV, like a major revamp of rheir main channel next year.
Not that im in much during the day on a weekday as im dayshift or doing a middle shift at work but ITV could do with daytime schedule revamp during the week. Like in the Summer months go back to giving This Morning a 2 week Summer break in mid July. Like they did in the 90s.
They could also give Lose Woman a 2 week Summer break.
Also think ITV need to go back to when there was no soaps on at lest one night a week during prime time on a weeknight.
Some nights I now dont watch ITV(STV) at all when im in unlike a good though years ago. -
NoEntry2k Posts: 15,413
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06/02/25 - 12:33 #45
neys wrote: »
I know Corrie still get shown in Canada on the CBC network and Easterners had since moved channels and is now shown on OneTV in Canada. OneTV is similar to ITV2 here.
Both Corrie and Eastenders in Canada are at lest a year behind with episodes.
@lufcfan1998 they could move Home and Away to 5Select channel.Just add a little detail, Coronation Street streams on CBC Gem, which is basically CBC's version of ITVX, not on the actual CBC network.
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lufcfan1998 Posts: 23,982
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06/02/25 - 13:00 #46
NoEntry2k wrote: »
neys wrote: »
I know Corrie still get shown in Canada on the CBC network and Easterners had since moved channels and is now shown on OneTV in Canada. OneTV is similar to ITV2 here.
Both Corrie and Eastenders in Canada are at lest a year behind with episodes.
@lufcfan1998 they could move Home and Away to 5Select channel.Just add a little detail, Coronation Street streams on CBC Gem, which is basically CBC's version of ITVX, not on the actual CBC network.
And I think Emmerdale is on Britbox there?
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leslie123 Posts: 2,909
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06/02/25 - 15:22 #47
Don't forget ITV early evening news is only half an hour on Fridays in certain regions. STV,UTV and ITV1 Border Scotland. Certain regions including ITV1 Wales and those mentioned have to maintain a certain amount of extra local programming.
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malcy30 Posts: 8,293
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06/02/25 - 16:15 #48
Antbox wrote: »
malcy30 wrote: »
The soaps are going to be moved to fixed time slots with a soap hour 8 to 9pm every week night with Emmerdale fixed at 8pm and Coronation Street 8:30pm. Means no more 1 hour episodes.
Has a major broadcaster ever announced a schedule change like this nearly a year in advance before? I'm sure it doesn't happen very often.
I presume ITV wanted to get ahead of the story as the press had the news cast and crew are being sacked (contracts not renewed) as the numbers are being slimmed down with the reduction in hours per week of programming. Okay they only film a month or so in advance but they want to get rid of people over the next year as contracts expire as if they want to fire mid contract they would almost certainly have to pay up for unexpired period.
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Richardcoulter Posts: 33,210
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06/02/25 - 17:48 #49
Glenn A wrote: »
redmatt7 wrote: »
Glenn A wrote: »
I think ITV are realising their two soaps aren't the massive hits they used to be and are in decline, hence the decision to cut the amount of episodes and the buidget for them. It's possible by the end of the decade, they could be down to three episodes a week, or even moved into the 5-6 pm slot before the news. I'm not saying Emmerdale or Coronation St are ibeing axed any time soon, as they still atrract 3-4 million viewers, but it's the start of their long farewell. If cancellation is to come for them, it will be when audience figures fall below a million and it's no longer economic to make them( ;possibly ten years time).
But at the minute they're still getting decent ratings relative to other offerings these days, so I think this move makes sense. Like you say, a long farewell, which would definitely be looming if they were to move them the other side of the news - I think they're probably too costly to do that but if they were to, then they might as well go the whole hog and put them a daytime slot, eg in the 2-3pm slot, with an evening repeat at 8-9pm on ITV2 or ITV3!
I think Coronation St and Emmerdale will go when the audience has mostly died out anf they become uneconomic to produce. They still do well relative to other weekday programmes, but it is evident, like Eastnnders, their best days are behind them now and interest in the soaps among younger viewers is limited. Even a young skewing soap like Hollyoaks was moved to E4 with two espisodes a week cancelled and the budget slashed as it was rating badly.
It will be a strange day if Coronation Street is ever pulled. I believe that it was the success of this single programme that significantly led to the unified ITV that we have today.
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redmatt7 Posts: 293
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06/02/25 - 18:10 #50
Glenn A wrote: »
Antbox wrote: »
malcy30 wrote: »
The soaps are going to be moved to fixed time slots with a soap hour 8 to 9pm every week night with Emmerdale fixed at 8pm and Coronation Street 8:30pm. Means no more 1 hour episodes.
Has a major broadcaster ever announced a schedule change like this nearly a year in advance before? I'm sure it doesn't happen very often.
It's odd as the changes in 2022 was only announced a couple of months in advance and the omnibuses on ITV2 were cancelled a year later with no warning. I wonder if something else is happening in ITV, like a major revamp of rheir main channel next year.
The 2022 changes were "cosmetic" - both soaps stayed as 3 hours per week, so no need for redundancies of crew. Having said that, redundancy exercises are usually completed within 3 months once announced, so it seems early vs a change in production that won't happen until November even if they try to redeploy people and get some voluntaries. Makes me think that the schedule change to the "Power Hour" isn't the first change we will see - might both soaps go down to an average of 2.5 hours each a week from the summer (let's say June), but using existing slots and not having to double up Emmerdale/shift Corrie to Tuesday to make up for live sports/other events
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Glenn A Posts: 25,030
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06/02/25 - 18:13 #51
Richardcoulter wrote: »
Glenn A wrote: »
redmatt7 wrote: »
Glenn A wrote: »
I think ITV are realising their two soaps aren't the massive hits they used to be and are in decline, hence the decision to cut the amount of episodes and the buidget for them. It's possible by the end of the decade, they could be down to three episodes a week, or even moved into the 5-6 pm slot before the news. I'm not saying Emmerdale or Coronation St are ibeing axed any time soon, as they still atrract 3-4 million viewers, but it's the start of their long farewell. If cancellation is to come for them, it will be when audience figures fall below a million and it's no longer economic to make them( ;possibly ten years time).
But at the minute they're still getting decent ratings relative to other offerings these days, so I think this move makes sense. Like you say, a long farewell, which would definitely be looming if they were to move them the other side of the news - I think they're probably too costly to do that but if they were to, then they might as well go the whole hog and put them a daytime slot, eg in the 2-3pm slot, with an evening repeat at 8-9pm on ITV2 or ITV3!
I think Coronation St and Emmerdale will go when the audience has mostly died out anf they become uneconomic to produce. They still do well relative to other weekday programmes, but it is evident, like Eastnnders, their best days are behind them now and interest in the soaps among younger viewers is limited. Even a young skewing soap like Hollyoaks was moved to E4 with two espisodes a week cancelled and the budget slashed as it was rating badly.
It will be a strange day if Coronation Street is ever pulled. I believe that it was the success of this single programme that significantly led to the unified ITV that we have today.
I reckon the soaps have 10-15 years left before the audience becomes too low to make them viable. It will be an odd day when ITV show the final Coronation St, but by the late 2030s would there be many viewers left who'd notice.
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