ITV Coronation Street and Emmerdale in major 'super soap' schedule shake-up

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Emmerdale and Coronation Street fans will soon be getting used to a new schedule.

ITV has announced that the two programmes are to move into new time slots in a 'super soap' shake-up.

From March, the biggest soaps on British TV move into new optimal schedule slots, as ITV aims to build a Wstrong block of continuing drama."

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Emmerdale will move from 7pm to the slightly later time of 7.30pm every weekday.

Meanwhile, Coronation Street makes the move to three hour-long episodes airing at 8pm on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

The changes being made allow ITV National and International Evening News to become an hour-long programme from March 2022.

ITV says it will help give even more focus on reporting from outside of London to reflect the whole of the UK.

Announcing the changes, ITV’s Managing Director of Media and Entertainment, Kevin Lygo said: "As viewing habits rapidly change, live audiences to our national and international news programmes remain remarkably strong. Our evening news programme reached an impressive 35.6 million viewers in 2021.

"We are very excited to be announcing this investment in what is an important public service strength of ITV - high-quality, impartial, trusted broadcast journalism - at a time when it could not be more important.2

He added: "The nation’s two most popular continuing dramas, Coronation Street and Emmerdale, are fundamental to the success of ITV, and we know that, as with all dramas, viewers increasingly watch them whenever, and however they choose.

"The new scheduling means that viewers can watch them live on TV in one go in a continuous soap fix, as well as on ITV Hub where they