Emmerdale and Coronation Street have both been pulled from ITV's schedule tonight, with soap fans facing a three-day wait for the next episodes. Friday (November 6) sees ITV air coverage of the Nations Champions instead of the usual soap lineup.
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights at 8pm on ITV1, followed by Coronation Street at 8.30pm. Both shows are available to stream from 7am on ITVX. The next instalments will not air until Monday (November 9), following several recent disruptions caused by sporting events and special programming.
Emmerdale drama ahead
Despite the break, Emmerdale will see the Dingle family torn apart next week after Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) arranges for Samson Dingle (Sam Hall) to attack Tom King (James Chase) in prison. This prompts Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) to make the difficult decision to confront her abusive ex-husband.
Elsewhere, Kim Tate (Claire King) publicly acknowledges Thea Ramsden (Chelsea Edge) as her daughter, although Joe remains suspicious of the newcomer. Kev Barton (Chris Coghill) lands a surprising new job working for Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley), leaving Nicola King (Nicola Wheeler) upset, while Sadie King (Patsy Kensit) continues plotting against Caleb Miligan (Will Ash) and his wife Ruby Miligan (Beth Cordingly).
Robert also receives a much-needed financial boost for his new business, but his celebrations leave Gabby Thomas (Rosie Bentham) feeling heartbroken.
Coronation Street storylines
Over in Weatherfield, a special Coronation Street episode will focus on Debbie Webster (Sue Devaney) and her friends as they plan a birthday surprise for Carl Webster (Jonathan Howard). Kit Green (Jacob Roberts) collapses amid his cancer battle and later discovers Bethany Platt (Lucy Fallon) is pregnant.
Also, Carla Connor-Swain (Alison King) faces selling Underworld, Brody Michaelis (Ryan Mulvey) threatens to expose Idris Nazir's (Junade Khan) scheming, and Mary Taylor (Patti Clare) is left heartbroken after losing her job at Preston's Petals. Shona Platt (Julia Goulding) also receives a mysterious threatening phone call concerning Jodie Ramsey (Olivia Frances Brown).
It comes after the news that Owen Armstrong (Ian Puleston-Davies) will be back on screen in January. The character was last seen in Weatherfield in April 2015 when he announced he was leaving after his relationship with Anna Windass broke down and his business collapsed thanks in part to Pat Phelan. He went to Portugal before settling in Scotland.
Since leaving Coronation Street, actor Ian has starred in a number of high profile dramas, directed feature films and continued with his successful writing career. Commenting on his return, Ian said: "I can't wait to pick up where I left off 10 years ago! It's brilliant to be back and to get stuck into a cracking storyline. Owen's back and he's still angry!"
