IN a time where soaps are struggling, budgets are tightening and axing cast members has become a daily task, it has become harder than ever to make noise and get loyal soap fans on side.
But the bosses at ITV may well and truly have made the most costly mistake ever with its recent week of Emmerdale episodes.
Emmerdale’s deadly limo smash was one of the best weeks of soap ever[/caption]
But going against EastEnders anniversary week was a stupid decision[/caption]
With the BBC‘s EastEnders arguably at its best and miles in front of its counterpart ITV soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale in terms of critical opinion, ITV have been left in a desperate bid to change the fortunes of the hugely-scrutinised programmes.
Having been forced to cut both one episode of Corrie and Emmerdale a week amid the soap cash crisis, ITV seemingly had one chance with each of its soaps to bring it back to its glory days.
And whilst Coronation Street continues to plunge from one cliff to another with its dire content, Emmerdale struck gold with one of its BEST weeks of soap ever.
Well, sort of.
Emmerdale’s deadly limo crash was phenomenal television.
One of the most innovative stunts in soap ever, the Dales’ biggest female characters saw themselves trapped in a sinking limo in the middle of a frozen lake with only one way to safety and the other being to certain death.
The soap proved it meant business when it opted to kill off one character, Suzy Merton, within the first five minutes of the opening episode thus ensuring there was plenty more drama to come.
Having managed to keep most things a secret and under wraps, apart from a certain exit from Roxy Shahidi‘s Leyla, it delivered gasp-worthy, edge-of-your-seat gripping action.
It was by far the show’s most creative and visually chilling episode since 2016’s Hotten Bypass Crash – largely regarded as one of Emmerdale’s most memorable moments.
In fact, I’d go as far as to say this week’s deadly limo smash and shock underwater body reveal could even top it!
Surely, it must pick up all the awards at this year’s British Soap Awards?
It is bound to be one of soap’s most talked-about plots for years to come.
But no – sadly, I can almost guarantee it will not and it comes down to one thing.
The selfishness and greed of ITV bosses.
For reasons I can’t quite wrap my head around, ITV chose the hotly-anticipated week of EastEnders 40th anniversary to broadcast the best episodes of soap they’ve had in 10 years.
All eyes have been on the BBC’s flagship soap for months.
A huge fire, every single characters in the mix, two spin-off shows, legendary returns galore, an interactive vote and of course, a live episode meant that Emmerdale never stood a chance going up against the Walford Warrior.
The reveal of a mystery body was a total shock[/caption]
The ITV bosses should be painfully embarrassed and should hang their head in shame for sacrificing a top quality week of soap in an attempt to compete with its rival soap’s biggest week to date.
Emmerdale could have broadcast this week realistically in any of the other winter months.
They could have picked November, December, January or even March to showcase this fantastic week of episodes.
It’s a travesty that no one will be talking about this week’s Emmerdale.
Killing off four characters was a huge decision and is certainly the biggest number of simultaneous cast deaths seen on the show.
So, why bother wasting it when even just the potential for two EastEnders deaths would blow it out of the water?
It is a sorry mess and any desperate attempts to win some sort of competition is quite frankly childish.
ITV already had the fact that their soaps’ reputations are on their knees and now by wasting the one chance they had to put Emmerdale back on the map, they’ll have to go back to the drawing board when it comes to picking up the pieces of the fallen shows.
EastEnders major week is all anyone can talk about[/caption]
I feel for the stars of this week’s episodes, namely Roxy Shahidi, Amy Walsh, Natalie Ann Jamieson, Laura Norton and Martelle Edinborough.
They gave the performances of their careers and it does not deserve to go unnoticed.
And let’s be clear, my issue does not lie with any of Emmerdale’s fantastic cast or crew who delivered absolute TV gold.
It’s with those at the top who sacrificed their strongest soap week in forever as part of a pathetic little game.
Biggest soap stunts
Soaps are no stranger to dramatic stunts in the storylines. Not only do these moments create a spectacle for viewers, they also fundamentally change characters’ lives.
Here is a look at some of the biggest soap stunts from over the years.
CORONATION STREET
- Tram crash (2010): The ITV soap marked its 50th anniversary with a intense tram crash – and live episode to boot. Overall, the crash and its effects were broadcast across a week in December 2010. Its resulting chaos saw regular characters Ashley Peacock (Steven Arnold) and Molly Dobbs (Vicky Binns) die.
- Richard Hillman tries to kill the Platts (2003): Of all the men unlucky-in-love Gail tied the knot with, Richard Hillman (Brian Capron) is probably the one she regrets most in hindsight. In 2003, murderer Richard tried to kill his step-family: first by gassing them with car fumes and then driving Gail (Helen Worth), Sarah (Tina O’Brien), David (Jack P. Shepherd) and Bethany (Amy and Emily Walton) into a canal.
EASTENDERS
- Queen Vic fire (2010): In September 2010, EastEnders bid farewell to matriarch Peggy Mitchell (Barbara Windsor) as a permanent fixture on the soap – she returned as a guest before the character’s death in 2016. In the build-up to her initial exit, Peggy had trapped crack cocaine-addicted son Phil (Steve McFadden) in the Queen Vic. However, he escaped and set the boozer on fire.
- Bus crash (2017): In April 2017, a total of 11 Albert Square residents had their lives at risk in a terrifying bus crash. The stunt saw a double decker bus – the 764 to Barking – lose control and crash through the Albert Square market before hitting a low-level bridge. Notable passengers at the time included Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and Louise Mitchell (Tilly Keeper).
EMMERDALE
- James Barton’s death (2016): Interestingly about James’ (Bill Ward) death was that it came in a spiral of events. After wife Emma (Gillian Kearney) locked James up in a jealous rage, he escaped and they tussled on a bridge over the bypass. Emma pushed him and James fell into traffic, in turn causing a 12-vehicle pile up, As well as James dying, key characters including Ashley Thomas (John Middleton) and Rhona Goskirk (Zoe Henry) were injured.
