ITV is unlocking classic episodes of its soaps after production on new instalments was halted.
“Vintage” episodes of Coronation Street and Emmerdale will be placed on its on-demand platform, ITV Hub.
It comes as filming of both soaps has been stopped and transmission reduced to make the episodes which have already been recorded last longer.
Following yesterday’s announcement that filming of @itvcorrie & Emmerdale will be suspended, @ITV has taken the decision to reduce Emmerdale’s transmission pattern to 3 episodes per week from 30 March – airing on Mon, Wed & Fri with #Corrie at 7.30pm on the same nights #Emmerdale pic.twitter.com/PtIAhIUDcd
— Emmerdale (@emmerdale) March 23, 2020
Emmerdale will run out of episodes at the end of May, while Coronation Street will last until after June.
The episodes, airing every weekday on ITV Hub from Monday, will give “soap fans a trip down memory lane and a chance to relive some of soapland’s most iconic characters,” ITV said.
Coronation Street episodes from 1995, featuring Weatherfield characters Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear), Alec Gilroy (Roy Barraclough), Mavis Wilton (Thelma Barlow), Raquel Wolstenhulme (Sarah Lancashire) and Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs), will go on the platform.
ON THIS DAY IN #Emmerdale3rd May2016 (ep 7492) News reaches Emmerdale that Edna has passed away…💔 pic.twitter.com/pTI0mPfIon
— Emmerdale (@emmerdale) May 3, 2020
Emmerdale will go back to December 1995, ahead of villainous Chris Tate’s (Peter Amory) wedding, and in the midst of Kim Tate’s (Claire King) affair.
The broadcaster is already screening classic episodes on ITV3.
It comes after ITV bosses said that Coronation Street and Emmerdale could return to screens with older cast members absent and actors six feet apart.
ITV Hub will also feature previous episodes of The Real Housewives Of Cheshire and Gemma Collins’ fly on the wall show Diva Forever.