Coronation Street and Emmerdale filming could be 'shut down' as Covid cases 'rise'
The shows are "under threat"
Author: Marianna MansonPublished 12th Jul 2021
ITV soaps Emmerdale and Coronation Street are reportedly set to face another shut down on set as cases of Covid among cast and crew spiral out of control.
Fans will remember that last year, at the start of the pandemic, major soaps were forced to stop filming, with networks laying on old or iconic episodes to fill the gap in programming.
But now it looks as though Emmerdale and Corrie will once again shut down their sets with Head of ITV in the North, John Whiston, warning that the soaps are “under threat”, according to MailOnline.
There's been a number of explosive storylines recently
A source said: “It’s been a really hard year for both soaps. They’ve had to work through the most difficult period in television history. Everyone has decided that a break is in order, which is almost unprecedented.
“The storyliners plan a long way in advance, and there's certain things they'd have hoped they could write in for later in the year.”
CHECK OUT: Coronation Street - Fiz Brown tells her truth
When Ryan wakes up in Daisy's bed with little recollection of the night before he's horrified and begs her not to say anything to Ayla. Daisy agrees but soon goes back on her word when she pointedly mentions them sleeping together in front of Alya. Shocked and hurt, Alya tells Ryan they're through.
Coronation Street and Emmerdale filming could be 'shut down' as Covid cases 'rise'
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With Paul in custody and Billy's expensive heat pump sold for cash, Todd guiltily meets up with Will in the ginnel to give him his money.
When Ryan wakes up in Daisy's bed with little recollection of the night before he's horrified and begs her not to say anything to Ayla. Daisy agrees but soon goes back on her word when she pointedly mentions them sleeping together in front of Alya. Shocked and hurt, Alya tells Ryan they're through.
Elsewhere, Steve's fundraising for Oliver's fund has run aground, ÂŁ4k below target. Newbie Curtis tells Emma about his idea to run a charity naked calendar to raise the remaining money and touched by his concern, Emma agrees.
Upon her friends' insistence, Fiz signs up to a dating app and arranges to meet her date, Chris, at the Bistro that evening. But Fiz is furious when Chris turns out to be a local reporter writing about women who've been dumped for younger models. Mortified, Fiz storms out, but not before Chris leaves her card and asks her to think about her offer.
Todd's plans to earn back the money he owes Will are all falling flat until an excited Billy mentions he's been given the go ahead to purchase a ÂŁ7k heat pump for the halfway house. Overhearing the conversation, Will tells Todd that all he needs to do is steal the heat pump from Billy.
Deciding to heed Will's advice, Todd lures Ed away from the building yard with the promise of a lucrative gig, Todd sneaks in and sets about stealing the pump but before he can finish Ed returns to the site, forcing Todd to hide.
Emma and Curtis set about putting the wheels of their naked calendar in motion but unsurprisingly struggle to drum up much enthusiasm from the locals. But when Curtis mentions to Steve they've offered Mr December, the top slot, to Dev Alahan, Steve becomes competitive and insists he'd be be a better fit.
Despite his near miss, Todd manages to steal the heat pump and when Ed reports it missing, Craig asks if anyone has a score to settle against him. Thinking of a recent money dispute, Ed suggests that Paul might be to blame and soon he's arrested at the Rovers under suspicion of theft.
With Maria's encouragement that telling her truth would feel like a weight lifted, Fiz agrees to the story with Chris. But after it's published in the Weatherfield Gazette a furious Tyrone turns up at the furniture and rails at Fiz for airing their dirty laundry. Alina suggests that she and Tyrone tell their own side of the story.
With Paul in custody and Billy's expensive heat pump sold for cash, Todd guiltily meets up with Will in the ginnel to give him his money.
When Ryan wakes up in Daisy's bed with little recollection of the night before he's horrified and begs her not to say anything to Ayla. Daisy agrees but soon goes back on her word when she pointedly mentions them sleeping together in front of Alya. Shocked and hurt, Alya tells Ryan they're through.
Elsewhere, Steve's fundraising for Oliver's fund has run aground, ÂŁ4k below target. Newbie Curtis tells Emma about his idea to run a charity naked calendar to raise the remaining money and touched by his concern, Emma agrees.
Upon her friends' insistence, Fiz signs up to a dating app and arranges to meet her date, Chris, at the Bistro that evening. But Fiz is furious when Chris turns out to be a local reporter writing about women who've been dumped for younger models. Mortified, Fiz storms out, but not before Chris leaves her card and asks her to think about her offer.
Todd's plans to earn back the money he owes Will are all falling flat until an excited Billy mentions he's been given the go ahead to purchase a ÂŁ7k heat pump for the halfway house. Overhearing the conversation, Will tells Todd that all he needs to do is steal the heat pump from Billy.
Deciding to heed Will's advice, Todd lures Ed away from the building yard with the promise of a lucrative gig, Todd sneaks in and sets about stealing the pump but before he can finish Ed returns to the site, forcing Todd to hide.
Emma and Curtis set about putting the wheels of their naked calendar in motion but unsurprisingly struggle to drum up much enthusiasm from the locals. But when Curtis mentions to Steve they've offered Mr December, the top slot, to Dev Alahan, Steve becomes competitive and insists he'd be be a better fit.
Despite his near miss, Todd manages to steal the heat pump and when Ed reports it missing, Craig asks if anyone has a score to settle against him. Thinking of a recent money dispute, Ed suggests that Paul might be to blame and soon he's arrested at the Rovers under suspicion of theft.
With Maria's encouragement that telling her truth would feel like a weight lifted, Fiz agrees to the story with Chris. But after it's published in the Weatherfield Gazette a furious Tyrone turns up at the furniture and rails at Fiz for airing their dirty laundry. Alina suggests that she and Tyrone tell their own side of the story.
With Paul in custody and Billy's expensive heat pump sold for cash, Todd guiltily meets up with Will in the ginnel to give him his money.
The temporary shut-down comes at a “critical” point for both soaps as they prepare to film episodes for what’s been referred to as Super Soap Week – a period of explosive scenes and high drama storylines.
Back in March last year, Corrie’s Andrew Whyment, who plays Kirk Sutherland, told of how bosses feared they would run out of episodes to air during the extended break from filming.
"We worked up until the Friday when Boris Johnson closed all the pubs and clubs,” he said. “We had a schedule to work until the following Thursday then on the Sunday we got an email saying they were standing everyone down. It was the right thing to do.”
He added: “We’ve got until July in the can, so we need to get back mid-June otherwise it’s going to go off air."
