The most jaw-dropping soap storylines of the decade
There's certainly been some drama over the years
Last updated 19th Dec 2019
Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks constantly deliver with their storylines. From the weird, to the wacky, to the downright brilliant narratives.
Many of the storylines in the past decade have not only made those around the country (and sometimes even the world) laugh, but they've also made us cry and most importantly, started the conversations we need to have.
Soaps are coined the "The Window To The World" and there's no doubt that many of us can see ourselves in the characters on offer. So let's take a look back at the most jaw-dropping soap storylines of the decade...
Read through the best soap storylines of the decade...
Coronation Street: The Tram Crash
If we have to start anywhere, it obviously has to be with one of Coronation Street's most iconic episodes of all time - the live tram crash episode in 2010, which saw the cobbles left in ruin when an explosion at Nick Platt's restaurant under the arches caused a tram to fall and completely knock down most of the street. In this live show, fan favourite characters Molly Dobbs and Ashley Peacock died, with Fiz Stape giving birth.
Coronation Street: Tracy Barlow returns
The original bad girl of the street Tracy Barlow seemed to have left the soap in 2007, after being put behind bars for killing her then-boyfriend Charlie Stubbs. But when 2010 came knocking, so did Tracy Barlow, and she dramatically returned to the show, after forensic evidence at her trial was discredited. Cue the close up shots of her feet on the cobbles, panning up to her face and a collective gasp from the nation.
Coronation Street: Haley Cropper's cancer battle
Iconic Corrie character Haley Cropper's heartbreaking storyline gripped the nation during 2013/14. The wife of Roy Cropper found out she had terminal pancreatic cancer, and chose to end her life so she no longer suffered. Her final scenes were aired in January 2014.
Coronation Street: Kylie Platt kills Callum Logan
Following the success of the 2010 live episode, the ITV soap announced another was set to air in 2015, which saw the end to Callum Logan's nasty reign over Sarah Platt and the whole Platt family in general, with Kylie Platt killing Callum by hitting him over the head (in Tracy Barlow style of course.) Things then took a turn for the worse, as Sarah, Kylie and David Platt buried Callum's body underneath Gail Platt's bedroom...
Coronation Street: Michelle Connor and Steve McDonald's stillbirth
In 2017, one of Coronation Street's most saddening storylines was aired - the stillbirth of Michelle Connor's and Steve McDonald's child. Mirroring traumatic events in both Kim Marsh and Simon Gregson's real life, the duo won various awards for their acting and for the storyline itself.
EastEnders: Who killed Lucy Beale?
Fans would have never have thought EastEnders bosses would ever have killed off a Beale family member, but back in 2015, Lucy Beale was left for dead, with it being suggested EVERY single EastEnders character could've killed the twin of Peter Beale. While it was most likely Max Branning that killed her following their affair and the dramatic exposure, in a live episode the killer was revealed to be Lucy's little brother Bobby Beale and NO ONE saw it coming. It was the best kept secret in soap land history. But we cannot talk about his storyline without mentioning how Jo Joyner (Tanya Branning) mucked up her line and said "How's Adam?" instead of "How's Ian?" in the live episode, and she found it really hard to keep a straight face. Now that's jaw-dropping TV.
EastEnders: Ronnie Mitchell and Kat Slater baby swap
Back in 2010, EastEnders hit the headlines following harrowing scenes of Ronnie Mitchell finding out her newborn had died from cot death. Then, in a twist of events, Ronnie swapped her baby with Kat Slater's newborn, who she had also just given birth to. Ronnie ended up handing herself into the police and Kat was reunited with her son Tommy.
EastEnders: Peggy Mitchell finds out she has cancer
Peggy Mitchell was one of the most iconic EastEnders characters there ever was, alongside Pat Butcher and Dot Branning. The matriarch of the Mitchell clan returned to the soap in 2016 after a three year break, and sadly revealed she had breast cancer for the second time. Peggy passed away after she overdosed on pills that she'd hidden from her son Phil Mitchell.
EastEnders: Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell die
Most of the dramatic storylines this decade were given to the Mitchell family, as the show once again gave Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell an intense storyline - this time, their death. On New Year's Day 2017, the famous sisters met their gruesome end, when the pair drowned just hours after Ronnie finally tied the knot with Jack Branning.
EastEnders: Abi Branning dies
Back in 2018, Abi Branning found herself on top of the Queen Vic roof with her sister Lauren Branning and dad Max Branning. It was very similar to those famous scenes that aired ten years prior in a live episode, which saw their step-brother Bradley Branning fall off a roof and die. And just like to Bradley, that also happened to Abi, who fell off the roof after attempting to stop Max from committing suicide. Sadly, she passed away.
Hollyoaks: Harry Thompson comes out as gay
Many fans thought the male hearthrob of the show was set to get wed to Cleo McQueen, following their coupling up in 2015, as soon as Harry returned to the show after a two year absence. However, that all came crashing down when, at a party at The Dog In The Pond, Harry's dad Tony Hutchinson finds his son kissing Ste Hay, and all was revealed.
Hollyoaks: Patrick's abuse is revealed
In 2016, it all came to an end for Patrick Blake, after it was finally revealed that he was being abusive towards his wife Maxine Blake. In the scenes aired just after the pair wed, Maxine told Patrick she no longer wanted to be with him, which led to him grabbing her wrist. Then in a dramatic twist, the arm of her wedding dress ripped off to reveal the bruises he had given her, much to the shock of the wedding guests.
Hollyoaks: Il Gnosh fire
In scenes aired in 2011, many of the the nation's favourite characters were caught up in a fire, including Steph Cunningham and Amy Barnes, after the local Italian restaurant Il Gnosh caught alight. Helping Amy and her children out of the fire, Steph, who was suffering from cancer at the time, decided to stay inside and die, citing she couldn't cope anymore with the pain the cancer was causing.
Hollyoaks: The gloved hand killer
Back in 2015, there was another serial killer on the loose, and they claimed the lives of seven characters by injecting them all with potassium chloride. It was later revealed to be Lindsey Roscoe, despite many of the other local nurses being blamed for the killings. This storyline saw the return of fellow serial killer Silas Blissett, who kind of had a loose link to the storyline (we feel like bringing him back was more for nostalgia's sake), who revealed Lindsey was the killer and he took it upon himself to kill Lindsey. Very random but extremely dramatic and his return certainly made our jaws drop.
Hollyoaks: Who killed Calvin Valentine?
It was the biggest whodunnit of 2011 when Calvin Valentine was shot on his wedding day to Carmel McQueen. They were the powerful couple of the village but who wanted to bring them down? After weeks of suspense and various characters looking shifty, it was eventually revealed Theresa McQueen shot Calvin, after they secretly had an affair and left her pregnant.
Emmerdale: Maya Stepney grooms Jacob Gallagher
In a disturbing storyline, which started in 2018, Emmerdale fans were shocked to see David Metcalfe's new girlfriend Maya Stepney make moves on his young son Joseph Gallagher. But viewers soon she was actually grooming him, with naive Joseph unaware of her intentions and catching feelings for her. But when everything was found out by David and Maya was sentenced to prison in August 2019, no one was prepared for the dramatic scenes that aired in November 2019. Maya was released early from prison and with the camera panning down to her stomach, it was revealed she was in fact pregnant. But who's the daddy? David or Joseph?
Emmerdale: Ashley Thomas's dementia battle
Back in 2016, it was revealed by Emmerdale that the village vicar Ashley Thomas was going to die, following a battle with dementia. And in emotional scenes which aired in 2017, a whole episode was dedicated to the character, showing what it was like inside the mind of someone suffering from the illness. In March 2017, the vicar passed away following a heartwarming, yet equally devastating, last heart to heart with his wife Laurel Thomas.
Emmerdale: The Helicopter Crash
Weddings don't normally go to plan in soap land and this one definitely didn't. Pete Barton and Charley Webb had just happily got married and then of course, chaos ensued, with a helicopter colliding with gas canisters above the wedding venue, trapping various characters inside. Sadly, Ruby Haswell and Val Pollard passed away in the blaze. Viewers were also led to believe Ross Barton had been killed, yet weeks later, Ross rocked back up to the Yorkshire Dales like nothing had happened.
Emmerdale: Jackson Walsh assisted suicide
In 2011, Emmerdale announced Marc Silcock, who played Jackson Walsh, would be leaving the soap after his character was seriously injured in a train accident. After the announcement, Emmerdale aired the harrowing scenes which showed Jackson unable to cope with being paralysed and asking his boyfriend Aaron Dingle and Hazel Walsh to help with assisted suicide. The storyline shocked the nation, with many saying it shouldn't have been aired before the watershed, but it opened up huge discussion around assisted suicide and moved the hearts of the nation.
Emmerdale: Emma Barton causes dual carriageway chaos
After Emma Barton caused chaos on a dual carriageway by pushing her ex-husband off a bridge and on to it, viewers of the ITV soap saw a multiple vehicle pile up, with most of the show's character's actually in all the cars. And when she ran for it, fans then saw her being pushed off a cliff, leading to the soap's biggest ever whodunnit. But who did do it? Well it wasn't revealed until a flashback episode but it was in fact farmer and Emma's arch enemy Moira Barton who killed her.
Find out when your favourite soaps are airing over the Christmas season.