‘Coronation Street’ will air six episodes a week from September 20.
Bosses of the long-running soap have been teasing an extra half-hour show since last year, but viewers won’t have to wait too much longer to get their extended fix as ITV have confirmed they will screen a double episode every Wednesday from the end of the month.
The show’s Executive producer Kieran Roberts said: "Getting ready to deliver our extra weekly episode has taken our amazing team more than a year of hard work on everything from story-lining to studio building. Now we’re thrilled to be launching our extra weekly episode on Wednesday 20 September, at the heart of a truly unmissable week of high drama, high emotion and heartwarming comedy."
The first week of the new six episode double Wednesday transmission pattern will kick off in fittingly spectacular style with the double wedding of Aidan, Eva, Jenny and Johnny.
The action-packed week will have viewers gripped to the edge of their seats as Aidan Connor (Shayne Ward) confesses he’s been having an affair with Maria Connor (Samia Longchambon) to his fiancee Eva Price (Catherine Tyldesley) on their wedding day.
But the drama ramps up a notch when the heartbroken barmaid agrees to go ahead with the wedding and then the hairdresser gatecrashes the wedding in truly jaw dropping style.
Producers revealed they would be airing six episodes a week just over a year ago because they wanted to take the soap to the next level with "fantastic storylines."
ITV’s Director of Television Kevin Lygo said of the plan at the time: "I am a life-long fan of ‘Coronation Street’ and one of the first things I wanted to explore when I became Director of Television was taking the production to six episodes a week.
"The soaps are the cornerstone of the ITV schedule, and ‘Coronation Street’ continues to produce some of the finest drama and comedy on television.
"It is a hugely important part of what has defined ITV throughout its history, and I want it to continue to be right at the heart of what ITV defines in years to come. As a viewer I have watched the soap as it has continued to evolve, entertain, and grip the nation with fantastic storylines and this move will be the next exciting chapter in Corrie’s story."
Coronation Street to air six episodes a week from September 20
