‘EastEnders’ and ‘Coronation Street’ will go head-to-head in a rare clash on New Year’s Day (01.01.19).
The BBC One soap and the ITV show will do battle in the festive ratings when their hour-long specials air at 8pm on the first day of 2019, while ‘Emmerdale’ avoids a split in viewership with a scheduled 60-minute episode at 7pm.
As well as the annual, dramatic Christmas Day soap episodes, the New Year’s Day eps are usually just as tense, and 2019 looks no different.
The BBC confirmed yesterday (04.12.18) that Hannah Spearritt will reprise her role as Kandice Taylor for a short stint over the festive period.
What’s more, Alfie Moon’s (Shane Richie) Albert Square return looks set to cause havoc over Christmas and the new year with he and Hayley Slater (Katie Jarvis) harbouring a big baby secret.
Mick Carter – portrayed by Danny Dyer – is expected to return over the festive period, and he will no doubt be out for revenge against Stuart Highway (Ricky Champ).
Over in Weatherfield, Liz McDonald (Bev Callard) is set to be the target of a hit-and-run, and Nigel Havers’ alter-ego Lewis Archer is expected to meet his maker in the new year.
Nigel recently added further fuel to speculation his alter-ego might be killed off, admitting his character’s fate on the soap isn’t looking great.
Speaking about the speculated storyline, he said: "It’s not looking good – it’s looking grim."
However, Nigel is already hopeful Lewis could come back from the dead if he is killed off.
When asked if show bosses could bring him back to life, he replied: "Of course they can.
"Of course, [death is] not [terminal]."
EastEnders and Coronation Street set for festive ratings clash
