STV to air first-ever Coronation Street and Emmerdale crossover episode

STV is to air its first-ever crossover between Coronation Street and Emmerdale, with fans able to vote for the characters they would like to see meet and interact.

The hour-long crossover episode will air in January 2026 as STV announces a new hour of soap schedule, which will see half hour Emmerdale episodes air at 8pm, followed by 30-minute episodes of Coronation Street at 8.30pm.

Producers of the two soaps say the special episode will have “everlasting consequences for everyone involved”, saying the two shows’ universes in Manchester and Yorkshire had been linked in an “ingenious way”.

They say the episode will be self-contained, but its events will have “repercussions for both communities and see them linked forever as familiar faces depart and exciting new characters arrive into both soaps”.

The characters of Coronation Street will meet those of Emmerdale in a new crossover episode ITV

From next month, fans will be able to vote on the soaps’ Instagram, Facebook and TikTok accounts for the two characters they want to see interact.

The new scheduling comes after STV said its research showed that 30-minute episodes attracted higher audiences in 2024.

Coronation Street currently airs for three hour-long episodes a week, while Emmerdale’s weekly schedule is made up of four 30-minute episodes plus one hour-long instalment, but from next year both soaps will only air 30-minute episodes.

Episodes will continue to drop at 7am on STV Player, before they air in the evening.