ITV boss confirms Coronation Street and Emmerdale future after record-breaking success

ITV boss Kevin Lygo has confirmed the future of Coronation Street and Emmerdale following the launch of a new schedule, and a major crossover event.

At the start of 2026, the worlds of Weatherfield and Emmerdale collided in Corriedale, which featured multiple characters from both neighbourhoods caught in a major road traffic accident.

The crossover kicked off when the Swains from Coronation Street crashed into a car that was being driven by John Sugden (Oliver Farnworth) and Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller).

The one-hour instalment saw Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank) die as a result of a minibus explosion, John was killed by his sister, and we also saw Graham Foster (Andrew Scarborough) return from the dead.

And that’s not even the half of it!

We were also introduced to Shona Platt’s (Julia Goulding) sister Jodie (Olivia Frances-Brown), Aaron and Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) got engaged, and Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) was told he may have cancer.

This week, ITV has shared some pretty incredible statistics following what’s been the broadcasting channel’s ‘biggest ever month for streaming’.

Kevin Lygo, ITV’s Managing Director of Media and Entertainment, has confirmed that Corrie and Emmerdale were pivotal in creating this milestone.

He said: ‘The combination of a brilliant drama offering, two of our biggest brands – Coronation Street and Emmerdale, alongside our most popular show for 16-34s, Love Island, have come together to deliver ITVX its biggest ever month. 2026 is packed full of exciting new content and it’s fantastic to kick start the year with this milestone.’

Both Coronation Street and Emmerdale saw significant uplifts in their streaming viewership, with streams up 48% year on year.

They also achieved their highest monthly streaming figures on record following the Corriedale crossover.

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Plus, January saw the start of the soap power hour on ITV, with the shows now airing 30 minute episodes throughout the week in the evening, and on ITVX at 7am.

Corriedale was ITV’s biggest programme to air in January, with a total audience of 5.9 million across TV and streaming.

Also last month, Corrie and Emmerdale clocked up 65 million streams, 10 million higher than the next nearest month total.

The channel has announced that January 2026 was the biggest ever month for streaming, recording 383 million streams.

The previous record was set in June 2024 (375 million), following the Men’s Euros.