Emmerdale executive producer confirms filming will continue

By Neil Wilkes, Editor-in-chief | 6d

Emmerdale's executive producer Jane Hudson confirms that the soap will continue to film new episodes as normal during England's latest coronavirus lockdown.

Emmerdale's executive producer Jane Hudson has confirmed that the soap will continue filming new episodes during the new national lockdown.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson this week put England back into full lockdown following a worrying resurgence of coronavirus cases that has led to a record number of hospitalisations.

Last Spring Emmerdale was forced to stop production during the first coronavirus lockdown for around two months but eventually returned to filming once new health protocols had been developed.

"We returned to shooting on May 20th, which was during a national lockdown," Hudson told soaps reporters following Johnson's announcement.

"The reason why we stood down in March is because we had no safety procedures in place. We put all of those in place and we checked everything, we made sure our cast and crew were safe to return to work. And that's why we returned to work on May 20th and that's why we can continue to shoot now.

"We have very strict procedures in place. We have social distancing, we wear masks, we have everything going on. So everybody is safe, everybody is well and everybody is allowed to be on set. It's so crucial that people have something familiar in their lives. They're something you can rely on every day to be there.

"I think soaps are invaluable. And that's not just Emmerdale, it's Coronation Street, it's EastEnders, it's Hollyoaks, it's Doctors, it's Casualty, it's Holby - we're all there and we're all making sure our viewers have that one place every day where they can escape this craziness for a night. So we're there, we're back, we're shooting."

Coronation Street and EastEnders have also confirmed that they will continue to shoot new episodes during the new lockdown.