Hollyoaks seems the obvious next victim - I assume they're only getting by because they pay their actors so little that they resort to OnlyFans
I really would be surprised if any of our soap operas are still standing in their current format in 20 years time. Maybe Corrie at a push - I could imagine reluctance to give up that "brand" even if the numbers stop stacking up.
This is another topic really, but for me it just became ridiculous to keep up with that many episodes of all those soaps. Emmerdale was always my favourite and I've even given up on that. I suspect I'll tune in for the 50th anniversary in October. I do think long term survival of the UK big 3 at least would help by reducing episodes so we get tighter, better written stories and a sense of looking forward to things, but TV channels will never do that as long as it keeps bringing in ad revenue, even if the cost of that is ever diminishing returns to the point of their eventual death.
But equally I guess soaps have run their distance. Some of the best episodes especially early days Corrie, had NOTHING happen but idle chit chat between brilliant characters. I don't know if that can work in this climate, maybe a small core audience if expectations aren't high and it's not expected to be the main focus of a channel
every single day which is frankly exhausting.
There's probably also a sense of soaps having completed their cycle. Once you have a plane crash and Richard Hillman etc, where do you go next? Everything is recycled. A shame really because in true kitchen sink drama form there are always stories to tell of people affected by current goings on, e.g Brexit, the government in general, cost of living. Even a simple affair can still be powerful (Doctor Foster proved that) as a device if the writing is good but it so rarely is, characters are changed on a whim, stories often stem from plot rather than character (e.g let's pick character X and give them storyline Z kind of writing) before being ruined entirely. It all ends up with lazy, sloppy television and these days people don't need to bother. A lot more choice and ultimately better options.
I really feel a sense of greed has killed them and also an all too frequent lack of anything relatable. Some of the problem is likely a lack of real life connection from the writers. Once upon time we had no choice but now we do. Which makes me sad and doesn't mean I won't ever watch again of course but I struggle to see why ANYONE young these days would need to bother
x
what about the others