Looking ahead to 2010: The Big Soap Anniversaries

We cast our eye on the year ahead and point out a few milestones and shows to look forward too. From the 25^th anniversary of EastEnders, the 50^th anniversary of Coronation Street and several other milestones for fellow soaps along the way we take a look at a big year for Australian, British and American soaps.

In early January American series All My Children will celebrate its 40^th anniversary on air. The soap was originally created by Agnes Nixon for ABC who two years earlier had given the same network One Life to Live and since then the shows featured crossover storylines and characters. To mark the shows 40^th anniversary producers have tempted back a string of stars for a special two-episode event in January. Production of the series was recently moved from New York to Los Angeles to allow the soap to move into bigger studios. 

January also see’s BBC One soap Doctors celebrate its 10^th anniversary on-air. Can you believe the daytime medical drama has been on air for ten years? How the years have flown by. When Doctors launched in 2000 it didn’t air all year round but instead was produced in seasons and amongst the original cast were Christopher Timothy, Maggie Cronin, Corrinne Wicks, Sarah Manners and Jacqueline Leonard sadly none of whom are still with the series. However, Doctors continues to go from strength to strength picking up awards at the British Soap Awards and receiving praise from critics for several storylines. 

February will see another BBC One soap celebrate an anniversary; EastEnders. Yes the London based soap has been on air for 25 years but thankfully this anniversary won’t be as clouded as its 20^th anniversary just five years ago. When EastEnders reached that milestone it had just been through one of the more difficult periods in its time on-air with declining ratings and a string of storylines and characters which had failed to take off with viewers. The resurrected character of Den Watts [Leslie Grantham] was killed off for a second time after three of the women he scorned worked together to have their revenge. This time around the soap celebrates a major anniversary while enjoying popularity with viewers and good ratings – and a string of awards to its name. We know that a live episode will air to mark the 25^th anniversary but details of what will happen during this special event is being kept firmly under wraps. 

In March it will be the turn of Australian soap Neighbours to celebrate 25 years on-air but sadly long gone are this soaps golden days. Just five years ago the series marked its 20^th anniversary by tempting back a string of names for cameo appearances as a video about the life on Ramsay Street and its residents was made and it was a walk-down memory lane for fans with long memories. It was also a reminder however; that the soap’s heyday was long behind it and in the past five years it has undergone several revamps to boost ratings. In the UK it was the subject of a bidding war between the BBC, ITV and Five and after more than 20 years on BBC One it moved homes to Five. Quite what producers have lined up for the anniversary bar new titles and a lick of paint for sets isn’t clear but we think we would have heard by now if another long list of names were heading back. 

September will see CBS soap As the World Turns end after 54 years and over 13 thousand episodes. It’s currently the longest running soap in America after Guiding Light, from which As the World Turns was created from, ended in September of this year. The cancellation of the soap by CBS wasn’t exactly surprising given its poor ratings performance lately but it will come as a disappointment to fans and a big blow to the struggling soap genre in America. It’s too early to speculate how the series will end though producers may tempt back old names to send the show off in style. 

In October Channel Four soap Hollyoaks will celebrate 15 years on air and how the times have changed for the series. Hollyoaks was an easy target for some critics who dubbed it “Dollyoaks” especially in the early 2000’s when all the female characters seemed to look identical and were just there to look good. Its label of a ‘teen soap’ was always used with an edge of snobbery by some but the soap should be praised for tackling some very difficult subjects head on. Over recent years Hollyoaks has successfully turned its self around and shaken off that snobbish tag that some attached to it. A string of awards and high-profile, well received, storylines have also benefited the soap immensely. How will it celebrate 15 years on air? Perhaps by bringing back one of its most popular villains ever – super-bitch Clare Devine [Gemma Bissix] ?

Another soap celebrating a big anniversary in 2010 will be NBC series Days of our Lives which come November will have been on air for 45 years. Whether it manages to survive much past this date is in some doubt as its previous renewal came with strings attached. Days of our Lives has managed to increase ratings by over half a million over the last year – the only soap in America to increase ratings – but this may still not be enough to save the show. 

Of course the big anniversary of 2010 will be in December as Granada soap Coronation Street reaches its 50^th year. That’s a whole year away though so plans for celebrating it are probably still in the early stages. Several characters are already on their way back to the cobbles of Weatherfield but we imagine by this time next year a few more familiar faces from the past will have cropped up – be it for a few episodes or a longer stint. Favourite to make an appearance sometime during the year is Bet Lynch [Julie Goodyear] who is perhaps one of the most famous Rovers barmaids/owners. Coronation Street marked its 40^th anniversary with a live episode and considering EastEnders will air one in February we have a sneaky feeling ITV will end the year with another such live production.