ITV has responded to claims Emmerdale and Coronation Street could merge production in the near future.
Rumors swirled that the network's two biggest soaps could potentially come together under one roof in Salford to cut production costs, ahead of the highly-anticipated crossover episode. But ITV has hit back at the possibility.
"ITV has no plans to merge the productions of Coronation Street and Emmerdale," a spokesperson for ITV said (via The Sun).
"Both are uniquely set in Manchester and Leeds, and that production model will continue for the long term. It's pure speculation to say otherwise."
The response comes after Peter Fincham, the former Director of Television for the channel, suggested that Emmerdale could potentially move away from Yorkshire to keep costs down.
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"You've got Coronation Street being made in Manchester, Emmerdale in Leeds," Fincham said during an appearance on Insiders: The TV Podcast with fellow TV producer Jimmy Mulville.
"Could you imagine, rather like the daytime consolidation, that ITV will decide to have them both made in the same place under one umbrella? Big savings," he continued.
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Fincham explained Emmerdale could still be set in Yorkshire, but explained: "It could be made in Manchester and Salford, which is a bigger hub for ITV."
At the moment, Emmerdale is filmed just north of Leeds, while Corrie is made at MediaCity in Salford, having previously been at the Granada Studios in Manchester. And it sounds like that won't be changing anytime soon.
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX. Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV1, and streams on ITVX.
Read more Coronation Street spoilers on our dedicated homepage
Read more Emmerdale spoilers on our dedicated homepage
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