Emmerdale Live episode is a 'logistical nightmare'

Emmerdale Live episode is a 'logistical nightmare'
Emmerdale Live episode is a 'logistical nightmare'

Emmerdale's live anniversary show has been 'a logistical and financial nightmare' to plan, the soap's producer has revealed. The ITV1 soap is celebrating its 40th birthday with a dramatic hour-long live show, filmed on location, on Wednesday, October 17. Producer Stuart Blackburn told BBC News: "All the other live episodes (on EastEnders and Coronation Street) have been based around a studio so obviously all their resources were there - all the equipment's there, all the power's there, the canteen's there. "Things like the make-up and costume departments are there. They're not here [in the village]. Every single thing has to be brought in - the generators and entire departments from Emmerdale have got to be moved up here. We've got to feed the extras and transport them up here. It's a logistical and financial nightmare at every single level." Stuart is hoping the gripping events on the live episode - which will include the wedding of Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter) - will attract new viewers to the show. "If the irregular viewers come, and the curious - those that only watch live episodes to see if the actors mess up - that's great," he said. "If we can get new viewers and viewers who haven't been with us for a while, I'm convinced they'll look at it and go 'Wow, that's a really good drama.'"

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.