Has Hollyoaks been cancelled? Channel 4 unveil program change

The broadcaster announced last year that it would take a “streaming-first” approach.

Hollyoaks first aired on Channel 4 in 1995 and is set in Chester – the series aims to entertain a younger demographic.

Channel 4 announces major Hollyoaks programming change

Do you think Warren will step in and become Ella’s father? #Hollyoaks pic.twitter.com/IYmWbpzHLI

— Hollyoaks (@Holyoaks) September 9, 2023

later this month, channel 4 will cease airing episodes of Hollyoaks for the first time in 28 years and move the show to its new permanent home on E4.

On Friday (September 9), Channel 4 announced that Hollyoaks will be shown on Channel4.com the day before it airs on the E4 channel.

The broadcaster will also release episodes of Hollyoaks on YouTube a week after they air on E4 and stream them on its own platform.

However, there will be a weekly bus service at the main station.

Previously, episodes were uploaded to E4 via the channel’s on-demand service in the morning before being broadcast later.

In 2022 Hollyoaks was the first British soap opera to premiere its episodes on a streaming service before broadcasting live on television.

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channel 4 Ian Katz, Chief Content Officer, said: “Hollyoaks has always been the youngest and most innovative soap opera, so it’s fitting that it’s the first to embrace the changing behaviors of younger viewers and transition to a truly digitally-driven release pattern.”

“It was the first British soap to move to a stream-first model last year and this is the next phase of that development.

“We hope that the availability of Hollyoaks on YouTube and our own platforms will introduce a whole new generation to the show.”

When will Hollyoaks air permanently on E4?

The new programming pattern begins on September 25, when the week begins with an hour-long special focusing on a love triangle and “twists and turns of a murder.”

In the soap, Felix Westwood (Richard Blackwood), his girlfriend Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe) and his best friend Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas) reach an “explosive turning point” and a secret about the influencer Rayne Royce (Jemma Donovan) is revealed.