Hollyoaks leaves Channel 4 in HUGE soap shake-up as bosses announce streaming overhaul

HOLLYOAKS is leaving Channel 4 after 28 years in a huge scheduling shake-up.

Bosses at the broadcaster have made the decision to scrap the show from the main channel.

As the TV landscape continues to change, they have revamped how they deliver their episodes for a digital age.

While E4 always offered a First Look at the next day’s Channel 4 episode, bosses are building on this and going one step further.

New episodes will now become available to stream the day before they premiere on E4 and also going to be available in full via YouTube the following week.

It means Hollyoaks, a soap more youth focused than its rivals, becomes the UK’s first streaming-led soap.

According to the latest figures for how Brits tune into the hit series, in 2023 64% of viewers watched the soap via streaming or E4, resulting in 556 million minutes of the show being streamed in the first half of the year.

The weekly omnibus will continue to be broadcast on Channel 4.

Helped by having a younger audience than the likes of EastEnders and Coronation Street, pre-TX (before being aired on standard TV) views are up +53% on the equivalent period last year, with more and more fans turning to online platforms than waiting for a set time each day.

The bold new shake-up is set to kick in on Monday 25th September 25 as Hollyoaks prepares to unveil another epic stunt week.

Fans can expect to see Felix and Mercedes’ messy love triangle with Warren come to a climax while a disturbing secret is uncovered about influencer Rayne.