SOAP SHOCKS
Biggest New Year soap storylines of all time from Emmerdale’s plane crash to EastEnders horror drownings
Which New Year's Eve episodes do you remember?
NEW Year in soap often means new drama, with the bells ringing in death, devastation, destruction and more!
Here’s our round-up of some of the biggest New Year stories of all time.
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Coronation Street 1992 Baby Katie McDonald’s tragic death
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Pregnant Liz McDonald was frantic when teenage son Steve went missing on New Year’s Eve in Coronation Street, and the stress caused her to go into labour prematurely.
Liz gave birth to baby Katie, but the tot passed away the next day, devastating Liz and Jim. Steve blamed himself for his sister’s death.
In 2018, Jim returned to Weatherfield with a young Australian woman called Hannah.
Jim and claimed Katie had been swapped at birth and had actually survived, but had been brought up Down Under and was now called Hannah.
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As it turned out, the whole thing was another one of Jim’s attempts to scam poor Liz out of money.
Emmerdale 1993 The Beckindale air disaster
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Emmerdale fans were shocked when a plane travelling to Canada from Eastern Europe crashed into the village, which was then called Beckindale.
The plane crash caused devastation the village. Archie Brooks was killed, and his best friend Nick Bates was temporarily blinded.
Newly-weds Annie and Leonard Kempinski were on their way to the airport when their car was struck by debris. Leonard was killed and Annie was in a coma for several months.
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Eric Pollard’s wife Elizabeth died, with many villagers suspecting he had actually killed her. Years later Pollard confessed to his wife Val that he had intended to murder Elizabeth but she had died before he carried out his plan.
Mark Hughes was also killed, and Chris Tate was injured and lost the use of his legs. And poor Seth Armstrong lost his beloved dog, Smokey.
Emmerdale reveals first look at five explosive New Year’s flash-forwards with devastating consequences in the village
A few months after the disaster, the village was renamed Emmerdale.
The storyline was criticised at the time as being insensitive as it took place just five years after the real-life Lockerbie bombing.
But it was a gamble that paid off and it transformed Emmerdale into one of the UK’s biggest soaps.
EastEnders 1998 Tiffany’s dramatic death
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Tiffany and Grant Mitchell had an explosive and volatile marriage. Grant was sleeping with Tiff’s mum, Louise, while Tiffany was being tempted by the charms of police officer Beppe Di Marco.
Tiffany fell down the stairs and persuaded Beppe to blame it on Grant, which led to him being arrested for attempted murder on Christmas Day.
Most devastating soap deaths
SOAP viewers are frequently left heartbroken after watching some of their favourite characters bite the dust.
Here is a list of the most devastating deaths that have taken place in soapland over the years.
EASTENDERS
Barry Evans - Evil Janine (Charlie Brooks) lured her trusting fiance to Scotland for a quickie marriage after learning he was dying.
Her plan to inherit Barry’s fortune was thwarted when Barry told her that the doctors had mixed up his medical files.
Furious that she was no longer set for a windfall, she pushed Barry off a cliff after telling him their love was “fake”.
Bradley Branning - Bradley was accused of killing Stacey Slater’s rapist Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb) after he punched him twice on the night he died.
He was spotted in the Square by a police woman who chased him up a fire escape.
Bradley lost his balance and tragically plunged to his death.
CORONATION STREET
Tina McIntyre - Tina was getting it on with Peter Barlow - despite him being married to Carla Connor.
When she threatened to reveal the truth, Carla's brother Rob got into a physical altercation with her.
Tina lost her footing and fell off a balcony - then warned Rob she was going to tell the cops he pushed her.
In a panic, Rob brutally clobbered her over the head with a metal pipe.
Molly Dobbs - Molly was one of the victims in Corrie's 2010 tram crash, alongside Ashley Peacock (Steven Arnold).
Married to Tyrone (Alan Halsall), Molly had been having an affair with Kevin Webster (Michael Le Vell) in the months before her death.
This resulted in the birth of their son, Jack (Kyran Bowes), who was named after Jack Duckworth.
As fate would have it, Kevin's wife Sally (Sally Dynevor) was by Molly's side in her final moments.
Sally was stunned as Molly confessed Kevin was Jack's father, before dying of her injuries.
Vera Duckworth - Having appeared regularly in Corrie since the 1970s, there was no denying Vera Duckworth was an iconic character.
Alongside her husband Jack, the pair formed one of the soap's most beloved couples.
Viewers were heartbroken when Vera was killed off in 2008, being discovered having passed away peacefully in her chair.
Liz Dawn, who played Vera, made a brief return two years later for Bill Tarmey's exit as Jack.
Paul Foreman - Fans were heartbroken when Paul Foreman succumbed to his illness after battling motor neurone disease.
Introduced in 2018 as David Platt's (Jack P. Shepherd) cellmate, he later embarked on a romance - and marriage - with vicar Billy Mayhew.
The MND storyline was announced in 2023 - with the expectation it would result in the character's death.
EMMERDALE
Sarah Sugden - After the family got into financial problems, Sarah's son Andy (Kelvin Fletcher) decided to make some quick cash from an insurance company by setting fire to the Sugden barn.
He didn't realise his mum was inside the building, and she got trapped in the blaze.
Nine villagers - The shocking 1993 plane crash episode brought in 18 million viewers for Emmerdale.
Mark Hughes was killed by a falling wall, Archie Brooks was burned by jet fuel, Elizabeth Pollard was killed by debris and newcomer Leonard Kempinski died in a car crash caused by the crash.
Five other non-recurring characters from the village also died.
HOLLYOAKS
Carmel McQueen - The talented singer died in shocking scenes when a train crashed into a her family's car.
Carmel managed to free her cousin Theresa from the rubble - but got stuck in it herself.
Moments later the train exploded and Carmel died in the arms of her family members, promising to be their guardian angel.
Tiff meanwhile, made plans to leave Walford with daughter Courtney. But Grant snatched the little girl to stop Tiffany leaving.
Tiff gave chase – right in front of a car driven by Frank Butcher. She died in Albert Square, as the bells rang in the new year.
Hollyoaks 1999 Rob Hawthorn’s revenge
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Rob Hawthorn was the original Hollyoaks baddie. He spiked Natasha Robertson’s drink leading to her death from an overdose, got mixed up with drug dealers and caused Lucy Benson to become addicted to heroin.
He even tried to throw Lucy from a carpark roof and later planned to drown Lucy, Tony and Ruth.
On Millennium Eve, Finn threw a party on his bus. Rob torched the bus intending to kill everyone on board, but accidentally trapped himself instead. The bus exploded and Rob died.
EastEnders 1999 Ian and Mel’s short-lived wedding
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Ian Beale knew deep down that his girlfriend Mel didn’t really love him. So, in desperation, he told her his daughter Lucy was dying of cancer.
Heartbroken at the news and trapped, Mel agreed to marry him and build a family together.
The couple married alongside Barry Evans and Natalie Price on Millennium Eve. But at the reception in Albert Square, Mel found a letter Ian had received giving Lucy the all-clear and realised he’d been telling her a terrible lie.
Furious, Mel walked away from her marriage as the clock struck midnight.
Coronation Street 2002 Dennis Stringer dies
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When Janice Battersby fell for Dennis Stringer, their romance devasted both Dennis’s partner Eileen Grimshaw, and Janice’s husband, Les.
As 2002 began, Les decided he couldn’t live without Janice, so he planned to take his life. Dennis, though, knew something was up so he tracked Les down on the wasteground where he was trying to gas himself in his car.
Dennis moved Les into the passenger seat and drove to hospital, only to be involved in a head-on collision on the way.
Les escaped unscathed, but Dennis passed away with sobbing Janice and Eileen at his bedside.
Emmerdale 2003 Tricia Dingle trapped under the chimney
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Tricia Dingle was estranged from husband Marlon after she’d left Emmerdale to appear in a Bollywood movie and Marlon had a fling with his cousin Charity. By New Year’s Eve in 2003, Tricia was preparing to leave the village.
But desperate to save his marriage, Marlon had written a list of 101things he loved about Tricia. She read the list and decided to stay, just as a storm hit the village.
On her way to the Woolpack to tell Marlon the good news, though, disaster struck.
As the storm raged, a tree was hit by lightning. Tricia stumbled and fell as another bolt hit the pub chimney, sending debris collapsing on to poor Mrs Dingle.
Tricia never regained consciousness, and Marlon made the heartbreaking decision to turn off her life support.
EastEnders 2004 Barry and Janine’s deadly honeymoon
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Poor Barry Evans was smitten with Janine Butcher, but she was in love with Paul Trueman.
When Barry was mistakenly told he only had months to live, Janine agreed to marry him, thinking she’d get her hands on his money after his death.
Their New Year’s Eve wedding in Scotland turned sour when Barry revealed he wasn’t dying after all. Janine took Barry for a walk and told him she didn’t love him.
Barry begged her to stay with him, but she pushed him away, only for him to stumble and fall down the cliff, hitting his head.
Janine left him to die, later uttering the now iconic line: “If only he’d worn slip-on shoes!”
EastEnders 2005 Dennis Rickman’s dramatic end
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Gangster Johnny Allen had big beef with Dennis Rickman. So, he had told Dennis’s newly pregnant wife, Sharon, that unless they left Walford by midnight on New Year’s Eve, he’d kill her husband.
Sharon made plans to move to America but didn’t tell Dennis why. She did, though, tell Phil Mitchell – who hated Johnny. Crafty Phil used Dennis as a weapon.
He told him Johnny had threatened Shaz, and that he’d killed Dennis’s mate Andy Hunter, then he sat back and watched the fireworks!
Dennis beat Johnny to within an inch of his life. As he left him for dead, he threw him a phone and said if he could reach it, he’d live.
Johnny did reach the phone, but he didn’t call an ambulance – he called his henchman Danny Moon, who stabbed Dennis in the chest during the new year celebrations. Dennis died in Sharon’s arms in Albert Square.
EastEnders 2010 Baby swap nightmare
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Babies Tommy Moon and James Cotton were born on the same day in 2010. Tommy’s mum, Kat Slater, had to go back to hospital after his birth, leaving Tommy to be looked after at the Queen Vic by his grandad Charlie.
When mum Ronnie found James dead in his cot, she wandered out into the Square devastated. She heard baby Tommy crying from the pub, and in a daze, took him from his cot and left James behind.
Weeks of torment followed for Kat and Ronnie until eventually Tommy was reunited with his parents. Ronnie later went to prison for her crime.
EastEnders 2017 Ronnie and Roxy die together
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Ronnie tied the knot with Jack Branning, but the wedding was not the joyful celebration it should have been.
She and her sister Roxy were drinking champagne beside the hotel pool after the wedding when Roxy jokingly jumped in the water.
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Ronnie watched in horror as Roxy didn’t surface, and dived in to save her, only to be dragged under herself by her heavy wedding dress.
Some fans think killing the sisters off was a good decision, while others think it was the biggest mistake EastEnders has ever made!
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