Emmerdale to air hour-long Sunday episode for 50th anniversary

'Emmerdale' will air an hour-long episode on a Sunday to celebrate the soap's 50th anniversary.

The ITV show hits the milestone on October 16th and while the day is a Sunday this year, when 'Emmerdale' wouldn't usually be on, the soap will celebrate its birthday with a special episode on the exact day it first appeared on our screens.

To celebrate the upcoming anniversary, 'Emmerdale' has released an official cast photograph taken earlier this year outside the Woolpack pub in the Emmerdale village in Yorkshire.

Last week, Samantha Giles - who plays Bernice Blackstock in the ITV soap - insisted the 50th anniversary scenes are "really exciting".

She said: "We are very busy at the moment with filming it all. It’s really exciting."

Last month, it was revealed Danny Miller, Elizabeth Estensen, and Amy Walsh will return to the soap for the show's 50th anniversary.

The trio, who played Aaron Dingle, Diane Sugden, and Tracy Metcalfe, will be back on the ITV soap "temporarily" to mark the huge milestone.

'Emmerdale' producer Kate Brooks said: "We have the return of some very familiar faces to the Dales.

"Diane, Aaron and Tracy will all be making a reappearance, albeit on a temporary basis.

"But they'll come back and be at the heart of some really big stories that'll impact their lives, and not just their lives but the lives of the characters they leave behind. It's all really exciting and brilliant.

"Aaron's back and how is he going to respond when he finds out that his mum is cheating on Paddy, who he sees as a father?

"Is he going to discover that Sandra is not all about Liv? There's a huge story happening over there."

Speaking about Amy's return, Jane said: "Tracy is back with a bit of news of her own – and how’s Nate going to respond to that?"