Biggest Christmas soap blunders of all time – from a hair howler to a festive faux pas
CHRISTMAS in Soapland is known to feature plenty of death and destruction, as show bosses see in the New Year by killing off loveable characters.
But there are also plenty of heart-warming scenes in Coronation Street’s Weatherfield, Emmerdale’s Yorkshire Dales and EastEnders’ Albert Square for viewers to enjoy.
However, whatever the storyline, not everything always goes to plan, and a festive faux pas is never too far away.
EastEnders’ Dinner Debacle
That was the case in EastEnders last year.
Fans of the BBC soap were left scratching their heads when Nish Panesar (Navin Chowdhry) and Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) went head-to-head in a brutal brawl in the Panesars’ kitchen, with the rest of the family happily tucking into their Christmas meal next door.
One viewer wrote on X: “So what the rest of the family are just eating dinner whilst Ravi and Nish are tearing it up in the kitchen??”
Another posted: “Homes clearly soundproofed. Though seriously, I had been in that kind of situation and we were just too scared to get involved.”
One joked: “Still thinking about how Priya, Avani, Vinny and Nugget were stuffing their faces whilst Nish and Ravi were killing each other in the kitchen”
Soap Script Slip Up
But it’s not just in front of the camera when soaps can go wrong.
One unnamed EastEnders star suffered a script slip up when he accidentally left his lines on a train earlier this year – and they featured a shocking Christmas plot twist.
A commuter discovered the confidential document, and he and his wife gave them to us at The Sun, and we handed them back to EastEnders bosses.
But the commuter’s wife couldn’t wait to read the scripts first.
She told us: “He’s not much of a soap fan but he knows I love them, so told me straight away.
“I was very excited – I love EastEnders.
“I couldn’t wait to read the script and wasn’t disappointed.
“There’s a real twist that will shock everyone and a main character is killed off. It’s an incredible storyline.”
Festive Faux Pas
Emmerdale suffered a festive faux pas in 2022 when eagle-eyed fans spotted Moira Dingle (Natalie J. Robb) allowing her kids to open presents before the big day.
During Emmerdale’s episode on December 23, 2022, viewers took to social media in droves to point out the gift gaffe.
One posted: “Bit early to be opening Christmas presents, isn’t it?!”
Another wrote: “Moira you’re 2 days too early to open presents.”
And a third fan felt had even stronger viewers about the early fictional present unwrapping, writing: “Why the f*** is Moira letting her kids open their presents on the 23rd?”
What’s more, they couldn’t resist a quip, adding: “Who delivered them? The tardy Easter Bunny?”
One irate fan posted: “Does Moira not understand the concept of kids waiting until Christmas Day before opening their gifts?”
Emmerdale Tree Gaffe
But it’s not just over the festive period that Christmas calamities can happen in soaps.
During an episode of Emmerdale in February 2017, some super-fans spotted Christmas decorations still up on screen – nearly two months after Christmas Day 2016.
In the scene, Finn Barton (Joe Gill) was confronting his ex-boyfriend Kasim Sabet (Ethan Kai) when fans spotted a house in the background had a well-decorated Christmas tree, complete with baubles, in its window.
One viewer wrote on X: “Why does a house on @emmerdale still have its Christmas tree in its front window? Early filming???”
Another posted: “Watching @emmerdale and there’s a Christmas Tree in the background #Emmerdale #ChristmasTree #XmasinFeb. Isn’t it supposed to be February?”
One commented: “Was that a Christmas tree with baubles I saw in a window in the background when Finn was visiting Kasim? #Emmerdale”
Hair Howler
EastEnders’ Alfie Moon (Shane Richie) was feared dead over the 2018 festive period in Albert Square when Hayley Slater (Katie Jarvis) pushed him down the stairs.
Fortunately, the cheeky chappy survived the terrifying tumble – but several viewers spotted a boo-boo in the episode.
At one point, Hayley cut a strand of hair from the pair’s baby, Cherry – but viewers spotted the tiny actor used to portray the character barely had any locks to lose.
One fan wrote on social media: “That baby is completely bald how did she cut that hair? #EastEnders’.”
And a viewer even joked the little one may have had hair extensions, writing: “Beautiful baby Cherry doesn’t have any hair so where exactly did the 3 inch lock of hair come from?
“I’m all for a bit of make believe at Christmas but that was seriously pushing it especially as it was part of the BIG REVEAL #EastEnders #BabyCherryhairextensions’.”
Advent Error
EastEnders’ hair howler came a couple of years after an advent issue on the soap.
Legendary sisters Ronnie (Samantha Womack) and Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons) tragically drowned on New Year’s Day 2017, but they lost a whole 11 days over Christmas in 15 minutes.
The comical error was given away by the couple’s advent calendar which was positioned on the back of the door.
It first said December 13 – but they later travelled back in time to December 2.
One tweeted: “Ronnie’s advent calendar is all over the place. Went from 13th to 2nd!”
Another commented: “Jack and Ronnie’s advent calendar just skipped backwards 11 days.”
Later on Ronnie was trying to convince her sister to spend Christmas Day with her, but Roxy was more interested in the festive decorations – and so were some viewers.
The episode aired on December 20, but the advent calendar stated December 21.
One fan wrote: “Anybody else notice @bbceastenders set in the future tonight? Jack & Ronnie’s advent calendar being set on the 21st of December.”
Another posted: “@bbceastenders date wrong on the Advent calendar with the Candy Cane! #20not21 #eastenders #datefail @eastenders.”
The advent calendar error came just days after Ronnie was part of another Christmas slip-up.
She was busy booking a Christmas cottage getaway for her and Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) in Dorset, but eagle-eyed viewers spotted the picturesque property was in fact the world-famous abode belonging to William Shakespeare‘s late wife Anne Hathaway.
Her cottage was based in Stratford-upon-Avon – more than 160 miles away from Dorset.