Emmerdale: Commons speaker Lindsay Hoyle fulfils promise to visit Woolpack ahead of 10,000th episode

At a reception he hosted in 2022 to honour 100 years of continuing drama from the North, Mr Hoyle was gifted a pair of Emmerdale wellingtons and invited to use them on a visit to the programme’s Yorkshire-based set.

Now, helping the programme celebrate it's 10,000th episode, he met with cast and crew and paid a visit to its hidden village on the Harewood estate.

Mr Speaker said: “Incredibly, Emmerdale has been on our screens for more than half a century - shining a light on the lived experience of others; entertaining viewers with its hard-hitting storylines, while also making a major economic contribution to the North.

“It has been an honour to help the cast celebrate the 10,000th episode of this enduring Yorkshire-based soap, with a visit to the Woolpack.

" As a Lancastrian, I am hugely impressed by the talent and warmth of our friends on ‘the other side’ of the Pennines.”

A longtime supporter of regional television production, Mr Speaker has previously marked the importance of both Coronation Street and Emmerdale, and the role they play in popular culture.

He noted that they had been mentioned more than 320 times during Parliamentary debates and “are an important part of the fabric of British society".

He also spoke the economic contribution they bring to the North.

Mr Speaker met with cast and crew at the main studios on Friday, before heading into the Yorkshire countryside to visit the programme’s purpose built ‘Village’ set.

John Whiston, managing director of Continuing Drama, said: “Showing balance between the Northern soaps, Mr Speaker is following up his visit to Coronation Street with a visit to the other side - Emmerdale.

"We are all honoured to welcome him in The Dales.

"And we have assured his team that no floods, fires, bus crashes, plane crashes or lightning strikes will hit the Village while he is there - unusually for a Friday.”

The 10,000 episode of Emmerdale is to be broadcast on ITV on Wednesday night.