Chris Jenkins

With the year over half way through, we take a look at what’s in store on Home and Away in the second half of 2026, with new characters, major drama, a literal cliffhanger and a potential goodbye. A busy 2026 has already seen the arrival of new characters Beau (Blake Richardson), Richie (Rocco Forrester-Sach) and Amelia (Nicole da Silva), a crime wave sweep the bay, Remi (Adam Rowland) undergo risky surgery, and Sonny’s (Ryan Bown) addiction problems.

While we may be months away from Home and Away‘s final episodes of 2026, the first details have already emerged of this year’s big Season Finale. Each year, Home and Away takes a break through late November, December and early January, with Aussie viewers typically enduring 6 to 8-weeks without the show over the festive season. To keep viewers coming back in the new year, the writers usually craft a big end of year finale, often with a major catastrophe that leaves lives on the line.

The BBC and ITV have confirmed when Coronation Street, Emmerdale and EastEnders will air this week, as the World Cup continues to disrupt schedules. With the World Cup moving into the Round of 32 this week, the schedules have been even more disrupted, with broadcasters only finding out on Sunday morning which games they would be airing. ITV and the BBC split the games between them, and the exact lineup wasn’t known until the conclusion of the final group game in the early hours of Sunday morning.