Soap spoilers follow.

It’s been a week of soaps news that we won’t forget in a hurry, with Coronation Street announcing that legendary character Gail will be leaving at the end of the year.

Casting news has dominated the headlines for other soaps too, with a new EastEnders family being announced and another Hollyoaks exit being confirmed.

Elsewhere, Emmerdale shared details of the next chapter for Belle and Tom’s dark storyline.

Did you miss any gossip this week? If so, here’s our guide to the biggest soaps news that dropped over the past seven days.

Emmerdale baby plot for Belle

Emmerdale confirmed a pregnancy storyline for Belle earlier this week, which begins in Monday’s episode of the ITV soap (June 10).

Belle’s discovery that she’s expecting a baby follows weeks of pressure from her abusive husband Tom, who has been obsessive in his desire to start a family.

Although Belle initially hopes to keep her news a secret while she considers her options, she later blurts out the truth to Tom in a terrifying moment when he threatens to become violent again.

Tom’s demeanour immediately changes as he promises to be a better man for the sake of Belle and the baby. Belle is once again left hopeful over their future, with Tom’s sly manipulation still keeping her under his control.

It sounds like this could remain the case for some time yet, with show bosses keen to tell the story over a realistic timeframe.

Discussing the slow nature of the story this week, Eden Taylor-Draper – who plays Belle – explained: “James [Chase, who plays Tom] and I had a meeting with our researchers and producers and then representatives from charities. It was eye opening.

“It gave me reassurance why we are doing this story and how important it is to portray this over such a long time span. This sort of behaviour is often slow-building and we are all so passionate about portraying it correctly.”