Thursday, July 14, is a big day for The Young and the Restless and the American soap opera industry in general because material by the CBS soap's new executive producer, former British soap executive Mal Young, begins airing.
Y&R brought Young into the wings as a supervising producer back in January, which had fans speculating about the future of the soap's former EP, Jill Farren Phelps. Though ratings for Y&R have remained strong and kept the soap in its longstanding number one position since Phelps joined the show in 2012, fans grumbled about storyline direction, and many seemed interested in Young's fresh take on the show. The rumors that Young would eventually replace Phelps became a reality this June, and Soap Central broke the news of the changing of the guard at that time.
As the BBC's controller of continuing drama series from 1997-2004, Young oversaw British series EastEnders, Doctor Who, Casualty and Doctors (which he co-created) before heading to the United States. Prior to joining Y&R, he spent a short time working as an executive producer for Desperate Housewives, which starred former Y&R star Eva Longoria (ex-Isabella Brana).
What kind of changes are you hoping to see with Young in charge of Y&R? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
