• Joel's favourite Emmerdale storyline was Cain Dingle's 2006 kidnapping of Tom and Sadie King (that Evanescence needle-drop still gives him chills!)
• His favourite character is himbo hardman with a heart of gold Ross Barton
• Self-avowed horror nut Joel has a particular love for the genre work of Dominic Brunt and a good Emmerdale serial killer storyline

Experience

Joel is a professional writer, film critic and journalist of almost twenty years - and a fan of Emmerdale, EastEnders and Coronation Street for even longer than that. In this time, he has accrued bylines for Starburst Magazine, Total Film and Metro UK, where he can be found reviewing the latest in cult horror, interviewing the occasional Hollywood star, and singing the praises of Nicolas Cage to anyone who will listen. He began writing about soaps for Entertainment Daily in 2022, following a five-year stint as an English teacher in Chengdu and Shanghai, China. Joel then joined the team at Coronation Street Insider's sister site Emmerdale Insider in 2024, before becoming EastEnders Insider Editor in 2025.

Education

Joel graduated from Birmingham City University in 2009 with a BA in English Language & Literature.