The Young and the Restless: Find Out When the New Head Writers’ Material Begins
The Young and the Restless named Jamey Giddens and Dan O’Connor as its new team of co-head writers on July 29, and the scribes reported to work in early August. But when are episodes they scripted actually making it to air? Soap Opera Digest has learned that the material from Giddens and O’Connor now has an official first air date.
Jamey Giddens and Dan O’Connor’s Headwriting Era Begins
Y&R fans should mark their calendars for Wednesday, November 11, 2026. That is the date on which The Young and the Restless will make the official transition from scripts and storylines penned by outgoing head writer Josh Griffith, who had been at the helm of the show’s writing team since 2019, and the first episode of the Giddens and O’Connor era begins.
Both writers have deep roots in daytime.
Giddens became the co-owner of Daytime Confidential in 2007 and worked as a journalist and podcaster for the site. He began his pivot to fiction writer with the primetime drama Ambitions, which he wrote and co-created with Will Packer. The series aired on OWN from 2019-2020.
From 2020-2025, Giddens worked on the writing team of Days of Our Lives as a breakdown writer, earning both Writers Guild of America and Daytime Emmy Awards. He was also on the writing team of the DAYS spinoff Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem, which streamed on Peacock. Then, in 2025, Giddens made the move to the writing team of Beyond the Gates.
O’Connor began his soap writing career at One Life to Live, where he served as a writers’ assistant, continuity script supervisor, then script writer. In 2012, he moved over to the writing team of General Hospital. From 2019-2024, he was GH’s co-head writer alongside Chris Van Etten. O’Connor won both a Daytime Emmy and a Writers Guild Award for his GH work.
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