The Young and the Restless
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Here are a few spoilers for next week. Look at what's coming up on The Young and the Restless...

• Will David put Nikki in jeopardy due to his dealings with an unknown man?

• When J.T. (Thad Luckinbill) learns Reed’s condition has changed, he rushes to the hospital to be with his son.

• Brad (Don Diamont) follows Sharon to Chicago, hoping to rekindle their love affair.

• After another fight, Victor takes drastic measures to get back at Nick.

Attention, fans of The Young and the Restless: There's a new Newman on the way!

The series has tapped Chris Engen (best known for his work on Felicity and Saints and Sinners) to play Victor Newman Jr., the son of Victor and his former wife Hope.

The younger Newman grew up in Kansas after his parents divorced and has been recently missing in action.

Engen's first air date will be February 12.

Marina Alburger is putting a face on the writers' strike.

As a writer for The Young and the Restless Alburger, 24, told UCLA's Daily Bruin that her financial situation is growing dire now that the strike has moved into its third month. A UCLA graduate in communication studies, she was hired by The Young and the Restless in 2006 as a story coordinator and production associate.

She was later promoted to scriptwriter in May 2007.

"It is starting to become crunch time for me financially," Alburger said. "I have begun searching for alternative means of work."

Alburger didn't have much to say when describing her reaction to former The Young and the Restless co-executive producer Josh Griffith -  and former The Bold and the Beautiful writer Maria Arena Bell - going financial core, or "fi-core" in order to write the show during the strike.

Guild members who have chosen to go fi-core still pay dues to the Guild, but are no longer members with voting privileges. They're permitted to work during the strike. Might Alburger go that route?

"I have to do what I have to do and I have to stand for my guild," she sad. "It's tough to know that the show is going on without us but we do know there is going to be a day after the strike and we do plan to return to get the show back on track."

Here are a trio of spoilers from The Young and the Restless. Take a look at them now before watching the episodes next week...

• Sharon (Sharon Case) has a hard time resisting Brad. Can you blame her?

• Victor seeks revenge on Nick.

• David (Vincent Irizarry, pictured) feels pressure after Nikki agrees to marry him.

Who cares that the holidays are over? You can enjoy a fresh batch of The Young and the Restless episodes, with the following twists and turns this week:

• Brad confesses his love to Sharon. Does she feel the same?

• Gloria and Kevin (Greg Rikaart, pictured) hatch a plan to get back at Jeffrey. Will it work?

• Nikki accidentally confesses to Victor her doubts about his innocence. That can't be good for their relationship.

• Cane (Daniel Goddard) and Lily kiss.

• April Stevens arrives back in Genoa City.

We're sorry to report no new The Young and the Restless until Wednesday. But when the show returns, here are a few spoilers from it...

• Brad (Don Diamont) tries to enlist an unlikely ally’s help to break up Sharon and Jack.

• New evidence comes to light in Ji Min’s death; it could send Victor to prison.

• Paul warns J.T. about Victor.

• As Jeff plans his proposal, Gloria (Judith Chapman, pictured) scrambles to find a way out.

Like The Bold and the Beautiful, The Young and the Restless will air a classic episode on Christmas. Aside from that day, here's what you'll see on the show next week...

• David surprises Nikki with an unexpected proposal. Will she accept?

• A snowstorm strands the residents of Genoa City with unlikely partners.

• Victor turns the tables on Nikki and Kay (Jeanne Cooper, pictured).

• Ashley surprises Jack (Peter Bergman).

Victoria Rowell did not leave The Young and the Restless on very good terms. Below, she discusses the show with TV Guide Canada.

TV Guide: Have you watched The Young and the Restless since you left? Are you watching the show? Would you go back; and have they even asked you back?
VR: Let’s put it this way: I was told by a friend on-set that I’d have to be voted back in! How’s that for an exclusive? I found it ghastly, to be honest. By the way, I loved Jack Smith’s writing! Smith’s show was clearly an extension of Bell’s show and legacy.

TV Guide: What do you think The Young and the Restless' creator, the late, great William Bell, who created Drucilla, would think of the state of The Young and the Restless these days now that it’s run by fear and committee?
VR: I think what made William Bell such an extraordinary and unique writer is that he embraced the natural, raw gift that an actor brought to the table.

He was masterful at extracting the natural nuance of the character and actor at the same time. What do I think he would think of the show right now? I haven’t watched The Young and the Restless since I left because I’ve been on the road on a book tour for 200 days.

TV Guide: Currently, Drucilla is being mentioned on the show: Neil is dating Karen, played by Nia Peeples, and LML (Latham) is teasing viewers with passive aggressive insinuations that somehow Drucilla is haunting the relationship or she is, at the very least, somehow related to Karen. It feels rather manipulative and mean to me since you’re not coming back to the show.

It’s like they’re just teasing us and capitalizing on your popularity just because they can. LML is pouring salt on our wounds.
VR: I heard Nia was on the show, yes, but I can’t comment because I haven’t seen any of it.

TV Guide: So the big question: would you consider coming back to the show in the future?
VR: Clearly, I needed to take a break because the show wasn’t making sense. But I must say, for the first time in my career, I’ve been on the road with Y&R fans all over North America and I can’t tell you how wonderful and educational it’s been to interface with the viewers, who have watched me for twenty years in prime time, daytime and film.

To look people in the eyes and hear what they really think [and not through focus groups]. I never said never about daytime. It’s a medium that has been loyal to me. I’m coming to the end of the book tour and as I said, a little birdie told me that I had to be voted back on the show, which I will say is stunning.

Eileen Davidson will be returning to The Young and the Restless for a three-day arc storyline beginning on Friday, December 28 and running through Wednesday, January 3.

The 48-year-old soap opera veteran will portraying her signature character, Ashley Abbott.

Davidson was cast on the long-running drama in 1982. As the original Ashley, Davidson was an integral part of show. After seven years of playing the character, though, she left The Young and the Restless in February 1989, which prompted the producers to continue featuring the character with a look-alike actress.

Following several appearances on primetime TV, Davidson returned to the soap world in the the role of Kelly Capwell on Santa Barbara; she then left and landed the part od Kristen Blake on Days of Our Lives in May 1993.

Five years later, Davidson came back to The Young and the Restless again... only to be released from the series due to lack of storylines for her character. She was last seen as Ashley on January 11.

In a surprise move three months later, Davidson signed a three-year contract with sister soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful, once more portraying Ashley Abbott, a role she continues to wow viewers with to this day.

Next week, you can look forward to the following story lines on The Young and the Restless:

• Nikki gets a new roommate: Sharon.

• Nikki sues Victor.

• We find out who the father of Victoria's (Amelia Heinle, pictured) baby is. Tension!