- Not to be confused with Hollyoaks (village)
The Hollyoaks title card.
Hollyoaks is an award-winning, long running English soap opera, following the residents of the village Hollyoaks, Chester.
The show debuted on 23rd October 1995, only airing one episode per week and consisting of a cast of fourteen members, with the target audience being teenagers and young adults. Creator Phil Redmond (also the creator of other popular soap operas Brookside and Grange Hill) created Hollyoaks following Grange Hill viewer suggestions in the 1980s - during the time Redmond was unable to pursue due to Brookside's recent inception.
Nowadays, the show airs three episodes per week, and consists of a cast of over forty, with the show now targeting all age groups. From January 2005 until September 2023, E4 aired the next episode of Hollyoaks following the episode broadcast on Channel 4, and since September 2023, the show now only airs on E4.
About the Show[]
Hollyoaks - initially developed under the working title "Teen Soap" - has tackled many subjects over its long history, such as mental illness, eating disorders, domestic violence and addiction. The show is well known for it's "soap firsts", such as being the first soap opera to air a male rape storyline in 2000, the first soap to have an on-screen death from an eating disorder in 2007, the first same-sex domestic violence storyline, the first soap to have a legal same-sex wedding in 2014 and the first gay character in a soap opera to be HIV positive in 2015. in Hollyoaks also have had many large stunts, ranging from car pile-ups to massive explosions.
Hollyoaks is also the UK's deadliest soap opera. According to a 2014 report, the murder rate in Hollyoaks was 1616 times the average of the real-life Cheshire murder rate, and 6.5 times the San Pedro Sula (the then-murder capital of the world) murder rate.
Hollyoaks has also produced 5 late night special episodes, and 5 spin-off series (Hollyoaks: Movin' On (2001), Hollyoaks: After Hours (2004), Hollyoaks: Let Loose (2005), Hollyoaks: In The City (2006) & Hollyoaks Later (2008-2013, 2020)). The show has also released 7 books, an annual calendar between 2001 and 2014, and fragrances in 2008. The show has aired over 6,000 episodes and over 500 main characters.
Actors in these roles range from comedian James Corden to Game of Thrones actress, Nathalie Emmanuel. Some celebrities have appeared as themselves, such as Bonnie Tyler and The Vamps - even Vernon Kay appeared as an extra in the first episode! Jack Reynolds appeared as himself in a June 2019 episode at age 107, making him the oldest person to ever appear in a soap opera.
Characters[]
This is a list of current characters in the programme, sorted by their first appearance. Tony Hutchinson, played by Nick Pickard, is the longest-running character, having appeared since Episode 1 (23rd October 1995).
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Broadcasting[]
See article: Broadcasting History.
Awards[]
See article: The British Soap Awards.
In 2019, Hollyoaks won best soap at both The British Soap Awards and Inside Soap Awards. Hollyoaks had also previously won best soap in 2014 at The British Soap Awards. This is a list of all nominations and award wins that Hollyoaks has received:
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | National Television Awards | Most Popular Children's Programme | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| 1999 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap Opera | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| 2000 | British Soap Awards | Best Newcomer | Gary Lucy (Luke Morgan) | Won |
| 2001 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap Opera | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| British Soap Awards | Best British Soap | Hollyoaks | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Nick Pickard (Tony Hutchinson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Special Achievement Award | Phil Redmond | Won | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Actor | Ben Hull (Lewis Richardson) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Actress | Stephanie Waring (Cindy Cunningham) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Bad Boy | Ben Hull (Lewis Richardson) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Bitch | Joanna Taylor (Geri Hudson) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best British Soap | Hollyoaks | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Couple | Marcus Patric & Sarah Jayne Dunn (Ben Davies & Mandy Richardson) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Exit | Paul Danan (Sol Patrick) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Best Newcomer | Marcus Patric (Ben Davies) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Funniest Character | Matt Littler (Max Cunningham) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Most Dramatic Storyline | Mark Gibbs's trial | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Sexiest Female | Joanna Taylor (Geri Hudson) | Nominated | |
| Inside Soap Awards | Sexist Male | James Redmond (Rory Finnigan) | Nominated | |
| 2002 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| British Soap Awards | Best Actor | Matt Littler (Max Cunningham) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Actor | Nick Pickard (Tony Hutchinson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Actor | Ben Hull (Lewis Richardson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Actress | Joanna Taylor (Geri Hudson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Actress | Gemma Atkinson (Lisa Hunter) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Actress | Sarah Jayne Dunn (Mandy Richardson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Sexiest Male | Marcus Patric (Ben Davies) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Sexiest Male | Andrew McNair (Dan Hunter) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Sexiest Male | Gary Lucy (Luke Morgan) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Sexiest Female | Joanna Taylor (Geri Hudson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Sexiest Female | Gemma Atkinson (Lisa Hunter) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Sexiest Female | Sarah Jayne Dunn (Mandy Richardson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Villain of the Year | Scott Anderson (Daniel Hyde) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Villain of the Year | Laura Burns (Lesley Crawford) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Villain of the Year | Lewis Richardson (Ben Hull) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Nick Pickard (Tony Hutchinson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Newcomer | Lisa Hunter (Gemma Atkinson) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Spectacular Scene of the Year | Mandy & Adam's Car crash | Won | |
| Royal Television Society Awards | Best Soap | Hollyoaks | Nominated | |
| 2003 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| 2004 | British Soap Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Alex Carter (Lee Hunter) | Won |
| British Soap Awards | Best Young Performance | Gemma Atkinson (Lisa Hunter) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Soap Bitch of the Year | Natalie Osborne (Tiffany Mulheron) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Exit | Toby Mills (Henry Luxemburg) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Storyline | The Hollyoaks Serial Killer | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Spectacular Scene of the Year | Hollyoaks: Leap of Faith | Nominated | |
| 2005 | British Soap Awards | Best Soap | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| British Soap Awards | Best Young Performance | Chris Fountain (Justin Burton) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Spectacular Scene of the Year | Tom's fireworks party | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Spectacular Scene of the Year | The Open-Top Bus | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Carley Stenson (Steph Dean) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best On-Screen Partnership | Lee Hunter (Alex Carter) & Bombhead (Lee Otway) | Nominated | |
| British Soap Awards | Best Storyline | Bombhead's grief | Nominated | |
| 2009 | All About Soap Awards | Celeb Style | Jennifer Metcalfe (Mercedes McQueen) | Won |
| All About Soap Awards | Tearjerker | Max Cunningham's death | Won | |
| All About Soap Awards | Killer Secret | Niall Rafferty's revenge | Won | |
| 2010 | All About Soap Awards | Celeb Style | Jennifer Metcalfe (Mercedes McQueen) | Nominated |
| All About Soap Awards | Fatal Attraction | Calvin Valentine (Ricky Whittle) & Jennifer Metcalfe (Mercedes McQueen) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | I'm A Survivor | Hannah Ashworth (Emma Rigby) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Smooth Criminal | Calvin Valentine (Ricky Whittle) | Nominated | |
| 2011 | All About Soap Awards | Best Actor | Emmett J. Scanlan (Brendan Brady) | Nominated |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Actress | Claire Cooper (Jacqui McQueen) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Celeb Style | Jennifer Metcalfe (Mercedes McQueen) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Celeb Style | Jorgie Porter (Theresa McQueen) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Comeback | Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Love Triangle | Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson), Brendan Brady (Emmett J. Scanlan) & Rae Wilson (Alice Barlow) | Won | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Newcomer | Mitzeee Minniver (Rachel Shenton) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Stunt | Il Gnosh fire | Nominated | |
| 2012 | All About Soap Awards | Best Actor | Emmett J. Scanlan (Brendan Brady) | Won |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Actress | Claire Cooper (Jacqui McQueen) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Comeback | Steph Roach (Carley Stenson) | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Dressed Soap Star | Jorgie Porter (Theresa McQueen) | Won | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Episode | Fright Night 2011 | Won | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Mystery | Who's the father of Mercedes's baby? | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Villain | Silas Blissett (Jeff Rawle) | Won | |
| 2013 | All About Soap Awards | Best Death | Riley Costello (Rob Norbury) | Nominated |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Reveal | Walker is an undercover officer | Nominated | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Storyline | Esther's bullying | Won | |
| All About Soap Awards | Best Stunt | Enjoy The Ride | Won | |
| All About Soap Awards | Forbidden Lovers | Brendan Brady (Emmett J. Scanlan) & Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson) | Won | |
| Royal Television Society Awards | Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated | |
| 2015 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| 2016 | British Academy Scotland Awards | Best Television Actress | Annie Wallace (Sally St. Claire) | Nominated |
| 2017 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| Royal Television Society Awards | Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated | |
| 2018 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| 2019 | British Academy Television Awards | Best Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Nominated |
| Royal Television Society Awards | Soap and Continuing Drama | Hollyoaks | Won |
Trailers[]
Celebrities[]
Further Reading: List of Celebrity Appearances
Hollyoaks have had many celebrities appear in the soap either in a regular or guest role, as a character or themselves - or even as an extra. Celebrities that appear on the soap range from James Corden to Vernon Kay, Bonnie Tyler to Nathalie Emmanuel.
Other Media[]
In 1999, several cast members, as well as Hollyoaks sets, were featured in Brookside: Double Take - a spoof behind-the-scenes film. The film featured, from Hollyoaks: Nick Pickard, Terri Dwyer, Ben Hull, James McKenna, Ross Davidson, Natalie Casey, Stephanie Waring, Dannielle Brent, Alex Fletcher, Paul Danan and Zander Ward.
In 2007, in an episode of the Doctor Who spin-off audio series Bernice Summerfield, a spin-off series titled Hollyoaks: Life on Phobos was mentioned.
In 2011, Hollyoaks director Sean Glynn produced and directed The Case - a five-episode drama mini-series broadcast on BBC1. The series used the same sets as Hollyoaks.