From EastEnders to Coronation Street: Which soap star has racked up the most appearances?
Who comes up trumps as we kick off 2026, and who could move further up the top 10?
With a collective 188 years on air, and a whopping 36,181 episodes, it's no surprise that the soap stars of Coronation Street, Emmerdale, EastEnders and Hollyoaks have become household names.
Let's face it, the shows air that frequently that we probably spend more time in the characters' company each week than that of our friends.
It goes without saying that Corrie legend William Roache, who has played Ken Barlow since episode one on 9th December 1960 should definitely be up there with the most appearances across the board.
But given the ITV soap didn't introduce a third weekly episode until 29 years later 1989, how does he compare with the EastEnders titans, who added their third episode just 9 years into the serial's run?
And how do the actors compare with their co-stars?
Luckily, RadioTimes.com has done some digging and has all the details.
Coronation Street characters episode count
With 11,771 episodes to its name, Coronation Street is the longest-running television soap opera in the world. In 2020, Roache was recognised as being the actor to have appeared the longest in one continuous role.
But given his episode count has dwindled in recent years, could another character eventually pip Ken to the post?
1. William Roache as Ken Barlow, 4924 episodes since 1960
2. Helen Worth as Gail Chadwick, 4606 episodes between 1974 and 2025
3. Barbara Knox as Rita Tanner, 3983 episodes since 1964
4. Sally Dynevor as Sally Metcalfe, 3934 episodes since 1986
5. Simon Gregson as Steve McDonald, 3828 episodes since 1989
6. Michael Le Vell as Kevin Webster, 3867 episodes since 1983
7. Sue Nicholls as Audrey Roberts, 3456 episodes since 1979
8. Anne Kirkbride as Deirdre Barlow, 3346 episodes between 1972 and 2014
9. Eileen Derbyshire as Emily Bishop, 3303 episodes between 1961 and 2019
10. Thomas Ormson and Jack P Shepherd as David Platt, 3194 episodes since 1990 (Ormson - 364 episodes, Shepherd - 2820 episodes)
Emmerdale characters episode count
While Chris Chittell has played Pollard for almost 40 years, Dingle fever has dominated the Dales since the '90s and as a result, six members of the unruly clan make Emmerdale's top 10 and push him out of the top spot.
The serial started out as a daytime farming drama on the 16th October 1972, following the Sugden family on their homestead. Despite that, only one member of the family appears in the line-up.
It should also be noted that characters Cain and Paddy Dingle are just 10 episodes apart from one another.
There have been 10,487 episodes to date.
1. Mark Charnock as Marlon Dingle, 3956 episodes since 1996
2. Lucy Pargeter as Chas Dingle, 3521 episodes since 2002
3. Chris Chittell as Eric Pollard, 3473 episodes since 1986
4. Jeff Hordley as Cain Dingle, 3320 episodes since 2000
5. Dominic Brunt as Paddy Dingle, 3310 episodes since 1997
6. Emma Atkins as Charity Dingle, 3145 episodes since 2000
7. Tony Audenshaw as Bob Hope, 3051 episodes since 2000
8. Elizabeth Estensen as Diane Sugden, 3025 episodes between 1999 and 2022
9. Steve Halliwell as Zak Dingle, 2930 episodes between 1994 and 2023
10. Nicola Wheeler as Nicola King, 2854 episodes since 2001
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EastEnders characters episode count
EastEnders is fortunate to have three characters – four, if you include Tracey the barmaid – still in the cast from the show's first episode, which was broadcast on 19th February 1985.
Steve McFadden, who has played Phil Mitchell since 1990, is just 11 episodes behind longest-running star Adam Woodyatt as Ian Beale.
Some names who didn't make the list are Sonia Fowler (Natalie Cassidy), who appeared in just eight less than Wendy Richard's Pauline Fowler when she departed last year, and Lacey Turner's Stacey Slater, who is 20 episodes behind Sonia.
There have been 7,258 episodes to date.
1. Adam Woodyatt as Ian Beale, 3684 episodes since 1985
2. Steve McFadden as Phil Mitchell, 3673 episodes since 1990
3. Letitia Dean as Sharon Watts, 2720 episodes since 1985
4. Gillian Taylforth as Kathy Beale, 2283 episodes since 1985
5. June Brown as Dot Branning, 2278 episodes between 1985 and 2020
6. Perry Fenwick as Billy Mitchell, 2250 episodes since 1998
7. Pam St Clement as Pat Evans, 2189 episodes between 1986 and 2025
8. Jon Peyton-Price, James Alexandrou and James Bye as Martin Fowler, 2087 episodes between 1985 and 2025 (Peyton-Price - 308 episodes, Alexandrou - 755 episodes, Bye - 1033 episodes)
9. Jessie Wallace as Kat Moon, 1998 episodes since 2000
10. Wendy Richard as Pauline Fowler, 1949 episodes between 1985 and 2007
Hollyoaks characters episode count
Hollyoaks, which began on 23rd October 1995, celebrated its 30th Anniversary last year. Along the way there have been countless spin-offs, so while the main show has totalled 6,665 episodes to date, we've also included character appearances in these 'soap bubbles' as part of their running total.
It's no surprise that the iconic Tony Hutchinson tops the list, but how do the other Chester residents compare?
1. Nick Pickard as Tony Hutchinson, 2601 appearances since 1995
2. Adam Booth and Ashley Taylor-Dawson as Darren Osborne, 2046 episodes since 1996 (Booth - 14 episodes, Taylor Dawson - 2032 episodes)
3. Jennifer Metcalfe as Mercedes McQueen, 1768 episodes since 2006
4. Kieron Richardson as Ste Hay, 1710 episodes since 2006
5. Jessica Fox as Nancy Osborne, 1694 episodes since 2005
6. Laura Crossley and Stephanie Waring as Cindy Cunningham, 1522 episodes between 1995 and 2024 (Crossley - 17 episodes, Waring - 1505 episodes)
7. Jimmy McKenna as Jack Osborne, 1458 episodes since 1996
8. Sarah Jayne Dunn as Mandy Richardson, 1346 episodes between 1996 and 2021
9. Anna Passey as Sienna Blake, 1242 episodes since 2012
10. Jamie Lomas as Warren Fox, 1108 episodes since 2006
How does everyone compare?
When we compile the above data and look at the top 10 from all four British soaps, unfortunately none of the Hollyoaks cast make the list.
Interestingly, Marlon Dingle is less than 30 episodes behind Rita Tanner, and Sally Metcalfe is 22 episodes behind him. Meanwhile, Kevin Webster is just six episodes behind Phil Mitchell.
Let the battle commence...
1. William Roache as Ken Barlow, 4924 episodes since 1960
2. Helen Worth as Gail Chadwick, 4606 episodes between 1974 and 2025
3. Barbara Knox as Rita Tanner, 3983 episodes since 1964
4. Mark Charnock as Marlon Dingle, 3956 episodes since 1996
5. Sally Dynevor as Sally Metcalfe, 3934 episodes since 1986
6. Simon Gregson as Steve McDonald, 3828 episodes since 1989
7. Adam Woodyatt as Ian Beale, 3684 episodes since 1985
8. Steve McFadden as Phil Mitchell, 3673 episodes since 1990
9. Michael Le Vell as Kevin Webster, 3867 episodes since 1983
10. Lucy Pargeter as Chas Dingle, 3521 episodes since 2002
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Authors
Michael Adams is the Soaps Editor at Radio Times, covering all of the hot gossip and spoilers from Weatherfield to Walford, Emmerdale to Hollyoaks and everywhere in-between. He joined the team from Metro, where he spent two years as a Soaps Reporter and previously worked on the sets of both Coronation Street and Emmerdale.
