The British Soap Awards (BSAs)[1] are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV. The trophies given to the winners are made from metal and glass and have been manufactured by British firm Creative Awards since their inception. The majority of the awards are voted for by a panel of industry professionals, while certain awards including Best British Soap and Best Leading Performer are voted for by the general public.
In 2016, it was announced that the award for outstanding achievement off-screen would be known as the Tony Warren Award following the death of Tony Warren, the creator of Coronation Street.[7][8] On 1 May 2018, ITV announced that for the 20th anniversary of the show, it would be broadcast live for the first time on 2 June 2018.[9] In March 2020, it was announced that the 2020 ceremony had been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] ITV instead aired a 60-minute special in its place titled The British Soap Awards Celebrates 21 Years, narrated by presenter Phillip Schofield.[10] In April 2021, it was announced that the 2021 ceremony had also been cancelled once again due to the pandemic.[11]
In April 2022, it was confirmed that the British Soap Awards would be held in June 2022. They also announced the introduction of two new viewer-voted categories, Best Family and Best Leading Performer. With the introduction of the gender-neutral Best Leading Performer category, it was confirmed that the awards for Best Actress and Best Actor had been axed.[12][13] Then in 2023, they reintroduced Villain of the Year as a viewer-voted category, as well as making the Best Young Performer award viewer-voted for the first time.
[14]
On 1 November 2023, the 2024 British Soap Awards were cancelled for an undisclosed reason by ITV but they will return for 2025.[15]
Sinbad and the gas explosion on the parade (Brookside) Roy and Hayley's courtship leading to their marriage (Coronation Street) Mandy's triumph over her sexually abusive father (Hollyoaks)
Clive Hornby, who played Jack Sugden in Emmerdale, was remembered during the ceremony, having died in July 2008. Wendy Richard, who played Pauline Fowler in EastEnders, was also remembered during the ceremony, having died in February 2009.[21]
The Rovers fire (Coronation Street) Julia's car crash (Doctors) The Olympic torch comes live to Walford (EastEnders) Cain's clifftop rescue of Zak (Emmerdale)
Kirsty's treachery ends in Tyrone's arrest (Coronation Street) "The Scales" (Doctors) The identity of Kat's lover is revealed (EastEnders) The bus crash (Hollyoaks)
Steve and Michelle – Hearts and Minds (Coronation Street) Kevin and Poppy's underage relationship (Doctors) Donna's demise (Emmerdale) John Paul's rape ordeal (Hollyoaks)
This year's ceremony incorporated a "Social Issue Storyline" mention, which is where all of the soap operas' most controversial stories were specially mentioned. These include:
Callum's death (Coronation Street) Valerie leaves Barry at the altar (Doctors) Mick and Linda finally get married (EastEnders) Nico kills Patrick (Hollyoaks)
The Live Episode (Coronation Street) Shabnam's stillbirth (EastEnders) Aftermath of Village Hall explosion (Emmerdale) Patrick's right to die decision (Hollyoaks)
"Outstanding Achievement Award" Presented by Adam Woodyatt
The 2017 awards took place on 3 June 2017 at The Lowry in Salford. It was originally planned for the event to be broadcast live for the first time but due to ITV moving the live grand final of Britain's Got Talent into its scheduled timeslot, the awards were instead pre-recorded as before and broadcast on ITV on 6 June 2017. After the end credits in the broadcast version, dedications appeared to Jean Alexander (Hilda Ogden in Coronation Street), who died in October 2016, and Roy Barraclough (Alec Gilroy in Coronation Street), who died in June 2017.[28]
Michelle's goodbye to Ruairi (Coronation Street) Haunted by his voices (Doctors) Ronnie and Roxy's exit (EastEnders) The Hotten bypass pile-up (Emmerdale)
The 2018 awards were broadcast live for the first time on 2 June 2018. Liz Dawn, who played Vera Duckworth in Coronation Street, was remembered during the ceremony, having died in September 2017.[29]
Richard Hillman drives his family into the canal (Coronation Street, 2003) Vivien's rape (Doctors, 2008) "You ain't my mother" (EastEnders, 2001) Jade says goodbye to Alfie (Hollyoaks, 2016)
The 2022 awards were broadcast live on 11 June 2022. This was Schofield's last as host.[31] A tribute was paid to Australian soap opera Neighbours, after filming ended the day before the ceremony, with video messages from Ian Smith (Harold Bishop) and Jackie Woodburne (Susan Kennedy).[32]
Hate Crime (Coronation Street) Bear and his mother encounter racism at St Phil's Hospital (Doctors) Jean's Bipolar (EastEnders) Meena Serial Killer (Emmerdale)
Best Young Performer Presented by Danya Griver and Ella Bright
This marked the last regular appearance of Doctors prior to the cancellation announcement by the BBC on 18 October of that year and Doctors will end production on 14 November 2024 after 24 years on air.
Hell is Empty (Doctors) Whitney and Zack Say Goodbye to Peach (EastEnders) Paddy's Suicide Attempt (Emmerdale) Zoe Tells Abused Maxine "It's not your fault" (Hollyoaks)
^ abcdefThese were the top four nominees as voted for by the public, from a longlist of 18 that consisted of three nominees from each soap.
^These were the top four nominees as voted for by the public, from a longlist of 15 that consisted of three nominees from each soap, excluding Doctors, which had one nominee, and Hollyoaks, which had two nominees.
^ abcdefghiThese were the top four nominees as voted for by the public, from a longlist of 15 that consisted of three nominees from each soap.
^These were the top four nominees as voted for by the public, from a longlist of 12 that consisted of three nominees from EastEnders and Emmerdale and two nominees from Coronation Street, Doctors and Hollyoaks.
^James Bain was a casting director who worked for both Coronation Street and Emmerdale.
^In 2018, Doctors and EastEnders tied in the "Scene of the Year" award, so they both won.