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The long-running soap operas Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks have ranked among the most popular shows in the U.K. for decades. In the U.S., you can watch the latest episodes of "Corrie," EastEnders and Emmerdale on BritBox and Hollyoaks on Hulu. We're celebrating their integral place in British pop culture by shining a spotlight on 10 of the best-loved U.K. soap actors of all time. They're all seasoned performers who nail the scene every single time.

1. Barbara Windsor

Windsor was a British national treasure before she joined EastEnders in 1994, but portraying gutsy pub landlady Peggy Mitchell allowed her to show a tougher side. She won particular acclaim for a powerful storyline in which Peggy undergoes a mastectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Windsor said goodbye to the show in 2016, the same year she was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II. When she died in 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson led the tributes.

2. Jean Alexander

Alexander played Hilda Ogden, an interfering but hardworking cleaning lady, on Coronation Street from 1964 to 1987. In her final year on the show, Alexander made history by becoming the first actor to receive a BAFTA nomination for their work on a soap opera. When Alexander died in 2016, Coronation Street scriptwriter Daran Little told the BBC that  Alexander "reached into the hearts of viewers," adding: "She was everyone's nan, everyone's nosy neighbor."

3. Barbara Knox

Another Coronation Street stalwart, 88-year-old Knox has been portraying corner shop owner Rita Sullivan since 1972 (though she also appeared in a single episode back in 1964). Rita is known for being a shrewd businesswoman who is well respected by her neighbors, but she sometimes gets duped by her rather selfish adoptive daughters. Knox's stellar stint on the show was recognized in 2010 when she was made an MBE by Queen Elizabeth II.

4. June Brown

As devoutly religious, chain-smoking laundromat worker Dot Cotton, Brown created arguably the most iconic EastEnders character of all. She even inspired the nickname of a Line of Duty character. In 2009, Brown became the first British soap actor to carry an entire episode single-handed and earned a BAFTA nomination for her performance. Brown, who left the show in 2020, was made an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II earlier this year and recently celebrated her 95th birthday.

5. Pam St Clement

St Clement played the formidable matriarch Pat Butcher on EastEnders from 1986 until her character died in 2012. During her time on the show, Pat became known for her love-hate friendship (and frequent catfights) with Barbara Windsor's Peggy Mitchell. When Windsor left the show in 2016 in a storyline that saw Peggy take her own life, St Clement reprised her role for a poignant scene in which Peggy thinks she can see Pat again. Rather fabulously, St Clement named her memoir The End of an Earring: a reference to Pat's favorite jewelry item.

6. Nick Pickard

Launched in 1995, the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks was initially aimed at teenage viewers, but has gradually broadened its appeal over the years. The show's longest-serving cast member is Pickard, who has played pompous but sympathetic chef-entrepreneur Tony Hutchinson since the very first episode. In 2017, he became the first Hollyoaks actor to win the Outstanding Achievement prize at the British Soap Awards.

7. Rudolph Walker

Walker was a familiar face on British TV before he joined EastEnders in 2001. He previously starred in the hit '70s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour and the '90s sitcom The Thin Blue Line opposite Rowan Atkinson. His character Patrick Trueman has become a firm fixture on Albert Square, the fictional neighborhood where EastEnders takes place, and is known for his trilby hat and warm sense of humor. Walker was awarded a CBE by Queen Elizabeth II in 2020 for services to drama and charity.

8. Claire King

Fans of Yorkshire-set soap Emmerdale were thrilled when King returned to the show in 2018 after nearly 20 years away. Her scheming villainess Kim Tate, modeled on characters from U.S. primetime soaps Dynasty and Dallas, is a classic lovable baddie. During her time away from Emmerdale, King put in a three-year stint on Coronation Street playing the feisty bartender Erica Holroyd, so she's definitely earned her stripes as British soap royalty.

9. Julie Goodyear

Coronation Street is known for introducing strong female characters with a dash of campiness in their DNA. As glamorous pub landlady Bet Lynch, Goodyear created one of the most memorable. Her sharp-tongued, leopard print-loving character was a permanent fixture on the show from 1970 to 1995, then returned for shorter stints in 2002 and 2003. Bet's distinctive appearance was the inspiration for Freddie Mercury's drag look in the 1984 Queen video "I Want to Break Free."

10. William Roache

As the BBC reported in 2020, Coronation Street is the world's longest-running TV soap opera, and Roache is the world's longest-serving TV soap star. Remarkably, the 89-year-old actor has been playing Ken Barlow, a principled former schoolteacher who is now retired, since the show launched in December 1960. It's entirely fitting, then, that he was awarded an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to drama and charity.

Do you have a favorite British soap actor?