British Soap Awards 2017: Ceremony Date Confirmed As Longlist Voting Opens

It's time to get voting!

ITV have confirmed that the British Soap Awards will take place on Saturday 3 June this year, and voting is now open to decide which soaps, stars and scenes make it onto this year’s shortlist.

Three of the accolades - Best Actor, Actress and Soap - will be voted for by you, and the longlists for each category have been revealed on the event’s official website.

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Philip Schofield will host the show
ITV

There are a whopping 15 nominees in those categories at the moment, with stars including Danny Miller and John Middleton (‘Emmerdale’), Danny Dyer and Scott Maslen (‘EastEnders’), and Jack P Shepherd and Simon Gregson (‘Coronation Street’).

June Brown, Lacey Turner and Diane Parish (‘EastEnders’) are among the stars on the Best Actress nominees list, along with Jane Danson and Kym Marsh ‘(Coronation Street’), and Charlotte Bellamy and Zoe Henry (‘Emmerdale’).

‘Hollyoaks’, ‘Coronation Street’, ‘EastEnders’, ‘Emmerdale’ and ‘Doctors’ will battle it out for the highly-coveted Best Soap accolade.

The other 10 categories - which include Best Newcomer, Villain Of The Year, Best Young Actor and Scene Of The Year - will be decided upon by a panel of expert judges.

All of the winners will be announced at the ceremony, which takes place at The Lowry in Manchester, and for the first time ever, ITV will be screening the awards live.

Cast your vote and buy tickets for the awards here.

TV's Longest Serving Soap Stars
Bill Roache(01 of15)
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Played: Ken Barlow (1960 - Present, 'Coronation Street')

William, or Bill as he's known, was one of the original stars in Tony Warren's series. In the decades since, we've seen his character marry four different women, though Deirdre Barlow will always be his soulmate.
(credit:ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Adam Woodyatt(02 of15)
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Played: Ian Beale (1985 - Present, 'EastEnders')

Not only is Ian the longest-serving 'EastEnders' character, but he's also the most married, following five ceremonies - though he did marry Jane twice.
(credit:REX/Shutterstock)
Chrisopher Chittell(03 of15)
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Played: Eric Pollard (1986 - Present, 'Emmerdale')

Pollard has been at the centre of many big storylines, but none were more touching than his - often hilarious -relationship with Val.
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Eileen Derbyshire(04 of15)
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Played: Emily Bishop (1960 - Present, 'Coronation Street')

Emily is the longest-standing female character in 'Corrie', and though she's taken a handful of breaks from the soap, actress Eileen has always returned to t'cobbles.
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Pam St Clement(05 of15)
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Played: Pat Butcher (1986 - 2012, 2016, 'EastEnders')

We thought we'd seen the last of Pat in 2012, when she was killed off in emotional scenes. Little did we know, she'd be back for Peggy Mitchell's farewell.
(credit:News (UK) Ltd/REX/Shutterstock)
Barbara Knox(06 of15)
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Played: Rita Tanner (1964, 1972 - Present, 'Coronation Street')

After making a brief appearance in 1964, Barbara returned to the soap just under a decade later.
(credit:Ben Curtis/PA Archive)
Richard Thorp(07 of15)
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Played: Alan Turner (1982 - 2013, 'Emmerdale')

Richard made his last appearance in the soap in July 2013, and his character was killed off, off-screen, three months later. Sadly, the actor then died in late October.
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Betty Driver(08 of15)
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Played: Betty Williams (1969 - 2011, 'Coronation Street')

Hotpot, anyone?
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Wendy Richard(09 of15)
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Played: Pauline Fowler (1985 - 2006, 'EastEnders')

The formidable Pauline was one of Walford's most-loved matriarchs.
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Stan Richards(10 of15)
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Played: Seth Armstrong (1978 - 2003, 2004, 'Emmerdale')

The role was at first a bit part but due to Stan's popularity, he stayed in the Dales. And it simply wouldn't have been the same without him.
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Steve McFadden(11 of15)
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Played: Phil Mitchell (1990 - 2003, 2005 - Present)

Steve was honoured for his work on the soap at the 2016 British Soap Awards, where he received the Outstanding Achievement Award.
(credit:Nils Jorgensen/REX/Shutterstock)
Sheila Mercier(12 of15)
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Played: Annie Sugden (1972 - 1994, 1995, 1996, 2009, 'Emmerdale')

What would Annie make of what her grandsons Robert and Andy are getting up to at the moment?
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Helen Worth(13 of15)
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Played: Gail Platt (1974, 1975 - Present, 'Coronation Street')

Over the years, Gail has had to deal with many unexpected moments, and Tina O'Brien's (pictured) teen pregnancy was just one of many that hit headlines.
(credit:WHAT'S ON TV/REX/Shutterstock)
Clive Horby(14 of15)
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Played: Jack Sugden (1980 - 2008, 'Emmerdale')

Between 1972 and 1976, the role was played by actor Andrew Burt, but Clive made it his own when he arrived in the Dales.
(credit:ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
June Brown(15 of15)
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Played: Dot Cotton (1985 - 1993, 1997 - 2012, 2013 - Present)

Words cannot even express how grateful we are to have Dot in the Square.
(credit:BBC)