The British Soap Awards 2023 are returning to ITV to reward the most dramatic, entertaining, funniest and downright impressive moments in soap over the last year.
The glitzy ceremony will celebrate everything about the UK's top soaps, with EastEnders, Emmerdale, Coronation Street, Hollyoaks and Doctors hoping to go home with some bling.
There be a host of gorgeous soap stars taking to the red carpet as the shows battle it out to bag the gongs just like The British Soap Awards 2022— but in an exciting twist, this year the categories voted on by the viewers have been expanded, meaning the audience has more say in who's rewarded for their efforts on the big night.
Here's everything we know about the British Soap Awards 2023...
What are the categories in the British Soap Awards 2023?
The categories for the British Soap Awards 2023 have been announced.
This year, as in previous years, viewers can vote for the Best Leading Performer and the biggest gong — the award for Best British Soap.
But this year the audience can also cast their votes for Villain of the Year, and Best Young Performer.
It's not yet been confirmed what awards the judges will be deciding, but last year the panel voted for Best Dramatic Performance, Best Comedy Performance, Scene Of The Year, Best On-Screen Partnership, Best Newcomer, Best Storyline and Best Single Episode.
Who has been nominated for the British Soap Awards 2023?
So far it's just the longlist of nominees for the categories voted on by the audience that have been announced.
There are five nominees in each of Villain of the Year, Best Young Performer and Best British Soap.
And there are 25 names to choose from in Best Leading Performer!
Villain of the Year
Michael Wildman, who played the manipulative Al Chapman in Emmerdale is first up in Villain of the Year, along with Princess Buchanan from Doctors — played by Laura White.
Angus Castle-Doughty, who plays Eric Foster in Hollyoaks, is also nominated, while Aaron Thiara (AKA sinister Ravi Gulati) from EastEnders, and Todd Boyce, who plays serial killer Stephen Reid in Coronation Street complete the line-up.
Best Young Performer
There are four nominees for Best Young Performer this year.
Lillia Turner from EastEnders has won acclaim for her performance as pregnant 12-year-old Lily Slater. Will she get your vote?
Or how about Huey Quinn, who plays accidental murderer Kyle Winchester in Emmerdale?
Another killer kid, Bobby Costello (AKA Jayden Fox) from Hollyoaks is also in the running, while Jude Riordan, who plays geeky Sam Blakeman in Coronation Street, completes the nominations.
Best Leading Performer
There are 25 actors and actresses on the longlist for Best Dramatic Performer.
Coronation Street's nominations include Ryan Prescott, who plays Ryan Connor — currently struggling with the horrific aftermath of his acid attack.
Charlotte Jordan, AKA Daisy Midgeley — the intended victim of the attack — is also on the list.
Or would you choose Elle Mulvaney, who plays rape victim Amy Barlow?
Jeff Hordley, who plays Cain Dingle, makes the list for Emmerdale, along with Lucy Pargeter, who plays his on-screen sister Chas.
Dominic Brunt, who's won praise for his performance as Paddy Kirk, is also on the longlist.
The nominations for EastEnders include Danielle Harold, who plays tragic mum Lola Pearce Brown. And Jamie Borthwick, who plays Lola's husband Jay Brown. The pair are currently struggling on-screen with Lola's terminal brain tumour diagnosis.
Elisabeth Dermot Walsh, who plays Zara Carmichael, makes the list for Doctors, while Anna Passey, AKA Sienna Blake, joins the Hollyoaks nominees.
Best British Soap
Choosing the best soap always seems like an impossible decision!
Will Coronation Street scoop the gong this year after some impressive storylines including Daisy's stalker horror and Max being radicalised by the far-right gang. As well as the latest serial killer to stalk the cobbles, Stephen Reid!
Or perhaps Emmerdale will win the award for the Chas/Paddy/Al love triangle and it's grim aftermath, and the shocking reveal of Caleb's real identity.
EastEnders has also had a strong year, with Denise being tempted to cheat with Ravi, Mick's tragic disappearance, and of course the thrilling flash forward to Christmas 2023!
Doctors has said goodbye to some characters recently with Karen Hollins passing away, and Daniel Granger also about to bid farewell to The Mill.
And Hollyoaks has been as dramatic as ever with Juliet's tragic cancer battle, Felix and Mercedes' romance and Verity's gruesome death at the hands of Bobby Costello.
Which one will you vote for?
How to vote in the British Soap Awards 2023
Voting is now open for the British Soap Awards 2023.
You can vote for your favourite by visiting the official British Soap Awards 2023 website.
The first round of voting will close on April 25 at 5 pm when the Best Leading Performer category will be whittled down to five nominees.
Second round voting opens on May 2 at 10 am and will close again a month later on June 2 at 5 pm.
Who will be presenting The British Soap Awards 2023?
It's not yet been confirmed if Philip Schofield will host the event, as he's done in previous years, but it is thought he could be coming back for 2023. We will update this guide as soon as the host has been announced.
Will The British Soap Awards 2023 be on TV?
Yes, each year The British Soap Awards air live over a two-hour slot on ITV and ITVX in June. It is likely that this year will be the same, but we will update this guide as soon as a date and time has been released.
