Television series

Hollyoaks

Name: Hollyoaks
Genre: Drama
Released: 1995
Cast: Jennifer Metcalfe, Danny Mac, Tisha Merry, Kieron Richardson, Jamie Lomas

Social drama

Hollyoaks is a British soap that's been running since 1995, following interconnected lives in a fictional Chester village. It trades in the currency of soaps everywhere—romance, betrayal, secrets, sudden twists—but with a younger cast and a lighter touch than its grittier cousins. Perfect if you want something warm and unpredictable that doesn't demand your full attention, yet rewards it.

TVMaze rating

3.4

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like long-form soap opera where a web of neighbours' rivalries, romances and grudges builds up across years, and you enjoy slipping back into a familiar street after months away.

Skip it if you want a story that wraps up in a single viewing, because this is an open-ended, ongoing soap with melodramatic plots that run for years.

What it asks of you: It asks for patience and a loose schedule: half-hour episodes, thousands of them; you can dip in, but its threads only make sense if followed over time.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Coronation Street1960

The gold standard British soap: richly written, genuinely funny, with characters who feel like they've lived entire lives offscreen. Coronation Street does pathos and comedy with equal skill, and it's been perfecting the formula for sixty years.

But At nearly an hour per episode and multiple airings weekly, it's a serious time commitment. The sheer number of characters can overwhelm newcomers.

EastEnders1985

Darker and more brutal than Hollyoaks, with stories that hit harder. It captures working-class London life with real texture, and when it wants to break your heart, it does so comprehensively and without apology.

But The relentless grimness can feel exhausting. Not every week needs a death or a terminal diagnosis, but EastEnders doesn't seem to believe that.

Emmerdale1972

A rural soap with genuine warmth and strong family dynamics at its core. The writing is sharp, the twists land, and it balances comedy and tragedy better than almost anything on British television.

But Like all soaps, it demands consistency to work. Dip in and out too much and you'll lose the threads that make it sing.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Hollyoaks

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Skins2007

Both follow ensemble casts through romance, secrets and sudden trauma, but Skins treats adolescence as inherently tragic and cinematic, where Hollyoaks treats it as ongoing comedy. Skins asks who you become; Hollyoaks asks what happens next.

A generation-spanning British teen drama that feels like the spiritual heir to Hollyoaks' younger characters, but refined and darkened. Beautiful cinematography, fearless about drugs and sexuality, and genuinely moving about friendship and mortality.

But By its third and fourth series it lost direction badly, chasing controversy instead of character. The first two seasons are gold; after that, quality plummets.

Neighbours1985

The Australian alternative: cheerful, fast-paced, and genuinely clever about romance and misunderstanding. It has a lightness of touch that makes even dark stories feel survivable. Perfect gateway soap.

But It ended in 2022 after nearly four decades. You can binge the archives, but there's no new story waiting. That finality might feel strange if you're looking for something ongoing.

Home and Away1988

More melodrama than Neighbours, set on a beautiful Australian beach. It leans into soap opera excess—shipwrecks, secret twins, sudden amnesia—but does so with such commitment that you stop questioning it.

But The plots can feel recycled, and the pacing sometimes crawls. Episodes can feel like they're treading water before the next big reveal.

Grange Hill1978

A school-set drama that captured something real about teenage life—friendships, small injustices, the comedy in everyday friction. It was young people's stories told with genuine respect for their intelligence.

But It ended in 2008 and feels very much of its era. The production values are dated, and the concerns won't always land for modern viewers.

Brookside1982

A grittier, more experimental British soap that took real risks: bleak storylines, genuine class conflict, and a willingness to make audiences uncomfortable. It was shameless and fearless in equal measure.

But It finished in 2003 and was sometimes so determined to shock that character development took a back seat. It can feel exploitative in hindsight.

Doctors2000

A hospital soap that's lighter and more episodic than Hollyoaks, with quick resolutions and a focus on medical problems alongside personal ones. Good if you want drama without the commitment.

But The episodic nature means stories rarely go deep. It's pleasant rather than gripping, and some weeks feel interchangeable from others.

The Bill1984

A police procedural soap that ran for twenty-four years, balancing case-of-the-week stories with ongoing character arcs. Reliably solid, with strong ensemble work and genuine stakes.

But It finished in 2010 and the format—procedural plus soap—can feel dated now. Some episodes sink under their own earnestness.

The Sopranos1999

Both use weekly serialisation to explore how people behave when bound together by family and circumstance, but The Sopranos treats that pressure as tragedy where Hollyoaks treats it as the engine of narrative. Same structure; opposite philosophy.

The show that proved television drama could be novelistic, morally complex, and genuinely surprising. It's about obligation, family, therapy, and corruption—the same things soaps care about, but explored with the depth usually reserved for literature. Essential viewing.

But Six seasons is a real commitment, and the final season especially divides viewers. It's violent, bleak, and relentlessly adult in ways that can feel punishing rather than entertaining.