Who is the Best Ever Soap Villain?
We crown the nastiest piece of work in all of soap land, as Gaby Roslin and ex-EastEnders boss Bryan Kirkwood join the panel.
This episode of The Best Ever is brought to you by Inspired Villages, sponsor of the RadioTimes.com Soap Awards 2024.
The arrival of Coronation Street on our screens in 1960 ushered in the era of the great British TV soap... but what is a story without a villain? In the 60+ years that have followed, we've enjoyed watching dozens of iconic antagonists prowling the streets of Weatherfield, Walford et al... but who was the greatest to ever do it?
In Radio Times' video and podcast series The Best Ever, guests from the worlds of TV, film and entertainment will be tackling some of pop culture's biggest conversation points.
From action movies to TV detectives, we'll be asking... which truly was the best ever?
In this latest episode, Gaby Roslin (TV and radio host – and EastEnders super-fan) and Bryan Kirkwood (former executive producer on EastEnders and Hollyoaks) join the panel to argue their picks for the Best Ever TV Soap Villain.
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Hosted by Morgan Jeffery (Digital Editor, Radio Times), The Best Ever sees a different line-up of guests go head-to-head each episode – expect strong opinions, fiery debate and big laughs as the panel compete to pick up the coveted Best Ever trophy.
This week, Gaby and Bryan are joined by Helen Daly (Associate Editor, Radio Times) as each make their case for why their favourite soap antagonist should be top of any list.
Bryan argues that – spoiler alert – Coronation Street serial killer Richard Hillman deserves to come out on top, while Gaby hits back with an all-time classic character, EastEnders' terror Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks), and Helen is advocating for a newer Soap villain who proved a huge hit with fans, Emmerdale's Meena Jutla (Paige Sandhu).
Who will emerge triumphant? And what are the ingredients of a truly great soap villain?
Plus, the panel discuss when exactly a character achieves true soap villain status – evolving from a loveable rogue to a character we just love to hate – and debate whether soap bad guys have to "kill great to be great".
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Did you agree with the verdict? Who do you think is the Best Ever Soap Villain? Let us know on X @radiotimes using the hashtag #TheBestEver.
To watch more episodes of The Best Ever and enjoy additional exclusive content from each episode, go to RadioTimes.com/TheBestEver.
You can also subscribe to The Best Ever as a podcast.
Read more:
- Brian Conley to host the RadioTimes.com Soap Awards 2024
- RadioTimes.com Soap Awards 2024 nominations revealed
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Authors
Morgan Jeffery is the Digital Editor for Radio Times, overseeing all editorial output across the brand's digital platforms. He was previously TV Editor at Digital Spy and has featured as a TV expert on BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio 5 Live and Sky Atlantic.
