Soap Champion Round 1 – vote for your favourite soap character now

The competition will be fierce but there can only be one winner, so it's vital you get voting to ensure your favourite makes it through to the next round!

• Read more: Neighbours' Susan Kennedy storms to victory as she wins Soap Champion tournament

Voting in Round 1 is now open, with the shortlist of 28 characters (chosen by RadioTimes.com's soap aficionados) split into seven groups.

Remember: only the top two from each group go through to Round 2.

The polls close at 5pm and votes are unlimited, meaning every second counts.

It's a virtual tug-of-war as fandom goes up against fandom, so pick your teams and get ready to support them all the way to the Final.

Group 1 is Brits vs Aussies as Emmerdale's Liv Dingle, Coronation Street's Toyah Habeeb and Home and Away characters Marilyn Chambers and Tane Parata battle it out for two available spots in the next round.

Round 1, Group 1: Liv Dingle, Marilyn Chambers, Toyah Habeeb, Tane Parata

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 1

Group 2 features Faith Dingle, Al Haskey, Ben Mitchell and Toadie Rebecchi.

Round 1, Group 2: Faith Dingle, Al Haskey, Ben Mitchell, Toadie Rebecchi

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 2

In Group 3, Kelly Neelan, Neighbours' Mike Young, EastEnders' Mick Carter and Doctors' Scarlett Kiernan face off for places in Round 2.

Round 1, Group 3: Mike Young, Mick Carter, Kelly Neelan, Scarlett Kiernan

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 3

Group 4 pits Abi Webster, Meena Jutla, Dean Thompson and Susan Kennedy against each other.

Round 1, Group 4: Abi Webster, Meena Jutla, Dean Thompson, Susan Kennedy

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 4

Meanwhile, Group 5 is a battle for popularity between Emma Reid, Marlon Dingle, Lola Pearce and Mackenzie Hargreaves.

Round 1, Group 5: Emma Reid, Marlon Dingle, Lola Pearce, Mackenzie Hargreaves

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 5

Our sixth group is Felicity Newman vs Sid Sumner vs Bobby Costello vs Imran Habeeb.

Round 1, Group 6: Felicity Newman, Sid Sumner, Bobby Costello, Imran Habeeb

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 6

And last but certainly not least, Verity Hutchinson, Bear Sylvester, Suki Panesar and Misbah Maalik go toe-to-toe in Group 7.

Round 1, Group 7: Verity Hutchinson, Bear Sylvester, Suki Panesar, Misbah Maalik

Choose your favourite, vote and click 'vote again' to keep going!

Soap Champion Group 7

Use your unlimited votes wisely to see your favourite through to Round 2.

To really secure them a place in the next round, though, you're going to need to band together with your fellow fans. Join in the fun by getting involved on social media.

Follow @RadioTimes on Twitter and Instagram, and tweet along with the hashtag #TVChampion.

And if you need a reminder of how the tournament works and when the next round of voting opens, check out the below:

There's no time like the present, so get voting!

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