Soap fans, get ready: TV Champion’s soap edition has arrived.
Soap fans, at the ready! Voting for Round 1 of the RadioTimes.com Soap Champion contest is open now!
You can vote for your favourites here, as we hand you the power to crown the ultimate soap character. But be quick – Round 1 voting closes at 5pm on Monday 20th March, so get going to push your favourite over the line now.
So how does it work? Well, our experts have put together a not-so-short-list of the best characters from last year – from Emmerdale murderesses to darlings of Albert Square.
Some contenders might take you on a trip down memory lane as you get the chance to pay tribute to characters who have since departed by bestowing upon them the coveted title of Soap Champion for their contribution to their soap’s legacy.
Through an epic tournament of polls, you will select the greatest character of 2022 from the following programmes: EastEnders; Neighbours; Coronation Street; Emmerdale; Hollyoaks; Home and Away; and Doctors.
A total of 28 thrilling, powerful and tragic characters are in the running, including some stalwarts in the game – Susan Kennedy stans, on your marks!
It’s all part of the fun as fans have to band together and keep the voting momentum going in order to edge their favourites over the line and into the next round of the competition.
With unlimited votes, no one is safe until the polls close! It’s a virtual tug-of-war where only the most dedicated fandom will prevail.
And here’s how it works:
See how the tournament will progress and the path your favourite will need to take to make it through and be crowned Soap Champion… 👑 #TVChampion pic.twitter.com/SqyIGSGQhW
— Radio Times (@RadioTimes) March 16, 2023
After Round 1 finishes, RadioTimes.com will unveil the results, with the top two from each group going through to the next round.
Voting in Round 2’s head-to-heads opens at 10:30am on Tuesday 21st March and closes again at 5pm, so be ready to come back and support your faves the very next day, too!
The results will be revealed that evening, with just the winner of each head-to-head getting a pass straight through to the tournament’s Quarter-Finals.
But all hope isn’t lost for those who lost out in Round 2! A wildcard decider will take place on Wednesday 22nd March, with the most popular loser scooping the last available spot in Thursday’s Quarter-Finals.
Friday will be a big day for the last four characters standing as they go toe-to-toe in the Semi-Finals – hoping you’ll carry them through to the Grand Final on Monday 27th.
Votes in each round open at 10:30am and close at 5pm the same day.
So round up your fellow fans and get ready to vote, vote, vote!
Want to keep track and get involved? You can join in on social media by following @RadioTimes on Twitter and Instagram, and tweeting along with the hashtag #TVChampion.
And without further ado, the draw for Round 1 is as follows:
Group 1: Liv Dingle; Marilyn Chambers; Toyah Habeeb; Tane Parata
Group 2: Faith Dingle; Al Haskey; Ben Mitchell; Toadie Rebecchi
Group 3: Mike Young; Mick Carter; Kelly Neelan; Scarlett Kiernan
Group 4: Abi Webster; Meena Jutla; Dean Thompson; Susan Kennedy
Group 5: Emma Reid; Marlon Dingle; Lola Pearce; Mackenzie Hargreaves
Group 6: Felicity Newman; Sid Sumner; Bobby Costello; Imran Habeeb
Group 7: Verity Hutchinson; Bear Sylvester; Suki Panesar; Misbah Maalik
Remember: only the top two from each group progress to Round 2, so it’s vital that you keep clicking that ‘Vote’ button to make sure your favourite gets through.
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