If you grew up in Britain over the last 20 years, chances are you had a Hollyoaks phase. The teen soap is perfectly scheduled for weekday evenings and helped us avoid homework many times. When we moved to university, the Sunday omnibus saw us through our absolute worst hangovers. Whether you remember the early days of Kurt and Jambo or came in later when the McQueens and Valentines [1] ruled the roost, the ongoing drama of the overdressed residents of Chester was always more compelling than we cared to admit. And while it sometimes got a bad rap for only casting beautiful people, some of those stars went on to much bigger things. A handful of Hollyoaks stars have hit Hollywood, landed roles in some of the US's biggest TV shows [2]. Former Hollyoaks stars even picked up an Oscar at the 2018 ceremony! Read on for a reminder of the stars who got their big break drinking at the Dog in the Pond.
Rachel Shenton and Chris Overton
Rachel got her big break playing Mitzee in Hollyoaks and also starred in the ABC drama Switched at Birth. But her real success came when she turned her hand to writing. The Silent Child, which she wrote and starred in, won the Oscar for live action short film, an honour she shared with director Chris Overton, who also happens to be her fiancé and a fellow Hollyoaks alum. It's safe to say the future is bright for these former Hollyoaks star.
Nathalie Emmanuel
Nathalie played Sasha Valentine in Hollyoaks between 2006 and 2010. Her character battled heroin addiction, bad relationships, and all manner of family issues. Upon leaving the show, she had a role in Misfits before hitting the big time in Game of Thrones as interpreter Missandei. She's also in the latest Maze Runner movie and joined the Fast and the Furious series in Furious 7.
Victoria's Secret fans voted Nathalie the sexiest breakout star in the annual What Is Sexy list [3].
Ricky Whittle
Ricky was one of Hollyoaks's most famous hunks, starring as Calvin Valentine between 2006 and 2011. After a quick stint on Strictly Come Dancing (he made the final), Ricky made the move to LA and landed a role in Mistresses. He went on to star as Lincoln in the CW sci-fi drama The 100 before landing the lead role of Shadow Moon in the long-awaited Amazon Prime fantasy series American Gods. You'll be happy to know he still takes his top off a lot [4].
Emma Rigby
Emma received all kinds of praise for her portrayal of Hannah Ashworth, who has a long Hollyoaks storyline where she battled with an eating disorder. Upon leaving the show in 2010, she had a whole host of guest roles in TV before making the move to Hollywood and landing the role of the Red Queen in the Once Upon a Time spinoff, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. She has a number of projects in the works, including the film adaptation of James Franco [5]'s book Actors Anonymous.
Barry Sloane
Barry's barely recognisable as the man behind Hollyoaks bad guy Niall. He hit the big time in the USA when he starred as Aiden Mathis in Revenge. He also starred in ABC's The Whispers and now has a lead role in Navy SEAL drama Six.
Roxanne McKee
Roxanne played smouldering brunette Louise Summers and topped all kinds of "sexy" lists during her Hollyoaks tenure. After leaving in 2008, she went on to play handmaiden Doreah in Game of Thrones, before landing a role on the Syfy series Dominion.
James Corden
Yep, James was in Hollyoaks! He had a small role as a school caretaker in the early days of the show, but he has been quoted [6] as saying it was "hell on earth." Since leaving, he had a huge success with Gavin & Stacey, starred in films like The History Boys, Begin Again, and Into the Woods, and now he lives in LA, where he hosts The Late Late Show.
Max Brown
Already well known to some for his roles in Grange Hill and Crossroads, Max joined Hollyoaks as part of a group of students brought in to "sex up" the cast in 2004. His character, Kristian, was an arrogant heartthrob who dated a string of the show's ladies. After leaving Hollyoaks, he starred in The Tudors and Spooks before making the move to the USA, where roles in The CW's Beauty and the Beast and Fox's Sleepy Hollow beckoned. Most recently, he had a role in The Royals.
Warren Brown
Warren played Andy Holt, one of Hollyoaks's most memorable bad guys (a rapist and kidnapper). Since then, he's worked consistently in TV, perhaps most famously in international hit Luther alongside Idris Elba. He also had a role in The Dark Knight Rises. He was most recently seen in the ITV series Liar alongside Ioan Gruffudd and Joanne Frogatt.