“After 35 years, people still stick with us!”
Stars Stefan Dennis (Paul), Zima Anderson (Roxy) and Alan Fletcher (Karl) give their thanks…
It’s been a clean sweep for Neighbours this year, as it picks up the Best Daytime Soap Award – and Stefan Dennis (Paul) has bagged our prize for Best Daytime Star! Their wins are fitting given that this year marks Neighbours’
35th anniversary – and we spoke to Stefan and his costars Alan Fletcher (Karl) and Zima Anderson (Roxy) about the show’s big wins…
“I’m so chuffed that I’ve got a prize!” exclaims Stefan. “It feels great as this has never happened to me before. Some people are quite amazed when I say I’ve never won anything to do with acting in the past – I’m so pleased to have a trophy!”
Paul has always been best known for Mr Evil, but in recent years he’s settled down with wife number six, Terese, and has embraced family life…
“It’s always lovely when
I get the chance to play something lighthearted,” says Stefan. “It’s a rare thing for me and my character, so I love it when that happens, especially with Bek [Elmaloglou, aka
Terese] and Alan.”
Neighbours marked its anniversary with some pretty terrifying episodes after Finn went on his killer rampage – yet filming-wise, everyone seemed to have had a blast…
“I had the best time filming [late night episodes] Endgame
– it was phenomenal!” laughs
Zima. “They even brought in a real snake for Jemma Donovan [aka Harlow] to work with!” And while not appearing a great deal in the anniversary episodes, legend Alan is overwhelmed that Neighbours has reached such an incredible birthday.
“After 35 years, you’re always going to be chuffed to know that people are still loving the show,” chimes the star. “The fans of Neighbours have inspired us to create the best
possible drama we can!”
Keeping our Our BfaveosutritAe csotarpesss madeonaairsihn o20c2k0 ing has been such a big achievement, that we wish we had four Best Soap gongs to hand out to each of our UK contenders. But there can only be one winner – and this year, the readers of Inside Soap crowned EastEnders the best of the bunch…
The cast were particularly thrilled to win the gong in the year that the show celebrated its 35th anniversary – and was also forced to go off air for the first time in its history. But they’re back with a bang, and the viewers still love them!
“Even when you come back from a holiday, you think, ‘Ooh, can I still do it?’” admits Letitia Dean, aka Sharon, who is first to get her mitts on the trophy. “Once you take your foot off the pedal you question everything, and we were all a bit anxious.”
But worried they shouldn’t have been, after picking up the Best Soap crown for the first time in six years. In fact, so delighted were the cast to have won over their rivals that EVERYONE wanted a go at holding the shiny trophy.
Which is no mean feat when you have to antibac it before handing it over to the next star!
“Now more than ever, with the change in dynamic on set, this is a real achievement for us,” grins Max Bowden, who plays Ben. “I’m really proud of the show and what we’ve managed to do.”
These may be strange times that we’re living in, but our Walford pals are just happy to still be bringing the drama each week…
“We’re here to tell great stories and make great telly,” says Tony Clay, who plays Callum. “There’s been a few things that stand out for me: Gray and Chantelle, the 35th anniversary, and also Linda’s storyline, which I thought was amazing at New Year. ”
And of course, after what’s been a tough year for us all, it’s just great to have something to celebrate.
“This award encompasses all the hard work put in by everyone on the show,” insists Kellie Bright (Linda). “I love working here, and I’m incredibly proud of EastEnders. We’ve had some amazing stories this year, and this award feels really well deserved for everybody. It will give us all a boost.”