EastEnders tops UK regions obsessed with soaps

With EastEnders setting new paces with their storylines, the series has been named the most popular in every region of the UK.

The team at Spin Genie UK have analysed a number of British TV soaps on factors such as Google search data alongside the number of episodes, years on screen and awards to reveal the most popular soaps in each region of the UK.

EastEnders is the most popular soap across each region in the UK. From England’s North, South and Midlands to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the gritty BBC One serial, that launched in 1985, unanimously reigns supreme over all other soaps.

The Walford-based four-times-a-week saga also comes out as the most popular soap in the UK overall. EastEnders was the most googled (6.9M searches), most popular on Instagram (401.1K posts) and TikTok (5.2B views). It also took the top spot for the most awards, with 23 nominations and wins.

Coronation Street is the second most popular British TV soap across each region in the UK, except the North East of England, which had Emmerdale as its most Googled soap. Emmerdale ranked as the third most popular soap across each region in the UK, except the North East again, who had Coronation Street as their third favourite soap.

1. EastEnders

Soap Popularity Score: 9.58/10

EastEnders comes out as the most popular soap in the UK, with a score of 9.58 out of 10. The soap opera first aired in February 1985 on BBC One and features iconic fictional families such as the Mitchells, Beales, Brannings and Slaters.

Over the last 12 months, EastEnders has been Googled 6.9 million times in the UK. Additionally, #EastEnders has received 5.2 billion views on TikTok and 401,100 posts on Instagram. The soap opera has 6,853 episodes and has aired for 39 years. It also has a total of 23 award nominations and wins combined.

2. Coronation Street

Soap Popularity Score: 9.50/10

Coronation Street, known as “Corrie” or “The Street”, is in second place, scoring 9.50 out of 10. Created by Granada Television, the soap opera aired in December 1960 on ITV. Coronation Street is often noted for its depiction of a work-class community, combined with strong characters. It was also influenced by the “kitchen-sink realism” of the time, which depicted working-class Brits living in cramped accommodations and drinking in pubs in their spare time.

Corrie has been Googled a total of 4.1 million times in the UK during the last 12 months, and #CoronationStreet has 1.3 billion views on TikTok and 167,100 posts on Instagram. The soap has been airing for 63 years and currently has 10,770 episodes, the most amongst any British soap on both accounts. The show also has 23 award nominations and wins combined, the same as EastEnders.

3. Emmerdale

Soap Popularity Score: 9.00/10

Rounding out the top three, we have Emmerdale, which scored 9.00 out of 10 for its popularity. The show was originally known as Emmerdale Farm until 1989 and first aired in 1972 as a farming serial from Yorkshire Television. However, in the late 80s, it was renamed, focusing more on the village of Beckingdale and included more dramatic storylines.

Emmerdale has been Google-searched around 3.3 million times in the UK over the last 12 months. There have also been 501.1 million views on TikTok and 172,500 posts on Instagram for #Emmerdale. The show has aired for 51 years, and in that time, it has aired 8,911 episodes. It also has a combined 21 soap opera award wins and nominations, the first win being in 2016.

The full findings can be found at: https://www.spingenie.com/blog/spin-pr/most-famous-british-soaps/