All the stars from biggest soaps including EastEnders, Coronation Street and Emmerdale who you DIDN’T know were related
SOAP fans will know all about on-screen clans the Dingles, Barlows and Beales, but when it comes to the stars behind the characters, it’s a family affair, too.
Sally Dynevor has played Sally Metcalfe on Corrie since 1986.
Her oldest daughter Phoebe is in Netflix’s Bridgerton, while younger daughter Hattie will soon appear in BBC drama Waterloo Road.
And the Dynevors are far from the only soap actor dynasty around.
The Sun’s Soaps Editor, Carl Greenwood, says: “Soaps exist in a bit of a bubble.
“The people who work on them spend a lot of time there.
“It’s rarely a nine-to-five job, so naturally actors will be drawn to each other.
“Plus, their families will have an in.”
From the Lomas-Webbs to the Swashes, Hayley Minn reveals the soap stars you never knew were related…
ROBBINS
I’M A Celebrity . . . Get Me Out Of Here! runner-up Emily Atack, 33, must have got her acting chops from her mum, auntie and uncle – as they’re all soap stars.
Her mum Kate Robbins, 64, had a brief stint in EastEnders in 2021 as Jen Glover.
Meanwhile, her aunt Amy Robbins, 52, recently joined the cast of Corrie as Christina Boyd, the neglectful mother of Daisy Midgley.
Her uncle Ted Robbins, 67, played Brendan Finch in Corrie from 2015 to 2016.
LOMAS-WEBBS
CHARLEY Webb, 35, who played Debbie Dingle on Emmerdale from 2002 to 2021, is the sister of 47-year-old Jamie Lomas, who stars in Hollyoaks as lovable villain Warren Fox.
Jamie also played Jake Stone in EastEnders from 2013 to 2015.
Jamie used to be married to Kym Marsh, 46, who played Michelle Connor on Corrie from 2006 to 2019 – and they share 12-year-old daughter Polly together.
Meanwhile, Charley is married to Matthew Wolfenden, 42, who also appears on Emmerdale as David Metcalfe, and they have three children.
ROACHES
CORRIE stalwart William Roache has been playing Ken Barlow since 1960 – and has the Guinness World Record as the longest-serving male television star in a continuous role.
His sons have also got in on the action, playing Ken’s on-screen son and grandson.
Bill’s eldest son Linus, 59, played Ken’s son Peter from 1973 to 1975, before returning for a stint in 2010 as Ken’s long-lost son Lawrence Cunningham.
To make things more complicated, Bill’s son James, 37, played Lawrence’s on-screen son James.
WALSHES
AMY Walsh, 35, joined Emmerdale as Tracy Metcalfe, David’s estranged wife, in 2014.
Her sister Sally Walsh, 45, starred as Lyn Hutchinson in the same soap between 1997 and 2000.
The pair also have a third famous sister, former Girls Aloud singer Kimberley Walsh, 41.
WOOD-MILBURNS
GREG Wood, 43, is pretty much the go-to soap villain, having starred in Coronation Street as Rick Neelan on and off from 2009 to 2022, Trevor Royle in Hollyoaks from 2013 to 2016 and Terry Gibson in Brookside from 2002 to 2003.
His brother Matt Milburn also gets around Soapworld, too.
He has starred in Hollyoaks and Emmerdale, and has played footballer Tommy Orpington on Corrie, on and off, since 2016.
HALFPENNYS
JILL Halfpenny, 47, played no-nonsense police officer Kate Morton in EastEnders from 2002 until 2005, originally coming in as Phil Mitchell’s love interest.
Meanwhile, her 31-year-old niece, Chelsea Halfpenny, played Amy Wyatt in Emmerdale from 2010 to 2013.
THOMASES
RYAN Thomas, 38, won over young Corrie fans when he joined the soap as hunky Jason Grimshaw on Christmas Day in 2000, staying there until 2016.
His younger brother Adam, 34, signed up to Emmerdale in 2009, playing Adam Barton, and is now in Waterloo Road, having reprised his role as Donte.
Adam’s eight-year-old son Teddy has even just starred alongside him on Waterloo Road, as has Ryan’s 14-year-old daughter Scarlett – who he shares with Corrie star Tina O’Brien – who recently made her acting debut as Izzy.
If that wasn’t enough, the third Thomas brother, Adam’s twin Scott, popped up on Love Island in 2016.
TURNER-HARVEYS
LACEY Turner, 35, has played Stacey Slater on EastEnders since 2004.
Her younger sister, Lily Harvey, 22, played Shenice Quinn in EastEnders for a brief period in 2011, and their sister, Daisy Turner, 32, was in rival soap Hollyoaks as villainous Rebecca Massey in 2011.
SWASHES
JOE Swash, 41, shot to fame as Mickey Miller in EastEnders in 2003.
A year later, his sister Shana Swash, 32, joined as his on-screen sister Demi Miller, a role Lacey Turner originally auditioned for.
Shana left East-Enders in 2006 and Joe followed two years later.
JENKINS-FLEESHMANS
RICHARD Fleeshman, 33, became every teenager’s crush when he played goth Craig Harris in Corrie from 2002 to 2006.
But his mum Sue Jenkins, 64, had already stepped on to the cobbles, playing Gloria Todd from 1985 to 1988.