CONVENTIONAL CHARACTERS

In all soap operas there are characters with similar traits, we will use characters from Eastenders and Hollyoaks as examples.

The elderly, wise person

This character usually female is one that others would go to for help and assistance due to their extensive knowledge of life. These characters tend to have a lot of contacts and are loved by most characters. They also have a lot of family in the soap.

1 An example is the character Dot Cotton from Eastenders. She serves all the above stereotype wise, but is also an undercover gossip, others would go to her for support with problems, but she can't seem to keep them to herself.

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The strong woman

This woman is usually very independent, Strong and feisty. She can be found sticking up for her friends and at the centre of many conflicts. She does have a soft side which she likes to keep hidden and to herself, but this can be exposed by a love interest. She also tends to be involved in many failed relationships, which only make her stronger.

1 An example of a character that follows all the above, would be Roxy Mitchell from Eastenders. Along with these, she is also a very capable single mum, which makes her seem even more independent, she doesn't need any help.

2 Nancy is the strong woman character from Hollyoaks. A prime example of a storyline which highlights her strength is when her best friend Mitzeee had escaped from prison with fellow cellmate, Lauren - a woman who will get her way whatever it takes, even if it means threatening the heavily pregnant Nancy. Nancy agrees to be their getaway driver despite her condition to help her innocent, wrongly imprisoned best friend.

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The pregnant teen

This character generates mixed opinions within the soap opera community. They are either pitied or hated which leaves a divide between the characters. In the earlier years of soaps, these characters were rare, but they are becoming more prominent these days, to reflect society and keep verisimilitude. We follow this characters story as we watch them make tough decisions, and we see how the baby changes her life, her family and friends.

1 Two different examples of this character are Lola Pearce and Lucy Beale from Eastenders. Once Lucy got pregnant, her story involved a lot of torment, and it was interesting seeing the character go through and make really tough decisions about her pregnancy. In the end she decided to have an abortion. On the other hand, Lola, who was quite a troubled teen and was brought up in care, decided to have her baby, and we watched as the baby changed her life, and made her a better person.

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The matriarch

This character has usually grown with the soap and has been in it for many years. They are iconic with the soap. Like the elderly, wise person, people go to them for advice and help, due to their extensive knowledge and life experiences. They stand out as, although they are usually a fairly old female, they are the head of the family and highly respected within the soap.

1 Good example of this character type would be Pat Butcher and Peggy Mitchell from Eastenders. They were both head of their families, and were at the centre of any family do, they also were at the centre of most conflict. Because they were iconic to the soap, when they left, they had a big dramatic last episode, which others characters don't always get.

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The bad boy

This is a male character that uses his charm to manipulate others to get what he wants. He is often a baddie in disguise. He tends to be linked with dodgy deals and is always making plans on how to get someone back. A lot of the time they are also quite good looking, and break many girls’ hearts.

1 An example would be Michael Moon from Eastenders, his character is one that others find hard to understand. He will stop at nothing to hurt people who have hurt him, including family members. He likes to be in control of any situation, cannot trust anyone, and is very independent.

2 Brendan Brady is the bad boy of Hollyoaks. His Irish accent helps to attract a female audience that will side with him even when they know he has done wrong as they are blinded by his 'Irish' charm. His character is also one that is difficult to understand. On occasions, he is pitied by the audience as, we recently found out, he was mistreated by his father as a child; which justifies - to an extent - the reason behind his behaviour; however the audience knows it is still very wrong.

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The loved-up couple

The pair usually has lots of problems on their plate but together they battle through them. To the other characters and the outside world, they seem like the perfect couple, but under their front, they tend to have a lot of issues as a couple.

2 An example is Kat and Alfie from Eastenders. They have been, and still are, a very popular couple within the soap as they run the iconic pub and are popular with viewers. They were so popular that they were brought back into the soap after years of departure; this means though, that nobody wants their relationship to end. When they go through tough patches together, it makes good story lines.

1 Another example of a loved-up soap couple is Theresa and Joel from Hollyoaks. Joel is typically pitied by the audience due to being lovable, innocent and abused by his step-father; of whom he killed after being pressured into it by bad boy Brendan. This dark, uncharacteristic storyline is stereotypical of these conventional characters.

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The boss figure

This character is usually male, hard faced, and can be quite scary. They seem to have natural authority and respect from most other characters, and a boss position in the work place, as they tend to own within the soap. He is intimidating and someone that others don't want to get on the wrong side of.

1 Phil Mitchell from Eastenders is a very stereotypical hard man, boss figure character. Although he fits all the above, he does also have a sort side that we see rarely, which shows the audience that he is only human. We have also been shown to his venerability, as there was a time he was hooked on drugs and relied on others to get him out the mess, telling us that is not as strong as he likes to think.

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The villain

This is the character that viewers love to hate. They have a huge negative effect on the characters in the soap with their evil ways.

1 A prime example would be the character Lucas Johnson from Eastenders, he seemed like an inocent, religious Pastor, but turned out to be a complete soap psycho. During his time on the soap he left his ex-wife to die, murders Denise's ex-husband Owen, drowns his son's dog, and strangles Denise and locks her in a basement while allowing her family to believe she has killed herself, and killing another woman to use as Denise's supposed body. He went crazy!

2 The villain in Hollyoaks is sdlkghadfh. He was the resident mass murderer and, at the moment, is - thankfully for the people of Hollyoaks - safely behind bars.

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As you can see from our research, more than likely, every soap opera has a character with similar traits to another in an opposing soap.  These are known as conventional characters. We will try to include similar characters to these in our own soap opera to keep it realistic to a real soap.

-Amy Bowman & Lauren Tween