From the Desk of Jim R: The UK Soaps: Column 2: The British Soap Awards 2018 on ITV, Sunday June 2

By James V. Ruocco

It's the biggest night of the year for the British Soaps. And this year, it's LIVE on ITV.

The fun begins June 2 at 8:00 p.m. as cast members from "Emmerdale," "Eastenders," "Hollyoaks," "The Doctors" and "Coronation Street"  go head-to-head for several coveted awards including Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Newcomer.

ITV's "Coronation Street"  has topped this year's "Best" list with 16 nominations, followed closely by "Emmerdale" with 15 nods and "Hollyoaks" with 13.

Connor McIntryre, who plays "Coronation Street's" unstoppable killer Pat Phelan has been rewarded with nominations for Best Actor, Best Male Dramatic Performance and Villain of the Year. His ongoing reign of terror, after surviving being pushed off a cliff by his wife, is also up for Best Storyline.

The 125-minute telecast, hosted by "This Morning's" Phillip Schofield, is being presented at Hackney Empire Theatre (291 Mare St., London, UK.)

The winners of Best British Soap, Best Actor and Best Actress will be decided by viewers. Viewers will also vote for their favorite soap moment from the past 20 years to celebrate the prestigious anniversary.  A panel of industry experts will judge the remaining categories.

This year, there are 13 categories in total. They are:

• Best Actor
• Best Actress
• Best British Soap
• Villain of the Year
• Best Single Episode
• Best Male Dramatic Performance
• Best Female Dramatic Performance
• Best Comedy Performance
• Best Young Actor
• Scene of the Year
• Best On-Screen Partnership
• Best Newcomer
• Best Storyline

My choices for each category are in bold.   

Best Actor

• Jack P Shepherd (David Platt, Coronation Street)
• Connor McIntyre (Pat Phelan, Coronation Street)
• Ryan Hawley (Robert Sugden, Emmerdale)
• Michael Parr (Ross Barton, Emmerdale)
• Theo Graham (Hunter McQueen, Hollyoaks)

Best Actress

• Lucy Fallon (Bethany Platt, Coronation Street)
• Catherine Tyldesley (Eva Price, Coronation Street)
• Lacey Turner (Stacey Fowler, EastEnders)
• Emma Atkins (Charity Dingle, Emmerdale)
• Anna Passey (Sienna Blake, Hollyoaks)

Best Soap

• Coronation Street
• Doctors
• EastEnders
• Emmerdale 
• Hollyoaks

Greatest Moment (Of All Time)

• Coronation Street: Richard Hillman Drives His Family Into Canal (2003)
• Doctors: Vivien’s Rape (2008)
• EastEnders: ‘You Ain’t My Mother’ (2001)
• Emmerdale: Hotten By-Pass Crash (2016)
• Hollyoaks: Jade Says Goodbye To Alfie (2016)

Villain Of The Year

• Coronation Street: Connor McIntyre (Pat Phelan)
• Doctors: Ryan Prescott (Liam Slade)
• EastEnders: Jake Wood (Max Branning)
• Emmerdale: Gillian Kearney (Emma Barton)
• Hollyoaks: David Easter (Mac Nightingale)

Best Comedy Performance

• Coronation Street: Louiza Patikas (Moira Pollock)
• Doctors: Ian Midlane (Dr Al Haskey)
• EastEnders: Nitin Ganatra (Masood Ahmed)
• Emmerdale: Sally Dexter (Faith Dingle)
• Hollyoaks: Nicole Barber Lane (Myra McQueen)

Best Newcomer

• Coronation Street: Nicola Thorp (Nicola Rubenstein)
• Doctors: Reis Bruce (Austin Lonsdale)
• EastEnders: Lorraine Stanley (Karen Taylor)
• Emmerdale: Andrew Scarborough (Graham Foster)
• Hollyoaks: Lauren McQueen (Lily Hutchinson)

Best Storyline      

• Coronation Street: Phelan’s Reign Of Terror
• Doctors: Consequences
• EastEnders: Karma For Max
• Emmerdale: Who Killed Emma?
• Hollyoaks: Lily’s Self Harm

Best Single Episode

• Coronation Street: Eva and Aidan’s Wedding Debacle
• Doctors: Stop All The Clocks
• EastEnders: Max’s Last Stand
• Emmerdale: Cain and Faith Flashback Episode
• Hollyoaks: Three Mother’s, Three Daughters

Best Male Dramatic Performance

• Coronation Street: Connor McIntyre (Pat Phelan)
• Doctors: Chris Walker (Rob Hollins)
• EastEnders: Jake Wood (Max Branning)
• Emmerdale: Jeff Hordley (Cain Dingle)
• Hollyoaks: Ross Adams (Scott Drinkwell)

Best Female Dramatic Performance

• Coronation Street: Lucy Fallon (Bethany Platt)
• Doctors: Laura Rollins (Ayesha Lee)
• EastEnders: Lacey Turner (Stacey Fowler)
• Emmerdale: Natalie J Robb (Moira Dingle)
• Hollyoaks: Nadine Mulkerrin (Cleo McQueen)

Best On-Screen Partnership

• Coronation Street: Bhavna Limbachia and Faye Brookes (Rana Nazir and Kate Connor)
• Doctors: Matthew Chambers and Elisabeth Dermot Walsh (Dr Daniel Granger and Dr Zara Carmichael)
• Hollyoaks: Malique Thompson-Dwyer and Theo Graham (Prince McQueen and Hunter McQueen)
• EastEnders: Jake Wood and Lacey Turner (Max Branning and Stacey Fowler)
• Emmerdale: Ned Porteous and Andrew Scarborough (Joe Tate and Graham Foster)

Scene Of The Year    

• Coronation Street: The Grooming Of Bethany 
• Doctors: Bollywood Proposal
• EastEnders: Lauren and Abi’s Rooftop Fall
• Emmerdale: Emma Meets Her Fate
• Hollyoaks: Scott’s Suicide Note

Best Young Actor 

• Coronation Street: Matilda Freeman Summer Spellman

• Eastenders Maisie Smith (Tiffany Butcher) 

• Emmerdale Isobel Steele (Liv Flaherty)

• Hollyoaks: Ella May Demircan (Leah Barnes)