WE’VE grown to love their onscreen characters, but some of our favourite soap stars’ appearances have changed dramatically over the years.
From inspiring weight loss stories to toning up and building big biceps, we’ve seen the lot.
This week Hollyoaks’ real-life couple Nikki Sanderson and Anthony Quinlan shared snaps of their chiselled bodies on Instagram after embarking on a new fitness regime.
They aren’t the only ones to have left soap fans in awe of their jaw-dropping transformations. Here we reveal some of the most impressive.
Catherine Tyldesley
Former Coronation Street star Catherine is unrecognisable from her younger years when she weighed 15 stone at the age of 18 and was a size 22.
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The actress, now 38, who played Eva Price until 2018, slimmed down to a svelte size 8 after losing six stone.
She told The Mirror she “couldn’t walk up the stairs without gasping for breath” and had “zero energy” and terrible skin.
“When I look at pictures of myself from that time, it doesn’t look like me. I was a different person,” Catherine added.
“I actually keep a picture from when I was big on my phone to remind myself just how far I’ve come.”
Alan Halsall
Tyrone Dobbs actor Alan Halsall has been a loveable fixture of the Weatherfield cobbles for 22 years – but during that time he’s changed dramatically.
The 39-year-old received well-earned praise when he posted a snap of his chiselled abs during a holiday to Ibiza in 2018.
He lost weight by “working hard” at the gym but claims that’s not the sole reason he got so shredded.
“Health is not just about the weights you’re lifting or what you’re eating. It’s also about what you’re thinking and saying!” Alan wrote on Instagram.
Jazmine Franks
Jazmine Franks, who played Esther Bloom in Hollyoaks until 2018, lost more than a stone after deciding to “cut out the chocolate and sweets”.
She’s unrecognisable from a 2018 photo when the fuller-faced actress was pictured scoffing a large piece of pizza on a wooden bench.
On Instagram, Jazmine told fans that she felt “wonderful” after she “learnt to say no to the food I don’t actually need”.
Reflecting on her journey, the 30-year-old actress told the Daily Star: “It’s so difficult to not pick at things, that was the main thing.
“I’m an over-indulger… If there’s a cake in front of me, I’d have three slices, until I feel sick, but now I have one slice, no more.”
James Hooton
James Hooton, 48, who plays Sam Dingle in Emmerdale, rarely gets his kit off on the soap.
But in real-life the actor his happy to flash his toned body and bulging biceps.
After a tough gym workout in 2018, the modest star shared a snap on Twitter, captioned “#everythingaches”.
Later, he joked: “It’s amazing what good lighting and a good camera angle can do.”
Natalie Cassidy
EastEnders‘ favourite Natalie Cassidy first graced our screens in 1993, when she bagged the role of Sonia Fowler at the age of 10.
Over the years she’s completely overhauled her lifestyle by choosing healthier foods and exercising – she even ran the London Marathon two years ago.
The actress dropped from a size 16 to a size eight while training, running up to 18 miles a day, and said she felt “much more confident and comfortable” as a result.
“I have learnt how to eat and how to be comfortable with who I am,” Natalie, now 39, told The Celeb Report.
Lisa Riley
For six years until 2001, Lisa Riley played loveable Mandy Dingle in Emmerdale – before reprising the role 18 years later.
During that time the actress, now 45, managed to lose a whopping 12 stone and dropped from a size 28 to a size 12.
She attributed her weight loss to going on Strictly Come Dancing in 2012, where she danced seven hours a day and lived on soup.
Lisa followed that up with regular exercise, eating healthier “smaller portions” and cutting out alcohol.
“It is insane. I looked so different before. I was happy before but now I am happy and proud. I needed to do it though,” she told Loose Women in 2016.
“I only eat a carb if I need one and absolutely no bread or booze. I’ve been going to Zumba classes which is fun. I find the gym is boring.”
Shayne Ward
Shayne Ward wowed TV viewers when he won The X Factor in 2005 with the song That’s My Goal, before turning his hand to acting.
He played Aidan Connor in Coronation Street for three years until 2018 and after underwent an impressive weight loss journey.
The star, 37, lost three-and-a-half stone after taking up intense workouts and eating “fresh food every single day”.
During an appearance on Lorraine, he blamed his weight gain on “dunking biscuits at Corrie”.
Lucy-Jo Hudson
Hollyoaks and Corrie star Lucy-Jo Hudson decided to lose weight in preparation for her wedding to co-star, Alan Halsall.
“Every bride wants to look their best, so I started looking after my health more. I started exercising too and I’ve sort of kept it up,” she told the Daily Mail.
The actress, 39, focussed on resistance work with weights, squats and lunges, which helped her to lose two stone and drop from a size 14 to a size eight.
While her marriage to Alan fizzled out in 2018, Lucy-Jo managed to keep slim thanks to eating “six mini-meals a day”.
Colson Smith
Corrie star Colson Smith has played Craig Tinker in the ITV soap for a decade and viewers have certainly noticed his weight loss transformation.
During his late teens, the soap star struggled to find clothes because “nothing would fit” and claimed to have worn “whatever ASOS did in 20XL”.
Colson claimed his weight soared from the age of 11 when he was branded “the fat kid” in school and tormented by online trolls.
But now the actor, 23, is barely recognisable after shedding 10 stone thanks to a rigorous fitness regime and getting hooked on running.
He recently took part in The Games on ITV and was a firm favourite among viewers.
Letitia Dean
EastEnders star Letitia Dean was branded “skinny Queen” when she reappeared on the soap this year after losing two stone.
The actress, who plays firecracker Sharon Watts, revealed she was previously mocked for her weight including being told she was “too fat”.
She signed up to Strictly in 2007 in a bid “to do something about my figure” after getting “so sick of extreme dieting”.
Letitia, 54, told Closer that she had “grown to love” running and boxercise classes, which she branded “my favourite things”.
Katie McGlynn
Former Corrie and Hollyoaks star Katie McGlynn went from feeling “dowdy and frumpy” to shedding a stone back in 2019.
The actress, 28, revealed she was “very down” about her appearance before hitting the gym.
She blamed her ‘hectic filming schedule’ for piling on the pounds but now says she feels “so happy”.
“I’ve lost a dress size, I’ve gained more muscle, I’m getting stronger in the gym. I feel like myself again, finally. I feel like back-to-normal Katie,” she said.
Sophie Austin
Ex-Hollyoaks star Sophie Austin feared she’d never get fit again after piling on three stone following the birth of her daughter Willow.
She claimed it “was a free-for-all” during her pregnancy when she “was eating for four” and always finished off “Willow’s leftovers”.
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But the actress, 38, who’s married to Shayne Ward, turned it around after deciding she had to set a good example for her child.
Since hitting the gym, Sophie says she’s got her “sparkle back” and believes she looks “more womanly” after enhancing her curves with weight training.
