List of soap operas with LGBT characters

The following is a sortable listing of soap operas or serial dramas which include central LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) themes or characters.

Series

Year	Title	Network	Character name	Actor	Notes
2016	Santa Bárbara	Televisão Independente	Antónia Vidal Maria Ana Rodrigues	São José Correia Filomena Cautela
2015	Antes muerta que Lichita	Canal de las Estrellas	Alejandro de Toledo y Mondragón Casablanca	Eddy Vilard	He is the son of Augusto and Beatriz, and hidden to the world that he is gay for fear of bullying.
2015	The Rich Man's Daughter	GMA Network	Jade Tanchingco Althea Guevarra	Rhian Ramos Glaiza de Castro	Jade is the favorite daughter of a very rich and powerful man. Althea is a working class wedding coordinator. When the two meet, sparks fly Now, Jade is now caught between choosing her soul mate, Althea, or risk losing her family by destroying their reputation if she does not marry the man they arranged for her to marry, David.
2015-	Seis Hermanas	TVE	Celia Silva Aurora Alarcón	Candela Serrat Luz Valdenebro	Celia is one of six sisters, who after realizing his attraction to women is subjected to therapy with Dr. Uribe, that is where he meets a nurse named Aurora, who helps Celia to overcome and accept herself.
2014	Em Família (telenovela)	Rede Globo	Marina Meirelles Vanessa Clara Fernandes Flávia Campos	Tainá Müller Maria Eduarda Giovanna Antonelli Luiza Moraes	Photographer Marina has a one sided love for married housewife Clara. Vanessa is still in love with her ex-girlfriend Marina. Clara later leaves her husband for Marina and the two get married. Vanessa then begins dating Marina's assistant Flávia.
2013—2014	Los vecinos en guerra	Telefe	Agustina Joglar Valeria Acosta	Sabrina Fogolini Natalie Pérez	Agustina begins a relationship with Valeria despite everyone’s disapproval of her.
2013—	The Haves and the Have Nots	OWN	Jeffery Harrington	Gavin Houston	Harrington, a drug counselor, is in the closet but reveals himself when entrapped by his client, Wyatt Cryer (Aaron O'Connell).[1]
2013	My Husband's Lover	GMA Network	Eric Del Mundo Vincent Soriano David Danny Zandro "Zsa Zsa" Soriano Martin Lizada	Dennis Trillo Tom Rodriguez Victor Basa Kevin Santos Keempee de Leon Rodjun Cruz	Eric and Vincent were high school lovers. Eric left to go to the USA and stayed there for several years. When Eric comes back to the Philippines, he finds out that his lover, Vincent, has married a woman, Lally, to hide the fact that he is gay; ten years after this incident, Eric and Vincent reunite unexpectedly and carry out an extramarital affair.
2012–2014	Sos mi hombre	El Trece	Brenda Garay Marisa	Gimena Accardi Luciana González Costa	Brenda is recently married to a boxer, however, she soon starts to have feelings for her personal trainer, Marisa.
2010–2014	Tierra de lobos	Telecinco	Isabel Lobo Cristina	Adriana Torrebejano Berta Hernandez	Set in 19th century Spain, Isabel is the brave, adventurous, gun-loving daughter of strict single father, Antonio. Cristina is a prostitute who works in the town brothel and was once Antonio's girl. Eventually, Cristina and Isabel fall in love and begin a relationship while having to deal with the conventions of the time period as well as disapproval from Isabel's father.
2010–2011	Hand aufs Herz	Sat.1 sixx	Emma Müller Jenny Hartmann	Kasia Borek Lucy Scherer	The popular new girl Jenny starts a relationship with the nerdy model student Emma.
2009–2010	Melrose Place	The CW	Ella Simms Caleb Brewer	Katie Cassidy Victor Webster	Ella is bisexual. Caleb is gay.
2008–2013	90210	The CW	Teddy Montgomery Ian Marco Shane	Trevor Donovan Kyle Riabko Freddie Smith Ryan Rottman	In season 3, Teddy sleeps with Ian, an out gay man. He gradually comes to accept his sexuality and embarks on a relationship with Ian. With Riabko departing the series in season 3, Smith was cast as Teddy's new love interest, Marco. Teddy dated Shane in season 4 and 5.
2007–2012	Gossip Girl	The CW	Eric van der Woodsen Asher Hornby Jonathan Whitney Elliot	Connor Paolo Jesse Swenson Matt Doyle Luke Kleintank	In season 1, Eric's sister's archenemy Georgina Sparks unknowingly outs Eric during a family dinner. Thus also outing Jenny's then-boyfriend Asher. Eric and Asher briefly dated. On season 2, Eric meets Jonathan and also date but break up after Eric's stepfather Bart Bass (Robert John Burke) tells him that Jonathan has been cheating. On season 3, Eric meets Elliot while playing assassin on Nate's birthday. They then became close during Dirota and Vanya's wedding where Elliot tells Eric that he's a bisexual, indicating that Eric still has a chance with him when Elliot tells him that his girlfriend left out of jealousy.
2006–2007	Watch Over Me	MyNetworkTV	Ryan Andre	Omar Avila Casper Van Dien	In this American telenovela, Ryan is the gay brother of the female lead. He has a relationship with cold and closeted assassin Andre.
2005–2010	Los Hombres De Paco	Antena 3	Pepa Miranda Dr. Silvia Castro	Laura Sánchez Marián Aguilera	Pepa is a lesbian. She becomes close friends with co-worker Silvia who realizes she has feelings for Pepa. Silvia is straight and Pepa is her exception.
2005–2006	América	TV Globo	Junior Zeca	Bruno Gagliasso Erom Cordeiro	Junior, son of a powerful ranch owner, struggling to accept his homosexuality and agonizing over how to tell his family and friends about it. Zeca is bisexual and in love with Junior.
2005–2007	Dante's Cove	here!	Almost every character, with the exception of Grace Neville	See cast list	Horror/supernatural-themed soap opera in which almost the entire cast of characters is gay or lesbian and many of whom are played by openly LGBT actors.
2005–	Sturm der Liebe	Das Erste	Daniel Brückner Chris Brenner	Daniel Buder Florian Reiners	Daniel was revealed as bisexual, when his former lover Chris came to Fürstenhof, wanting him back.
2004-	Plus belle la vie	France 3	Cristal Balester Lea Leroux Thomas Marci	Fadia Dumont Charlotte Deysine Laurent Kerusoré	Cristal broke up with her boyfriend Valentin to begin a relationship with his sister Lea. Thomas is the bar tender of the café "Le Mistral". He is openly gay and he will have several affairs with other gay characters on the show. Thomas is now married to a doctor since 2013.
2001	Spyder Games	MTV	Ivan Carlisle Jeff Northcutt	Byron Field Zay Harding	Short-lived serial drama lasted 65 episodes.
2001–2006	Footballers' Wives	ITV1	Hazel Bailey Conrad Gates Noah Alexander	Alison Newman Ben Price Marcel McCalla	Hazel is a lesbian sports agent. Conrad is bisexual. Noah is gay and seeks out conversion therapy.
2001–	Paradise Falls	Showcase	Nick Braga Trish Simpkin	Cameron Graham Michelle Latimer	The grandson of the mayor, Nick, was engaged to a woman despite being a closet homosexual. Trish is a bisexual goth teen.
1999–	Holby City	BBC	Ben Saunders Tony Vincent Mickie Hendrie Antoine Malick Dan Hamilton Simon Marshall Dominic Copeland	David Paisley Lee Warburton Kelly Adams Jimmy Akingbola Adam Astill Paul Nicholls David Ames
1999–2007	Passions	NBC	Chad Harris Simone Russell Rae Thomas Vincent Clarkson	Charles Divins Cathy Doe Jossara Jinario Phillip Jeanmarie	Chad began the show seemingly straight but was revealed as bisexual or possibly gay in 2007, an aspect of himself he hates. Simone came out as a lesbian in 2005 and briefly had a relationship with Rae. In 2007, the show revealed that Vincent was intersex.
1998 -	Hotel Cæsar	TV2	Ellen Lavik Vilde Mykland Sara	Maren Bergem Owe Minken Tveitan Tuva Holmebakk	Ellen Lavik is a lesbian who had a brief relationship with bisexual Vilde Mykland. Ellen Lavik later moved to Copenhagen with her new girlfriend Sara.
1998 -	Isidingo	SABC 3	Steve Stethakis (1998–2006) Len Cooper (2001-) Paul McPherson (2005–2008) Luke (2006) Prada Naicker (2010-2014) Dennis M (2011)	Emmanuel Castis Chris Beasley Carl Beukes Gary D'Alessandro Ashish Gangapersad Ashley Dowds	Steve was a character in the show's earliest days, who had a variety of romantic relationships, including Len, Paul and close female friend Dusty. He eventually married Luke only days after gay marriage was legalized in South Africa.[2][3] Len identified as bisexual and worked with both Steve and Paul at the television station. Paul was a talk show host and journalist who struggled with bipolar disorder. Prada was the gay cousin of character Priya, whose role was expanded after a few initial appearances.[4] Prada had a brief relationship with Dennis M.[5]
1996-	Ros na Rún	TG4	Jack Hayes (1996-1999, 2009) Tom Doherty (1996-1998) Tina O'Dowd (2008-) Róise De Búrca (2000-)	Diarmuid De Faoite Seán Ó Tarpaigh Tara Breathnach Linda Bhreathnach	Ros na Rún, known for tackling realistic and socially challenging storylines, was the first Irish soap to feature an openly gay couple and screened the first gay kiss shown on Irish television between Jack Hayes and Tom Doherty. In 2009 it screened the first lesbian kiss between Tina O'Dowd and Róise De Búrca.
1995–	Hollyoaks	Channel 4	Bazil McCourtey Nick O'Connor John Paul McQueen Craig Dean Spike Kieron Hobbs Ravi Roy Kris Fisher Sarah Barnes Gina Patrick Emily Taylor Lydia Hart Charlotte Lau Jason Costello Ste Hay Brendan Brady Macca Fern Noah Baxter Esther Bloom Tilly Evans George Smith Texas Longford Jodie Wilde Doug Carter Jen Gilmore Kim Butterfield Grace Black Lockie Campbell Harry Thompson Scott Drinkwell Sally St. Claire	Toby Sawyer Darren Bransford James Sutton Guy Burnet Tom Vaughan Jake Hendriks Stephen Uppal Gerard McCarthy Loui Batley Dannielle Brent Lorna Pegler Lydia Kelly Amy Yamazaki Victoria Atkin Kieron Richardson Emmett J. Scanlan Drew Dillon Amy Gavin Law Thompson Jazmine Franks Lucy Dixon Steven Roberts Bianca Hendrickse-Spendlove Montana Manning PJ Brennan Amy Downham Daisy Wood-Davis Tamara Wall Nick Rhys Parry Glasspool Ross Adams Annie Wallace	Basil dates Lucy Benson before coming out as gay. Nick is openly gay and had a relationship with Nathan. John Paul and Craig ambark on a complicated relationship, in between John Paul dates Spike and Kieron Hobbs, before leaving with Craig.[6] Ravi's bisexual who dates Kris, a cross-dressing bisexual. Sarah and Zoë had a drunken liaison together.[7] Gina & Emily had a brief lesbian relationship, encountering homophobia from Darren Osborne when this was revealed. Sarah starts dating Lydia Hart,[7] Charlotte Lau her ex becomes a student and has had flings with Laura and Molly Montgomery. Jasmine Costello then suffers from Gender disaphoria and dresses as a male called Jason.[8] Ste later reveals to Brendan he had feelings for another male whilst in young offenders and they share a kiss, embarking on a violent relationship.[9] Fern is a lesbian who bullies Jason because of his GID. Noah arrives and is openly gay.[10] Esther arrives and comes out as a lesbian. She later has a romance with Tilly, and later her gay friend George Smith arrives in Hollyoaks to start College.[11] After Jodie snogs Texas it doesn´t take very long until lots of feelings start to grow. When Ste and Doug become friends and open a business together, Doug begins to fall in love with Ste.Doug then later dates John Paul, after Doug dies JP is married to Ste. But they both break up and Ste is set to have a romance with the teenager Harry. While John Paul is also planned for new romance.
1995–2015	Verbotene Liebe	ARD	Dr. Gero von Sterneck Erika Sander Nina Ryan Ulli Prozeski Dr. Tom Seifert Carla von Lahnstein Hanna Novak Oliver Sabel Christian Mann Stella Mann Rebecca von Lahnstein Miriam Pesch Marlene von Lahnstein Dr. Jo Helmke	Broder B. Hendrix Raphaela Dell Freya Trampert Andreas Stenschke Kay Böger Claudia Hiersche Katharina Dalichau Jo Weil Thore Schölermann Anne Wis Jasmin Lord Romina Becks Melanie Kogler Mickey Hardt	Gero was engaged to Julia before he came out and broke off the engagement. He then shared a lover with his mother and later another one with his best friend; Erika was engaged to Arno Brandner, when she began to fall for Nina. They had a passionate relationship, before they broke up, but years later reunited; Ulli came out and had a relationship with Tom. They broke up because Ulli moved to Munich for a job opportunity and Tom could not handle a long-distance relationship. Months later Tom got into a relationship with Oliver but they ended things after a year. Tom reunited with Ulli a couple years later; Carla first began to fall for the straight Hanna Novak, who was together with the successful lawyer Lars Schneider. Carla in the closet herself began a passionate affair with Hanna, who eventually broke up with Lars. Carla and Hanna remained secret lovers until Hanna died. Carla married Bernd von Beyenbach to hide her sexuality, but later came out and married Susanne Brandner, who she divorced a year later; Oliver has been out for a while, recently he had a sexual encounter with Christian Mann. Christian fell in love with Olli and they became a couple; Stella first had a crush on Charlie Schneider. But their relationship did not work out, because Charlie realizes that she's straight and cannot be with another woman after all. Stella then began to fall for her boss Carla. Carla and Stella are engaged. Carla and Stella left the show together in 2009, returning briefly in 2010. Christian and Oliver ultimately parted ways and Oliver eventually began dating Jo. The show was canceled in 2014,[12] with episodes airing in a weekly format until 26 June 2015.
1994–2014	Generations	SABC 1	Senzo Zondo (2008-2014) Jason Malinga (2009-2014)	Thami Mngqolo Zolisa Xaluva	Senzo appeared on the show for a year before his sexuality became a part of the story. He became involved with bisexual Jason; their kiss sparked a huge controversy with viewers.[13] When Senzo's father found them in bed together, he beat them both, sending Jason to the hospital, but the pair continued an on and off relationship for several years, ultimately getting married. Rumors circulated in 2013 that pressure was being put on the show to write out gay characters.[14] The marital troubles of Senzo and Jason, along with every other story on the show, came to an abrupt halt in August 2014 after the entire cast was fired due to a salary dispute.[15]
1994–	Volver A Empezar	Televisa	Paul	Radames de Jesus	Paul is Reni's best friend and hairdresser. He often shares comments about men with her. Paul was one of the first of a number of Televisa's openly homosexual telenovela characters.
1992–	Shortland Street	TVNZ	Jamie Forrest (1993–1994) Jonathan McKenna (1993–1996, 2011) Jay Copeland (2004–2007) Maia Jeffries (2004–2011) Nicole Miller (2009–) Seth Packhurst (2011–2013) Henry Lee (2012–2013) Harper Whitley (2013–)	Karl Urban Kieren Hutchison Jaime Passier-Armstrong Anna Jullienne Sally Martin Toby Leach Peter Huang Ria Vandervis	Openly gay paramedic Jamie Forrest had a relationship with Jonathan McKenna, they went on to have the first same-sex kiss on New Zealand television. Lesbian couple Jay Copeland and Maia Jeffries arrived in shortland street and later went on to be married in a civil union. Widowed Maia Jeffries later started a relationship with nurse Nicole Miller. Seth Packhurst was secretly in a relationship with Henry Lee. Nicole Miller recently formed a romantic relationship Harper Whitley.
1992–2011	Marienhof	Das Erste	Andrea Süsskind Billi Vogt Annalena Töppers Babette von Dornhausen Sülo Özgentürk Kerstin Töppers Juliette Gagnon	Leonore Capell Katja Keller Berrit Arnold Sybille Heyen Giovanni Arvaneh Maike Billitis Maike von Bremen	Kerstin begins an affair with Juliette and later moves to France with her.
1992–1999	Melrose Place	Fox	Matt Fielding	Doug Savant	Matt was the only regular character never to have a love scene. The one time he was set to kiss another man on-screen, Fox edited it out.
1989-	Fair City	RTÉ	Yvonne Gleeson Laura Halpin Emily Mahon Troy Dowling	Ciara O'Callaghan Liana O'Cleirigh Eimear Morrissey Andrew Macklin	In 1996, three years after homosexuality was decriminalised in Ireland, two male characters moved in for a clinch - only to be interrupted. It would have been the first gay kiss on Irish television.[16] Nowadays Fair City deals with LGBT themes more openly and more regularly. Yvonne, one of the soap's main characters, is bisexual, and used to date Connie from Australia. They were to have been married in Northern Ireland. Laura, a lesbian, formed a relationship with social worker Emily, only to have it broken up by the jealous, bitter and deranged Lucy. Troy, the son of Leo Dowling (another major character), is openly gay.[17]
1988–	Home and Away	Seven Network	Shannon Reed (1994–1997) Mandy Thomas (1995–1997) Christopher Fletcher (2003) Eve Jacobsen (2005–2006) Dean Silverman (2006) Gareth (2006) Freya Duric (2009) Joey Collins (2009) Charlie Buckton (2008)	Isla Fisher Rachel Blake Rian McLean Emily Perry Gary Brun Sophie Hensser Kate Bell Esther Anderson	Pippa and Christopher returned in 2003 for Sally's wedding to Flynn Saunders; during this appearance Pippa reveals that Christopher is gay. This revelation creates additional tension when Christopher tries to kiss Seb Miller. After some dramatics Seb explains it is all right for Chris to be who he is. After this is resolved Christopher returns home. Eve falls in love with Sarah Lewis and dies in 2006 trying to get revenge for Sarah's death.
1987-	The Bold and the Beautiful	CBS	Karen Spencer (1991–1994, 2009, 2011-14) Danielle (2012-14) Maya Avant (2013-)	Joanna Johnson Crystal Chappell Karla Mosley	Karen Spencer was originally a straight woman having relationships with men including the top males on the show Ridge and Thorne Forrester. Her daughter Caroline announces to her boyfriend Thomas Forrester that she has two moms, Karen and partner Danielle. Maya Avant is a transgender woman. She is the first trans female character to feature on a US daytime soap opera as a series regular and the first transgender bride to be married on a US daytime soap opera.
1985–	Neighbours	Eleven	Andrew MacKenzie Andrew Watson Gino Esposito Aaron Barkley Lana Crawford Sky Mangel Donna Freedman Chris Pappas Aidan Foster Scotty Boland Hudson Walsh Nate Kinski	John Morris Chris Uhlman Shane McNamara Stewart Adam Bridget Neval Stephanie McIntosh Margot Robbie James Mason Bobby Morley Rhys Uhlich Remy Hii Meyne Wyatt	The first male gay character to appear was Andrew MacKenzie in 1994.[18] The following year, schoolteacher, Andrew Watson was a victim of a campaign for his dismissal for being gay. Hairdresser Gino was often hinted at being gay and said to be in a relationship with Aaron Barkley.[18][19] Lana Crawford became the show's first openly lesbian character; she kissed Sky Mangel (Stephanie McIntosh) twice.[20] Donna is openly bisexual; the first storyline that included this aspect of her character was a kiss between herself and Sunny Lee (Hany Lee).[21] Chris is initially confused about his feelings for his best friend, before coming out as gay. He is the first on-going gay male character in the soap.[22] Aidan Foster, a love interest for Chris, was introduced in August 2011.[23] Scotty Boland, a character that most on the show believe to be straight, makes advances towards Chris.
1985–	Lindenstraße	ARD	Carsten Flöter Gert Weinbauer Georg "Käthe" Eschweiler Suzanne Richter Tanja Schildknecht	Georg Uecker Günter Barton Claus Vinçon Susanne Evers Sybille Waury	Carsten Flöter as young student is gay and kissed 1987 Gert Weinbauer. Later he became in Lindenstraße a doctor after university and had a long-term relationship with Georg "Käthe" Eschweiler. Suzanne Richter is a lesbian and has a relationship with Tanja Schildknecht. Together they have a baby and live together as LGBT parents.
1985–	EastEnders	BBC One	John Fisher Ruth Lyons Colin Russell Barry Clark Guido Smith Queenie Price Joe Wallace Della Alexander Binnie Roberts Tony Hills Simon Raymond Fred Fonseca Derek Harkinson Sonia Fowler Naomi Julien Marco Bianco Charity Kase Christian Clarke Steven Beale Lee Thompson Syed Masood James Mackie Ben Mitchell Danny Pennant Tina Carter Johnny Carter Gianluca Cavallo Tosh Mackintosh Paul Coker Kyle	Dave Dale Judy Liebert Michael Cashman Gary Hailes Nicholas Donovan Jon Labonowski Jason Rush Michelle Joseph Sophie Langham Mark Homer Andrew Lynford Jimi Mistry Ian Lavender Natalie Cassidy Petra Letang Bart Ruspoli Morgan Crowley John Partridge Aaron Sidwell Carl Ferguson Marc Elliot Paul Keating Harry Reid Gary Lucy Luisa Bradshaw-White Sam Strike Gabriele Lombardo Rebecca Scroggs Jonny Labey Riley Carter Millington	EastEnders has used various homosexual characters to highlight gay issues since the 1980s, including homophobia, bisexuality, age of sexual consent, and HIV/AIDS among others.[24] EastEnders was the first UK soap to screen a gay kiss in 1987, prompting outrage from viewers and the media who branded the programme "filth" and dubbed it "EastBenders".[25] There were even questions in Parliament about whether it was appropriate to have gay men in a family show when AIDS was sweeping the country.[26] Despite initial negativity, the characters had a powerful impact on public attitudes, and the show's handling of Colin and Barry's relationship was deemed by many gay activists as something of a breakthrough.[27][28] Actor turned politician, Michael Cashman (Colin), believes the storyline started "the social change" in opinion towards homosexuals, which "happened alongside the legal reform" in the 1980s.[29] EastEnders has been at the centre of much controversy regarding its gay characters kissing on-screen. Aside from Colin giving Barry a chaste peck on the forehead in 1987, EastEnders screened the first mouth-to-mouth gay soap kiss in the UK in 1989 (Colin and Guido), leading some MPs to call for the programme to be banned.[30] EastEnders' first regular lesbian characters provided the soap with its first lesbian kiss in 1994, provoking more complaints than any other UK television programme that year.[31] This was followed by a "censored" kiss between Tony and Simon in 1996, which infuriated gay activists after the BBC cut the kiss from its original two seconds to a half-second, so they would not "startle" viewers.[32][33] In 2007, a lesbian kiss between bisexual Sonia and lesbian Naomi prompted 211 complaints to the BBC,[34] and in 2008, a kiss between gay characters Christian and Lee prompted 145 complaints from viewers who were "appalled by the display of homosexual kissing before the watershed [...] whilst young children are watching". The BBC released a statement saying: "We approach our portrayal of homosexual relationships in the same way as we do heterosexual relationships. In this instance, Christian is enjoying the first flush of romance and we've shown him being affectionate with his new boyfriend in the same way any couple would."[35] In November 2012, the show's only remaining LGBT characters, Christian and Syed left the show and over the next two years, there was an increase of LGBT characters. Reintroduced was: Ben Mitchell, who now questioned his sexuality, and bisexual Danny Pennant and Sonia Fowler. Introduced were: lesbians Tina Carter and Tosh Mackintosh, closeted Johnny Carter who came out as gay in praised scenes and openly gay Gianluca Cavallo, with whom Johnny had his first sexual experience. However, Danny, Tosh, Johnny and Gianluca have since left. Tina and Tosh embarked on a domestic violence storyline, which was heavily praised.[36] Ben began an affair with new character Paul Coker.[37]
1984–1993	Santa Barbara	NBC	Channing Capwell, Jr. (1984, 1985, 1991) Lindsay Smith (1985)	Robert Brian Wilson Joel Bailey	During his love-affair with Santana, Channing Junior maintained a relationship with Lindsay Smith, a friend he seems to have met at the time of his law studies. And it seems that Channing was deeply in love with him. They were used to refind each other in the tunnel that connected the Capwell mansion to the Lockridges. This heavy secret revealed by Mason will contributed to his rupture with C.C..
1982–2003	Brookside	Channel 4	Gordon Collins (1982–1987) Margaret Clemence (1990–1994) Lindsey Corkhill (1991-1992, 1995-2003) Beth Jordache (1993–1995) Shelly Bower (1999–2001)	Mark Burgess Nicola Stephenson Claire Sweeney Anna Friel Alexandra Wescourt	Always groundbreaking, particularly in the 1980s, Brookside was the first British soap to have an out and proud gay character in Gordon Collins. Middle class and well spoken, his sexuality was not the only thing that set him apart from his fellow residents on Brookside Close. Beth featured in the most famous Brookside storyline of all when she helped bury her father's body after her mother had killed him, however this character will be equally remembered for British television's first pre-watershed lesbian kiss. Viewers complained in droves, however it proved a turning point in the way gay relationships were handled on mainstream British television. Shelly arrived in 1999 and soon had a relationship with Lindsey Corkhill. Shelly would leave in 2001, after admitting she had feelings for Lindsey's mother Jackie.
1981–1989	Dynasty	ABC	Steven Carrington (1981–88, 1991)	Al Corley (1981–82, 1991) Jack Coleman (1983–88)	Dynasty was the first American nighttime drama to have a core bisexual character. During the show's run, however, Steven's sexual identity became very muddled, as he became involved mostly with women; a few times, he would have relationships with men. By the 1991 reunion movie, however, Steven firmly declared himself as gay and was having a relationship with politician's son Bart Fallmont.
1974–1977	BoxThe Box	Network Ten	Lee Whiteman (1974–1976) Vicki Stafford	Paul Karo Judy Nunn	Lee is a high-camp television producer who is generally well liked and resepcted by the show's other characters, and was a popular character with the show's viewers. Vicky is a bitchy journalist who became a popular cult figure among the show's fans. In the first episode of the series she engaged in a lesbian kiss.
1973–	Young and the RestlessThe Young and the Restless	CBS	Katherine Chancellor Joann Curtis Phillip Chancellor III Rafe Torres	Jeanne Cooper Kay Heberle Thom Bierdz Yani Gellman	In 1977, Kay started lavishing Joann (who was separated from husband Jack Curtis) with gifts, but a few months later, Kay's son Brock Reynolds, told Joann of Kay's feelings and Joann ended her association with Kay. On April 24, 2009, Rafe became Y&R's first gay character when Lily Winters attempted to set him up with Colleen Carlton, unaware that he is gay. Long-departed character Philip Chancellor briefly returned to Genoa City in July 2009 and came out to his family. On September 8, 2010, Billy introduced his brother Phillip to Rafe, but the characters never interacted again. Rafe continued to appear periodically for several years as counsel to other characters.
1972–1977	Number 96	Network Ten	Don Finlayson (1972–1977) Dudley Butterfield (1973–1977) Robyn Ross (1973)	Joe Hasham Chard Hayward Carlotta	Don is a dependable lawyer widely popular with the show's other characters. He enjoys several gay relationships over the course of the series, the most enduring with Dudley Butterfield, who is a camp and flighty caterer and fan of old films. In later storylines Dudley is revealed as bisexual and later embarks on relationships with women. Robyn Ross is Arnold Feather's (Jeff Kevin) showgirl girlfriend. When her transgender identity was revealed the character quickly left the show.
1972–	Emmerdale (Emmerdale Farm until 1989)	YTV/ITV	Robert Sugden (1986–2005, 2009, 2014–) Zoe Tate (1989–2005) Charity Tate (2000–2005, 2009−) Jason Kirk (1999–2002) Gavin Ferris (1999) Jasmine Thomas (2005–2009) Debbie Dingle (2002–) Aaron Livesy (2003–04, 2006, 2008–12, 2014–) Jackson Walsh (2010–2011) Paul Lambert (2004–2009, 2010, 2015) Ivan Jones (2005–2006) Grayson Sinclair (2006-2008) Jonny Foster (2007–2009) Ali Spencer (2011−2015) Ruby Haswell (2011−2015) Vanessa Woodfield (2013−) Finn Barton (2013−) Lawrence White (2014-) Darren Thompson (2015)	Ryan Hawley Leah Bracknell Emma Atkins James Carlton Robert Beck Jenna Coleman Charley Webb Danny Miller Marc Silcock Mathew Bose Daniel Brocklebank Christopher Villiers Richard Grieve Kelli Hollis Alicya Eyo Joe Gill John Bowe Danny Horn	Zoe was an openly lesbian character in this long-running British soap. Zoe was involved in a number of relationships with women and had hard-hitting stories such as schizophrenia, and the aftermath of conceiving a child during a schizophrenic episode. Zoe left town with her nephew and daughter in 2005. Builder Jason was Paddy Kelly's cousin. He had a brief relationship with Gavin Ferris, who was engaged to marry pub landlady Bernice at the time. Both Jasmine and Debbie are bisexual characters on the soap, both having entered into a relationship together twice. Paul was openly gay and had several relationships, one with bisexual binman Ivan. In the end Paul married Johnny Foster and left the village. Grayson was married to Perdita Hyde-Sinclair and believed to be straight until Paul rescued him from a homophobic attack. Grayson admitted to being bisexual. Aaron was first portrayed as a straight, angry teenager but soon he is revealed to be gay and is very self-loathing, but once he comes out, he entered into a relationship with Jackson Walsh, ending when Aaron agrees to Jackson's wish to euthanize him following a car accident making him tetraplegic. Aaron left the village in 2012 after taking the blame for a crime he didn't commit. In 2011, Ali Spencer and partner Ruby Haswell moved to the village. Ali had been married for 15 years and had several children before realizing she was a lesbian and settling into a relationship with Ruby, finally marrying in December 2014. Ruby was killed in a helicopter crash the next summer, and a grief-stricken Ali left the village for a new life. Vanessa Woodfield, Rhona Goskirkäs best friend, arrived to the village, and developed romantic feelings for her. After they remained as friends, Vanessa has been solely involved with male characters. In 2013, Finn Barton was introduced as a gay young male. He eventually dates nurse Darren for several months. Robert Sugden returns to the village in 2014 after a 9-year absence, with fiancée Chrissie White. Having previously been known as a womaniser, he has discovered his bisexuality and begun an affair with Aaron Livesy, who had returned to the village several months earlier. Robert's father-in-law, Lawrence, had a relationship with another man many decades earlier, which led to his imprisonment due to homophobic laws. Afterward he only had relationships with women, although he sometimes felt attraction to men. He eventually admitted that while in prison he had been subjected to aversion therapy to try to "cure" his feelings for men, a process that did great damage to him psychologically.
1970–2011	All My Children	ABC	Dr. Lynn Carson (1982–1983) Michael Delaney (1995–1997) Kevin Sheffield (1995–1998) Brad Phillips (1996–1997) Bianca Montgomery (2000–2005; 2006–2007; 2008–2009; 2010–2011; 2013) Sarah Livingston (2000) Mary Francis "Frankie" Stone (2001) Mary Margaret "Maggie" Stone (2002–2005, 2007) Lena Kundera (2003–2004) Freddy Luper/Zarf/Zoe (2006–2007) Reese Williams (2008–2009) Marissa Chandler (2009–2011)	Donna Pescow Chris Bruno Ben Jorgensen Daniel McDonald Eden Riegel/Christina Bennett Lind Elizabeth Harnois Elizabeth Hendrickson Olga Sosnovska Jeffrey Carlson Tamara Braun Sarah Glendening	Lynn Carson, the first gay character on American daytime serials was introduced in 1982, although she never had a love interest. Lynn was written out after only one year. High school teacher Michael was the second gay character when he came out to his students. Michael was also written out after two years. He dated Dr. Brad Phillips. One of his students was Kevin Sheffield, who came out after Michael was fired from teaching. He later had daytime's first story on reparative therapy. The character of Bianca, played by Eden Riegel, came out in late 2000, and after a very long time, her mother, Erica Kane, started to accept it. Bianca had a brief relationship with Sarah Livingston. In 2003, ratings rose nearly half a percentage point when news was leaked out that Riegel (Bianca) and Olga Sosnovska (Lena) were to share daytime's first lesbian kiss. Maggie Stone came to Pine Valley in 2002 following the murder of her twin sister Frankie, who also was a love interest for Bianca. Maggie and Bianca developed a close friendship with undercurrents of much deeper feelings. They left Pine Valley together in 2005 for Paris, where they became lovers, both admitting on the show that they were in love with each other. Zarf is a female transgender character who fell in love with Bianca. Zarf, who was born Freddy Luper, has taken the female name Zoe. Bianca and Zoe left Pine Valley in April, 2007. Zoe returned to her home in London to record an album as a female rock star and complete her transition, Bianca, with her daughter Miranda, returned to Paris and their life there. Bianca returned, with partner Reese Williams. They married, in daytime's first same-sex wedding.[38] After their split, Bianca eventually became involved with Marissa Chandler. When AMC was revived in 2013, Reigel returned to the role after a number of years away (from 2010-2011 Bianca had been played by Christina Bennet Lind).[39] Viewers learned that Marissa had been killed by gunfire and Bianca had spent the last five years mourning her, as well as being mother to Miranda and Gabby.
1968–2012	One Life to Live	ABC	Billy Douglas (1992–1993) Daniel Colson Matt Cavanaugh (2004–2005) Kyle Lewis (2009–2010) Oliver Fish (2009–2010) Nick Chavez (2009–2010)	Ryan Phillippe Mark Dobies Mark Solomon Brett Claywell Scott Evans Nicholas Rodriguez	Months of story came to a climax in episodes in which Andrew Carpenter (Wortham Krimmer), who had been accused of having a sexual relationship with Billy Douglas, brought the AIDS Quilt to rest on the lawn of the Llanview Church. Billy was written out after one year. Lawyer Daniel married Nora Hanen (Hillary B. Smith), but he was also a murderer who killed Paul Cramer (David Tom) and Jennifer Rappaport (Jessica Morris) to keep his affair with a college student a secret. He was caught and sent to prison. Kyle Lewis is a lab tech that gets involved with the Starr Manning baby switch storyline. He gets in trouble with the law and Oliver Fish is ready to arrest him. The two were in a relationship in college. After Oliver tells Kyle that he is 'straight', Kyle starts a relationship with Nick. Oliver is soon forced out of the closet and wants Kyle back. Kyle and Nick are almost married by Andrew Carpenter during Dorian Lord's big gay wedding. Kyle and Oliver became an official couple that day after they declared their love to each other on national television. Nick, Kyle and Oliver were all written out of the series in 2010. The departure of Oliver and Kyle, who as a couple were popularly known as "Kish", was particularly upsetting to their fans because ABC released a statement blaming the couple for drops in the show's ratings.
1965–	Days of Our Lives	NBC	Will Horton (1995–2007, 2009–2015) Sonny Kiriakis (2011–2015) Brian (2012–13) Paul Narita (2014–)	Chandler Massey (2010–14) Guy Wilson (2014−2015)[40] Freddie Smith Brant Daugherty Christopher Sean	Will Horton's coming out storyline began on June 23, 2011. Smith joined the cast June 26, 2011 as Sonny, described as "a good-natured young man who returns home to join his family".[41] Brian, an old friend of Sonny's with a crush on him, occasionally appeared to stir up drama between Sonny and Will.[42] Will and Sonny would go on to become a soap supercouple. They're frequently referred to by the portmanteau "WilSon" (for Will and Sonny) on internet message boards, print and online publications. In 2014, Paul came to town to reunite with Sonny, his ex, and had an affair with Will.
1963–	General Hospital	ABC	John Hanley (1994–1995) Ted Murty (1997–1998) Lucas Jones (1989–2006, 2014-) Felix DuBois (2012-) Brad Cooper (2013-) Kristina Davis (2002-2013, 2015-)	Lee Mathis Patrick Fabian Ryan Carnes/Ben Hogestyn Marc Anthony Samuel Parry Shen Lexi Ainsworth	GH had a number of gay characters in supporting roles, but the first core character and first coming out story belonged to Lucas Jones, son of longtime characters Tony and Bobbie. Lucas struggled with disapproval from his mother, a brief foray into dating, and a gay-bashing before quietly leaving Port Charles. Late 2012 saw the arrival of nurse Felix DuBois,[43] eventually followed by scheming lab tech Brad, who had designs on Felix, as well as a number of other men in Port Charles. Early 2016 includes a storyline in which Kristina Corinthos Davis (daughter of Sonny Corinthos and Alexis Davis) realizes that her sexuality is more complex than she had previously realized (in the past, she had only been attracted to men, but recently became very attracted to a woman). Kristina then comes out to her sister Molly Lansing. In speaking about her own sexuality, Kristina uses the word "bisexual" to describe herself at one point, and later says "my sexuality is fluid." Molly also suggested that Kristina might be pansexual. Kristina has not settled on any particular label for herself.[44][45]
1960–	Coronation Street	ITV	Hayley Cropper (1998−14) Todd Grimshaw (2001–04, 2007, 2011, 2013−) Karl Foster (2004) Sean Tully (2004–) Sonny Dhillon (2006–07) Marcus Dent (2007–08; 2011–14) Sophie Webster (1994–) Sian Powers (2009–11) Amber Kalirai (2005–09; 2011–12) Jenna Kamara (2012–14) Maddie Heath (2013–2015) Billy Mayhew (2014-)	Julie Hesmondhalgh Bruno Langley Chris Finch Antony Cotton Pal Aron Brooke Vincent Charlie Condou Sacha Parkinson Nikki Patel Krissi Bohn Amy James-Kelly Daniel Brockelbank	Hayley was the first regular transgender character to be introduced into soap opera. Hayley has been discussed in the British Parliament, when MP Lynne Jones praised the research into the storyline and Hesmondhalgh's portrayal."[46] After it became legal in the United Kingdom for transgender people to marry, Hayley married longtime partner Roy Cropper (David Neilson).[47] Todd was the first gay character in the show's 40+ year history. Previously paired with Candice Stowe (Nikki Sanderson) and Sarah Louise Platt (Tina O'Brien), Todd became very confused with his sexuality and kissed Sarah Lou's brother Nick; naysayers argue that the storyline was ill-formed and rewrites the character of Todd completely. While involved with Sarah, Todd had an affair with nurse Karl Foster. Sean first appeared in the series as a friend of Todd. After Todd's departure, Sean moved in with Todd's family. The character is regularly slated by critics as being a stereotype and token character. Sean has had several stories involving being unlucky in love, including a relationship with a bisexual man named Sonny, who was dating one of his friends, Michelle Connor. Sean has had an on and off relationship with a sonographer, Marcus Dent. In 2012, Marcus began a heterosexual relationship with Maria Connor, but in 2014, he had an affair with Todd (who had returned with a new, very bitter personality) that ended his relationship with Maria. He soon left Weatherfield due to Todd cheating on him. In December 2014, Sean began a controversial relationship with vicar, Billy.[48] In 2010, Sophie Webster and her friend Sian became the soap's first lesbian couple. In 2011, Dev Alahan's daughter Amber returned to Weatherfield. Now bisexual, Amber showed interest in Sophie. In 2012 when a car accident put Sophie in the hospital, she met physiotherapist Jenna who she later started a relationship with. They split up and in early 2014, Sophie began a relationship with Maddie Heath.
1956–2010	As the World Turns	CBS	Hank Eliot (1988–1989) Luke Snyder (2005–2010) Noah Mayer (2007–2010) Dr.Reid Oliver (2010)	Brian Starcher Van Hansis Jake Silbermann Eric Sheffer Stevens	The first gay male character on American daytime soaps was seen on, arguably, the most conservative serial. The storyline in question was supposed to involve Hank going through the process of AIDS diagnosis, but the storyline was switched to his lover, Charles, who was not seen for most of the time Hank was on the show. Hank was then written out after only a year. Head writer Douglas Marland was praised for the story and the soap won the 1990 GLAAD Media Award. Luke is the son of popular couple Holden and Lily and came out to his parents in May 2006. He had had a crush on his best friend, Kevin Davis, for a while, but Kevin initially rejected Luke once his sexuality came out. After Luke saved his life, however, Kevin decided to accept him, though their relationship remained strained. In 2007, Luke met another intern at WOAK named Noah, who initially started dating Maddie Coleman before coming out to be with Luke. The couple broke up in March 2010, and Luke becomes attracted to the doctor who saves Noah's eyesight. Reid is hit by a train following his car stalling at a railroad crossing. He dies in the hospital. Noah returns to comfort Luke but Noah decides to move to Los Angeles to pursue his directing career, while Luke decides to stay where he is despite being invited to Los Angeles by Noah.
1937–2009	Guiding Light	CBS	Olivia Spencer (1999–2009) Natalia Rivera (2007–2009)	Crystal Chappell Jessica Leccia	In the final years of Guiding Light, the love story of Olivia Spencer and Natalia Rivera was a central part of the show.

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