List of Hollyoaks characters introduced in 2026

Hollyoaks is a British soap opera that first aired on 23 October 1995.¹ The following characters will make their debut in 2026. Jenson Cole (Ryan Clayton), a love interest for Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe) later found out to be Warren Fox’s half brother, was the first new character to be announced in 2026. April saw the arrival of a new Keane family unit, which consists of Jonah (Matthew Wolfenden), the husband of Beth Keane (Rebecca Ryan), the estranged daughter of Jack Osborne (Jimmy McKenna) who returned to the soap, his son Caleb (Lewis Walton) and Beth's son Maddox (Sam Meyer). Abigail (Brooke Vincent), the counsellor of Dee Dee Hutchinson (Chloe Atkinson) is set to appear later in the year. Additionally, several other characters appear throughout the year.

Jenson Cole, played by Ryan Clayton, will make his first appearance in early 2026.²³ The character and casting was announced on 5 January 2026.⁴⁵ He is introduced as a love interest for established character Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe), who he meets at a rehabilitation facility.²⁶ The Hollyoaks 2026 New Year trailer showed a potential attraction between Mercedes and Jenson, as well as Jenson confronting established character Tim O'Leary (Philip Olivier) for using the identity of Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas). Clayton had previously appeared in another soap opera, Coronation Street. Dan Laurie from RSVP Live opined that Jenson had "tense scenes" with Tim in the trailer.²

On 18 January 2026, Clayton confirmed his character's dark side in an exclusive interview. Clayton described his character: "He's very cunning and slippery, I would say! He's like a sly little fox..." When asked if he saw Jenson as a villain Ryan said: "It's definitely more complicated, because he is a complex character with a past to be explored. I think the writers are playing around with that idea of: is he a good guy or is he a bad guy? It's constantly being pushed and twisted..." Clayton was also asked if any details were given to him regarding Jenson, which he responded: "Not everything. As always with continuing dramas, they're developing the story. It's an ongoing thing, so you're always learning new things about your character...I was fortunate, as we all had a sit-down conversation before I started, where we went through some ideas and explored Jenson's backstory. It was good to see the time and thought that's clearly been put into the storyline." After being asked about his character being in rehab, Clayton explained: "Well, Jenson's reasons for being in rehab in the first place are up for debate! He learns about Warren and Mercedes' relationship and uses that as a chance to pursue his plans. The audience will be left to question whether Jenson has genuine feelings for Mercedes or not. You just never know what's real with him or what's not. Is it always an ulterior motive? That's what's made him so fun to play so far."⁷

Clayton described his audition process: "Hollyoaks got in contact and asked if I would be interested in joining the show. I was thinking that it was probably going to be in the new year, but the turnaround was very quick and I started filming late last year. That's part of what made it so attractive, I guess! It was straight away and it wasn't playing that waiting game of it potentially coming to fruition." He also discussed his first scenes: "Jenson's way into the village is through Tinhead (Philip Olivier), who's come to him for money. Tinhead is pretending that he's Warren, but Jenson has realised that he's not telling the truth. He's got leverage on Tinhead now and he uses that against him, to get Tinhead to do his dirty work! He's very manipulative and he knows how to push people's buttons. He's street smart and wouldn't go into a fight unless he had the upper hand – or knew he could find the upper hand!" When asked if he was excited about playing another soap role, he said: "I was, but it always comes down to character first. If you're going to be playing a character for a while, you want something that you can sink your teeth into. I'm definitely doing that with Jenson!" Clayton also confirmed there would be long-term plans for his character: "I'd say just expect the unexpected with Jenson! He's always working on something and constantly plotting." But when asked if he was sticking around, Clayton said: "There's potential for it, definitely!"⁷

Jonah Keane, portrayed by Matthew Wolfenden, is the husband of Bethany Cunningham (Rebecca Ryan), who has returned to Hollyoaks to be closer to her family. His casting was officially announced on 11 March 2026 after rumours of his casting began circulating the previous month. They first appeared on 13 April 2026, alongside his son, Caleb (Lewis Walton). Wolfenden previously played series regular David Metcalfe in ITV soap opera Emmerdale between 2006 and 2023. Alongside the family's casting, official photos of the family were released by Channel 4 which show the family loading up a van playfully before they relocate to Chester.⁸

Wolfenden spoke about his casting: "I'm so excited to finally share that I'm joining Hollyoaks as part of a brand-new family arriving in the village." He added: "It's an absolute privilege to step into this world and be part of something so iconic. From the moment I read the scripts, I knew this was going to be something special. I can't wait for the audience to meet them and see how they turn a few heads along the way… it's going to be a ride, buckle up." Wolfenden also teased there would be special episodes ahead.⁸

Caleb Keane, portrayed by Walton, is the son of Jonah Keane (Wolfenden) who first appeared on 13 April 2026 when he, Jonah and stepmother Bethany Cunningham (Ryan) moved to Hollyoaks to be closer to her family.⁸ His casting was announced on 11 March 2026 alongside his parents. Alongside the family's casting, cast photos of the family were released by Channel 4 which show the family loading up a van playfully before they relocate to Chester. These included a photo of Walton's character holding a basketball, a passion he shares with his dad. Walton previously starred alongside Brook Debio, who plays Ant Hutchinson, in a flashback episode of ITV soap opera Coronation Street he and Debio portrayed younger versions of series regulars Mick Michaelis (Joe Layton) and Kit Green respectively.⁸

Walton spoke about his casting: "I'm thrilled to be joining the Hollyoaks cast. My character is charismatic, sporty and someone who's always been the fun, positive presence in the room," Walton said. "He's incredibly close to his family and determined to follow in his dad's footsteps, while chasing big ambitions of his own, especially when it comes to sport. But life doesn't always go to plan, and an unexpected challenge will force him to dig deeper than ever before…"⁸

Maddox Keane, portrayed by Sam Meyer, is the son of Jonah Keane (Wolfenden) and Bethany Cunningham (Ryan). His casting was announced on 12 March 2026, a day after the castings of the other three members of the family were announced. Upon casting, he was described to be a "secret" member of the Keanes, but presumed to be a sibling to Walton's character, Caleb Keane. Meyer nearly landed a place in Simon Cowell's boyband December 10 on his Netflix series The Next Act, whose Instagram account had previously teased his upcoming appearance in the Channel 4 soap opera with a post with the caption: "Who else is in this family? Anyone we know?"⁹

Meyer spoke about his casting: "I am absolutely buzzing to say that I am joining the cast of Hollyoaks. He's a cool kid with a lot of golden retriever-like energy, he loves his fashion and he's quite smart for his age. Look out for this new kid in the village!" He continued: "I am happy that I am joining the cast as part of a brand-new family as well and I can't wait to see what trouble we all get into together…"⁹

Abigail, portrayed by Brooke Vincent, is due to debut in 2026. Vincent's casting was announced on 22 April 2026. Vincent posted about her casting on Instagram with some photos of herself next to the Hollyoaks village sign: "So excited to be joining the cast of Hollyoaks for such a powerful storyline!! I am so grateful for this opportunity to be back on screen playing a brand new character plus my family will be happy I'm back in a full time job Haha."¹⁰ Initially, her character's name wasn't revealed until 13 May 2026, when producer Hannah Cheers revealed more details, including the fact that Abigail isn't related to anyone already in the village.¹¹ Vincent is known for previously playing series regular Sophie Webster in ITV1 soap opera Coronation Street between 2004 and 2019. Some of her former co-stars praised her Hollyoaks casting, including Sue Devaney, who plays her former on-screen aunty, Debbie Webster who posted: "Love this our Brooke! You’ll be fabulous as ever! Love yer Auntie Debbie." Vincent's real-life cousin and former Coronation Street co-star, Ellie Leach also expressed her support by adding: "Eeeeekkkk so excited." Metcalfe who plays Mercedes said that Vincent was "gunna love" being in Hollyoaks, whilst Nadine Mulkerrin who plays Cleo McQueen commented: "Yaaay".¹⁰

Cheers revealed: "It’s going to be a very different role for her in a major story that will take hold over the summer." She continued: "Her character, Abigail, is not connected to anyone in the village." Cheers also revealed that Abigail would be a counsellor for Dee Dee Hutchinson (Chloe Atkinson), who ends up in a teen rehab faculty after turning to drugs to try and cope with the death of her mother, Diane Hutchinson (Alex Fletcher). She explained: "The story starts when Dee Dee, spiralling after Diane’s death, takes ketamine a couple of times. Tony Hutchinson (Nick Pickard) finds out and makes the rash decision to drive her to a teen rehab facility where she meets this counsellor, Abigail." She continued: "Dee Dee ends up escaping from rehab and Abigail follows her back to the village, then decides to stick around. Cheers also discussed Abigail's future in Hollyoaks including a career change away from the rehab faculty so she can stick around. She explained: "Abigail's a very dynamic presence, she’s cool and progressive and loves people. She makes friends easily and will end up being flatmates with someone in the village, and landing a job there."¹¹