Why has it taken 65 years for soap to have a successful lesbian wedding?

Weddings are a major event in every soap, often attracting millions of viewers and being the main focus of an episode.

Whether it turns out to be a complete disaster or a fairytale ending, they are a rite of passage for any character…

Unless you’re a lesbian.

In the 65-year history of British soaps, exactly three lesbian couples have successfully tied the knot on screen. Compare that to the 341 straight couples that have had a successful on-screen wedding across the four main British soaps, and there’s quite an obvious disproportion.

Gay men don’t fare much better, with only nine couples making it down the aisle and out the other side.

Soaps are often rightly praised for their handling of sensitive storylines and giving underrepresented issues and communities a platform – so why has there been such a lack of lesbian weddings?

Same-sex marriage was legalised in the UK in 2014, and that December saw Emmerdale’s Ruby Haswell and Ali Spencer tie the knot. Or so we’re led to believe, as their vows didn’t actually feature on screen.

Instead, the main focus of the episode was Belle Dingle’s (Eden Taylor-Draper) mental health storyline. While this was a hugely important storyline in its own right, it overshadowed what should have been an historic moment in British soap: The first ever successful lesbian wedding.

By the time the episode ended and vicar Harriet Finch had been carted off in a police car, it was difficult to remember that the wedding had even happened.

Not to mention the fact the show dropped a helicopter on Ruby less than nine months later, bringing a swift and violent end to the marriage.

Two years later, Hollyoaks aired its first lesbian wedding between Kim Butterfield and Esther Bloom, which in true soap style didn’t quite go to plan.

After an initial hiccup that saw Kim run out of the wedding and accuse Esther of being in love with best friend Grace Black (Tamara Wall), the pair tied the knot – only for Kim to disappear on their wedding night.

Flash forward two years to 2018, and the couple were divorced. Not a bad stretch for a soap couple, but not the iconic lesbian romance everyone had been hoping for.

It wasn’t until New Year’s Day 2025 that EastEnders’ first lesbian couple tied the knot.

Suki Panesar and Eve Unwin’s (Balvinder Sopal and Heather Peace) ceremony was an emotional affair, which tied in elements from both of their cultures.

However, the episode received some criticism from fans online for the way it ended, with Eve and Suki both at death’s door. Thankfully, the following episode saw them both pull through and relish in their victory over evil Nish Panesar.

While I personally thought their wedding episode was an excellent piece of television – plenty of soapy drama with Suki and Eve’s love story at the forefront – I understand where the frustration came from.

As much as I’d love for lesbian weddings to be treated just like any other in soap – dramatic, romantic and with the potential for disaster – it is impossible to ignore the complexities surrounding same-sex marriage and the importance of representation.

Yes, straight soap weddings often end in death and disaster, brides running out on cheating grooms and vice versa. However, social context is important to bear in mind.

Soaps are one of the most powerful forms of media, being broadcast into living rooms across the nation to millions of people every night. They have the power to enact huge change in society – and have done in the past.

We have seen time and time again how soaps can make a difference, from Sinead Tinker’s Coronation Street cancer storyline prompting an increase in uptake for smear tests, to Aaron Dingle’s Emmerdale sexual abuse storyline encouraging survivors to speak out.

Soaps have the ability to raise awareness of important issues, as well as changing public perceptions on certain topics. Take Emmerdale and EastEnders’ HIV storylines as an example. They both went a long way in addressing stereotypes and misconceptions of the illness, educating viewers while simultaneously entertaining them.

As a child, I always wanted to get married and start a family. Unfortunately, if I were to base the likelihood of achieving that on what soaps portray, that feels like an impossible task for a lesbian like me.

Fortunately, I have been exposed to plenty of LGTBQ+ relationships and media outside of soaps, and know that this is one topic that soaps haven’t necessarily handled as well as they could. However, this is a luxury not everyone gets.

For some young, closeted lesbians, the soaps may be the only insight they get into queer lifestyles. How can they possibly have hope for their future if they never see lesbians getting a happy ending?

More often than not, a lesbian character will be killed off. Take Maddie Heath and Rana Habeeb in Coronation Street, Emmerdale’s Ruby and EastEnders’ Tina Carter, just to name a few. Even Brookside’s Beth Jordache met a grisly end after her tragic life.

Pair that with the casual homophobia, fetishization of our community and threats to our rights that lesbians face on a daily basis, it’s no wonder that the tragic end of a lesbian couple in soap leaves us disheartened.

Would it be too much to ask for just one lesbian couple to make it down the aisle and live a long and happy life together?

Of course, I’m not discounting the fact that plenty of straight couples split up. However, every soap has their Jack and Vera, their Dot and Jim or their Zak and Lisa.

Hopefully, Suki and Eve’s union will start a shift in the right direction. With Nish out of the picture, there is nothing to stop them living happily ever after.

Over on Coronation Street, it may be too early to start thinking about marriage for Carla Connor and Lisa Swain (Alison King and Vicky Myers) – even by lesbian standards – but under the guidance of lesbian producer Kate Brooks, it doesn’t feel like too much of a stretch to remain hopeful that it too may set the stage for its first lesbian wedding.

This LGBTQ+ history month, it’s important to reflect on the challenges our community has faced, as well as celebrating our wins. Hopefully, in the future, we’ll see an increase in successful lesbian weddings in soap, which in turn will prove to young lesbians in the real world that it is possible for them to have a happy ending.

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