Thus, it is vital that diversity becomes a cornerstone of soap opera storytelling, to ensure that individuals from all walks of life are able to see themselves represented on screen.

These shows have the ability to permeate the national consciousness and raise awareness of issues in an immediate fashion, one in which regular contact with the central characters creates a powerful sense of both familiarity and empathy. We cannot simply dismiss the influential power of a television programme which has so broad a reach. Despite the fact that we live in an age where appointment-to-view television is becoming increasingly less relevant, soaps still manage to garner average live ratings of 6 million viewers repeatedly throughout the week. There are many who may ridicule EastEnders as a form of storytelling that ought to be taken seriously, but this would severely undermine the fact that the genre of soap opera is potentially the fictional medium which is best able to influence social attitudes (at least within the United Kingdom). Actor Riley Carter Millington will join the show as new regular character Kyle. Now, in a move that feels considerably overdue, EastEnders have made television history by casting the first transgender character played by a transgender actor to be in a British soap.

Individuals such as Laverne Cox and Caitlyn Jenner have become pop culture icons in their own right, whilst shows such as Transparent and Orange Is The New Black have beautifully explored the realities of the trans experience and been rightfully inundated with praise and global attention.

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