If there's one thing that's inevitable about soaps, it's that characters need to wait their turn for a slice of the action. Sure, there are some familiar faces who are never short of a storyline, but most of the cast will fade in and out of the spotlight depending on the whims of the writers.
With that said, we reckon this lot have been neglected for a little too long. Our message to the storyliners is clear: please give them something to do, quick-smart.
1. Ali Neeson (Coronation Street)
Doctor Ali was at the centre of huge Corrie storylines last year – from his tense reunion with mum Michelle, to ruthlessly killing gangster Ronan Truman to protect his family.
Sadly, it was after the latter plot twist that things started to go wrong. Following a very short-lived "downward spiral" storyline, Ali disappeared from screens for several months and has only just popped back up again. So much for being the next Pat Phelan.
James Burrows, who plays Ali, admitted publicly this week that he won't be sticking around on the cobbles for too long. Maybe the writers could talk him round with the promise of a few more juicy plots? Just a thought…
2. Sonia Fowler (EastEnders)
Sonia is one of the most recognisable faces still in the EastEnders cast, but the Walford bosses don't seem to be making the most of it by giving her too many dramatic storylines. Fingers crossed new showrunner Kate Oates will change that this year – she did rebuild key family units during her time in charge of Corrie, after all.
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We're pleased to see Sonia playing a key role in Tiffany's troubles next week – it's easy to forget that they're related – but we're hoping this will pave the way for Natalie Cassidy having more to do in her own right. Nothing that involves trumpets, though, please.
3. Megan Macey (Emmerdale)
Megan was a breath of fresh air when she first arrived in the Dales in 2012 – fun, feisty and with a ruthless streak which made her more than a match for her brother Declan. The casting of Gaynor Faye was also a real coup after her work on other popular TV dramas.
Sadly, Megan's storylines in recent years have seemed to revolve around one thing only – being cheated on. Jai Sharma tried it twice, Frank Clayton was next and now Graham Foster has got in on the act too.
Spoiler pictures for next week show Frank getting friendly with Megan again, leaving us to speculate over a possible reunion. But what we'd most like to see is Megan rising up and being a real force in the village again – she's just as worthy of big storylines as the show's other leading ladies.
4. Grace Black (Hollyoaks)
Hollyoaks' fiercest character has been way too quiet for our liking over the past few months. In fairness, she had big storylines last year when Glenn Donovan was at his worst, but she seems to have faded into the background recently. Whoever thought Grace Black could be quiet, eh?
Grace's relationship with Farrah has mainly taken place off screen, so we're hoping we see more of her when the Maaliks' new issue-based storyline becomes more prominent. After all, if there's a character you want in your corner when things get tough, it's Grace.
5. Yashvi Rebecchi (Neighbours)
With Sonya gone (sob!), a new direction for the extended Rebecchi family seems likely and we're hoping that will include some better storylines for Shane and Dipi's teenage daughter Yashvi. Rising star Olivia Junkeer has great chemistry with many of her co-stars and we loved her recent scenes with her cousin Callum in particular.
We haven't seen much of Erinsborough High this year, but rumour has it this will change in the coming months. Could we see more interesting times for Yashvi once the school is more prominent again?
6. Adam Barlow (Coronation Street)
Adam is currently taking a short break from screens in Corrie, but if we're honest, it's been hard to tell the difference as he barely featured when he was in the show. The departure of Eva last summer seemed to leave Adam at a loose end storyline-wise, with no love interest and little interaction with the Street's ongoing plots.
Adam has already been absent for a few weeks now and there's been no news on his return storyline, but the writers certainly can't argue they haven't had time to think of one after his extended absence.
7. Whitney Carter (EastEnders)
After 10 years in EastEnders, Shona McGarty has proved her worth with some impressive performances in hard-hitting storylines. Much like Sonia, we'll see Whitney getting involved in Tiff's dramas next week, but we reckon it's also high time that she has some fresh direction as a character in her own right.
Whitney's relationship with Callum has a certain charm about it and we're keen to see more of the plot threads that have been briefly teased for them, including the possibility of them starting a family together.
8. Harriet Finch (Emmerdale)
Harriet is definitely one of the most underrated characters in the Emmerdale village. As she doesn't have a huge family around her, she can often be back of the queue when big storylines are handed out. (Marrying Cain and becoming one of a million Dingles may have helped there, but that ship seems to have sailed.)
Olivia Bromley, who plays Dawn Taylor, recently hinted that there's lots more to explore in terms of her character's backstory with Harriet. Their scenes have taken a back seat recently with the Joe Tate and Maya Stepney sagas so prominent, but fingers crossed we'll see them back on screen again soon.
9. Harry Thompson (Hollyoaks)
Has Parry Glasspool become a part-time Hollyoaks cast member and not told us? We only ask because he keeps disappearing from our screens for weeks at a time – whether it's because of Harry taking time out to clear his head following an affair, heading off on holiday, or worst of all, disappearing into the Hollyoaks black hole of forgotten characters. Even his dad Tony forgets about him most of the time.
Harry's relationship with James Nightingale has secured an eager army of Jarry shippers, so if the much-loved lawyer survives the week, we're hoping we get to see more of their home life and for Harry to feature on screen more with the remaining Nightingales.
10. Amy Williams (Neighbours)
Arguably the most neglected character on our list, Paul Robinson's daughter Amy is granted surprisingly few moments to shine by the Neighbours bosses. Most of her current scenes revolve around her on-off relationship with Gary, but we think she deserves a lot better.
With many of Ramsay Street's residents caught up in sensationalised plots right now, Amy is a more relatable and down-to-earth character who adds some much-needed sanity to proceedings. As Neighbours chiefs hopefully noticed from the fan outcry over Sonya's axing recently, sometimes you need those type of characters to keep the audience happy.
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