14 soap stars who looked nothing like their characters

Necessity means that Danny and Keanu share a similar look at the moment, but the actor actually had his head shaved especially for the EastEnders role. He told us in 2017: "You may not believe it, but I had really nice hair before this! When I went to any auditions that was my selling point: 'Just look at the hair.' I'd spend half an hour doing it – and then they shaved me!" Sounds like he'll be growing it again if he ever leaves...

Shortly before joining Corrie in 2011, Catherine went blonde for a sketch show and was later asked to keep the colour for her role as Eva. Since leaving, Catherine has gone back to a darker style and has admitted that she feels "more like her" again.

Will Savage went from harmless nerd to terrifying serial killer during his time in the village, but perhaps the biggest transformation took place off screen. Handsome James geeked up to play Will each day, with help from the costume department and those trademark glasses.

Corrie's comedy queen Gemma can't resist catching everyone's eye with her hair, make-up and outrageous outfits, but Dolly-Rose keeps things much smarter in real life.

Dolly-Rose told TV Times: "I decided that Gemma enjoys putting make-up on, and watches YouTube tutorials on how to get the latest looks – but gets them a little bit wrong. And she tries to be fashionable, but has to make do with what she can afford."

Popular star Lorraine would be the first in the queue to mock her character Karen Taylor's lack of style. Speaking to us about Karen's look in 2017, Lorraine laughed: "I've got no make-up on whatsoever, not even powder, not mascara. That's how I wanted it. No jewellery, I didn't want anything, as I wanted it to be as real as it could be. And then I looked at myself and went: 'What have I done? My fella's gonna leave me!'"

Perhaps not one of the most striking transformations (they both clearly like a bow tie), but Richard has spoken in the past about how he rarely gets recognised for his role as geeky Alfie, who recently left the show. He told us: "I've only been noticed once in a while. I style my hair differently to how Alfie does in real life and I don't wear the glasses, so I'm not recognised as often."

Stylish Clair, who's the third Taylor family member to make our list, plays Karen's dowdy daughter in EastEnders but often looks dramatically different in her glam red carpet outfits and snaps shared on her Instagram page.

Not only does Harry Reid look pretty different without Ben's glasses, he also grew his hair out after leaving Walford and taking on a stage role in Agatha Christie's Witness For The Prosecution. Show bosses recently announced their decision to recast the role of Ben, who'll be played by Max Bowden from 2019.

Playing troubled mum Rachel Breckle meant plenty of tracksuits and not much time in make-up for star Gemma Oaten. In real life though, stunning Gemma often wowed fans with her stylish dress choices on red carpets.

Mick and Linda's tomboy daughter wouldn't have been seen dead in a pretty dress, unlike actress Maddy Hill. (Well, apart from that one time Nancy made an exception at Mick and Linda's wedding.)

Doctors legend Lorna Laidlaw wore a wig for her role as fan favourite Mrs Tembe, who recently left the show, and is almost unrecognisable in real life. She once told Birmingham Live: "My wig is a very good disguise. I have spent hours talking in between scenes to the woman who owns Mrs Tembe's house, but when she saw me without the wig she didn't recognise me at all. It was unreal."

Trevor's teenage son was regularly the centre of attention in the village with his emo appearance, blue hair streaks and occasional cross-dressing. James, who played the role for an eight-month stint, went for a more traditional style once the cameras stopped rolling.