Emmerdale icon Claire King was first cast as businesswoman Kim Tate in the 1980s – but how much does the ITV star earn for playing the vengeful antagonist?
Emmerdale actress Claire King first set foot in the Yorkshire Dales as savvy entrepreneur Kim Tate in 1989. She remained in the soap for a decade and was part of some dramatic storylines linked to murder, affairs and betrayal.
Fans were thrilled when she returned to the ITV soap in 2018 after being called to reprise the role of Kim.
Since her comeback, she’s been pushed off a balcony by the late Faith Dingle (played by Sally Dexter), got poisoned by her own son Jamie Tate (Alexander Lincoln), and married Will Taylor (Dean Andrews) ahead of a deadly storm hitting the village.
More recently, Kim’s horse killed rapist Craig Reed (Ben Addis) after she came across the beaten and bruised villain while on a hack near Home Farm. She made a pact with Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) to keep the cause of his death a secret.
It’s safe to say Claire’s character Kim has brought her fair share of drama to the soap, which is perhaps why she is Emmerdale’s biggest earner. But how much does the 62-year-old get paid to star in the long-running ITV soap?
The Yorkshire-born actress reportedly earns £230,000 a year for playing Kim.
During her time away from Emmerdale, Claire starred in Bad Girls, Hollyoaks and rival ITV soap Coronation Street.
She has also been in reality shows over the years such as Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother.
Claire has won her fair share of awards for her roles too as well as being nominated on several occasions for accolades.
In 1999, she won the Best Exit award at the British Soap Awards for the moment she left Emmerdale for the first time.
In 2002, her role in Bad Girls as Karen Betts won her the Best Actress gong at the TV Quick Awards. She won the same award the following year.
In recent years, Claire opened up about Emmerdale bosses not realising she’s no longer in her twenties.
She told The Mirror: “They’re getting me to do more stunts than when I was 25 – they don’t realise I’m a pensioner.
“They’re killing me off slowly… not Kim Tate but me, Claire. I’m on a horse. I’m rolling around in the mud…”
Emmerdale isn’t the only soap Claire has starred in and fans were stunned to realise she appeared in Channel 4 show Hollyoaks.
Claire appeared in the rival programme 2005 when she played defence barrister Andrea Mason QC.
Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV and ITVX.
