His character has been shot at, thrown in front of a car and been married six times – now it’s the actor’s paycheque that has the show’s supporters tongues wagging

EastEnders fans were taken aback upon discovering the staggering salary earned by Adam Woodyatt for his portrayal of the iconic Ian Beale.

Since appearing in the show’s first episode back in 1985 aged just 16, the Walford mainstay has become a familiar face in homes across the nation.

His character is famed for being most-wed on the soap, with a total of six marriages to five different women. Not only does Adam hold the title of EastEnders’ longest-serving male actor, but he also has a Lifetime Achievement Award from the British Soap Awards, which he won in 2013.

A recent snap of him in Albert Square prompted a fan to remark: “This man’s been shot, thrown in front of a car and blasted through the air from an explosion… Just another day in the life of Ian Beale.”

Despite his numerous accolades and playing a fan-favourite role, viewers were shocked to find out that Woodyatt’s pay cheque stands at £260,000 annually, based on past reports.

Debate erupted on X when @PiggyBing expressed her astonishment: “Do you know Ian Beale (well, the actor who plays him) earns £260,000 a year?! Blows my mind that.”

This sparked reactions among soap opera aficionados, with one saying: “He deserves that more than MP’s [sic.] deserve £90,000, to be fair,” while another dubbed him “Finest actor of our generation.”

Some fans even questioned why Adam was raking in a whopping £260,000 salary. One asked: “Why do they pay him that much? They could pay him £80,000, it’s not like there would be much more than panto open to him if he left. Bet he’s got a fat pension too. I don’t blame him though, I’d happily take £260,000 to pretend to be Ian Beale.”

Another chimed in with curiosity around the show’s wage justification: “How can they justify that? Is it like football? If you don’t pay the obscene wages, then someone else will… Imagine losing Ian Beale to Corrie on a free transfer?”

Meanwhile, another was more understanding of his earnings: “To be fair though that’s not actually that much. Like don’t get me wrong I don’t enjoy being forced to pay for it. But the guy has been playing him since the 80s.”

How do other actor’s wages compare?

Despite Adam’s longevity on the show, he still trails behind some co-stars’ predicted salaries. It has been widely reported that Danny Dyer, who famously played Mick Carter, was earning up to £249,000 in 2017.

Steve McFadden brings home about £300,000 per year as Phil Mitchell and June Brown was reportedly lured into sticking around as Dot Branning with a £300,000 contract until March 2018.

In 2022, Rory Jennings shared some insights into soap wages on The Fellas podcast, revealing his experience of playing Craig Dixon on EastEnders in 2007.

“It worked out that I was on £1,000 per episode, but this is way back in the day,” he said. “But then you had the Sunday repeat – the omnibus on Sunday… and you would get 80% of your fee again.” The podcast host estimated that Rory would have been raking in a cool £6,000 every week.