Calvin Valentine in February 2011. In May 2006, it was announced former "Dream Team" actor Ricky Whittle would arrive in Hollyoaks as "mysterious" Calvin Valentine. Along with Whittle's casting, it was announced his former "Dream Team" co-star Jamie Lomas would take on the part of "bad boy" Warren Fox. Speaking of Lomas and Whittle's casting, a "Hollyoaks" spokesperson stated: "We're delighted to welcome Ricky and Jamie to the "Hollyoaks" cast. Their characters are set to bring lots of drama to the show!" In 2009, it was announced that Whittle had decided to leave the series after he quit to pursue other projects.
Soap opera "The Young Doctors" (from 1982), "Sons and Daughters" (from 1983), "A Country Practice" (from 1982), "Richmond Hill" (from 1988 to 1989) and eventually, "Neighbours" was acquired by the BBC in 1986, and "Home and Away" aired on ITV beginning in 1989. These achieved significant levels of popularity; "Neighbours" and "Home and Away" were moved to early-evening slots, helping begin the UK soap opera boom in the late 1980s. The day Channel 4 began operations in 1982 it launched its own soap, the Liverpool-based "Brookside", which would redefine soaps over the next decade. The focus of "Brookside" was different from earlier