Ian Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera "EastEnders", played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the longest-serving character and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985. The character appeared in his 2,000th episode in the show on 26 March 2007, and his 3,000th on 27 May 2016. Woodyatt took a four-month break from the show in 2019, departing on 11 February and returning on 24 June. In 2020, it was announced that Woodyatt would be taking an extended break from the show. Ian departed on 22 January 2021.