All posts tagged: Soaps

GQ Editors Share Their Favorite Hand Soaps

GQ Editors Share Their Favorite Hand Soaps

Published by Jenni Sidey

“Have we all seen it? Yes. Have we all owned it? Probably! And while some could say that Aesop’s Resurrection Aromatique Hand Wash has become over-exposed, I would counter with: Who cares? It’s still the fucking best! Not only does the bottle look great in literally any space (a modern-day design feat, if you ask me), but it’s one of the best smelling soaps out there. Now only if Aesop would make it in a body wash…” Aesop Resurrection Aromatique Hand Wash Alyssa Bereznak, Wellness and Grooming Director: Flamingo Estate Rosemary Clary Sage Glass Hand Soap Alyssa Bereznak “Way back during the pandemic when Flamingo Estate was expanding its offerings from farm-fresh local produce to bath products, I became attached to the lovely herbaceous scent of their Clary Sage hand soap. It embodies so much about what’s great about L.A. in one bottle: both its fragrant plantlife and the possibilities of urban farming here. Whenever I use it to wash my hands, I start unconsciously daydreaming of my next garden conquest. Now that the brand …

EastEnders’ Christian and Syed remain soap’s most beloved couples

EastEnders’ Christian and Syed remain soap’s most beloved couples

Published by Daniella Wilson

EastEnders has featured numerous queer storylines, though one of the most iconic is the romance between Christian Clarke and Syed Masood. A Romeo and Romeo kind of love story – without the death. Back in 2009, I was a curious teen who was also exploring my identity. At the time, Christian (John Partridge) and Syed’s (Marc Elliott) relationship was considered controversial because it placed the latter’s sexuality in direct conflict with the religious and cultural expectations surrounding him as a Muslim man. For many viewers, it was the first time a mainstream British soap had explored what happens when faith, family and identity pull a person in different directions. Nearly eight million UK viewers watched “Chryed’s” first kiss when it aired, me being one of them – seeing these two men fall in love was, and is, something beautiful. This was before you could stream the next episode at 6am, and I remember being so excited to see where this storyline would go. Of course I hoped for a happy ending! After their first kiss, …

Emmerdale and Coronation Street sustainability boss on soaps’ green initiatves

Emmerdale and Coronation Street sustainability boss on soaps’ green initiatves

Published by Daniella Wilson

Soap operas have always been a forum to tackle society’s most important topics, not only with the hard-hitting storylines they portray but also in what happens behind the scenes. With sustainability playing an increasingly key part in TV and film production, one of the industry’s most enduring and resilient genres is leading the way when it comes to pioneering greener ways of working. If you can do it on a soap without derailing the moving train that has to produce hundreds of episodes a year, you can do it anywhere. As Head of Production Sustainability for ITV Studios, Phil Holdgate is responsible for the carbon footprint of Coronation Street and Emmerdale, Britain’s longest and second longest-running soaps respectively, neither of which would’ve have lasted so long without a bit of future proofing. Sustainability is in soaps’ DNA. “Soaps are a bit of an outlier in the industry because they are ongoing,” begins Holdgate, speaking exclusively to Radio Times. “That allows you to try things on a short-, medium- and long-term basis which is almost impossible …

18 Best Bar Soaps, Tested by Editors

18 Best Bar Soaps, Tested by Editors

Published by Sam Flores

For years I avoided bar soaps because I only associated them with my skin feeling tight and dry, something I wanted to avoid at any cost. Instead, I relied on liquid body washes or shower oils. While reporting and testing bar soaps for this story, I noticed a shift in many of their formulas — they’re not as drying as I always thought and work as well as a traditional body wash. (That dryness typically came from formulas with unbalanced pH levels — something many brands have now adjusted for, according to Dr. William Huang, a board-certified dermatologist and adjunct professor at Duke University.) To help debunk common bar soap misconceptions, I spoke to three board-certified dermatologists about their advantages over body washes and what to consider when shopping for one. Alongside the help of my colleagues, I also tested some popular options. Want more from NBC Select? Sign up for our newsletter, The Selection, and shop smarter. Best bar soaps of 2026 Below, I compiled expert-recommended bar soaps, ones our team tried and liked, …

80s celebrities Lorenzo Lamas and Heather Locklear are a match made in TV heaven at first public appearance since romance confirmed

80s celebrities Lorenzo Lamas and Heather Locklear are a match made in TV heaven at first public appearance since romance confirmed

Published by Daniella Wilson

It’s love the second time around for our new favourite celebrity couple Lorenzo Lamas and Heather Locklear, as the 80s TV legends looked loved-up at an outing to the 2026 Chiller Theatre Expo in New Jersey last week.  Lorenzo and Heather posed for cameras in all-black outfits for the horror and sci-fi convention, as Heather, 64, had her arm around her 68-year-old beau, both beaming. © Getty ImagesThe couple looked loved-up to say the least This reconnected romance is certainly one for soap opera fans, as Lorenzo and Heather both skyrocketed to fame for their long-running roles in Falcon Crest and Dynasty respectively. But this romance pre-dates the pinnacle of their TV careers, as the duo posed together for an edition of Playgirl, way back in 1983.  © XLorenzo shared the cover via X Lorenzo first announced the relationship by sharing the throwback snap to X, adding: “Love is patient, love is kind…It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Corinthians 13:4–7”. When asked by Fox News if he ever thought their shoot would …

Home and Away forced to issue statement after wild claims about the soap’s cast

Home and Away forced to issue statement after wild claims about the soap’s cast

Published by Sam Flores

Home and Away‘s Australian broadcaster Seven Network has responded after a slew of fake fan pages have popped up posting wild claims about the soap’s cast, such as actors dying, being diagnosed with serious illnesses, or getting secretly married. The ‘article pages’ are reportedly unsafe sites designed to phish users’ personal information out of them, and should not be accessed. A spokesperson for Seven has said “these unauthorised pages have been reported” and urged fans to “engage only with verified accounts for the show and cast members” (via Daily Telegraph Australia). Channel 5 Related: Best streaming services UK 2026 – including Disney+, Netflix, iPlayer and Apple TV+ Home and Away is not the first soap to warn its fans about scams, as the British soaps have have had to put out warnings about fake accounts impersonating cast members and asking people for money. “Please be aware that actors from both Coronation Street and Emmerdale are currently being impersonated by scammers across all social media platforms,” a spokesperson for ITV said last year. “No cast member …

Daytime TV legend Maurice Benard still looks so youthful at 63

Daytime TV legend Maurice Benard still looks so youthful at 63

Published by Daniella Wilson

Maurice Benard has spent more than three decades as one of daytime television’s most magnetic leading men and at 63, the General Hospital star is proving that time is firmly on his side. Best known for his portrayal of mob boss Sonny Corinthos, Maurice first stepped into the role in 1993. What began as a short-term arc quickly evolved into one of the most iconic characters in soap history. With his brooding intensity, razor-sharp delivery and emotional vulnerability, Sonny became the heartbeat of Port Charles – and Maurice became a household name in the process. © Getty ImagesMaurice at the world premiere of “Ciao, Mama” Born in Martinez, California, in 1963, Maurice began his acting career in the late 1980s with a role on All My Children, where he played Nico Kelly. But it was General Hospital that cemented his legacy. Over the years, he has earned multiple Daytime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Lead Actor, and remains one of the show’s longest-serving cast members. Part of Maurice’s enduring appeal lies in the depth he has …

Coronation Street star criticises soap’s ‘crime-heavy’ storylines after quiet exit

Coronation Street star criticises soap’s ‘crime-heavy’ storylines after quiet exit

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Coronation Street star Sally Ann Matthews, who left the show last year, has hit out at the ITV soap for focusing on crime plots. The actor, 55, is best known for playing Jenny Bradley on the cobbles, having originally joined the soap in 1986. Over the past four decades, Matthews appeared in Weatherfield on-and-off, however her latest stint was an impressive 10 years. Last year, Matthews announced that she would be leaving the soap to play roles that she “always hoped I would when I’d grown up”. In a new interview, she has shared her gripes with the ITV soap, criticising Coronation Street for abandoning “character-led” storylines. “We, as a cast, have been having these conversations for three or four years, and the crew,” she told The Mirror on Sunday (22 February). “Their family and people in the street [are] saying …

Forget the doof-doofs, The Traitors’ cliffhangers may have just outplayed the soaps

Forget the doof-doofs, The Traitors’ cliffhangers may have just outplayed the soaps

Published by Daniella Wilson

When lists are compiled of seismic TV cliffhangers, it’s to drama that critics ordinarily turn, be it The Walking Dead’s Negan with his baseball bat, JR’s bullet to the guts in Dallas or EastEnders’ Kat redrawing the Slaters’ family tree with the three words, “Yes, I am!” But if last night’s edition of The Traitors proved anything, it’s that fiction no longer has a stranglehold on unresolved friction. If the job of a cliffhanger is to compel an audience to keep watching, then the fate of the treacherous Rachel ought to be offered up in a masterclass on heightened stakes. Yet, what marks it out as different to acclaimed deferred payoffs from the past is the key ingredient of irrational human behaviour. Real people are unpredictable at the best of times, but put them under pressure at a roundtable where money and safe passage are at risk, and the messiness becomes momentous. Which is not to say that The Traitors is free from editorial manipulation. Each episode is as expertly designed and layered as Claudia’s …

Days of Our Lives rocked by cast shakeup as four fan-favorites exit show

Days of Our Lives rocked by cast shakeup as four fan-favorites exit show

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Days of Our Lives cast has been hit with a major shakeup after it was revealed that four of the show’s younger actors were leaving Salem for good. Carson Boatman, who portrays Johnny DiMera on the soap opera, is set to say goodbye after joining the cast in 2021. His on-screen wife, played by Raven Bowens, will also leave the show after taking over the role of Chanel DiMera in 2021 from Precious Way. © Todd Williamson/Peacock via GettCarson and Raven have been let go from DOOL The pair portray a fan-favorite couple, as do Ashley Puzemis and Leo Howard, who were let go from the series amid the shakeup. Ashley, who received a nomination at the Daytime Emmys in 2025 in the Emerging Talent category, joined the cast in 2023 as Holly Jonas. Leo, who portrays Tate Black, took over from Jamie Martin Mann in 2024. Viewers can expect to see the foursome on-screen until late 2026 or early 2027, due to advanced production schedules. A spokesperson for Days of Our Lives told …