The school drama first aired in 2006, running until 2015 before it returned in 2021.
Waterloo Road fans have proclaimed “2026 has peaked already” mere days into the new year following the return of a beloved character to the programme. The educational drama made its debut in 2006, continuing until 2015 before making a comeback in 2021 with an ensemble cast featuring Tillie Amartey, Adam Thomas, Jason Manford and Jon Richardson.
Having featured in the original series, Loose Women star Denise Welch has now made a triumphant return to Waterloo Road, reprising her character Steph Haydock. The programme resumed broadcasting this evening for its 17th series, with the opening episode shown at 9pm whilst all eight instalments are now accessible on iPlayer.
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Denise had previously commented: “I’m thrilled to see the return of Steph to Waterloo Road. 15 years older, but certainly not wiser. She’ll soon show that time has certainly not dulled her shine!”, reports the Mirror. “Still unmarried but eternally hopeful, Steph is back as a supply teacher. What she is supplying remains to be seen, but I am having a great time stepping back into the shoes of a character I love.
“It’s also been great to reunite with some of my old castmates, like Jason Merrells. Steph and Jack go back a long way, but will they move forward? ! You’ll have to wait and see.” Viewers have expressed their delight at seeing the Loose Women presenter back on their televisions, as Waterloo Road welcomes fresh teaching staff including Lindsey Coulson, who has portrayed the new head, Dame Stella Drake, since 2024.
One fan expressed their enthusiasm on X, stating: “Absolutely loved this series binge watched the first 4 eps already each series since the revival has got better and soo happy Steph is back.” Another chimed in with: “Steph Haydock is back on Waterloo Road…2026 might just have peaked already.” A third noted: “See Steph hasn’t changed still making her own rules!”
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“Steph Haydock returning to #WaterlooRoad might be the best thing the show could’ve done,” another fan added. One simply declared: “STEPH HAYDOCK QUEEN,” while another echoed the sentiment, saying: “Queen is back.” Several fans celebrated Denise’s on-screen reunion with Jason Merrell’s character Jack Rimmer. One wrote: “JACK RIMMER AND STEPH HAYDOCK REUNION YES YES YES.” Another shared their excitement, saying: “Jack Rimmer and Steph Haydock reunion too yes.”
Denise had previously discussed her return to the role, expressing surprise at being approached. “It was quite random and quite bizarre [to get the call], because obviously it’s not something that I was thinking of or waiting for,” she told the press. “So when executive producer Cameron Roach called me, I was more curious than anything else as to what Steph’s role could be.
“He mentioned the fact that the writers, which is very flattering, got very excited about the idea, because she was somewhat of an iconic character. I think she was very un-politically correct, in a world that we were allowed to be a little bit un-PC, and that is the bit that worried me.”
She continued: “I loved the idea of coming back, but I also realise that we are in 2025 and the days of Steph grabbing the headmaster and taking him into the women’s toilets for a s**g are probably done. But we live in a very PC world, and if Steph is going to come back and be seen as some kind of non-smoking, non-drinking, settled down person, then it’s not for me. I don’t want to ruin people’s memories of the character.”
Waterloo Road is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
