Bolton-born Emmerdale actor Mark Charnock was honoured at this year British Soap Awards.

The former Canon Slade pupil won the Outstanding Achievement Award at the ceremony which was televised last night.

Mark– who plays Marlon Dingle - says he was ‘overwhelmed’ to pick up the award on stage at the 24th awards.

The ceremony, at The Lowry in Salford Quays, was presented by Jane McDonald after she stepped in to replace Schofield when he quit ITV amid a furore over his extramarital affair with a younger male colleague.

The Bolton News: Mark CharnockMark Charnock

The actor was at the centre of an emotional storyline when his character suffered a stroke last year.

Mark first appeared as Marlon in 1996, after minor roles in Emmerdale’s rival soaps, Eastenders and Coronation Street.

Speaking on stage the 54–year –old said: “Thank you to everyone.

“What a job, I’ve loved every minute of it, but I just want to thank you all for sticking with us, I’m so proud to be a part of this.

“So thank you, I’m overwhelmed.”

Mark and Dominic Brunt, who plays Paddy Kirk in the long-running soap were shortlisted for Best On Screen Partnership.

The Hull University graduate was presented the award by former co-star and Bury born actor Gemma Atkinson who said: “[It’s] lovely to be back presenting an award to the wonderful Mark Charnock.”

The award was Mark’s third British Soap Award, after winning Best Dramatic Performance on two occasions, in 2004 and 2022 respectively.

Mark said: “Everybody in this room, we work in a genre where sometimes people are a bit, they can be a bit snooty sometimes.

“They don’t get it, because the work that goes into these shows, how much it means to all of us, the stories that we pump out every week, that mean so much to people.

“I don’t think we should allow ourselves to be talked down.”

Mark has been in over 2500 episodes of Emmerdale and appeared in multiple specials.