Ian Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the drama's longest-serving main character and one of three remaining original characters, the others being Kathy Beale and Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean. 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 an extended break from EastEnders on 22 January 2021. He made an unannounced appearance for the funeral of Dot Cotton on 12 December 2022, before returning permanently on 22 June 2023.