The iconic singer made an unexpected appearance in the legendary Queen Vic pub, delighting fans of the long-running British soap opera.
Cher and Barry from EastEnders singing a duet in the Queen Vic pub.
Cher, the Goddess of Pop, recently surprised viewers by appearing in a new advert for UKTV, the British multichannel broadcaster. In the advert, Cher is digitally inserted into a variety of popular UKTV shows, including “Masterchef”, “Red Dwarf”, and the beloved soap opera “EastEnders.”
The most talked-about moment of the advert features Cher performing a karaoke duet of her iconic hit “I Got You Babe” alongside Shaun Williamson, who played the beloved but hapless Barry Evans in “EastEnders” from 1994 to 2004. The unlikely duo belt out the song from the stage of the Queen Vic, the iconic pub at the heart of “EastEnders”, as other familiar faces from the soap look on in amusement.
Cher in a scene from the UKTV advert, appearing in various popular shows.
From Pitch to Reality: How the Cher Cameo Came Together
The idea for the surprising cameo came from UKTV’s creative director Scott Russell, who envisioned Cher making appearances in several of the channel’s most popular programmes. He shared his vision with senior producer Leanne Farleigh, and the concept quickly gained traction.
In an interview with TVBEurope, Russell explained, “I was chatting to the senior producer Leanne Farleigh, and I said, ‘What about we get Cher to turn up in the shows? And it ends with the shot of her in the Queen Vic singing Karaoke with Barry from EastEnders. Because just that image of the two of them together would be crazy.'”
To everyone’s delight, Cher was enthusiastic about the project. Despite the surreal nature of the shoot, with Cher being digitally placed into various UKTV shows, she approached everything with professionalism and good humor.
Russell described Cher’s on-set demeanor: “She was there for six hours, and we had every set-up ready, and we just kept moving her around… She was so good. You would expect her to be ‘Cher’, suddenly being in a studio in West London with all these props, like we got a MasterChef apron made for her to wear with her name on it. Everyone was saying to me, ‘She won’t do that Scott’, but she just said, ‘Fine, no problem’. We were only getting probably two or three takes of everything with Cher. It was a case of set-up and move on, and she was just hanging out on set chatting to everybody. She was super friendly.”
Cher and Barry on stage in the Queen Vic, surrounded by "EastEnders" cast members.
A Match Made in TV Heaven?
The pairing of Cher and “EastEnders” might seem like an unlikely one, but it highlights the enduring appeal of both the legendary singer and the long-running soap opera. Cher, with her decades-long career in music, film, and television, needs no introduction. “EastEnders,” which first aired in 1985, is a British institution, known for its gritty realism and relatable characters.
The UKTV advert, with its playful blend of pop culture icons and unexpected cameos, has generated significant buzz online. Fans have praised the advert’s creativity and humor, with many expressing delight at seeing Cher in such an unexpected setting. The advert has also sparked conversations about the enduring power of nostalgia and the ways in which pop culture can transcend generations.
