Remember being a teenager in the 90s? Remember the TV shows we used to watch back then?
The pattern was nearly always the same: the actors were all way too old, the morals were way too obvious and the girl next door way was too hot to be real?
Great days, I'm sure we all agree. But who were the hottest hotties who made us really come of age back then?
17 – Jessie Spano, Saved by the Bell, (Elizabeth Berkeley)
Not so much for when she was in Saved by the Bell, where Tiffany Amber Thiessen?s Kelly was the only one to watch, but for what she did next, Showgirls (which came out when SBTB was still a weekend reruns fixture, confusingly).
16 – Tiffany Mitchell, EastEnders (Martine McCutcheon)
Sweet, a little homely, but still very sexy (particularly by EastEnders? generally rather dubious standards, Tiffany came in as Bianca?s mate, but was soon the star of the show, briefly taming wild man Grant, before being run over by Frank Butcher. A career of failed attempts to crack Hollywood and stilted ‘comebacks’ awaited her.
15 – Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield, Sweet Valley High, (Brittany and Cynthia Daniel)
One was sweet, one was slutty? many an identical twin fantasy started here (the show itself was unspeakably bad).
14 – Jude from Hollyoaks (Davinia Taylor / Murphy)
Aah, Hollyoaks. Where would we be without you? Probably with better eyesight and less hairy hands? Davinia Taylor nee Murphy was one of the first of a new generation of soap stars who made more headlines for her personal life than for her (pretty ropey) acting. In the end, she was fired for turning up late and hungover, depriving male fans from one of the hottest hotties UK soap land had provided in years.
13 – Wanda Plenn, Doogie Howser (Lisa Dean Ryan)
In real life, actor Neil Patrick Harris is out as gay. Did he already know back then, when he had to perform scenes with his onscreen girlfriend Wanda? If so, not fair.
12 – Mandy Salter, EastEnders (Nicola Stapleton)
Another Easties? favourite, Nicola Stapleton kind of looked like an impish, chavvy but very cute version of Hermione from Harry Potter. And on that basis, I'm in, is what we would have said then, if Dragons Den had only already existed.
11 – Julia Salinger, Party of 5 (Neve Campbell)
She was always so sensible and dull, and she dressed terribly in a 90s ‘alternative’ student way (lots of army boots and corduroy), but you still just couldn't get away from how damned sexy Julia actually was. Campbell basically played the same role again in the Scream franchise.
10 – Angela Chase, My So Called Life (Claire Danes)
Cast as an ugly duckling who really wasn?t ugly, Danes? first role confirmed her as a great actress in an underrated one-series wonder of mid 90s teen angst. Fawn-like and noticeably not perfect (by American standards), Danes was the girl next door who just might actually live next door (but still didn't).
9 – Annalise Hartman, Neighbours (Kimberley Davies)
She's hot, she's brassy, she's busty, she's dressed as a schoolgirl?! Annalise was Neighbours? resident strumpet in the mid 90s, getting everyone hot under the collar without ever being able to act AND move her top lip.
8 – Brenda Walsh, Beverly Hills 90210 (Shannen Doherty)
Yes, we all know she was a total nightmare to work with, and yes, she definitely had / has a slightly wonky face, but there was still something very sexy about Brenda when you were just hitting your teens.
7 – Joey Potter, Dawson?s Creek (Katie Holmes)
Forget about her slow transformation into an androgynous fembot by Tom Cruise, and remember her perfect girl next door cuteness back in the late 90s, where she had to keep choosing between Pacey and that guy out of MASK, on Dawson?s Creek.
6 – Six LeMeure, Blossom (Jenna Von Oy)
Ok, this is a bit of a weird one, because back then Six wasn?t really that hot and her motor mouth character was definitely quite annoying, but the truth is that when you're a teenage boy, you\’ll fancy just about anyone (except Blossom). And research has shown that Six grew up to be pretty hot?
5 – Topanga, Boy Meets World (Danielle Fishel)
This was a pretty piss poor American sitcom of the mid-90s, starring Fred Savage?s younger brother, Ben. But it did feature the very ‘hefty’ Topanga, his on/off girl next door love?
4 – Sarah Reeves Marin, Party of 5 (Jennifer Love Hewitt)
JLH as I've chosen to call her was another of the Party of 5 alumni who went on to be pretty famous (amazing as the show was awful and now only gets reruns on Zone Romantica). She's still pretty perky now, but back then in the 90s, she was a teenage boy?s cute, booby dream girl.
3 – Beth Brennan, Neighbours (Natalie Imbruglia)
Now, Natalie Imbruglia still looks pretty amazing in the year 2009, so imagine how great she looked when she first arrived in 90s Neighbours, as tomboyish Beth Brennan. Many a teenage boy felt ?torn? about young Beth, who was married onscreen to annoying surfer type Brad Willis, and then went on to date a whole load of annoying people off it, from David Schwimmer through to David Walliams. Possibly the hottest actress to ever grace Neighbours, and they had quite a few?
2 – Beth from Brookside (Anna Friel)
we're so used to softcore faux lesbianity being used to titillate us, that it's hard to remember how truly shocking / exciting Brookside?s lesbian kiss was back in 1994. I even remember there being a one hour documentary about it! Pushing Daisies? Anna Friel has never been hotter than she was then, and she still looks amazing now. Just think about that. ?
1 – Winnie Cooper, The Wonder Years (Danica McKellar)
There was never a better coming of age comedy drama than The Wonder Years, and there probably never will be. And thus it seems only fair to say that there was never a better girl next door than Kevin?s true teen love, Winnie Cooper. Winnie was prissy and a little too serious, but she was also the kind of girl you hoped you'd one day marry, after having fun with the twins from Sweet Valley High (which sadly never happened). The good news is that as an adult, actress Danica Mckellar is something of a genius and poster child for frustrated maths geeks everywhere (seriously).
This was a guest blog by the marvellous Matthew Clifton from the more-marvellous Dark Beige. Pay him a visit. Be nice.
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Billy says
I loved anna friel back then…still do now
Angela says
Odd choice of clip for Topanga (the episode video was edited by the YouTube user for laughs) but I digress. ‘Boy Meets World’, piss poor? Really? What does that make most of the other shows on the list? Yikes.
Ironlung says
ye where the fuck is Anna Friel?
Goatman626 says
Where is the pink ranger?
hopkinsrage says
To hell with that. Where is Kelly Bundy or Kelly from Saved by the Bell?
calvin says
how the fuck is kelly kapowski missing from this list. Her absence itself makes this list garbage
Okuma says
I am American so I have no clue who the British chicks were. But c’mon…no Kelly Bundy, no Kimberly from Power Rangers, no Christine Taylor from “Hey Dude?” And I agree with the above poster how can you put Elizabeth Berkely over Tiffany Amber Thiessen? It just doesn’t compute. Melissa Joan Hart as Clarissa…Larissa Oleynik as Alex Mack!
And Karyn Parsons and Tatyana Ali were the main reasons to watch Fresh Prince.
GI Joe says
Totally agree with this – especially about Clarissa, what young man didn’t want to be the guy who gets to use a ladder to reach Melissa Joan Hart’s bedroom?!
Rook says
dude you totally left out Angela Watson (step by step) and the only cute chic from salute your shorts.
Hates Iron Lung says
Uh
A-Ron says
Some missed ones.
Christine Taylor – Hey Dude
Nikki Cox – Unhappily ever after
Tiffany Amber Thiessen – Saved by the Bell
Angela Watson and Christine Lakin – Step by Step
That girl who played Myra on Family Matters that died
Christina Applegate – Married with children
Lacey Chabert – Party of 5
Liam says
Kelly Bundy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Pink Power Ranger, Yellow Power Ranger.
Liam says
Rachel, Monica, Phoebe.
flow says
This list sucks, you guys are right, no bundy, no kapowksi!! piss poor is right for this list, i’ve never even heard of half these shows, even mellisa joan hart deserves to make it. oh the crappy you tube video really helped your case
Jimmyp says
This list is “piss poor”.
Rebecca from Full House
90210 Kelly or any1 else is hotter than Brenda, well except for Donna
Pamela Anderson or Debbe Dunning from Home Improvement
xrismoneymaker says
what kind of foreign garbage is this? looking as some busted tooth brits did not make me come of age remotely. you clearly don’t know anything about american telvision, or hot women for that matter.
list fail
br1 says
I really wish I could read a comments section anywhere on the net without having to read crap from some ignorant (yet arrogant) American that makes the rest of us Americans look bad. Sigh.
But yeah, wish I’d been clued in to Anna Friel back in the day, she’s hot!
The Mutt says
Where are all the MILFs?
Ironlung says
looking is for nubs and fags.
ownded.
Carl says
Got to admit, I have a soft spot for Nicola Stapleton. Always have and think I always will. She’s marriage material in my eyes. Great to see her back on East Enders and with the body of someone half her age. Hope she stays on the show for longer this time around. She’s a good little actress.