Peter Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders and he is played by Thomas Law. Peter makes his first appearance in episode 926, originally broadcast on 16 December 1993. Peter has been played by seven actors since being introduced in 1993. Francis Brittin-Snell portrayed the role from 1993 to 1996, followed by Alex Stevens from 1997 to 1998 and Joseph Shade from 1998 to 2004. James Martin took over and played the role from 2004 to 2006. He was played by Thomas Law from 2006 until 2010, when the character departed the series. In April 2013, it was announced that Peter would return, played by Ben Hardy who made his first appearance on 7 June 2013. Hardy announced his departure from the role in November 2014, making his final on-screen appearance on 24 February 2015.

EastEnders is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the programme follows the stories of local residents and their families as they go about their daily lives. Within eight months of the show's original launch, it had reached the number one spot in BARB's television ratings, and has consistently remained among the top-rated series in Britain. Four EastEnders episodes are listed in the all-time top 10 most-watched programmes in the UK, including the number one spot, when over 30 million watched the 1986 Christmas Day episode. EastEnders has been important in the history of British television drama, tackling many subjects that are considered to be controversial or taboo in British culture, and portraying a social life previously unseen on UK mainstream television.