Blanket cylinder for a printing unit of a printing press for carrying at least one rubber blanket, wherein the blanket cylinder has a continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning a leading edge of the rubber blanket and a continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning a trailing edge of the rubber blanket, wherein the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket are accommodated in such a way as to be rotatable about their axes of rotation in order to tension the rubber blanket and wherein drive means are provided for rotationally driving the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket, wherein the drive means comprise at least one controllable actuator, arranged in the blanket cylinder, for driving the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and/or the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket, and wherein the blanket cylinder has at least one cylinder channel for accommodating the tensioning shafts, characterized in that the at least one actuator is provided in the blanket cylinder as an electric motor for the tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and/or as an electric motor for the tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket, and in that the at least one actuator for driving the one continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and/or the one continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket is arranged at least partially outside of the cylinder channel in a cylinder body of the blanket cylinder. wherein the blanket cylinder has a continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning a leading edge of the rubber blanket and a continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning a trailing edge of the rubber blanket, wherein the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket are accommodated in such a way as to be rotatable about their axes of rotation in order to tension the rubber blanket and wherein drive means are provided for rotationally driving the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket, wherein the drive means comprise at least one controllable actuator, arranged in the blanket cylinder, for driving the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and/or the continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket, and wherein the blanket cylinder has at least one cylinder channel for accommodating the tensioning shafts, characterized in that the at least one actuator is provided in the blanket cylinder as an electric motor for the tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and/or as an electric motor for the tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket, and in that the at least one actuator for driving the one continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the leading edge of the rubber blanket and/or the one continuous tensioning shaft for clamping and tensioning the trailing edge of the rubber blanket is arranged at least partially outside of the cylinder channel in a cylinder body of the blanket cylinder.