With the soap first of a full year time-jump, action packed stunts and huge twists in the offing, it would be an understatement to say that Hollyoaks is gearing up to be explosive across this summer and beyond.
In her first chat since taking over, show boss Hannah Cheers has enthusiastically sat down with Metro to drop some whopping great spoilers, branding the next few months ‘unpredictable, joyous, heartbreaking, adrenalin-filled, edge-of-your-seat drama.’
One of the biggest talking points in Hollyoaks, which is currently celebrating some higher than expected viewing figures, including the highest week of the year this month, in the run-up to a move to a three episode online model, has been the sibling sex abuse storyline focusing on teenagers Frankie and JJ.
You will be relieved to know that this will come to a head, with the horrifying secret coming to light in August.
‘We’ve got two special episodes where we follow Frankie’s journey to the point of disclosing the abuse that she has suffered at the hands of her twin JJ,’ Hannah revealed.
‘Isabelle Smith and Ryan Mulvey, as newcomers, have worked incredibly hard on this very sensitive storyline. Ashley Taylor Dawson, playing Darren, a father reeling from being confronted with the truth, takes the audience with him through every emotion possible.
‘These are the scenes that I have been imagining ever since we conceived the story last September, and they go above and beyond what I had hoped for.
‘The cast are phenomenal and deliver performances that take your breath away. Most importantly, the story has normalised conversations about a rarely-talked-about form of abuse within the home.’
The aftermath will inevitably turn families upside down, and it’s not the only key clan suffering real turbulations, with Hannah teasing, ‘We have the Hutchinsons struggling with the strain of their crumbling marriage. Ro’s transition is currently polarising them as a couple and Diane has become increasingly reliant on drinking as a crutch.
‘There is nowhere to hide; it’s a pressure cooker of parents and kids negotiating their troubles.
‘We wanted to reflect that no matter how successfully some families seem to be juggling life, life is rarely as it seems to be to outsiders.’
Of course, alongside issue-led storylines and grounded human drama, Hollyoaks is known for its more heightened plotlines, and the mystery of gangster Blue will step up to a shocking reveal.
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Hannah continued: ‘We’ve got a rollicking crescendo to this which impacts the whole village.
‘We have seen Blue threatening Warren’s family and they up the ante by making a shocking move which sees Norma shot in cold blood.
‘Blue means business and there are no more warning shots now. The tentacles of this story start to spread through the village, and Donny and Rex have burning secrets that will emerge.
‘Blue harming Warren’s family lights the touchpaper to the grand finale of Jamie Lomas’ exit – his quest for revenge doesn’t disappoint so expect more twists and turns.’
Want a Blue clue? Look out for characters’ eye colours…
Meanwhile, let’s not forget the bubbling scandal of Ste sleeping with Rex behind James’ back, with the assurance that all soap secrets inevitably come to light, including a surprise one that James himself is hiding.
‘There’s so much warmth and laughter throughout the pain of them confronting their marriage breakdown,’ Hannah said. ‘James has a secret and Rex is still a fly in the ointment, and there is a yet-to-be-revealed connection that will shape his future.’
Finally, we couldn’t chat to Hannah without touching upon the promised stunt and how the time jump will work.
‘There are hugely heartbreaking revelations and some superb white-knuckle stunt action.’
‘The following week, we see the much-anticipated time jump – which is another big treat after you have just caught your breath. It celebrates everything we believe Hollyoaks encapsulates – joy, warmth, jaw-dropping reveals and family, love and friendship.
‘In the first episode, a year on, Tony will take the audience on a journey around the village as we see how everyone’s lives have changed.
‘Once we had settled on this story device, we were so excited by the opportunity to leap into new unexplored chapters of everyone’s lives and celebrate Hollyoaks’ ability to pull the rug from under you.
She added: ‘Summer in Hollyoaks is a non-stop ride. We don’t shift in pace in the school holidays at all, which soaps traditionally do as viewers change their routines.
‘Hollyoaks no longer has that constraint thanks to streaming first – you can even watch on YouTube on holiday now – it’s changed the way that we look at the calendar year.’
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