Inside Soap UK 42 - 2020

Happy birthday to Hollyoaks! It comes to something when even the youthful soap is hitting its mid-twenties. But age in a soap is a great thing, as you have a whole load of history to work with, and you can bring delicious treats to the audience that no other show can. “Hollyoaks’ original heartthrob is back!” Centre stage this week is Tom, someone we saw conceived (well, not literally – there wasn’t a Hollyoaks Later with old Mr and Mrs Cunningham in sizzling late-night scenes – but you know what I mean!). So to see him take stock of his life in these episodes is a real treat for fans. However, to fully appreciate the big treat of the week, you really have to have been there since the beginning.…

Stacey Slater is the victim of a horrifying incident this week, as a hooded figure jumps out of the shadows and attacks her. Hot-tempered Stacey is heading to Ruby’s club in order to give her former best friend a piece of her mind, when the stranger assaults her. It’s a terrifying moment for Stacey as she’s thrown to the floor by an attacker she can’t identify. The individual runs off while she’s lying on the ground, meaning that Stacey doesn’t know who did this to her. “It comes completely out of the blue,” shares Lacey Turner, who plays Stacey. “She’s walking over to Ruby’s club absolutely fuming, and then she’s caught unawares and attacked out of nowhere. It totally surprises her.” Ever since she strutted back on to the Square…

RUBY? Prime suspect Ruby certainly posseses a motive, although we doubt she would get her perfectly manicured hands dirty. Much as she would probably love to whack Stace for being so hateful to her, we reckon that Rube’s just a ruse. MARTIN? Martin has embraced his dark side since getting involved with Mitchell madness last year – he was even prepared to gun down Keanu. Would he attack Stacey to stop her from making trouble for new missus Ruby and their new life together? SUKI? Battle lines were drawn the moment Suki and Stacey met, and a woman who’s willing to send her own son down has no qualms in attacking their new nemesis. We dread to think what Suki would be willing to do to teach Stacey a lesson.…

Desperate Leanne agrees to an interview with the Weatherfield Gazette this week, hoping that Oliver’s tragic story will generate donations from readers, and help fund his medical care. But when Leanne loses her temper with the journalist, and the distraught mum then gets bad news from the doctors, Nick is left concerned. Is it time for Leanne to give up her fight – and can Nick be the one to tell her enough is enough? With legal bills mounting, and Steve in Germany trying to persuade a team of specialist doctors to change their minds about treating Oliver, the family needs funds – and fast. It’s Nick’s ex Natasha who introduces Leanne to a journalist friend, Suki. But when Leanne sits down to talk about her son, things quickly spiral…

As desperate dad Steve, star Simon Gregson has been turning in a terrific performance over the past few months. We asked him what it’s been like to be part of such a heart-rending plot… Hi, Simon! How tough is it to play such an emotional storyline? There are some days when you are giving it everything. You are looking at this doll in a hospital bed [due to Covid-restrictions on set, a dummy takes the place of twins Emmanuel and Jeremiah Cheetham, who normally play Oliver], which is the most life-like thing you’ve ever seen, reading Mr Men stories to it – and then you go home and you’re reading Mr Men stories to your own four-year-old. That’s when it’s like, “Wow, this is upsetting!” and you need to take…

Nate proves that he is a true Dingle this week, as he offers to tell the police that he was the one who mowed down Moira and left her for dead – all to save Belle from prison. The true hit-and-run culprit, Jamie, has turned the tables on Belle, and is attempting to frame her for the accident. Now, thanks to Jamie’s scheming, poor Belle is fighting to clear her name, and the emotional trauma has caused her to unravel so dramatically that her schizophrenia has resurfaced. It’s once Nate learns the extent of her history that he selflessly falls on his sword – making a decision that could cost him his entire future… “Nate knows that if he doesn’t take the rap, Belle will go to prison,” explains actor…