ThisisBigBrother.com - UK TV Forums

New spoilers for 24 September - 5 October 2007

[spoil]Monday 24th September

The Ashworths feel powerless as they struggle to know how to handle Hannah's anorexia. Josh tries to reason with Hannah and warns her that she's killing herself but Hannah is past caring. Suzanne is hopeful that Hannah's on the road to recovery but Josh is frustrated – they've got to do something! With the rest of the family burying their head in the sand, Josh decides to take matter into his own hands.

Meanwhile, Following a lovers' tiff, Justin is desperate to get Katy back on side. Danny takes it upon himself to give the couple a helping hand and comes up with a plan. Donning Calvin's police uniform, Danny pretends to arrest Katy and brings her into Il Gnosh for questioning where she is met by a waiting Justin. Katy in unimpressed when she realises that she's been set up but Justin is desperate to put things right. He's determined to get his girl.

Elsewhere, Amy takes on the task of mediator to reunite the warring Sasha and Michaela. She insists their friendship is more important than men but wonders how long the feud will last as the stubborn girls pay little heed. Amy is desperate to convince the girls that friendship should come before men.

Also, Steph arrives at MOBS determined to get Max to notice her. She's frustrated when Max pays her little attention. She turns to O.B. for advice but he warns her that Max is off girls at the moment. Steph's crestfallen and O.B. wonders if Max is making the right decision. He tries to convince Max to give a go with Steph but Max is adamant – he's not

Thursday september 25

Hannah's condition is clearly deteriorating but Suzanne is at a loss as to how to help her daughter. Suzanne tries to get Hannah to see a doctor but Hannah refuses, insisting that there's nothing wrong with her.

Frustrated at her family's interference, she locks herself away in her room. Rhys tries to reason with her, reminding her of the bubbly, happy girl she used to be. Hannah is scornful as they reminisce but eventually she relents and opens the door. The Ashworths are hopeful that Hannah is finally ready to accept that she needs help. Hannah, however, is stunned when she realises she has been tricked by Rhys and is eventually forced to seek medical assistance against her will...

Meanwhile, Mike is getting ready to go and visit Kathy. Worried about leaving the girls on their own, Mike offers to lighten the load and take Leah with him. Amy is furious - she doesn't want her mum anywhere near her baby. Mike backs down on the condition that Sarah shares the responsibility. Sarah is frustrated but reluctantly agrees. Home alone, the girls squabble over who should do the babysitting. As they struggle to come to a compromise, Sarah and Amy are oblivious of the fact that someone is watching them…

Elsewhere, Katy is in for a shock when she arrives at college to enroll. Discovering that she's not registered on the law course, Katy is stunned and dejected. Warren's outraged when Katy explains the error to him and marches over to HCC to sort things out. He fails to be able to win over the admin officer but Louise steps in and saves the day.

Danny is determined that Justin's days of moping over Katy are over. He tries everything he can to get Justin to cheer up but to no avail. Running out of ideas, Justin assures Danny that the only thing that will put a smile on his face is Katy – and he's going to get her back.

Wednesday september 26

Amy's blissfully unaware someone's watching her as she chats to Josh at school. She's pleased when it looks as though their relationship might be back on and is determined to try and cheer him up. Her good mood is dampened when Sarah announces that she's got to go away for a modelling job that's just too good to turn down. Spending another night alone, Amy is terrified when she hears the door slam. She spins round and comes face-to-face with a hooded figure…

Meanwhile, Rhys and Josh are shocked by the sight of a frail Hannah. They are consumed with guilt for letting things go this far and it's only a matter of time before they're all blaming each other. Suzanne begins to question herself and worries that she's let her daughter down. Hannah's furious with her family, thinking that they have betrayed her but Rhys and Josh vow to help her get better.

Elsewhere, Jake wants a quiet, romantic evening with Nancy but Russ warns him that it's Freshers' week and Nancy will want to party. Jake's confident that she will want to be home with him and Charlie. When he finds Nancy at the SU bar with Sarah and Danny, he's furious. Danny's amused that Jake's come to check up on Nancy but when she hears that Jake's planned a romantic meal for them she decides to head home. Finding himself alone with Sarah, Danny decides to make his move.

Thursday september 27

Amy is looking forward to her date with Josh. On her way to meet him she bumps into Ste. Ste tries to make amends with Amy but she's wary of him, unconvinced that he's changed. Fed up of waiting for Josh to turn up, Amy finds Ste and takes her frustrations out on him. She berates him for leaving her for dead in the car crash. Ste promises her that's he's changed and Amy begins to soften towards him. Josh desperately tries to find Amy to apologise but it looks like it may be too late.

Katy is stressed as she prepares for her first day at college. Warren teases her but Katy's in no mood for his jokes. John Paul is equally nervous as he prepares for college and when the two students run in to each other, Katy mistakes him for a sex pest. Warren is amused by Katy's first impression of John Paul and informs her that she's got it wrong – he's gay. Mortified, Katy and John Paul agree to a clean slate.

Jake is irritated when Nancy tells him that she's planning to go out with some mates from college. Worried that Nancy will be more interested in partying than him, Jake begins to get paranoid. His paranoia is heightened when he tries to call Nancy and a male voice answers the phone. Unsure exactly what Nancy is up to, Jake decides to go and find out for himself.

Friday september 28

Danny convinces Justin that the Freshers' Ball is the perfect opportunity to win Katy back. Justin is encouraged by Danny's optimism but his confidence wavers when he sees Katy heading to the ball with another man. He's determined to be on his best behaviour and pleads with Katy to forgive him.

Although Katy rebuffs him, she cannot get him out of her mind. Things are heating up at the party as a drunken Nancy lays into John Paul. Justin reluctantly intervenes and pulls John Paul away – just as Katy catches a glimpse of the fracas and gets the wrong end of the stick.

Meanwhile, Nancy persuades a reluctant Jake to go with her to the Freshers' Ball but she gets increasingly argumentative with each drink. When she spots Justin, she's aggravated by his presence and Jake has to stop her from going over and laying into her. As the evening progresses, Nancy can't stop herself and marches over to John Paul, disgusted with him for breaking her friend's heart. Justin comes over to break up the argument but Nancy cannot resist a parting barb at the hapless Justin.

Elsewhere, Tension is rife between Jess and Zoe after Jess stole Zoe's money. Jess is trying to deal with the trauma of not having a new dress for the ball when Zoe reveals the designer dress Darren has bought for her. Darren is in his element when they arrive at the ball but Jessica and Zoe just can't stop sniping at each other. Jess gets increasingly drunk and turns to Zak for a shoulder to cry on. When Jess 'accidentally' ruins Zoe's dress though, Zoe decides enough's enough.

Monday october 1

Amy throws a party while her family are away but she's worried when she finds out Michaela's posted invitations on the internet. As more and more guests arrive, Amy's not enjoying herself one bit, especially when Ste texts to say he's got nowhere to stay and is on his way over. As the party gets out of hand, Leah's in danger and Ste becomes Amy's hero.

Myra feels excluded from her kids' lives but puts on a front when she sees Frankie and books a table in The Dog for a family meal. The kids aren't happy about having their plans ruined but Myra's insistent. Carmel's thrilled when Frankie gives her two tickets for a luxury spa weekend courtesy of Evissa but finds she's got to make a difficult decision - which sister does she take. Myra's upset that her kids would rather be anywhere else but with her as one by one they leave the meal. Carmel's forced to cancel a drink with Russ to escort her upset mum home.

Nancy's embarrassed when she has to take a call from Jake in her lecture and she's not happy when she can hear him laughing with Russ in the background. Her lecturer isn't impressed and asks her to stay behind after class. Nancy's miffed when their talk revolves around Becca and she feels everything she does is going to be compared to her sister.

Zoe and Jessica are still at loggerheads and Kris has had enough. He locks them in Jessica's room to have it out and refuses to let them leave until they've made up. The girls aren't one bit happy about the situation but are forced to make amends after seeing footage of their behaviour on Zak's phone.

Thursday october 2

It's the usual chaos at the McQueen household as Carmel and Mercedes prepare for their trip. When John Paul complains about his mum smothering him, Katy reminds him how fortunate he his to have his creature comforts. John Paul's soon distracted from his woes when a new face attracts his attention. Summer has arrived and she's determined to make her mark on Hollyoaks. As John Paul embraces his student life, a lonely Myra is left to await his return.

Mercedes and Carmel get a surprise when they discover their spa holiday is actually a survival course. But it's not all bad as Mercedes sets her sights on Army instructor, Vic. Carmel and Mercedes get competitive as they take on the assault course and entertain the troops with a mud fight. Carmel's concerned for her sister but a grateful Mercedes chooses to ignore Carmel's unease as she heads off with Vic. Her close encounter with Vic only proves that she still loves Russ.

Steph's delight at speaking to Baywatch god David Hasselhoff is short-lived when she gets an unexpected soaking. Max's attempts to cheer up a forlorn Steph with a dance-off are a success until she has an epileptic seizure. Touched by his kindness and chivalry, Steph offers Max a peck on the cheek and the spark between them signals that this could be the start of something more.

Amy's fuming to find the devastation after last night's party and it's Ste who's on hand to help tidy up. A desperate Amy begs Ste to hide when Michaela drops by. Michaela makes clear her thoughts on Ste, not realising he's listening to every word. Ste rebukes Amy for not trusting him when he catches her checking the housekeeping kitty and Amy has to stop him from walking out - she likes having him around.

Wednesday october 3

John Paul's finding life increasingly claustrophobic living at home, it feels like Myra's breathing down his neck constantly. Tina attempts to intervene; however, this only upsets Myra when she declares that all she wants to do is look after him. Tina attempts to organise a 'snuggle time' rota with Dominic. Seizing the moment, they decide to take advantage of an empty house and find themselves having a 'snuggle' in John Paul's room - that is until they're rudely interrupted by John Paul and a new friend, Jay. With the arrival of Myra on the scene, tempers soon flare and a devastated Myra finds herself the root of the problem. As John Paul and Tina both decide to take drastic action, Myra's left alone, lamenting on where she went wrong.

With Russ firmly on her mind, Mercedes wants to get home and sort things out with him as soon as possible. After an encounter with some chickens, Carmel and Mercedes discover they're well and truly lost in the woods. The girls reminisce over their lives and lost loves, wondering if any of the McQueens will ever find true happiness. The conversation soon turns nasty, and as they bicker, Mercedes is furious when Carmel blurts out that she's glad Russ dumped her - she doesn't deserve him!

When the girls stumble onto a road and see an escape route ahead, tragedy strikes and Carmel finds herself the victim of a gun shot wound…fortunately, it's paint and they realise they've stumbled onto a paintballing course. As the thankful sisters head back to Hollyoaks, Carmel's forced to put her own feelings aside to help Mercedes get Russ back. However, Mercedes' world is rocked when Russ insists he no longer loves her - he's over her for good.

Steph's embarrassed in front of Max after yesterday's seizure but he soon puts her at ease. As things hot up over the juicer, Max is taken aback by his true feelings for Steph and realises he's fallen for her charms, hook line and sinker. However, Max struggles to explain himself to Steph and leaves her thinking they're just 'really good friends'.

John Paul's determined to live his own life as a ‘real' student and his new friend Summer is keen to offer her assistance. When John Paul attracts the eye of a lad in the SU bar, it's Summer who persuades him to live for the moment.

Thursday october 4

Myra puts on a brave face as Tina, Dominic and John Paul leave home but she's secretly going to miss having them around. Mercedes is devastated by Russ' rejection but decides to pull herself together and hit the town.

John Paul moves into halls when Jessica sees a potential financial gain in telling a little white lie and renting out Elliot's room but he soon realises that living away from home isn't all it's cracked up to be. Tina's delighted to have finally flown the nest and throws a housewarming party at Jacqui and Tony's. While the rest of the McQueens party, John Paul sits all alone, regretting his decision.

Steph's mortified after misreading the signs from Max yesterday whereas Max thinks things are looking up. After listening to Max go on about Steph all morning, O.B. has to tell him to get moving. He can't believe his friend's stupidity when he lets Danny go to Steph's rescue when a pump explodes in The Dog. After a little encouragement from O.B., Max takes charge of his life and heads off to tell Steph exactly how he feels.

Gilly returns to the Ashworths' but only seems to make matters worse. He's nervous about the reception he'll get but Rhys seems overly chirpy and determined to forget about what's happened. Unaware of the seriousness of Hannah's situation, Gilly puts his foot in it and upsets Suzanne. Rhys is forced to admit how wrong he was to accuse Gilly of touching Hannah. Rhys shows his genuine side as he opens up to Gilly about Hannah's illness.

Friday october 5

Max is annoyed with himself for missing the boat with Steph and Darren doesn't help matters. Realising she's got nothing better to do, Steph goes for a drink with Danny but he goes one step too far and blows any chance he might have had. O.B. spurs Max on to forget about Danny and talk to Steph. Max finally gets to tell Steph exactly how he feels about her.

Jacqui wakes with a hangover after last night's party but her thoughts are constantly on the baby she lost. Tony suggests a holiday might help them come to terms with things but when Jacqui ploughs ahead and decides on a date, he suddenly falls quiet - it would have been Grace's second birthday.

Jacqui struggles when she finds herself babysitting Charlie, while Tony's also slightly apprehensive. Jake's livid when he finds out Jacqui's been left in charge of his son and panic sets in when they find they're missing. But Jacqui's time alone with Charlie has made her realise one thing - and she's got a proposition for Tony.

Rhys is desperate to get tickets for The Vigours' gig and combines Gilly's driving lesson with going to pick them up. The lads come to blows and Rhys is left alone when Gilly stomps off to get the bus. Rhys isn't concentrating when he reverses the car and runs over a girl. After a frosty start in A & E, Rhys can't bear to let her go and writes his number on the back of one of the gig tickets.[/spoil]

I'm not sure if any of you have seen this but there is a new interview with Emma Rigby (Hannah Ashworth) on the Hollyoaks official site. Here it is if anyone wants to read it :bigsmile:

How old were you when you first decided you wanted to become an actress?

I think I wanted to act from the age of about three! I've always loved acting and I've always been the kind of person who you just can't shut up, so I think that it's great that I get to act - non-stop talking.

Are you anything like your character in real life?

No I'm nothing at all like my character. We're completely different, but I really enjoy playing somebody who's so different to me.

Has it been difficult playing someone who suffers from anorexia?

It has been quite a challenging role to play, because I’m not an expert on the topic. But I've done a lot of research to make sure I do the best job that I can. I've found it quite enjoyable in some respects though, because it's been great for me as an actor to have something I can get my teeth into performance-wise.

Have you found it hard tackling such a serious issue?

Yes it's been quite tough, especially with some of the scenes that have occurred such as Melissa's death, when Hannah is force-fed, and things like that. It has been challenging. Often I've come off set and felt really upset and sad because the scenes are quite distressing.

What do you do to switch off when you get home?

I usually switch off by going to the gym and becoming motivated because exercise makes you happy anyway. Or sometimes I just read a book and get an early night.

How has it been filming the episodes for this storyline? What have you found the most challenging?

The most challenging - or should I say the most upsetting - was probably the episode after Melissa's death when I was having scenes where Hannah thought that Melissa was still alive, and also when I was explaining to Nancy and Sarah why I was anorexic. I found those scenes really upsetting because I could imagine some people going through that. Suffering with anorexia and feeling that unhappy with themselves and that depressed that they have no one to turn to that that's what they feel like.

How did you get yourself into that frame of mind?

The script was fantastic and reading through the script made me upset anyway, and when I'm doing upsetting scenes I tend to think about things that make me upset and that I feel sad about and I use that emotion to do the scene.

Did you have to research into eating disorders before you started filming?

Yes I definitely did. I researched on the internet, had meetings with the Eating Disorder Association, and read several memoirs of people who'd suffered with anorexia.

Have you ever known anyone with an eating disorder?

Yes, some friends of mine suffered with anorexia and have now recovered so I've learnt from that experience and obviously a lot of people do know somebody that's suffered and I think that's something to take into account, how common it is. It's not something that happens to a minority it happens loads - one million people suffer from an eating disorder in the UK alone.

What advice would you give Hannah if you were the only person that she confided in about her eating disorder?

If Hannah confided in me about her eating disorder I’d have listened to her, because I think that's what people who suffer from the illness want, somebody to listen. I'd have taken into account how she feels but rather than tell her to starve herself as Melissa did, I would suggest that she gets professional help and encourage her to go to a doctor or call a helpline and try to think of solutions to help her stop feeling this way. But I think the best advice you can give is to get help and not to suffer in silence and not to be ashamed about the problem. And one of the things I'd have done with Hannah is make sure she admits that she has an eating disorder, rather than thinking it's normal to feel like this about food.

Did you have to lose weight to play the part or is it all make-up and effects?

No I didn't have to lose any weight to play the part, it's all make-up and effects. I have to sit through one and a half hours of make-up every morning and obviously there's lots of shading on my body and my face. I was never told to lose weight and never felt any pressure to lose weight. Also some of the clothes were baggy.

Did you mind wearing all that make-up?

No I didn't mind. Everyone would look at me and think 'oh my gosh you look absolutely awful' and say 'I couldn't do that' but to be honest it was fine because I was playing a part and your not really supposed to be yourself. The make-up did irritate my skin a bit and it was a great relief at the end of the day when I could take it off!

Are you concerned about your weight and food intake in real life?

I think as a young girl, I mean I'm only 17, and being in this industry where everything's about the way you look, I do feel a lot of pressure to look a certain way and worry about what I eat but I do try and eat healthily to make sure that I look the best that I can because I'm more concerned about having nice skin and nice hair, and you can't have that if your starving yourself.

Has playing your character made you more aware of eating disorders?

Well personally I was quite aware of eating disorders anyway because I'm a dancer and I've had experience with friends of mine, but it has made me more aware and has scared me. If I ever thought about going on an extreme diet like that, I wouldn't because I understand the effects through the research that I've done and it's upset me and made me very conscious of falling into that trap.

What kind of reaction have you had from viewers about the storyline?

I've had a great reaction from the viewers, that's one thing that I'm really pleased about. I was reading an email the other day from a person who suffered from anorexia all through their teenage years amd they are 24 now and have recovered. She was saying how realistic the character Hannah was as an anorexic and I found that really encouraging and I’m glad it was received in that way.

We never wanted to glamourise the issue of anorexia, and we showed the devastating effects. Hannah was depressed all the time, she looks physically awful, and her friend with the same illness actually died so we’ve shown the seriousness of the illness.

Are you happy that you had the chance to promote awareness of anorexia, and do you think the storyline will make a difference?

I was so honoured to be able to play the part, I was really pleased. I've got to say a big thank you to all the producers and things like that. However I couldn't say that the storyline will have a massive effect because there's only really so much we can do. In raising awareness of the issue I would like to think that we've done a good job because we've shown the audience the real anorexia and all the problems that come with it, which allows the audience to perhaps understand the illness a lot more. It also might have helped people who are suffering with the illness to get help, or for people to spot the signs of the illness if somebody they know is suffering.

What did you learn from doing this story?

I learnt a few things actually. I learnt that you need to be happy with yourself, and that you should be more aware of other people's feelings and think about what other people are going through because I know it's hard to understand sometimes why somebody does something, like Josh said 'I don't understand, why can't she just eat?' but it’s not as simple as that. We have to be tolerant of other people and remember that it's not a way, it’'s not a choice. They're psychologically ill when they have anorexia.

If you ever got asked to shave your hair (like Britney Spears) for a storyline, would you do it?

Well, for a storyline in HOLLYOAKS maybe not! Mind you if I was going to do a film and they said you have to shave your head for the role I would. So HOLLYOAKS no, but Hollywood yes!

Who is your best friend out of the cast and why?

Oooh, I wouldn't say I have one best friend in the cast, I have a lot of good friends. I'm particularly good friends with Roxy who plays Louise, she's a great laugh and a really lovely girl. I've also become really friendly with Carla who plays Melissa because we were working so close together and had a good giggle on set. I really miss her now that she's not here. She comes from London so she's gone to live back there but we still keep in touch and we went on holiday a few weeks ago together so that was nice. We went to Marbella for a week, it was really good. Then Roxy came out for a few days so we met up with her which was nice.

I also get on with Hannah (Katy), Jess (Nancy) and Loui (Sarah) – well, all the cast really!

Are there any of the cast that you fancy or have already dated?

No I'm not dating any of the cast! It's weird because when you work with someone you don't tend to fancy them. They're all gorgeous and if I wasn't in the show I'd probably like to date all of them!

A lot of people email in all the time asking for tips on how to get a job in a show like HOLLYOAKS. Do you have any advice about how to get into acting?

It's so easy to get into things like this, all you have to do is be motivated. I think first of all you need to start taking drama classes, get as much experience as you can in a local dramatics society or at school. School plays is a great way of building up your confidence, and then try and get into an agency. By getting an agent you can then go for auditions such as HOLLYOAKS and other soaps and other TV things.

If you gave up acting, which career would you choose?

When I was younger I used to want to be a pathologist, but now the idea of University doesn't appeal to me. But I would quite like to be a writer, I'm really into creative writing.

Any other plans?

I'm in HOLLYOAKS for a bit now, but eventually I'd love to do films. I love the idea of having loads of different roles and playing a part where you have to change dramatically and have a different accent or something. Because when you're playing a character in a soap you play the same person all the time, so although my character's gone through a lot of changes, I'm still Hannah.