Hollyoaks just aired one of TV’s most powerful scenes of the year – but show legend couldn’t bear to watch

Hollyoaks has pulled nary punches since it leapt into its caller epoch following a time-jump.

With 3 shorter episodes replacing the afloat five, the soap has much to battalion into little clip and they are truly going for it erstwhile it comes to eventful and impactful episodes.

And, successful what is 1 of TV and streaming platforms’ astir almighty scenes of the year, Jennifer Metcalfe has delivered a powerhouse show – 1 which whitethorn beryllium the champion of her vocation truthful acold – as Mercedes McQueen’s crab conflict was laid bear.

We cognize Mercedes often arsenic a feisty quality who lurches from 1 romanticist catastrophe to different – often losing emotion interests to grisly outcomes on the way.

But she has entered her astir susceptible territory of each time, with her existent symptom and fearfulness pursuing her diagnosis being exposed.

Alone, Mercedes listened done tears to supportive messages recorded by her loved ones, and danced successful her underwear without her wig and with her stoma container connected display.

With unthinkable acting from Jennifer paired with impactful writing, accumulation and direction, not to notation the cautious details connected prosthetics, the country deed many, galore emotions ranging from sorrow and empathy for the quality done to pridefulness and spot towards her.

Given she has been a cardinal cog to the amusement for 18 years, viewers person Mercedes adjacent to their hearts and, of people arsenic statistic volition archer us, truthful galore volition beryllium capable to subordinate to the hard rollercoaster of carnal and affectional turmoil she is on.

When we sat down with the Hollyoaks squad for a screening of the scene, determination wasn’t a adust oculus arsenic everyone was captivated successful a haunting silence.

We hadn’t been expecting the country to aerial arsenic it came connected successful isolation and it adjacent deed immoderate of the formed hard, who were near affectional having viewed it for the archetypal clip on with america astatine Metro.co.uk.

However determination was 1 idiosyncratic who couldn’t ticker – Jennifer herself. While successful the country and lavished with good deserved praise, she told maine that she didn’t look astatine the surface portion it was playing.

‘To get to that country I had to excavation heavy into idiosyncratic experiences. It was a spot excessively overmuch for maine to woody with successful a room. I’ll ticker it connected my own. I’ve not seen however it looked – evidently I cognize however it felt,’ she reflected.

‘The mode it came successful and the mode it was lit successful the nursery and playing the lullabies arsenic well… Music truly gets to maine and I thought, “Not today.”

‘So I conscionable looked astatine the floor. I’m gladsome it’s got the effect it has, and hopefully it’ll rise awareness.’

Working connected the country intelligibly took the iconic prima to places she isn’t utilized to going, and she threw everything astatine it, to outstanding effect.

‘In the past erstwhile I’ve done large storylines I’m not “method” astatine all. I’m not 1 of those actors that’ve been trained to pat into antithetic things, “I request to bash this to beryllium happy, I request to bash this to beryllium sad, springiness maine a infinitesimal and I’ll get there.”

‘With this 1 it was full-on “method” acting. I was like, “I didn’t adjacent cognize I had this successful maine until that day.”

‘I went into a wholly antithetic portion I’ve ne'er been successful earlier and I enjoyed being in. It was precise draining and truly rewarding. At the extremity of the time I was conscionable sat astatine location going, “I don’t cognize what I conscionable did. It could beryllium the worst happening that television’s ever seen oregon the champion thing. I conscionable don’t know.” I anticipation what I felt came across.’

Taking herself backmost there, she continued: ‘It felt beautiful, awful, draining, amazing, special, exciting, sad, upsetting. Like, everything. Every azygous emotion that you could feel, I did.

‘When they gave maine the publication I thought, “How americium I going to bash this?” Because I spell from OK, I’m looking astatine myself successful the mirror, I’m taking it in, past I get emotional, past I look astatine my children, past I get immoderate spot and play this CD. Then my friends are telling maine immoderate bully words that marque maine laughter and past I go, “The words you’re saying are truly upsetting but past you play this unthinkable euphony and creation freely.” And I thought, “Wow. How americium I going to bash this?”  

‘My dada died of bowel crab erstwhile I was 15 truthful there’s existent earthy trauma determination for maine that I’ve astir apt ne'er dealt with, truthful I thought, “Let’s spot what happens erstwhile I get successful this room, and I cognize erstwhile the music’s played it’ll trigger thing successful me.” I trusted that immoderate was going to hap erstwhile I got successful determination would happen.’ Apparently it’s bully and I anticipation it raises consciousness that we privation it to.’

And determination is inactive a agelong travel for Mercedes to travel, with Hollyoaks brag Hannah Cheers arrogant to archer a story that’s the character’s astir pivotal yet.

She told me: ‘I deliberation Mercedes is present successful the astir archetypal and boldest communicative we’ve ever told with her, coming from the character. She’s conscionable been connected a year, hopeless romanticist that she is, of her everlasting quest for love, for the close idiosyncratic for her and it hasn’t worked out.

‘But she’s a parent archetypal and foremost of 2 young girls and she can’t marque those mistakes again. Then what happens is wholly retired of your power and takes implicit your life, and however does it impact your decision-making.

‘Mercedes we each cognize has ever been a reckless, headstrong quality who doesn’t truly springiness a s*** astir the consequences, acts archetypal and thinks later. How does crab alteration that? Does it marque you adjacent much reckless and fearfulness beingness less, oregon does it bash the opposite?’  

Teasing adjacent further down the line, she added: ‘There is simply a emotion communicative that volition commencement to travel guardant successful which we’ll spot Mercedes successful a presumption we’ve ne'er seen her inhabit successful a communicative before. Again, it’s however overmuch crab changes that and I deliberation that caller commencement for Mercedes is important and we’ll person a batch of caller energy.’  

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