Hollyoaks star Anna Passey addresses backlash to controversial Sienna storyline

Hollyoaks prima Anna Passey has addressed the controversial determination to ‘retcon’ Sienna Blake’s terrific backstory.

Sienna, arsenic viewers know, was introduced arsenic the girl of disturbed Patrick (Jeremy Sheffield), whose controlling and manipulative ways proved instrumental successful forging her into the TV fable she is today.

Earlier this year, however, bosses decided to retcon this incredibly layered storyline successful bid to introduce a caller question of the Blake dynasty, including an estranged ‘uncle’ named Jeremy, who was Patrick’s duplicate brother.

Jeremy – played by erstwhile bid prima Jeremy Sheffield – was thought to beryllium a amusive and loving uncle, but it turned retired that helium was adjacent much twisted than Patrick, which didn’t spell down excessively good with fans.

The bigger disappointment, however, came successful the signifier of the aforementioned retcon, with bosses deciding to re-write Sienna’s parentage, with a twist confirming that Jeremy was really Sienna’s biologic begetter – not Patrick.

The communicative alteration was criticised by ardent fans of the amusement – understandably so, fixed the hard narration Sienna shared with Patrick and the interaction it had connected her. But conscionable what does Anna – who knows Sienna amended than anyone – deliberation of the decision?

‘I was with the assemblage connected it’, she admitted successful an exclusive interrogation with Metro.co.uk. ‘When I work [about Jeremy’s introduction] I thought: “Great, this is brilliant. We get different chapter. We get to spot this warm, unfastened gardener. What’s helium going to bring retired of Sienna?’

‘It’s besides a truly large mode to delve backmost into the history. The fans that were determination – it’s staggering the details they retrieve of that story, they cognize that household histrion arsenic good arsenic I do, and I did it – and I love that.

‘But I besides felt a bit… cheated is the incorrect word, but similar thing was taken away. I felt a spot robbed of thing and I was precise confused by [the changes], due to the fact that I thought: “Why americium I having such a beardown absorption to it?

‘I sat down and thought astir it. It made maine consciousness similar the past didn’t hap but really erstwhile you deliberation astir it that’s nonsense due to the fact that Patrick was the father. He fathered Sienna, didn’t he? She is lone who she is due to the fact that of Patrick.

‘Of people if she’s had Jez she’d person been a precise antithetic idiosyncratic but I don’t deliberation we’d person wanted that – I deliberation we’d privation the 1 we got! In a mode you’re weirdly grateful that Patrick raised her, though that’s an atrocious happening to accidental due to the fact that she’d person had a overmuch nicer clip with a bully dancing successful the room man.

‘I was disquieted it changed past but erstwhile you deliberation astir it, it doesn’t alteration anything. It conscionable gives america a caller accidental to spot a antithetic side. So – astatine that constituent – I felt astatine bid with it. But I was funny to spot the audience’s reaction, but erstwhile they got that absorption I wasn’t truly precise surprised.

‘People person immoderate ownership of it, they attraction astir it – and they’re invested successful it. What much could you want?

‘It was specified a bully communicative “back successful the olden days” and I would promote anyone who hasn’t watched it to spell backmost and spot immoderate of those large Sienna and Patrick episodes. It’s specified a affluent communicative and you get a batch much of the character.’ 

It wasn’t conscionable that Patrick is nary longer Sienna’s begetter that left fans up successful arms but besides the information that this retcon means that Dilly Harcourt (Emma Johnsey-Smith) is nary longer her sister.

Dilly being Sienna’s biologic sibling was a retcon successful and of itself and – dissimilar the Patrick/Jeremy re-write – viewers seemed to truly get connected committee with that one, truthful losing this newfound sisterly transportation came arsenic different stroke to audiences.

Discussing this constituent of the retcon, Anna told me: ‘I deliberation for Sienna, Dilly is her small sister nary substance what. You tin telephone it what you privation but the narration is the same.

‘And with Liberty, that narration is specified a beauteous thing, it truly changed Sienna. Liberty is specified an indispensable different fractional of Sienna, really. And Dilly, she’s got this innocence and this younker astir her, it makes specified a batch of sense.

‘You request to spot Sienna with idiosyncratic other to assistance her on the way. She’s conscionable added this beauteous axenic broadside to the Blakes.

‘You cognize elephants erstwhile they enactment the small 1 successful the mediate to look aft it? I consciousness similar that’s what we’re each similar astir Dilly and Emma [Johnsey-Smith]. We emotion her arsenic a quality and we emotion her arsenic an actress. She’s brought thing truly beauteous to the Blake family. They’re cousins, officially, but always a small sister.’ 

But portion this twist near fans with small to grin about, different much uplifting 1 came in the signifier of an unexpected reunion for Sienna and 1 existent emotion Ethan Williams (Matthew James Bailey).

Fans person been begging bosses to enactment the mates – 1 of the show’s astir fashionable ever – backmost unneurotic for astir a twelvemonth present so, pursuing Hollyoaks’ historical clip jump, viewers person yet got their wish.

Viewers aren’t the lone ones delighted by the improvement arsenic Anna – who has agelong voiced her enactment for Ethenna – was very blessed to spot happiness connected the cards for the couple.

‘They were conscionable opening erstwhile they ruined it [with the Rafe story],’ she said. ‘Looking back, I privation we’d had a spot much of them earlier that happened – but we didn’t! So it is bully to beryllium getting adjacent to it now.’

Anna revisited each of Sienna’s erstwhile flames during our chat and, overmuch similar the fans, she came to the decision that Ethan is her soulmate.

Hollyoaks streams Mondays to Wednesdays from 7am on Channel 4’s streaming platform, oregon drawback episodes connected TV astatine 7pm connected E4.

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