'Hollyoaks' Jazmine Franks talks new Esther Bloom plot - interview

[Perdita]

Hollyoaks student Esther Bloom enjoys a lucrative opportunity next week as she becomes an intern at fashion magazine Company.

Esther travels down to London for the placement alongside sixth-former George Smith (Steven Roberts), feeling excited and nervous about the challenges ahead.

While George embarks on an office romance with fellow intern Ryan, Esther nearly ends her career by ruining a fashion piece.

Digital Spy recently chatted to Jazmine Franks, who plays Esther, to hear about the storyline and her character's future.

What was it like to film these special Company magazine episodes?
"It was so much fun. Obviously we went down to London to film them, so that was really good. It was tiring too, because we had to fit so much in, but we really enjoyed it and it was a laugh. I was running around Carnaby Street in my heels in the rain at one point!

"Filming the episodes, I got on really well with Steven, who plays George. And it was a nice change for us to be in a completely different set and a completely different environment."

How does Esther feel about taking the trip to London?
"I'd say she's pretty nervous. For Esther, this is massive and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her. This isn't ever going to come round again, so she is nervous but also a little bit excited. She's probably over the moon that she's got George to go down there with, so she's not doing it by herself."

Does Esther make a good first impression at the magazine?
"Esther never finds it easy to fit in, whatever she does! She turns up on her first day at the magazine, but she's chosen completely the wrong clothes. Even though they all work for a fashion magazine, the staff are wearing clothes which are quite casual and practical.

"But Esther turns up in high heels and a skirt - she's wearing jewellery too, and she has her hair and make-up done. She sticks out like a sore thumb!"

Do Esther and George have any rivalry as they settle in at the magazine?
"The two characters are both very sure of themselves, but I wouldn't say there's any rivalry. There's a little bit of jealousy when Esther gets to go to a fashion shoot, and then again when George gets to go off and do a style shoot. So there's a bit of jealousy, but I think they also make a great team."

Esther also makes a terrible mistake, doesn't she?
"She does! She couldn't just go and do everything properly and come out with a gold star, could she? She had to mess something up! So she takes a one-off piece which is needed for a style shoot the next day, she wears it and then she rips it…"

Does she tell the truth about what happened?
"Yeah, she does have to confess to what she's done. I don't think she's a very good liar, so I think even if she tried to make up a story, she'd get caught out! She confesses everything and it doesn't go very well…"

Is George angry with her?
"He doesn't shout or anything, but he's not impressed by what's happened. He's just thinking, 'Oh, Esther, not again! You've messed something up again!'"

Does Esther play any part in George's romance storyline with Ryan?
"Oh, she meddles - of course she does. She gets involved, sticks her oar in and tells them what she thinks they should do. She tries to give advice, but it usually backfires!"

Are you interested in fashion in real life?
"No, I'm completely different to Esther. Don't get me wrong, I love shopping and I love clothes, but I'll just stick on a pair of trackies and a jumper. I'm not bothered at all - I wish I was. Maybe I'll start becoming interested in fashion!"

What's coming up next for Esther?
"Well, Esther has finished school so she'll be going to the Hollyoaks sixth form. I don't really know what we can expect from Esther, but hopefully there'll be a storyline there for her.

"I hope she goes on being the way she is. I love how Esther is written for by the writers - she is sure of herself and she's not bothered that she stands out. She doesn't want to fit in with the sixth-formers."

Esther seems to be one of the few characters who isn't under Maddie's spell…
"I love that Esther's the only one who sees Maddie for who she is. At the same time though, Maddie can be a total cow to her, but Esther will still try to see the best in her. You'll see that in the Abersoch episodes that are coming up later this month."

As Esther is part of the Abersoch episodes, does that mean she's becoming one of the gang?
"Esther goes to Abersoch mainly because she's got this friendship with George now - they've become quite close. She does like being with the sixth-formers when she's there, but she wouldn't be bothered if she wasn't!"

Esther's romance with Tilly went wrong, so would you like to see another love interest for her?
"I would absolutely love for Esther to have a love interest. One that doesn't last for just a week this time! I'd really like that. It'd be a challenge for me, and I think it'd make the audience warm to her more as well."

How are you finding your time at Hollyoaks in general? Has the show changed things for you?
"I absolutely love being here. It hasn't really changed things that much for me, apart from the fact that I now live in Liverpool. But I still have my friends at home, and I still go home and see them a lot.

"The main change is that I'm now at work when I'd been at university in Leeds beforehand. I was lying in bed until midday most days - now I have to get up at 6.30am to be in work for 7.30am!"

How did you get the part?
"I'd been auditioning for roles since I was young. The audition for Hollyoaks came up, but afterwards I didn't hear anything for a couple of weeks. Then I got a recall for the part, so I came up and then I didn't hear anything for another five weeks.

"That was quite a long time, so I just brushed it under the carpet and thought that I hadn't got the part. I got my head down at university, got back into my work and then I just got the phone call saying, 'We need you to come for hair and make-up fittings in three days' time!'"

Esther seems to be one of the teens that the audience really likes, so you must be pleased with the reaction to her.
"I really like the reactions the audience have to Esther. I think she is so real and she is like a normal teenager. She's average - she's not a cow, she's not overly nice, she's just normal and I think that's why people can relate to her a lot more."

Is there a dream storyline you'd love to play?
"I'd be grateful for anything! I'd love Esther to have a love interest, to do well in fashion at college and I'd love for there to be more family stuff with the Osbornes, because I absolutely love working with Helen and Jimmy."

[tammyy2j]

I really sorry for her with the bullying of Maddie and her mean girls pals Sinead and Ruby who I am surprised at as she lives with Esther

[Perdita]

Hollyoaks bosses are launching a special online project to tie in with Esther Bloom's ongoing bullying storyline.

Esther, played by Jazmine Franks, is currently experiencing a tough time at sixth form college as her so-called friends continue to tease and isolate her.

The plot develops further this week as fellow student Dylan Shaw (Mikey Riddington-Smith) innocently creates his own micro-blogging site DocYou to enter a filmmaking competition.

When the other sixth formers begin to misuse Dylan's creation, it soon becomes a public forum to broadcast humiliating content about Esther, which makes her situation even more unbearable.

Hollyoaks are now teaming up with Channel 4 Education and Beatbullying to bring the fictional micro-blogging site online for real. DocYou will allow viewers to further explore the emotional storyline through a range of exclusive content, including videos, photos and text posts.

Show chiefs hope that the project will help to highlight the impact of social media on everyday life - including the issues of cyber bullying, privacy and the pitfalls of revealing too much online.

A Hollyoaks statement said: "The project is supported by Beatbullying and will explore the impact of social media on everyday life, and what happens when somebody is constantly picked on in small ways.

"This ground-breaking initiative will add a whole new level of depth to the story and highlight how easy it is to miss what is really happening on a site full of seemingly benign content, and how this content can become an additional source of bullying for some people."

Content will also include behind-the-scenes videos of the Hollyoaks cast talking about the issues raised and their own experiences with bullies.

Additionally, Hollyoaks will work with Beatbullying offline on a series of other initiatives, which will see some cast members train and shadow as cyber mentors to raise awareness of the issues involved.

Esther's bullying storyline launched in May but has become more serious in recent weeks as Maddie Morrison (Scarlett Bowman), Sinead O'Connor (Stephanie Davis) and Ruby Button (Anna Shaffer) have been making her life a misery at college.

It has now been confirmed that the story will develop "right through to the New Year", leaving Esther in a lonely and desperate situation as the 'teasing' worsens.

Hollyoaks' executive producer Bryan Kirkwood commented: "Hollyoaks has always had a youth focus and we never shy away from tackling difficult youth issues. I am really proud of this story and how it realistically approaches bullying, which is so relevant to our audience."

Channel 4 Education editor Gemma Brady added: "We are delighted to be working with Hollyoaks on this project. The show has a strong track record of tackling difficult issues and feels like the perfect home to explore the complexities of bullying in a connected age."

DocYou will go live tomorrow evening (October 25) at 7pm after the Channel 4 airing of Hollyoaks.

[Perdita]

Hollyoaks' Jazmine Franks became one of our favourite soap stars this year as her character Esther Bloom took centre stage in a heartbreaking bullying storyline.

Franks's performances in the emotional plot have now been recognised in the 2013 Inside Soap Awards longlist, where she is in the running for the 'Best Actress' prize.

In the first of a series of Inside Soap Awards interviews, Digital Spy recently caught up with Jazmine to hear her reaction to the nod and what's coming up for Esther.

How do you feel about being in the running for an Inside Soap Award?
"It was completely unexpected. I never thought that I'd be up for 'Best Actress' at all, so I'm over the moon. It's pretty big, so I'm a bit giddy about it!"

How do you rate your chances?
"To be honest, I'm just pleased with the nomination - I've not even thought about winning the award. I'm up against some really tough competition, so just to get the nomination is brilliant."

You must be pleased that there are quite a few nods for the Osborne clan this year…
"Definitely. This year for the Osbornes has been completely manic. Jess Fox is absolutely brilliant, so it's overwhelming to be up against her for 'Best Actress'. It's also brilliant that the story of Sienna trying to steal Nancy's life is up for 'Best Storyline'. I'm gripped watching those scenes myself at the moment!"

Do you think Hollyoaks can continue its recent awards success at the ISAs?
"I really hope so, because the show has gone from strength to strength. We were an underdog at the British Soap Awards this year, but we came away with five prizes. We've been pumping so much effort and energy into the show, and I think that's really paying off with what's on screen. I'm really enjoying being here, and it's the same for the rest of the cast too. There's a great buzz."

Your main storyline this year has been Esther's bullying ordeal. How do you look back on the filming of those scenes?
"It was very intense. While filming it, you kind of go into autopilot. You come into work, you do what you've got to do and then you go home. However, when I watched the story on screen and read everyone's feedback, it was just phenomenal. People really bought into the storyline, and that's exactly what I wanted.

"I think bullying is such a big issue. It's everywhere - and it affects both adults and children because it can happen in the workplace as well as in schools. That's probably why the story was such a big hit."

The storyline boosted Hollyoaks' ratings and also led to an increase in the number of young people seeking help over bullying. Did the impact take you by surprise?
"It was genuinely a huge surprise. I knew that we had a few charities on board who were helping with the storyline, including BeatBullying and Samaritans, so I did expect some sort of impact but I never expected it to be so big.

"I know that a lot of young people were contacting the charities and mentioning our storyline, so we got people opening up about bullying. It was incredible to think that we did that. Still to this day, people contact me to say that the storyline helped them, which is really nice to hear."

Do you give advice to fans who are in the same situation as Esther?
"It's a massive responsibility, so I usually just point them in the direction of BeatBullying's cyber mentors or the Samaritans, as they're the experts who people should really be talking to. I always try to help, but I would never want to give someone the wrong advice, so it's best to tell people about the professionals who can help."


© Lime Pictures
Esther's bullying storyline


Are you surprised that Esther has been able to forgive her bullies?
"I think it's nice that Esther has been able to move on, as it shows people that you can grow from a situation like that. Yes it was a massive deal what they did to Esther, but she's not holding a grudge and it shows once again that she's the bigger person. Esther and Ruby have always had a love/hate relationship, and Ruby now realises that what she did was wrong. With Sinead, she always seems to be around and Esther can't get rid of her!"

Are you pleased that Esther and Tilly have finally got together?
"I am, and I think a lot of people were willing it to happen. To finally see them happy together is brilliant. Esther always had a place for Tilly in her heart and that's been going on now for two years. Now that they're together at last, I've had a lot of response from people on Twitter who are saying, 'Finally - thank God they're together!"'

Do you think they have a long-term future?
"Definitely. They're like best mates, and I think relationships should always start with two people being such good friends. With Tilly and Esther, they already know each other so well, which hopefully means they can make it work."


© Lime Pictures
Tilly and Esther


Tilly has now finished at sixth form, while Esther has another year there. Could that cause some problems between them?
"It could do! Esther doesn't want to be left alone and she doesn't want to be forgotten about. She certainly has some hang-ups and insecurities about it. However, deep down, I think Esther knows that Tilly would never leave her like that. Hopefully it will work out fine."

Can we expect more tension between Esther and Sienna?
"Definitely. I think Esther and Sienna rub each other up the wrong way all the time. Esther always seems to be there when Sienna doesn't want her to be, so we'll definitely see more from that. I'd love for Esther to be involved in Sienna's comeuppance. I've been screaming at the TV while watching the storyline, as it's so frustrating that so many people are fooled by Sienna!"

How do you feel about being part of Hollyoaks Later this year?
"I never, ever thought that my character would be in Hollyoaks Later, so I'm absolutely over the moon to be involved as it's so much fun. It's something completely different, which is always nice. We're filming it at the moment and it's all going well. It's a bit more fast-paced than filming the main show, although there is more time to plan when it comes to the scripts."

Is Esther's Later storyline going to be as frightening as we've heard?
"It's pretty chilling! I can't give much away, but nothing ever runs smoothly for Esther, does it?"

[lizann]

talk of her and baby dying, anyone know if she is leaving?

[Perdita]

Hollyoaks spoiler – Esther dumps Kim
Esther Bloom makes some big life decisions in next week’s Hollyoaks after she’s released from hospital following her shooting.
As Kim Butterfield rushes off to plan a surprise for her home coming, as she’s leaving the room, Esther spots one of her memory post-its on the bottom of her shoe.
Kim doesn’t read it, but Esther is shocked to see it’s one that she wrote yesterday and it reads ‘Grace says she’s in love with me. But do I love her?’.
Meanwhile, Kim’s surprise is that she’s rented Dirk and Cindy’s old flat for them both, but Esther is torn about her feelings for Grace Back.
Esther’s taken aback by Kim’s surprise and brings her world crashing down around her when she breaks the news to her that they’re over – does this pave the way for Grace?

[olivia1896]

lots of people were saying she dies??

[lizann]

liam kdnaps esther

[Perdita]

http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/holl...e-franks-exit/

She is leaving Hollyoaks

[lizann]

be good if she gets darcy caught out before she leaves