Walker

[tammyy2j]

Hollyoaks newcomer Neil Newbon has teased that his character Walker's storyline will be "quite revolutionary".

Walker made his first appearance on the Channel 4 soap last month and he will return to screens in a few days' time, causing Cheryl Brady to fear that her brother Brendan is up to no good again.


Brendan (Emmett Scanlan) and Walker previously spent time in prison together, now sharing both a rivalry and a mutual respect.

Newbon told Inside Soap of Walker's future: "I'm so excited about what's in store. Walker is a very unusual character for Hollyoaks, and his story is going to be quite revolutionary."

He continued: "It's something the audience won't have seen before."

Offering his take on Brendan and Walker's sparring, Newbon added: "They have a volatile dynamic because they're so similar in many ways. Walker thinks Brendan is far and away the most impressive person he's ever come up against, and has a lot of respect for him.

"They're always working in parallel, whether it's together or against one another. They are each other's shadows."

As seen in the latest Hollyoaks picture preview, Joel Dexter (Andrew Still) will soon decide to do some detective work by finding out more about Walker.

Beyond that, magazine reports have revealed that Lynsey Nolan (Karen Hassan) will also become curious about Walker, doing some digging of her own when she realises that there may be a mystery connection between him and Amy Barnes's Australian boyfriend Ally (Dan O'Connor).

[tammyy2j]

Twitter

"@NeilNewbon: It has been a privilege to work and play with all at Lime pictures - cast and crew alike. Much love to you all . NN ( exits via side door) x"

[Perdita]

Channel 4 has been rapped by Ofcom over Simon Walker's violent exit from Hollyoaks.

Earlier this year, viewers saw Walker (Neil Newbon) killed by a speeding train during a brutal fight with his arch-nemesis Brendan Brady at the side of a railway.

Ofcom investigated the episode after one viewer complained that the dramatic scenes were unsuitable for broadcast before the watershed, particularly as children could have been watching.

The episode in question, which aired on March 19 in a 6.30pm slot, was the climax to a long-running feud between Walker and Brendan (Emmett Scanlan). It was also a key part of Brendan's memorable exit week.

Channel 4 defended the scenes by pointing out that the "tense" plot had been running for approximately a year, so the violent sequence "represented the culmination of that storyline, and there was an expectation from viewers that there would be a dramatic end to such a complex tense relationship".

The broadcaster explained that discussions took place between various parties at Channel 4 and production company Lime Pictures to ensure that the episode complied with the broadcasting code.

Additionally, Channel 4 argued that the violence was signposted with on-air continuity announcements and within the script itself. It also suggested that one complaint from a potential audience of 1.2 million viewers represented "a negligible percentage of the total viewing audience".

However, Ofcom upheld the complaint and recorded breaches of two rules, deciding that the episode was unsuitable for the timeslot and the violent material was not justified by the context.

The media watchdog said: "In Ofcom's view, the signposting within the programme did not minimise sufficiently the cumulative impact of this aggressive and physical fight scene followed by the unexpected and shocking death of Walker in front of the train.

"In this case, it is Ofcom's view that this scene was both violent and shocking and had the potential to distress younger viewers, as well as raise concerns about the level of violence amongst parents watching with their children, regardless of the editorial context presented or the signposting provided. For all these reasons Ofcom considered that it was unsuitable for children."

The statement added: "Ofcom acknowledged that regular Hollyoaks viewers would have been aware of the circumstances surrounding this storyline and the nature of these characters and, given this context, a final dramatic and even fatal showdown between these two bitter rivals would not have been entirely unexpected.

"However, although Hollyoaks is not made specifically for children, the BARB data indicated that this episode attracted a significant child audience, particularly in the 4 to 9 age group.

"For these reasons - and other relevant ones set out above under Rule 1.3 when concluding that the material was not appropriately scheduled - Ofcom's view was that this violent content was not justified by the context."