Hollyoaks Confirms Late Night Special

Hollyoaks bosses have confirmed plans for a one-off late-night special which is due to air on Channel 4 next month.

Show regulars Claire Cooper (Jacqui McQueen), Andy Moss (Rhys Ashworth) and Anthony Quinlan (Gilly Roach) will be among the stars taking centre stage in the bonus edition of the teen soap, which is to feature a dark storyline centring around Darren Day's dangerous character Danny Houston.

The drama kicks off when returnee Kathleen McQueen (Alison Burrows) threatens to report daughter Theresa (Jorgie Porter) to the police after discovering the truth about Calvin Valentine's murder. In return for her silence, she demands £2,000 - leaving her screen family facing a big predicament.

Later, Danny catches Jacqui and Rhys cheating during a game of poker in a bid to raise some funds. Furious that the pair have tried to double cross him, Danny immediately orders them to hand over the money they stole and more.

However, with his feelings for Jacqui still running strong, Danny also makes a second sinister suggestion - vowing to wipe the debt clean if he can have one night with the feisty barmaid.

Desperate to save Jacqui from having to sleep with the gangster, Rhys and Gilly team up with the McQueens to find a way to raise the cash. They also seek help from menacing Brendan Brady (Emmett Scanlan), who is brought in to con his old friend as the plot thickens.

As the action reaches a climax, Rhys and Gilly kidnap Danny's drug runner Sophia - but end up in a desperate situation when she turns a gun on them. Meanwhile, Jacqui finds herself surrounded by Danny's heavies and is forced to strip at knife point - will she be saved in time?

The one-off episode sees special guest star Donna Air take on the role of Sophia. Speaking of her casting, she commented: "I am thrilled to join the cast of Hollyoaks for the late night special. The cast and crew have been so welcoming, and I'm excited to be part of such a hit show. The storyline is great fun and I love playing the role of Sophia, she's brilliant."

Hollyoaks' late-night special - titled 'King of Hearts' - airs on Thursday, December 16 on Channel 4 and has been tipped to spark a big new storyline that will affect the lives of the characters involved forever.

why do i get the feeling Jacqui's going to get raped?

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Originally Posted by Bryan

why do i get the feeling Jacqui's going to get raped?

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Yes I think will happen also

Could be a good stoyrline for Jacqui as Claire is a great actress (something Hollyoaks dont have many of imo)

Hollyoaks' forthcoming late-night special 'King of Hearts' will be broadcast a day earlier than originally planned, it has been announced.

The one-off 'bubble' episode had been expected to air on Thursday, December 16 at 10pm on Channel 4 - but it will now transmit on Wednesday, December 15 in the same timeslot.

As revealed earlier this month, the after-dark edition will centre around the characters of Jacqui McQueen (Claire Cooper), Rhys Ashworth (Andy Moss) and Gilly Roach (Anthony Quinlan) as they find themselves at the centre of a dark storyline involving the dangerous gangster Danny Houston (Darren Day).

Gilly and Rhys taking on a gangster - dumb and dumber

There's a surprise in store for Theresa in Hollyoaks when her scheming mum Kathleen arrives back in the village unexpectedly.

Following the trouble that Kathleen caused last time she visited the McQueens, Theresa bluntly asks her mother for an explanation of why she's back.

Kathleen's return will ultimately see her blackmailing the family after she discovers Theresa's guilt over Calvin, sparking the shocking events which take place in Hollyoaks' upcoming late-night special.

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These scenes air on Wednesday, December 8 at 6.30pm on Channel 4.

Jacqui McQueen takes centre stage in Hollyoaks next week as she faces a traumatic time in late-night special 'King of Hearts'. With Kathleen's demands for cash leaving her family in crisis, Jacqui recruits boyfriend Rhys to help raise the funds by scamming dangerous Danny Houston in a poker game. However, when Danny discovers the hapless plot, things get much worse for the pair as he orders them to repay the debt and more, leading to some sinister threats and terrible danger... Claire Cooper, who plays Jacqui, recently spoke to DS about the special episode.

When did you first hear that you'd be at the centre of this Hollyoaks special?
"We heard about it a few months ago and I was really excited but I didn't know what my involvement would be at first. As the weeks and months progressed, I heard that I would be quite heavily featured in it, but I still didn't know how much until I got the script. Normally in a script we get about 40 lines or 60 on a good day, but I had 147 lines! That's quite a lot for an episode, so I was really chuffed and felt very flattered and privileged to be given the opportunity to do so much."

Kathleen's return sparks the whole storyline - how does Jacqui feel about her being back?
"She hates her with a passion - her worst enemy ever has been dragged back! It's funny and comedic at times, but then it can get deadly serious. Kathleen's threatening to reveal the truth about Theresa being Calvin's killer and the McQueens covering it up - unless the family pay her £2,000. Jacqui just can't understand why she would do that - it's pure evil. It gets a lot more serious then and it just escalates. But Kathleen is such an interesting character and I think the audience will also see a different side to her in this late-night episode."

How does Jacqui get involved in the situation back at home?
"Jacqui, yet again, is left to pick up the pieces - the family all rely on her. Jacqui didn't even know that Kathleen was back - it's Myra that comes round even though she's still not on good terms with Jacqui, asking if she can come and sort it out. Jacqui will have to sort it out because she doesn't want to go down for it, but there's another part of her that can't help but help her family. She's very loyal - she's probably the most loyal one out of all of them, along with Myra."


Trying to scam Danny Houston is a very risky move - why do Jacqui and Rhys make such a bold decision?
"It's pure desperation. At the end of the day, if she doesn't get this two grand, they're all going down because Kathleen will definitely follow through with her threats. There's a scene with Jacqui and Cheryl where Jacqui says that she's very good at poker - she's quite confident in the game but she wants to fix it as well. But then they say it's a men-only game, so she's screwed then and she makes Rhys play instead, which is definitely a big risk!"

Danny also offers to wipe the debt clean in return for one night with Jacqui. How does Jacqui react to his indecent proposal?
"When he makes it, Rhys is being hung from a great height by Danny and his heavies - but there are witnesses around. Jacqui's a bright girl so she thinks, 'You know what? I'm going to call his bluff'. She doesn't want to sleep with him and also she knows he's not going to drop Rhys in front of so many people. So when he says it, she considers her options, weighs them up and says he could be the last man on earth and she wouldn't sleep with him!"


What happens next?
"Time ticks on and it gets a lot worse. Then she's thinking about her family, she's thinking about Rhys and she considers just putting herself on the line. It's quite admirable, but Rhys doesn't see it in that way - he sees Jacqui as his girlfriend who he adores and he doesn't want her to do something like that. Jacqui says that she can just see it as sex, but it causes a bit of an argument between them."

As the crisis comes to a head, Jacqui is held at knifepoint by Danny - can you tell us about that scene?
"Danny wants Jacqui to strip but she refuses, so he sends all these horrible heavies out of the room. She's not scared of him, but then he pulls out a knife. That changes the situation - the dynamic changes immediately. He could do something really horrible to her - it's not necessarily about killing someone, he could slash her face or anything. In a situation like that, your mind plays tricks as you wonder what someone could do to you, so when I was playing it, I wanted to show how horrendous it was for Jacqui. She wonders whether she could die like this - all to protect her family…"


How does working on a late-night episode like this compare to filming an ordinary episode of Hollyoaks?
"Well, we get so used to the everyday ones, it's almost like we're taken out of our comfort zones. It's exciting. You can take it a bit further - there's a few swear words and we can do more things, as people will see in this episode. At 6.30pm, we have to be so careful because of compliance and things sometimes get cut out. With this, we get to tell a story in more detail and sometimes a bit more true to form - showing how people do respond, as obviously we can't show too much at 6.30pm! It's nice to have that freedom and the opportunity to play with it."

Is more time spent on a late-night episode like this, or is it still a similar schedule?
"Well, it's an hour-long episode so it took slightly longer, but the scheduling works exactly the same. We're on a tight ship here and we have a lot to do - especially as I was about to go on holiday to America when we were filming it! I was doing long days and was very grateful that they allowed me to get to America in the end!"

Did you film any scenes with Donna Air, who guests as a glamorous drugs runner in the episode?
"I didn't have any, unfortunately! But we did get to have a good chat and she's absolutely lovely. It was a pleasure to have her on board."

What's it been like to work with Darren Day, who plays Danny?
"He's been a pleasure to work with. You can sometimes have preconceptions about people because of newspapers and things like that, but I generally try not to read things like that and use my own judgement by taking people on their own merit. He's a fantastic actor and he's not what people think he's like. I've thoroughly enjoyed working with him and I wish he could be here more. He's a great asset to Hollyoaks. I think people give him a hard time and I just hope this is a fresh start for him because he's a very good actor and he deserves to be out there."

Jacqui McQueen has returned to the forefront of Hollyoaks this year - and judging by some of the comments from fans on the DS forums and Twitter, it's been one of the most popular decisions made by new producer Paul Marquess.

Jacqui's new romance with Rhys, rivalry with Bart and rocky relationship with the rest of her family have all made for some exciting and interesting scenes over the past few months - and as always, the fantastic Claire Cooper has been a joy to watch.

I recently interviewed Claire about Jacqui's role in Hollyoaks' upcoming late-night special 'King of Hearts' - and you can read the main chat by clicking here.

Read on, however, for loads more Hollyoaks chat from the star…

Rhys and Jacqui's relationship is proving really popular with Hollyoaks fans - are you enjoying it and are you pleased with the reaction?
"Yes, definitely! We were just talking about this on set. When the relationship first started, we didn't know how they were going to gel and how it was going to work, because people were such fans of Jacqui and Tony. Some people still ask me if those two are going to get back together, but people are really taken with Rhys and Jacqui and it's really good to play. I love working with Andy and he brings so much to the set every day - his energy is fantastic. We have good banter and he understands how I like to work, and I try to understand how he likes to work. It's a nice collaboration and we try to make it funny, emotional, hard-hitting, three-dimensional and as interesting for the audience as possible."


Ste and Brendan have been christened 'Stendan' and on Twitter recently you were looking for an official name for Jacqui and Rhys - has one been chosen yet?
"We had Ja-Rhys - a bit like Ja Rule - and we had Racqui! It'll be interesting to see what people want to call us! I quite like Ja-Rhys because it's a bit like a rude girl sort of thing! We've had quite a few suggestions!"

What's the atmosphere like at work now that Hollyoaks is back on form and receiving a lot more praise?
"It's lovely for us all to be back up there again. Everyone is working incredibly hard - the producers are working non-stop doing crazy hours, and so are the writers and actors. We're really pulling it together because we want to be up there. We have been up there before and we are again now - I think we're really pulling it out of the bag. We've got some great actors and I think we're offering the audience something really exciting."

Jacqui has featured in the show a lot more since Paul has taken over, hasn't she?
"She has! When Paul came in, nobody knew what he was going to do, but he seemed to like what I did and he's worked on it and developed it. Paul has really taken me under his wing, he's worked me so hard and he's given me opportunities that I could only have dreamt of. I think that Jacqui's one of those characters who, if she isn't on screen for a while, it takes the audience time to warm to her again. But when they do, they find her funny, they find her interesting and I try to give them as much as I can. I try to tame Claire back because I'm a really emotional, sensitive person and very different from Jacqui, so I do work hard and I feel very privileged."


The issue between Jacqui, Myra and Bart is still ongoing - will there be any resolution there?
"I think there'll be something that will happen, but the audience will have to wait and see! Things have to pass in some way or form, and they do. But only until the next time! Something else always happens with the McQueens! Jacqui absolutely adores her family. She might not adore Bart, but she adores the rest of them and would do anything to protect them. Myra knows this and that's why she always comes back to Jacqui for help."

Have you enjoyed working with Jonny Clarke, who plays Bart?
"Oh, Jonny's lovely! He's such a sweetheart and we have so much fun. I do have to throw him about a lot - when you see it on screen it's just for a minute, but when it's take after take, it feels like it's all day long! The poor lad - I've scratched him and my rings have got on his face and all sorts. I keep saying, 'Are you alright?' and he says, 'Yeah, yeah, it's fine!' He goes home bruised and battered!"


Where does Jacqui go from here?
"There's going to be something really exciting in the New Year, but I can't say anything about it. But it's going to be very exciting and I hope the audience will be hooked. There's also lots of good stories coming up for the other characters from the bits and pieces that I'm hearing. The place is buzzing and I think people need to keep their eyes on Hollyoaks because it's going to be a fantastic year."

Away from Hollyoaks, you run a designer dress hire boutique called The Closet with Jennifer Metcalfe and Leah Hackett - how it's all going?
"Oh, just brilliant! We've just launched a new website and I'm so excited. It's going really, really well - we recently dressed Deniece Williams for the MOBOs in two of our dresses. The business is based in Liverpool but we want to be a website company so our new site shows the exact measurements of each dress, so if someone's in Scotland or in London they can take down the measurements, measure themselves and they'll know whether the dress is going to fit. We don't want the website to be about us, we want it to be about the dresses - it's about people getting fabulous dresses worth thousands of pounds for £100 a night, or whatever it is for that particular dress. I think it's the way forward, to be honest, as you only wear dresses once or twice and it's such a waste. It's hard work and it's all hands on deck, but we're all really enjoying it."

Hollyoaks: King Of Hearts airs on Wednesday, December 16 at 10pm on Channel 4.

Hollyoaks couple Jacqui McQueen and Rhys Ashworth take centre stage tonight in a special after-dark edition of the soap titled 'King of Hearts'.

The show favourites - played by Claire Cooper and Andy Moss - find themselves entangled in the dangerous world of gangster Danny Houston (Darren Day) once again as Jacqui's desire to protect her family leads her to desperate measures.

With scheming Kathleen still threatening to tell the police the truth about Theresa's murderous secret unless the McQueens stump up £2,000, Jacqui recruits Rhys to scam Danny in a poker game as part of a desperate plot to raise the cash.

However, when Danny discovers their plan, he's soon out for revenge and Rhys finds himself being dangled from a great height by two of the businessman's heavies.

As the drama unfolds, Danny makes it clear that he wants the money back and more - but adds that the debt will be wiped clean if he can have one night with Jacqui.

When Jacqui shocks Rhys by giving the indecent proposal some serious consideration, tension between the pair boils over into a full-blown row.
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Determined that his girlfriend should not have to lose her dignity, Rhys teams up with Gilly Roach and they try to resolve the crisis by targeting Danny's glamorous drugs runner Sophia, played by guest star Donna Air.

With a gun in their possession, it seems as if the hapless pair have the upper hand - but when they find the weapon turned on them, it appears that they have landed themselves in some serious danger.

As the action reaches a climax, fans will discover whether Jacqui will have to go through with her night with Danny and whether Rhys and Gilly will escape Sophia's clutches.

Praising the late-night edition in a recent interview , Claire Cooper said: "We get so used to the everyday [episodes], it's almost like we're taken out of our comfort zones. It's exciting. You can take it a bit further - there's a few swear words and we can do more things, as people will see in this episode.

"At 6.30pm, we have to be so careful because of compliance and things sometimes get cut out. With this, we get to tell a story in more detail and sometimes a bit more true to form - showing how people do respond, as obviously we can't show too much at 6.30pm! It's nice to have that freedom and the opportunity to play with it."

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Anyone watch this it was utter crap I didnt see the point of it myself and I'm sorry I saw Rhys's skinny ****