Assisted Suicide in Emmerdale

[Perdita]

Marc Silcock has spoken about filming a skydive for an upcoming episode of Emmerdale, saying that he wanted to do it to stay true to his character Jackson.

In recent months, viewers have seen Jackson Walsh deal with being diagnosed with tetraplegia as a result of a dramatic car crash, leading to him telling boyfriend Aaron Livesy (Danny Miller) and mother Hazel Rhodes (Pauline Quirke) that he wants to die.

As Aaron and Hazel attempt to prove to Jackson that life is worth living, the troubled former builder agrees to go on a skydive - something which Silcock opted to shoot for himself, rather than have a stuntman take his place.

"I had no desire whatsoever to do a parachute jump in my lifetime," the actor told TV Times. "But it was important for the storyline to show Jackson how good life could be.

"That's why I decided to do it. I knew it would be much better if they filmed me doing it for real."

Silcock explained: "With every scene I do as Jackson, we have to talk about it a lot beforehand. If I move a millimetre, then I am not doing my job properly. If I were really a tetraplegic doing a sky dive, I wouldn't be in the same harness I was in. They had to think of a way to strap me in and stop me from moving."

He added: "All the emotion you see on screen at the landing from me, Pauline Quirke and Danny Miller was genuine because we were all so glad that it went safely and we managed to do it. When I landed we shot straight away, so I had to remember the lines immediately, which was interesting!"

Silcock will leave Emmerdale in May this year and has promised that Jackson's final scenes will be "memorable".

DS

[Chloe O'brien]

Do you think he will die from an infection rather that taking his own life.

[thestud2k7]

Do you think he will die from an infection rather that taking his own life.

i think i'd perfer that but i still think he will take his own life

[Chloe O'brien]

i think i'd perfer that but i still think he will take his own life

Yeah sadly Stud I think you maybe right.

[Perdita]

Emmerdale star Danny Miller has expressed gratitude over his long run of high-profile storylines on the soap.

Since late 2009, fans of the ITV1 drama have seen the 20-year-old's character Aaron Livesy come to terms with his sexuality and embark on a turbulent relationship with Jackson Walsh (Marc Silcock). Most recently, Aaron has struggled to accept Jackson's wishes after he revealed that he wants to die due to his paraplegia.

Speaking to Digital Spy on the red carpet at the British Soap Awards, 'Best Actor' winner Miller commented: "I'm always honoured to work for Emmerdale and to get storylines that people don't always get to have at such a young age, working on a big soap, so I'm honoured that the bosses at Emmerdale have given us the opportunity to play out some massive storylines."

Discussing the recent scenes for the assisted suicide plotline, he continued: "They've been tough - any emotional scenes are tough to do, but we've enjoyed it and we've played out what we think is a believable story."

Miller also hinted that Aaron is unlikely to have any new love interests for the foreseeable future.

"I think that's the least of things on his mind at the moment," he said. "I don't think he's interested in any relationships at the moment."

The British Soap Awards air on Wednesday at 8pm on ITV1.

[Chloe O'brien]

I'm glad Danny won best actor. He is one of the few young actors in soapland that put's his heart and soul into the character.

[xcarlyx]

I am glad he won best actor too.
Jackson's crash was moving aswell.

[alan45]

Emmerdale favourite Aaron Livesy (Danny Miller) will embark upon a "long and deeply meaningful journey" after helping his paraplegic lover Jackson Walsh (Marc Silcock) to die, the show's producers have stated.

Discussing the aftermath of the ITV1 soap's assisted suicide storyline, Stuart Blackburn and Steve November teased that Jackson's mother Hazel (Pauline Quirke) will continue to be haunted by the decision to help end his life.

The pair are quoted as saying in a joint interview with Soaplife: "For Hazel and especially Aaron [Jackson's death] is only the start of their story. In the case of Aaron, his is a long and deeply moving journey to the tragic realisation that despite everything he had believed, he and Hazel have ultimately done the wrong thing at the wrong time.

"What Aaron comes to understand is that Jackson had a life worth living and should have been given - despite all his protestations - the time and space to understand this for himself."

Blackburn and November also spoke of their desire to spark "constructive debate" amongst viewers with the controversial and moving plot.

They said: "We are proud of the way we have tackled this story and it is our hope it will make people think about this sensitive issue. We hope the story will create a constructive debate and our audience will be challenged in a positive way."

Silcock previously declared that "people will remember" Jackson's exit from the show.

[Chloe O'brien]

I wonder how Hazel will do it. Maybe she'll suffocate him with a pillow or something as Hazel will have to end Jackson's life even if drugs are involved it will not be assisted because Jackson can't do anything for himself. This is going to be heartbreaking for all three characters.

[Perdita]

A charity has criticised Emmerdale's current assisted suicide storyline.

The plot sees Aaron Livesy (Danny Miller) help to end Jackson Walsh's life, but spinal injuries charity Aspire has warned that it could cause a "great deal of hurt".

Director of Services Alex Rankin said: "The storyline has been negative, unrealistic and pretty inaccurate. I've watched it very closely and have been incredibly disappointed with how Emmerdale have portrayed Jackson's situation.

"People with spinal injuries are not ill, they do not need to spend all their time in bed being spoon-fed soup. Emmerdale had a great opportunity to be inspirational with this storyline, to show that people who suffer similar injuries to Jackson's can, after much adjustment, go on to live a fulfilling life.

"What worries me is that it's basically saying that life with a spinal injury is not worth living. I don't think they've considered how those people in Jackson's situation will feel when they watch it. I think it's going to cause a lot of people a great deal of hurt."

An Emmerdale spokesman insisted that the story will be told "with integrity", adding: "We approached Aspire, keen to inform them about this storyline, and we welcomed their feedback which was fully taken on board."

Actor Marc Silcock recently described his character Jackson's departure as "an exit people will remember".