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Hollyoaks to address Black Lives Matter movement with podcast

Photo credit: Lime Pictures
Photo credit: Lime Pictures

From Digital Spy

Hollyoaks has announced that it will address the Black Lives Matter movement using a special podcast about racism.

The Channel 4 soap announced the news on Twitter by posting a video of star Kelle Bryan, who plays Martine Deveraux, explaining why the show's social media platforms had gone silent for a day.

"As you may have noticed we here at Hollyoaks have been silent for the last 24 hours across all of our social media platforms," she said. "And that's in direct response to the horrendous atrocities that have taken place in the USA with the loss of George Floyd. Black lives really do matter.

Photo credit: Lime Pictures
Photo credit: Lime Pictures

Related: Hollyoaks star Kelle Bryan hints at romantic reunion for Martine Deveraux

"But don't take our silence for inaction. We've been busy behind the scenes having lots of highly important conversations and we'll be kick-starting with a podcast all about racism - how we tackle it, how we face it and, most importantly, how we overcome it. So stay tuned. Take care, stay safe."

The news was met with praise from fans, who responded with comments such as: "What an important message," and "Looking forward to hearing more about the podcast".

No further information has yet been released but it sounds like the podcast will be just one element of the show's approach to tackling racism.

The recent death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for several minutes in the US, has sparked protests and demonstrations across the world.

A number of people in the public eye have shown their support for the Black Lives Matter movement in the days since, with Star Wars actor John Boyega delivering a powerful speech at a London demonstration this week and Friends star David Schwimmer attending a vigil in New York.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Stephanie Beatriz has donated $11,000 to the Community Justice Exchange while This Morning's Alison Hammond also gave a powerful speech on the programme about her reaction to Floyd's death.

Hollyoaks airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 6.30pm on Channel 4, with first-look episodes airing on E4 at 7pm. Wednesdays through Fridays on E4 will feature classic episodes called Hollyoaks Favourites to compensate for the soap suspending filming.


For more information on how you can support Black Lives Matter, please visit its official website or donate here. Readers can also donate to the UK anti-discrimination group Stand Up To Racism, and the Unite Families & Friends Campaign, which supports those affected by deaths in police, prison and psychiatric custody.


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