Hollyoaks airs cruel Mercedes twist in latest episode

Hollyoaks spoilers follow for Monday’s episode (November 4), which is available to watch now on streaming service Channel 4 and hasn’t yet aired on TV.

Hollyoaks has aired a cruel twist for Mercedes McQueen in the show’s latest episode.

Mercedes was recently given the heartbreaking news that she wasn’t responding to her bowel cancer treatment, and that they weren’t able to access the chemotherapy drugs that she needed.

She decided to take matters into her own hands and aimed to acquire the drugs illegally, and while she initially asked Freddie for help, he said that he had to stay on the right side of the law to try and get his daughter Lexi back.

embargo 29102024 grace black and mercedes mcqueen in hollyoaks
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Mercedes then blackmailed Grace, after finding out that she knew her son Curtis was responsible for causing Lexi’s accident several months ago, and pressured her into getting the drugs for her.

Last week, Grace reluctantly made a secret trip to Germany and returned with the drugs Mercedes needed.

In today’s episode, Mercedes came to Grace upset, after JJ’s recent health scare made her question her own mortality.

She was concerned that they didn’t know how to administer the drugs they acquired, but Grace had an idea of who to get in touch with.

misbah maalik, hollyoaks
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Mercedes went to see Misbah, who was hopeful that she had decided to restart her hospital treatment, but Mercedes instead showed her the bag of chemotherapy drugs.

Misbah was concerned as to how she had got these drugs illegally and explained that they are toxic and need to be handled with care.

Mercedes asked for Misbah’s help to administer the drugs, saying that she didn’t know how to, but Misbah stressed that as a doctor, she would get into trouble.

mercedes mcqueen, hollyoaks
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But as Misbah examined the drugs more closely, she made a shocking discovery and realised that they had been labelled incorrectly – and are nothing but paracetamol.

In a cruel twist, she admitted to a devastated Mercedes, "They’re not going to cure your cancer."

Later this week, Misbah will try and get Grace to convince Mercedes to continue with her treatment, as stopping to acquire these drugs may have jeopardised her health.

But with Mercedes determined to do things her way, what will she decide to do next?

Hollyoaks airs on Mondays-Wednesdays with its Channel 4 streaming premiere at 7am, then an E4 broadcast the same night at 7pm. Full episodes are also released on YouTube a week after their Channel 4 release.

Selected omnibus episodes are available via Prime Video.

Read more Hollyoaks spoilers on our dedicated homepage


Hollyoaks has worked with Bowel Cancer UK on Mercedes' story. Further information is also available via the NHS website, Macmillan Cancer Support or Cancer Research UK.

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