Yahoo News Hollyoaks star promises big consequences for Lily
Hollyoaks star Alex Fletcher has spoken to Digital Spy about Lily Drinkwell's self-harm storyline, promising that the show will explore the full consequences of her actions.
Lily has been hurting herself in secret for months now – and Tuesday's E4 first look episode (October 17) saw things get worse as her schoolfriends Yasmine Maalik and Peri Lomax joined in for the first time.
Hollyoaks is exploring the issue of group self-harm with the storyline, which is expected to run on for a number of weeks.
Alex's character Diane Hutchinson was called to Hollyoaks High to discuss the possibility that Lily was self-harming in the show's latest episode. However, when Lily denied it and her friends covered for her, Diane didn't look into her niece's situation any further.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Alex admitted: "It made me nervous when I knew the storyline was coming up. It wasn't until I saw the scripts and we had a big meeting with the Samaritans, the writers and the producers that I was more confident about it.
"I knew that any scripts we had would go through the experts before we filmed them. We don't want to glamorise anything. We just want to raise awareness and show the consequences as well. That's what I've been filming with Lauren McQueen – who plays Lily – more recently.
"The storyline is ongoing and it feels really real and gritty. It's been fantastic to work with Lauren. She's genuinely a brilliant actress and I'm learning loads from her as well.
"I think Diane is very blinkered at the moment. She's going through a lot and she's happy to brush things under the carpet. Unfortunately that's what a lot of parents would do, as life gets so busy."
Alex explained that she's planning to use the Hollyoaks episode to start up a conversation about self-harm with her own 12-year-old daughter Yasmin.
She added: "We just want to open up a dialogue with this storyline. I've got to be honest, I've got a 12-year-old daughter and I wasn't sure if I wanted her to watch this.
"But then I got the scripts and I realised, of course I want her to watch it. I'm totally relying on her watching it and then having that conversation, because how else do you bring it up?
"We've filmed some really heavy stuff for the storyline, but the scripts have been so good and so much hard work has gone into it. We've totally trusted everything that we've been doing. We're much further down the line with filming and we're now exploring the consequences."
Hollyoaks airs weeknights at 6.30pm on Channel 4, with first look screenings at 7pm on E4.
Readers affected by the issues raised in this story are encouraged to contact Samaritans free on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org) or Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). Readers in the US are encouraged to visit mentalhealth.gov or the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
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Digital Spy Soap Scoop video – hit play below for all the latest Hollyoaks gossip, as Lily's self-harm secret is revealed and Leela loses her temper with Zack.
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