Hollyoaks

It has been reported on Digital Spy that Hollyoaks bosses are axing 14 of the soap's cast.

They are Izzy, Lisa, Chloe, Kristian, Lee, Les, Nick, Norman, Sally, Zara, Cameron, Abby, Robbie and Scott

I have to say I think the majority of those axings are for the best, people like Izzy and Chloe have become boring and should have left long ago.

It can't be a bad thing. Hollyoaks has got steadily worse over the years (or maybe I'm just getting older!) and recently suffers from that classic problem where most of the characters are pretty unlikable. I cant think of many of them who you don't want to punch.

The other problem they need to sort is their inability to wrap up a plotline in less than 2 years! The "Murderer / Toby / Dan in jail" fiasco has being going on for at least 18 months I would guess.

I still can't beleive they chose this over Brookside in the first place. Ok Brookside had got bad but with a bit of work it could have improved again. Afterall Family Affairs, Doctors, etc. can't have be that much better than Brookside when it finished.

Bombhead's staying then!

Can't argue with most of these. Kristian and Nick will finish Uni, Zara, Cameron and Abby go off to Uni, Robbie and Scott's acting are questionable and I think considering what the Hunters have been through, they would want to move out of Hollyoaks.

I think the storyline with Dan/Ellie has gone on for far too long - however its Dan's trial this week so perhaps it will all come to a conclusion at last.

I agree about writing the Hunter family out, although it looks like Ellie and Dan are staying

Yeah i know what you mean, Anyone know what happened with the Brookside DVD's they were going to do? Also i think the set is used for Hollyoaks and Grange Hill now?

The Brookside one is currently in production, Phil Redmond admitted that if they manage to sell quite a few thousand DVD's, then they can make about 4 Brookside's a year for DVD. The one currently in production features Barry Grant and it is apparently about getting revenge for the death of Damon Grant back in 1988, though it was revived in the last episode in November.

I don't think it is a good way to start, they should do more of a light hearted one with Jimmy Corkhill and his life in Newcastle would work. I never bought Unfinished Business and to be honest it didn't look that great either.

I've heard Mersey TV use Brookside Close for their offices and some Hollyoaks scenes have been filmed there. Though remember that they still use Chester for Hollyoaks, plus they also use the Grant's Restraunt in Brookside for Hollyoaks.

Now for Grange Hill I don't know, it is somewhere not too far out of Liverpool apparently.

Grange Hill is filmed on the Mersey TV premises. The "school" doubled as a hospital in Hollyoaks last year.

Regarding the axings, do the actors have a leg to stand on legally? I'd love to see a writing-out successfully challenged.

I suspect they're all on fixed-length contracts, like 12 months or something, which would usually be renewed after the period ended. If they decide to write someone out they just don't renew the contract! I'm pretty sure they aren't legally obliged to.

This is the same with contract work in any industry.

But at least it remains realistic - murder trials generally happen long after the murders happen. Soaps such as EastEnders have no regard for reality, such as Kat Slater getting engaged and (nearly) married twice in just three months.

I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but the Taylor-Burton's house is No.8 Brookside Close!

Same decor as when Jacqui and Max Farnham lived there, except a part of the wall between the hall and the living room has been removed to make the house look more open planned.