Y&RWorldTurner

Did Russ get to take baby Max with him? I hope so.

Yes, Russ and Justin drove off with baby Max with them.

Poor Hannah realizing that Justin had left without her in Wednesday's episode.

I don't feel sorry for Jacqui at all. She had this coming and has been so unlikable for months.

I like Ste more and more these days, for some reason.

I really hope Hannah's exit if reuniting with Justin, I hope they don't kill her off in December.

That was a nice ending scene with Russ and Justin driving off...

When is Justin's last air date?

Wednesday, it's also Russ's last air date.

And aw, Josh really stands by Hannah and believes what she says, unlike Rhys who thinks she's lying to save Justin. I like that contrast.

That baby playing Max is too cute.

I liked Nancy speech to Russ about how they saw each other through so many bad relationships, yet never noticed that there might be something special between them, but too little, to late, I guess.

I'm actually rooting for Russ when he kidnaps Max, Jacqui and the McQueen's have been horrible to him.

The was a nice end scene with Justin and Hannah at the end of Tuesday's episode. Too bad Hannah is going to get her heart broken again though.

Yeah, Lucy Allan sure kept the fantasy element at the beginning of each episode. You should see the one that airs on Tuesday with Ste's narration. LOL!

When did you start watching this, Y&RWorldTurner?

I've seen episodes here and there whenever I'm in England, but I didn't really start watching consistently until around late 2004 or so. though I was familiar with characters and storylines from years gone by through extensive reading. I have a longer history watching Corrie and EastEnders though, but for now, I'm not watching either, and I stopped watching Hollyoaks until Clare's recent return.

I could never stomach Emmerdale, btw...

Justin and Russ's last episode is next Wednesday, by the way.

Clare next appears next Friday. I don't know if this is her last episode though...

ETA: Okay, I'm stupid, it's not the right song. Just to be more specific it's the one one Friday's show that played at the very end. Anyone know it?

42 by Coldplay.

Yeah, Kirkwood came in with a bang and he left with a bang. For those of you who will watch Monday's episode soon, you'll notice that the Hollyoaks logo in the opening credits is now a gray-ish colour. I think it symbolizes the switch from Kirkwood to Allan.

I kind of wished they had paired Justin and Hannah a lot sooner than they did. I really like them together, and Emma and Chris work well off of each other. I hope her exit story is leaving town to reunite with Justin, wherever he goes. Both of them have had such troubled lives, I really want them to eventually have a happy ending together.

Sasha needs to shut the hell up, she's been annoying me in these past few episodes. If she only knew Calvin knows exactly what went down and how that fire was started, she wouldn't be accusing Justin because she saw him outside of the Loft.

Speaking of the Loft, I'm kind of going to miss it. It's been the source of so much drama over the years, lots of stuff happened there, it's kind of fitting it's burnt down.

Gemma Bissix's Backstage Video:

I'm a bit surprised no one in America has tried to hire Gemma, I can see her as perfect casting about some American yokel who brings home a crazy British girlfriend.

I agree, and she's great with both comedy and drama. She'd be perfect on the new craptacular Melrose Place or on some sitcom.

She really should try her luck in LA after this Hollyoaks stint wraps up.

Gemma Bissix is love.

So is Clare's shoe supposed to mean that she escaped once again or that she's gone for good? I, of course, hope for the former.

Clare will be back next week...

Monday is Lucy Allan's first episode in charge by the way...

The Justin and Hannah stuff on next Monday's episode is really great, and they used an instrumental version of "Chasing Cars" for those scenes at the end. It was great.

Looks like Justin will leave the villiage with Russ, which will leave Hannah heartbroken.

Since Emma Rigby is leaving the show at the end of the year, I wonder if Hannah will leave to reunite with Justin. It would be a great happy ending for this character.

There's A LOT of background music in this episode too, which is strange.

The last 6 minutes and 13 seconds of Monday's show, complete with the end credits!

Russ sucks, and Stuart Manning is a craptacular actor, IMO.

How ironic that Clare makes a return like a year after Max's death, considering the hell she brought into Max's life.

The only thing that sucks about Clare's return is that Max and OB aren't around. They were her first targets and probably the ones she harmed the most.

Aw, I love Gemma Bissix. I loved how she says in interviews how she was the first person Bryan Kirkwood hired at Hollyoaks and how she was the last person he brought back at the end of his tenure. It all came full circle, Clare was one of Kirkwood's biggest accomplishments.

Kirkwood had a great run for the most part. I'll miss him.

Here's a good article, although I should point out that Hollyoaks did have years of gripping stories before Kirkwood took over, it's just that the last few years before him were seen as poor.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/tvandrad...ks-new-producer

Hollyoaks always had a reputation of being the British soap that lacked substance and was all about looks and nothing else. My English cousin dismisses it as, "Pure wank material!" That seems to be the dominant mainstream feeling about the show in the UK, it was never taken as something credible. Kirkwood's tenure might have had some problems, but I feel like he tried to make the show a little more credible, and he did succeed, IMO. The show seems to be looked at as less of a joke now than what it was before he joined.

Was Kirkwood responsible for the fantasy elements (which I love) at the beginning of the episode or was that of the show since the beginning?

Yeah, I believe the stuff at the start of each episode was all Kirkwood. I don't remember it being there in episodes before he joined.

The Loft Fire/Clare Returns Promo:

This is Kirkwood's final storyline, so his name will be gone from the credits soon.

It was OK, I wasn't blown away by it. The singing was nice, but the members of the Glee club itself were so cliche and stereotypical in the pilot, which I guess was the intention anyway. I also have a feeling they're going to have some trouble balancing the comedy and more serious stuff too. I love abstract humour, but a lot of it fell flat to me in the pilot.

And is it me, or are Mr. Schuester's wife and that red head germaphobe teacher that has a crush on him essentially the same personality? The only difference is one is a germaphobe that encourages Schuester to flow his passions and the other is a compulsive shopper that wants him to find a better paying job. They're both really quirky and animated. They should've made them a little more different and unique in characterization, since it's obvious both of these women are going to play a big part in Mr. Schuester's life.

New interview with Lucy Allan:

http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/a156722/lu...-hollyoaks.html

I think Roxanne was right not to return, although I would have loved seeing her team up with Clare to destroy Warren.

You don't think there's too much bad blood between those two to team up? I know they both hate Warren, but would Louise ever forgive Clare for advising her to take that abortion and then spilling it to everyone?

And yeah, I'd rather Clare than Louise too, plus, Clare still has unfinished business with Warren and Justin, and she is of course better than watching Louise...

Clare

What's with Warren manhandling Hannah? What an ass, you go Clare, kill his ass.

And yes, Justin and Warren have inappropriate chemistry.

http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/a154690/ho...wards-noms.html

Monday, May 4 2009, 7:01pm EDT

By Kris Green, Soaps Editor

'Hollyoaks' leads British Soap Awards noms

Channel 4 teen soap Hollyoaks has secured the most nominations on this year's British Soap Awards shortlist.

Released today, the list sees each of the five qualifying soaps - Coronation Street, Doctors, EastEnders, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks - receive the default three nods in five of the six viewer-voted categories: Sexiest Male, Sexiest Female, Villain of the Year, Best Actor and Best Actress. Also, each show is automatically nominated for Best Soap.

Winners of the remaining 11 awards - including Best Comedy Performance, Best Newcomer, Best Single Episode and Best Storyline - have been decided by a panel.

Of the 36 shortlist panel nominations, Hollyoaks featured in each of the nine categories, while EastEnders received eight nods.

Coronation Street took seven, while Emmerdale and Doctors were given six each.

Notably, Corrie failed to receive a nomination in the Best Dramatic Performance category, while Emmerdale didn't make the top four in the Best Storyline and Best Single Episode stakes.

Nominations for the Lifetime Achievement and Special Achievement awards are also considered by the panel.

The eleventh annual British Soap Awards take place at BBC's Television Centre in central London on Saturday. The ceremony will transmit on Wednesday, May 13 on ITV1.

British Soap Awards 2009: Full Panel Shortlist: http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/a154686/br...-shortlist.html