Hollyoaks spoilers follow.
Hollyoaks has further explored Rex Gallagher’s complex relationship with grief following Grace Black’s death, and, in the process, confirmed his future with Ste Hay.
Rex has struggled in the wake of Grace’s passing, giving her inheritance to the teens she harmed in her criminal dealings, and in recent scenes, going as far as wearing her clothes and makeup.
Rex has been exploring his identity in secret, but, panicking, he burned Grace’s clothes so that no one would find out.
One constant in Rex’s life since 2024 has been Ste, despite the incredibly tumultuous beginnings of their romance.
But after finding out that Ste’s former husband James Nightingale is actually alive and had visited him in the village, Rex became overwhelmed with emotion and left the house, worried his own secret would come spilling out.
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Tonight’s episode (9 February) began with Froggy Black waking up a hungover Rex to help him stop feeling like “a bag of spanners” as Ste sets out to win him back with a big romantic gesture.
After Rex drinks his magical cure, Froggy speaks to him about how he is handling grief.
He says he knows why Rex burned Grace’s clothes, theorising that Rex thought it would help to erase her from his life – but he should instead be celebrating her, and they can do that by scattering her ashes.
As they discuss where to scatter the ashes, Ste runs up to Rex, saying James is dead to him and that he cannot live without him, getting down on one knee and asking him to marry him.
Rex doesn’t answer, and he and Froggy travel to a beach to scatter Grace’s ashes. Froggy asks what Rex is going to tell Ste, and he quips that maybe his mum could help.
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As they emotionally reminisce over Grace’s life and embrace while looking out to sea, they throw the ashes into the ocean, before they fly back into their faces, offering light to the situation.
At the Lomaxes’, Ste speaks to Leela about his terrible proposal timing, and as he does, Rex turns up and accepts his proposal.
Celebrating the happy news, Rex spots a crochet top in Leela’s laundry basket and takes it, later wearing it to work.
Ro Hutchinson arrives at the garage and asks Rex for a job after mum Diane was furious that he wanted to be a mechanic, and Ro spots the woman’s top that Rex is wearing.
Will he come clean about his secret, or will he continue to weave a web of lies?
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.
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