Hollyoaks spoilers follow.
Hollyoaks star James Sutton has spoken about the cutbacks at the Channel 4 soap, with the actor calling it an “awful time”. In 2024, the series shifted to three episodes per week instead of five, with 130 jobs being cut as a result.
“So many of the crew had been there for years, so it really was an awful time,” Sutton, who portrays John Paul McQueen, told Daily Mail. “And I do feel like a lot of the heart of the show had kind of been ripped out, to be honest.
“It was more about the crew that left, who were all local. Actors come and go, it’s part of the job. But the crew, some of them had been there since the Brookside days, so it was heartbreaking.
“Scousers are hilarious, warm, generous and incredibly talented. To lose all those people, I do think the energy of the place has never recovered. It used to be something quite special going to work, but sadly that all changed.”
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The actor, who debuted on the soap in 2006, will soon depart the series for the third time as his seven-year stint comes to an end, with the character recently being involved in a special McQueen-centred episode.
Reflecting on his upcoming on-screen departure in relation to the cutbacks, Sutton said: “I accepted the situation for what it was, and thought I’m going to use it in the most positive way I can.
“I started writing again, launched my own platform and realised just how much I missed being creative and of service to other people. I’m now genuinely in the best place I’ve ever been in my entire adult life.”
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The actor had previously discussed the wider reasons for his exit, explaining: “I felt like I’ve kind of done everything that I could do with the character. I’ve had a lot of heavy lifting over the years.
“They just really like making me cry, I think. My character’s been through a lot of really quite difficult things… And I thought, better to leave now than then, just to kind of fade into the background.”
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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