Shaq Qureshi (Omar Malik), the step-cousin of Sami Maalik (Rishi Nair), made his first appearance in March, as well as Fergus Collins (Robert Beck).
[1] These include Nate Denby, now Saul Reeves (Chris Charles), Olivia Bradshaw (Emily Burnett), Pearl Anderson (Dawn Hope) and DeMarcus Westwood (Tomi Ade).
In November, Ethan Williams (Matthew James-Bailey) and his girlfriend Maya Harkwell (Ky Discala) debuted as part of a storyline where the pair kidnap Darren Osborne (Ashley Taylor Dawson).
He hinted that Shaq may be "key" in helping Sami to realise his girlfriend Verity Hutchinson (Eva O'Hara) is pretending to be pregnant, and noted that their reunion will be "chaotic".
He commended his co-stars and crew members, whom he noted "went above and beyond to make me feel comfortable and relaxed", and that he loves working on Hollyoaks due to the "proper family vibe".
He adds: "Underneath the confident and cool exterior, there's a delicate fragility that slowly glimmers the more you get to know him" and hinted that Shaq has secrets which will be explored in the future.
Malik notes that people in the village begin to realise that "there's more brewing behind Shaq's cheeky smile", and that he "catches the eye" of an unnamed McQueen woman.
He's cheeky, but he's a man you really wouldn't want as an enemy, and to be honest, you would probably have to be pretty careful if he was your friend..."[11] After promotional photos of Fergus were released, viewers speculated that he would be a villain based on his appearance.
"[12] Following the release of Hollyoaks' spring trailer, a scene depicted Fergus spying on young couple Juliet Nightingale (Niamh Blackshaw) and Peri Lomax (Ruby O'Donnell) with a camera planted in their bedroom.
Timmy forms an obsession with Peri and later informs her and Juliet of the cameras in their bedroom; in order to keep the truth emerging about Bluebird, Fergus shoots him dead and has Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas) bury his body with him.
Speaking about their characters and casting, Pritchard said: "I can't believe we will be featuring on Hollyoaks, we have grown up with the show on TV and it's always been one of our favourite serial dramas.
"[16] Following social media users posting clips of the Pritchard brothers' scenes, they went viral and were the subject of widespread jokes, criticism and negativity.
Timmy is introduced as a "computer wizard" hired by Fergus Collins (Robert Beck) to look after the technical side of his secret operation that films teenage girls in their bedrooms.
[24] Justin Harp of Digital Spy wrote that on the surface, Timmy seems like a regular character, but that in time, viewers will see he is "not someone to be easily underestimated".
Tutty was sad to leave the show as he enjoyed the working environment and he felt that there was a lot more to be discovered about Timmy, but he could not stay on the soap for a longer tenure due to appearing in Dear Evan Hansen.
Due to the COVID rules in place, I've only been able to meet a few of the other cast members so far, they, along with the incredible crew and office staff, have all been very welcoming and supportive, making it easy to fit in.
It's been an absolute pleasure to work alongside and learn from such fantastic actors as Harvey Virdi (Misbah), Omar Malik (Shaq), Sarah Jayne Dunn (Mandy), Lysette Anthony (Marnie) and Nadine Mulkerrin (Cleo).
"[31] It is later revealed that Saul is an undercover police officer who has been going under the name, Nate Denby, hired to bring down Fergus Collins' (Robert Beck) illegal operation known as Bluebird, but that he has gone rogue on his own private mission to track down Lisa Loveday (Rachel Adedeji), who unbeknownst to him was murdered by Toby Faroe (Bobby Gordon).
[41] Sharon arrived for Walter Deveraux's (Trevor A. Toussaint) birthday barbecue in September 2021, jokingly rivalling Martine to the horror of her children Toby (Bobby Gordon) and Celeste Faroe (Andrea Ali).
After Felix Westwood (Richard Blackwood) was involved in a boat accident and nearly drowned, Sharon checked him over before confronting Martine over keeping her breast cancer diagnosis a secret.
She revealed to her mother Pearl and daughter - police detective Zoe - that she had a successful trial shift at Dee Valley University Hospital and had decided to accept a job there.
She was introduced to the series as a woman under the alias of Galaxy who meets Sid Sumner (Billy Price) on a night out and ends up in possession of his prosthetic leg.
[2] Upon her casting announcement, Serena was described as an aspiring olympian who has always been driven and ambitious to succeed in her athletic ventures, but she is now wanting to rebel due to being "torn between living a normal teenage life and focusing on athleticism".
[51] Upon her casting, it was revealed that she would be appearing alongside characters including Grace Black (Tamara Wall), Felix Westwood (Richard Blackwood), Martine Deveraux (Kéllé Bryan) and fellow newcomer Nate Denby (Chris Charles).
[55] Speaking about his character, James-Bailey said playing him was "incredibly fun" and teased: "I won't give too much away, but Ethan is here to shake things up and bring a new, albeit 'manic', energy to the village – unfortunately so for Darren.
[56] On his general experience on the soap, James-Bailey stated that he is enjoying the "roller coaster" atmosphere on set and noted that with his initial dark storylines, he was "thrown in at the deep end", which he loved.
He returned to this life when Lizzie died after taking drugs that were supplied by local hardman and criminal kingpin Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas).
[48] Chok was very grateful to be given the role, feeling that she had hit the Bamboo ceiling, and felt proud in being part of the first East Asian family in a soap opera.
[62] Chok was able to help impact the development of the character a little bit and was also able to influence the set of Honour's home by adding a rice cooker and making it a no-shoe house.
The character was given a short issue-based storyline when Honour and her daughter, Serena Chen-Williams (Emma Lau), experience Sinophobia, which Chok and other cast members praised for highlighting Xenophobia and racism related to the COVID-19 pandemic.