Sam and her daughters with Danny – Teegan (Jessica Ellis), Leela (Kirsty-Leigh Porter) and Peri Lomax (Ruby O'Donnell) – later move to Hollyoaks.

[2] Billington had been hoping to be cast in another soap opera for several years, and had previously auditioned for Hollyoaks in 2012 for a different role, which he was glad to not received as "Danny is so fun to play".

[6][7][8] Hollyoaks executive producer Bryan Kirkwood that John Paul had made some "mistakes" in his relationship with the married Danny that would "come back to haunt him".

[3] The actor teased that the eventual reveal would be "dramatic and fun to watch", adding, "It's going to be a massive thing for Ste's character, because he's never met his dad before.

[11] Danny and Sam's daughters – Teegan (Jessica Ellis), Leela (Kirsty-Leigh Porter) and Peri Lomax (Ruby O'Donnell) debuted in October of that year.

[12] Their arrival brought more "family drama" for Danny due to a "shocking twist" where Tegan gives birth during her first appearance, having not known that she was pregnant.

[15] Danny admits that he wants a relationship with him again, but just as it "seems" that their affair is "back on", John Paul rushes to hospital after learning that his son Matthew McQueen (Malachy and Connor Birchall) is unwell.

[15] The following month, Ste urges John Paul to end his affair with Danny before someone gets hurt, which then leads to a physical and verbal fight between the two.

"[18]That same month, Hollyoaks aired a storyline where John Paul is raped by Finn O'Connor (Keith Rice), which Billington praised as he believed it was an important issue to raise and was impressed by the acting of the actors involved.

[14] When Peri confronts Danny over the "betrayal", their argument has an "unexpected outcome" when she falls down the stairs leading to the Lomax home, which Leela witnesses from a distance.

[22] Danny is set up to look like he is talking anonymously online to George Smith (Steven Roberts) via a gay dating app.

[22][23] This leads to Danny's bisexuality being outed when Sienna Blake (Anna Passey) causes more drama for the family and messes with the sound board at the Hollyoaks High talent show, which leads to everyone – including the Lomax girls – hear Danny tell George he is bisexual when George confronts him backstage.

[22] Danny is also set up by Sienna to make it look like he has been messaging George on the dating website, and a furious Sam refuses to believe his innocence.

[25] Danny then ends up returning to his "cheating ways" when he meets up with George and, unable to resist temptation, shares a "shock kiss" with him.

[30] Sam is determined that Cameron, who is desperate to not lose his daughter, must not find out that they are moving, but Ste accidentally reveals this to him during a confrontation.

[31][32][33] The following episode confirmed that both Danny and Sam had died at the scene and Leela, Tegan and Ste are told the "tragic news" by the police.

[34] The scenes had been filmed in June 2014 but had been kept a secret in order to surprise viewers, with it being confirmed that Roper and Billington had left the soap.

[35] It is initially thought that Camera had hit them by accident, but in December 2015, it is revealed that Cameron targeted Danny and Sam deliberately, as he saw them driving and accelerated his car towards them.

[37][38] Danny arrives as the new drama supply teacher of Hollyoaks High School to organise a production with John Paul McQueen (James Sutton).

An attraction grows between the two and they kiss and go on a date, but when Danny is offered a permanent position at the school he tells John Paul that nothing else can happen between them.

Danny is warned by headteacher Patrick Blake (Jeremy Sheffield) to not mix his personal life with his professional role.

Danny continues seeing John Paul behind Sam's back and is blackmailed by his student Robbie Roscoe (Charlie Wernham) over this, who threatens to expose his affair if he does not prevent his expulsion.

However, Sam then finds out that Danny has an online gay dating profile, which was set up by Sienna Blake (Anna Passey) in order to drive the Lomax family apart.

Danny finds out that the dating profile was speaking to George Smith (Steven Roberts), so he visits him and they end up kissing.

[40] In November 2013, Daniel Kilkelly from the same website believed that Danny was "happily married" despite pursuing a relationship with John Paul, and wrote that it was clear than the two men's connection was "still much more than a friendship".

[42] David Brown from Radio Times wrote that tensions were running high and "there was an air of desperation" when Danny and Sam attempted to "evade Cameron's clutches".

[33] Campbell believed that Danny disowning Ste was one of the "most shocking things" of the episode, but added that "nothing prepared fans" for the "tragic twist" of the crash.

[33] Campbell later wrote that she would be stocking up on "tissues in advance" in order to prepare for Sam and Danny's funeral, and commented on how viewers expressed their sadness on Twitter over the deaths.

[34] Digital Spy's Kilkelly noted that Cameron's charms "fooled us all" as he made viewers believe that killing Danny and Sam was an accident.

[34] Kilkelly believed that the "horrifying" hit and run was one of Cameron's most villainous moments, commenting "how convenient" it was that the crash happened just as Danny and Sam were trying to take his daughter away.