Holly Barton's attempt to make things right with her drug dealer goes badly wrong, explains Emmerdale star Sophie Powles
Holly Barton’s latest dangerous drugs deal in Emmerdale leads to Victoria being attacked, actress Sophie Powles tells Soaplife...
So Holly brings trouble to the village again? “She’s mixed up with dangerous people. She owes money and she agrees to help her dealer friend Simon stage a robbery on sister-in-law Victoria’s catering van. But it goes horribly wrong.”
Why is Holly finding it so hard to kick the drugs? “I’ve spoken to a number of drug addicts as research for this story and they’ve told me once you become an addict, you’re always an addict. It’s something that never really leaves you. Most days it is all you think about when you wake up and it is a question of learning to live with that.”
But Holly isn’t learning to live with it… “Holly doesn’t want to be a drug addict, but it has got its claws into her. It’s now the only way she can escape from herself and the bad things she does. The more bad thing she does, the worse it becomes. She’s got herself trapped in this horrible web.”
And she’s hurting her family! “She’s become good at lying. Holly can think up a lie in a split second if she’s put on the spot. She also has a very good poker face. She comes across as quite a chilled person and she laughs things off. That’s what she hides behind. She has a lot of good qualities, but the drug addiction overrides those. She loves her mum, Moira [Natalie J Robb], and she likes looking after people.”
What’s the deal with this Simon bloke? “He’s an old friend and a drug dealer. She calls him and she asks for some drugs. He brings her some, but she doesn’t have enough money to pay for them, so he suggests if she sells pills from Victoria’s van, then she can have the heroin for free, plus a cut of the profits.”
And she agrees to do it? “Yes, but she changes her mind. Victoria [Isabel Hodgins] has been good to her and she has an attack of conscience. She decides to give the drugs back to Simon, but she gets caught in the crossfire between Cain [Jeff Hordley] and the police. The drugs end up in a bag with Cain’s bloody shirt [from his attack on Dr Bailey] and Moira throws it away, not realising that there are pills in there.”
What happens next? “She has to explain to Simon where the drugs have gone and he gets very frightened as he’s mixed up with scary people who’ll want their money. Holly agrees to help him stage a robbery on Victoria’s van and she agrees to let him beat her up, so it looks like she’s been attacked and the money stolen.”
How does it go wrong? “Adam turns up, so Holly tells Simon he’ll have to do the robbery later on. Unfortunately, Victoria’s there at the time and she gets badly beaten up by him.”
Victoria is attacked in Holly's robbery-gone-wrong
How does Holly feel when she finds out? “She’s sickened and disgusted with herself. It’s the last thing she wanted. She and Adam [Adam Thomas] have been through so much together and she hates herself for hurting someone her brother loves.”
What is in store for Holly Barton? “It’s going to get a lot darker for her if she doesn’t admit she’s using and reach out for help…”
Emmerdale, ITV
