Steph plays dirty for Gilly!
Hollyoaks Carley Stenson says a little thing like Gilly getting engaged to another woman won’t stop Steph fighting for her man! When did Steph realise she was in love with Gilly? "I don't think there was one moment… it just sort of crept up on her. Steph’s always enjoyed Gilly's company and loved being around him. Only she never realised it because there was always something else going on to distract her – like Fernando." Has she heard from Gilly since he went off travelling? "Not a word. She sent him a letter telling him about her feelings but it turns out he never received it." How does Steph feel when he turns up? "Really happy and excited. He comes into Mobs and says hello and Steph can't wait to be alone with him." Does Gilly seem as excited to see her as she is to see him? "Steph assumes he’ll be as keen as she is to talk about things but he puts her off, insisting he has to get on, and suggests catching up in The Dog later." And do they? "Poor Steph. She's so excited getting ready for her 'date'. She thinks it's going to be her big moment. But her dreams are shattered when Gilly's there with his new girlfriend, Jem. She's everything you don't want your love rival to be – pretty, trendy, friendly… Steph struggles to hide her upset." Does Gilly seem into Jem? "He's so into her that he declares his love and proposes in front of everyone and she says 'Yes!' Steph does a runner with her world crumbling around her." But Steph’s not giving up on Gilly? "No way. She puts her evil head on – before she lost Max, remember, Steph was a real bitch. She ups her game and starts to plot ways of getting Gilly for herself. I hope she doesn’t go into superbitch mode though as I used to have to apologise to everyone between takes when Steph was really bad." And she somehow gets Cheryl to help? "Cheryl can see how upset Steph is and agrees to help her get close to Gilly. But when Steph double-crosses her and stirs it by telling Jem that Cheryl loves Gilly and wants him back, Cheryl says she’s going to fight for him too…" Why does everybody fancy Gilly all of a sudden? "Because he’s so lovely!"
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Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix.
An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.