Hollyoaks have announced that soap regular Lily McQueen will pass away in a devastating storyline related to her ongoing battle with self-harming. The Channel 4 show will air an emotional week of episodes in April focusing on Lily's story and consequent death. Lily will admit herself into a mental health facility at the start of the week after struggling with her self-harming, but will then run away with her boyfriend Romeo Quinn, without telling her auntie and guardian, Dianne Hutchinson. When her family are told by the hospital that Lily's test results show she has sepsis – which is spreading to her internal organs – they are devastated and desperately try to find her so that she can get the treatment she needs.
Hollyoaks have confirmed Lily McQueen will die
The emotional episode – which will air on Wednesday 10 April – will focus on scenes flashing to and from memories with Lily's mum and real time, with Lily waiting for the train, and Dianne, Tony and Prince desperately trying to find her. During the week, spoken word poetry written by poet Hussain Manawer will be heard over Lily's scenes.
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Actress Lauren McQueen – who has been playing Lily in the show since 2017 – opened up about the storyline and her hopes for it raising awareness to help others. She said: "I was honoured to be given such a huge story that carried a lot of responsibility. Even though it was challenging and emotional I really hope I did it justice and hope it raises a lot of awareness to the audience. I hope the storyline makes the audience aware of how serious self-harm is, and that the consequences can be life threatening. Sepsis is actually very common, which many people may not know what the symptoms are, and it's something that needs to be treated very quickly. I hope it opens up a lot of conversation and encourages people to talk and get help if they relate to Lily."
Actress Lauren McQueen is leaving the soap to pursue new roles
Alex Fletcher, who plays Dianne, added of the storyline: "I am hoping that viewers will see that the seriousness of contracting sepsis through self-harm can have catastrophic consequences. I have felt affected by this storyline as we've all given it 100%. It's carried so much responsibility to get it right with the support of all the charities involved."
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Lauren also revealed that it was her decision to leave the show in a post on Twitter. She said: "I've decided to leave the show to pursue other acting roles and I'm so grateful I get to leave doing a huge storyline involving self-harm and sepsis with such an important message! I can't thank Hollyoaks enough for this amazing experience."
Lily made her first on-screen appearance in Hollyoaks on 6 January 2017. Her self-harming has been central to her storyline since her arrival in the soap, and Lauren has worked closely with the charities Samaritan and Mind for an accurate portrayal, in 2018, the storyline also won Best Storyline and Best Single Episode at the British Soap Awards.
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