‘Hollyoaks’ had to build a whole new front of the school for the recent shocking gas explosion.
Viewers were left gripped to the edge of their seats last month when the windows of Hollyoaks High were blown out – claiming the lives of two of the local residents – after a fire ball ripped through the local comprehensive but, although the blaze was over relatively quickly, it took the team months of planning.
Speaking exclusively to BANG Showbiz at the Inside Soap Awards, held at London’s iconic Hippodrome Casino, on Monday (06.11.17), Nicole Barber-Lane said: "It’s coordinated and there’s a lot of safety people around. It takes a lot to do – the planning, the back planning, the planning from the directors, the planning from the stunt team, the planning from the firemen, the safety regulation.
"They have to build a whole front of the school so they built the school to then explode it. The preparation you wouldn’t believe. It’s spectacular."
The dramatic scenes saw Neeta Kaur (Amrit Maghera) and Frankie Osborne (Helen Pearson) die as a result of the blast but Lysette Anthony – who plays Marnie Nightingale in the show – thinks, although it was sad to see them leave, it’s an "honour" for them to bow out in such an iconic storyline.
She explained: "It’s a soap honour to die a spectacular death and hers [Frankie’s death, in which she passed away from a heart attack after learning that her entire family were at school when the explosion took place] was so real and heartbreaking and that’s where I think we excel."
The 54-year-old actress joined the soap three years ago and enjoys every moment of it.
Lysette said: "I start my third year on the 8th. It’s just the best job ever. We work very hard. I had my son on the phone from London and going: ‘I just love it here. You got to work, you do stuff and have a laugh.’ But we do work very hard so you just come home with job satisfaction."
Hollyoaks built new school for explosion
