Hollyoaks icon Charlie Clapham breaks his silence on returning to soap after seven years

Hollyoaks actor Charlie Clapham has made a shocking return to the Channel 4 soap after seven years. The actor, 32, is best known for playing Freddie Roscoe who was forced to go on the run after he took revenge on Nick Savage. Now Freddie is back and already causing chaos along with fighting with local gangster Warren Fox. 

Charlie Clapham has returned to Hollyoaks despite many cast members leaving or being axed due to major budget and episode cuts. The production company Lime Pictures announced in February that Hollyoaks would be cut from five episodes a week to just three, along with over 135 job losses.

Speaking to The Mirror Charlie described how going back to the soap had felt like a “rollercoaster”. He said: “There’s a lot going on isn’t there. It’s been great, it’s been a lot of fun. It has been a bit of a rollercoaster as well. I feel like every week there's a new announcement, someone is leaving or someone is joining.”

Since the cutbacks were announced many actors have confirmed they will be leaving including; Owen Warner, Ross Adams, Jamelia and Jamie Lomas. This week actress Stephanie Waring who plays Cindy Cunningham shared that she had been axed from the show after 28 years. 

Stephanie shared in a statement that she was given the chance to say she had chosen to leave to spare her the embarrassment but didn’t want to lie to her fans as “they know she [Cindy] nor I would ever have left the show by choice.”

Hollyoaks streams first online via Channel 4 each weekday from 7.30pm. Episodes then air on E4 the following day from 7:00pm.

Natalie Dixon is NationalWorld’s Lifestyle reporter. If you liked this article and want to read more about soaps, celebrities and lifestyle you can follow Natalie Dixon on X here. 

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