'Hollyoaks' hailed for abuse storyline

A charity has praised Hollyoaks for its handling of a domestic abuse storyline.

Jake Dean (Kevin Sacre) was seen attempting to rape wife Nancy (Jessica Fox) just hours after their wedding.

Tender, which educates under-25s about violence in relationships, said the plot had provoked spirited debate on its forum.

A survey conducted by the group found that 96% of participants thought the scenes were effective in bringing the issue to viewers' attention.

Discussing the reasons behind the attempted rape, 68% thought Jake craved control, while 30% put his actions down to mental instability and 1% blamed abuse suffered when he was young.

The poll also revealed that 54% of respondents thought Jake should receive counselling and 45% felt he should serve time in prison.

Tender said: "As a national platform, Hollyoaks played a vital role in educating the public about the issue of abusive relationships."