This is an interesting one for Hannah - very out of character...
"Yeah - it's been absolutely brilliant to do. It's completely different from normal Hollyoaks with regard to the character. The character adopts a completely different persona and lets loose almost."
How did you get involved with Later this year?
"My character wasn't in the late night episodes last year and with Bryan [Kirkwood] producing the episodes this year, I jumped at the chance. I'm a big fan of his! It's good to be in it and when I found out what the storyline was I thought it was really interesting and something different to play."
"With my strand there's some new characters involved which is always interesting - you get to work with different people and there's some strong characters. The feel of my story is quite dark. It's got this sense of something that comes across as wild and fun and a chance for Hannah to be a part of it, but then she suddenly realises that all's not what it seems. Underneath it's quite terrifying."
Who are the new characters?
"There's Jamie, who is Hannah's love interest - played by Finn Jones - and there's Kev, who's the bad guy and he's played by James Cartwright. Then there's Imogen, who's the drug-taking prostitute who lures Hannah into it all. She's this fabulous character played by Holly Gilbert. There's also Blue played by Kyle Rees - he's a lovable character but he's still part of the menacing crew."
"The Ashworths go to this music festival and when they arrive, they think it's absolutely fabulous until Hannah throws one of her turns and is angry at Rhys and Josh for leaving her. She realises that she's not really festival-going material and it's all a bit much for her. Suddenly, she meets someone she falls head over heels for - it's almost that cliché of love at first sight. Meanwhile, Rhys has done the same with Imogen. Josh thinks it's fabulous because he could have the chance to perform live, too. Everything's bliss and they think the festival life is really for them.
"In episode two, we see Hannah and Jamie getting on really well and then all of a sudden, she finds out that he's not all he seems - he's actually a drug dealer. Hannah's completely gobsmacked. How can someone who appears so nice and friendly be a drug dealer? It goes against everything she believes in - she's never taken drugs, she doesn't agree with taking drugs and doesn't really want to be a part of it. However, there's something inside of her that's obsessed with him and desperately wants to believe in him and the fairytale, so she goes with it when Rhys tells her to relax. When Josh has a bad experience playing live, Josh decides to leave, while Hannah and Rhys stay."
"Yeah, I think part of it is that she wants to go along with this fairytale and wants to fit in. There's the peer pressure, too. It's also something she's never done before. You only live once - she's young, she's at a festival - it's the perfect opportunity. Hannah's always complaining that her life's so dull and boring. She seizes the opportunity and jumps. It's a mad experience."
What happens next?
"Things take a turn for the worse in the house when she finds out that Imogen's a prostitute. The situation gets seedier and seedier. She can accept that Jamie deals drugs because he's explained that he just does it to get where he wants to be - he's not a bad person. She's fallen for him so she falls for that line as well. When she finds out Imogen's being pimped out so she can afford to buy drugs, she realises how wrong the setup is. She's frightened by it and Kev suggests that's how she's going to end up. It all goes a bit wrong and Jamie attacks Kev, so Jamie and Hannah run away in the ice-cream van.
"At the end of episode three everyone realises that they've gone away together - but that they also have the stash of drugs. Hannah's reaction is, 'Oh my God! What are we going to do?' and Jamie just thinks, 'Wow! This is amazing - we're going to be rich!' There are thousands and thousands of pounds worth of drugs."
"Basically, she says to Jamie, 'You've got to get rid of them!' Meanwhile, she's trying to get in touch with Rhys to tell him that Imogen's a prostitute and it's not all fun and pill-popping. It's a whole different league - they've got a business going on that she doesn't think they should be a part of. Jamie then tells Hannah that he's got rid of the drugs, which results in her falling back into his arms again. He's got rid of the drugs for her, he's ready to settle down and make a go of it - they're going to have the perfect life together."
Rhys is in a bit of bother, though, isn't he?
"Well while all this is going on, Kev and Blue have Rhys tied up in a basement! It's brilliant! Andy [Moss] loved doing those scenes as well, he kept telling me how fabulous they were. There are some really good performances. I'm really looking forward to seeing it!"
What's the ultimatum at the end of episode four?
"At the end of the penultimate episode, Jamie is left battered to a pulp and Hannah's sobbing hysterically and doesn't know what to do. Kev wants to find the drugs and says that if they don't find the drugs, Rhys will die. Hannah knows he's not messing about and the chances are that they'll actually kill him if they don't find the money - or the drugs they've just got rid of. It's sheer devastation."
"Yeah - we did those scenes last week and I was actually scared. There are guns involved and everything. Hannah ends up with a gun to her head. It actually really hurt! There was a specialist on set that tells you how to handle a gun. A lot happens in the last ep - it's a real whirlwind."
Hollyoaks Later begins tonight at 9pm on E4.
> Click here to read more from Emma Rigby in Soap Scoop
Additional reporting by Philippa Warr
