'Oaks star reveals child killer plot details

Hollyoaks star Melissa Walton has revealed what viewers can expect from her character's controversial new storyline.

Last month, it emerged that the actress's alter ego Loretta Jones is to be exposed as a child killer when her former best friend Chrissy (Amber Hodgkiss) arrives in the village. The plot starts to unfold on the Channel 4 soap next week.

Discussing the twist in an interview with DS, Walton explained: "Loretta and Chrissy were best, best friends through childhood. They were closer than sisters. She somehow tracks Loretta down and turns up out of the blue after Loretta's finished a dance class. What we learn is that when they were 12, they bullied a girl of the same age and didn't stop until they killed her. They kept pushing and pushing and eventually killed her.

"Since then, Loretta and Chrissy have been completely separated from each other, their families and friends. They've spent years in institutions having psychiatric and behavioural treatment."

Walton confirmed that Chrissy decides to track down Loretta because she is a "desperate woman" facing new problems in her personal life. However, the former pole dancer is so startled by her arrival that she disappears in fear that her secrets are about to be uncovered.

On the long-term implications for her character, she said: "It's only a matter of time before their paths cross again, but to what lengths will Chrissy go to get her best friend back?"

Channel 4 has previously promised that the plot will be handled sensitively and "in the appropriate way".

> Click here to read our full interview with Melissa Walton