I did one of these late last year, and was 100% going to stick with it, until things started to go wrong and I made a few mistakes storyline-wise. I will be restarting it (from April 2014 again).

Tony Hutchinson - Nick Pickard (1995-)
Cindy Cunningham - Stephanie Waring (1995 - 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008-)
Jack Osborne - Jimmy McKenna (1996-)
Darren Osborne - Ashley Taylor Dawson (1996 - 1997, 1999 - 2001, 2003-)
Holly Cunningham - Amanda Clapham (1997 - 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008 - 2010, 2012-)
Tom Cunningham - Ellis Hollins (1999-)
Frankie Osborne - Helen Pearson (2002-)
Nancy Hayton - Jessica Fox (2005-)
Ste Hay - Kieran Richardson (2006-)
Mercedes McQueen - Jennifer Metcalfe (2006-)
Carmel Valentine - Gemma Merna (2006-)
John Paul McQueen - James Sutton (2006 - 2008, 2012-)
Sonny Valentine - Aaron Fontaine (2006 - 2007, 2014-)
Marlena "Nana" McQueen - Diane Langton (2007 - 2009, 2012-)
Diane O'Connor - Alex Fletcher (2010-)
Sinead O'Connor - Stephanie Davis (2010-)
Finn O'Connor - Keith Rice (2010 - 2011, 2013-)
Esther Bloom - Jazmine Franks (2011-)
Dodger Savage - Danny Mac (2011-)
Dirk Savage - David Kennedy (2011-)
George Smith - Steven Roberts (2011-)
Dennis Savage - Joe Tracini (2011-)
Phoebe McQueen - Mandip Gill (2012-)
Maxine Minniver - Nikki Sanderson (2012-)
Sienna Blake - Anna Passey (2012-)
Patrick Blake - Jeremy Sheffield (2012-)
Robbie Roscoe - Charlie Wernham (2013-)
Trevor Royle - Greg Wood (2013-)
Vincent Elegba - John Omole (2013-)
Freddie Roscoe - Charlie Clapham (2013-)
Joe Roscoe - Ayden Callaghan (2013-)
Jason Roscoe - Alfie Browne-Sykes (2013-)
Sandy Roscoe - Gillian Taylforth (2013-)
Ziggy Roscoe - Fabrizio Santino (2013-)
Lindsey Butterfield - Sophie Austin (2013-)
Danny Lomax - Stephen Billington (2013-)
Fraser Black - Jesse Birdsall (2013-)
Sam Lomax - Lizzie Roper (2013-)
Peri Lomax - Ruby O'Donnell (2013-)
Tegan Lomax - Jessica Ellis (2013-)
Leela Lomax - Kirsty-Leigh Porter (2013-)
Grace Black - Tamara Wall (2013-)
Alex Browning - Ojan Genc (2014-)
Blessing Chambers - Modupe Adeyeye (2014-)

CURRENT CHILDREN
Charlie Dean - Charlie Behan (2006-)
Leah Barnes - Ela-May Dermican (2007-)
Lucas Hay - William Hall (2009-)
Kathleen-Angel McQueen - Nieve Gradison (2010-)
Oscar Osborne - Ralph + Zack Norman (2012-)
Matthew McQueen - Uncredited (2012-)
Ant Hutchinson - Alby (2013-)
Dee Dee Hutchinson - Charlotte + Annabelle White (2013-)
Rose Lomax - Mia (2013-)
Hilton Cunningham - Uncredited (2014-)

CURRENT RECURRING

CURRENT ANIMALS

DEPARTING

RETURNING
Theresa McQueen - Jorgie Porter (Regular. Returns August 2014) Details are unknown.
Myra McQueen - Nicole Barber-Lane (Regular. Returns August 2014) Will return when she discovers her family need her.
Harry Thompson - Parry Glasspool (Regular. Returns December 2014) Returns when kicked out of his boarding school for drug use.

FUTURE
Rick Spencer - Victor Gardener (Regular. Debuts May 2014) The father of Jason + Robbie, the ex-husband of Sandy.
Nico Blake - Persephone Swales-Dawson (Regular. Debuts June 6 2014) The daughter of Sienna.
Cameron Campbell - Cameron Moore (Regular. Debuts 2014) A man who went to school with Ziggy.
Robert "Big Bob" Gupta - Vincent Ebrahim (Guest. Debuts 2014) A man who shares a cell with Trevor. He later comes looking for revenge after Trevor gets him in trouble.
Kim Butterfield - Daisy Wood-Davis (Regular. Debuts 2014) The younger sister of Lindsey.
Dr. Charles S'avage - Andrew Greenough (Regular. Debuts 2014) The younger brother of Dirk, father of Dennis.
Lachlan Campbell - Nick Rhys (Regular. Debuts 2014) The older brother of Cameron.
Porsche McQueen - Twinnie Lee Moore (Regular. Debuts 2014) Myra's niece.
Celine McQueen - Sarah George (Regular. Debuts 2014) Myra's niece.
Shane Alderton - Jody Latham (Regular. Debuts 2014) The abusive ex-boyfriend of Celine.
Lauren Turner - Lacey Turner Regular. (Debuts 2014) Unknown details.

RECENTLY DEPARTED

Monday 31 March 2014
Baby Katy's health seriously begins to decline, and Finn's suspicions grow, but part of him is still convinced his sister would not harm her own daughter. Diane, however, is intent on believing Sinead harmed Katy, and begins to convince Tony, Finn and Freddie that Sinead is guilty!

Ste begins to grow intent on getting revenge on Fraser. Spotting Fraser pulling up outside of The Loft, Ste tampers with the breaks on Fraser's car. However, Fraser heads out into outer Chester. Meanwhile, Sinead is rushing to the hospital, having received a phonecall from Freddie. She is rushing through outer Chester when Fraser's car pulls out of nowhere, and the breaks fail, causing Fraser's car to collide with Sinead and send Sinead's toppling over, whilst Fraser's crashes through a fence.

Ziggy flirts with Leela, and the pair end up kissing. However, it is cut short when Leela realises she is late for work. She heads off for work, but is annoyed to find the lane is closed due to roadworks. Leela takes a shortcut, pulling out of the village and heading down one of the roads just outside of Chester. However, she is met with a scene of devastation when she finds herself staring at the aftermath of Fraser and Sinead's crash!

Tuesday 1 April 2014
Leela rushes over to Sinead's car, and attempts to help her, however Sinead has a massive cut on her head. Leela attempts to remove the door, however notices Fraser's car has caught fire. She rushes over to Fraser's car and finds him unconscious inside, with the door jammed. Sinead's car then begins to smoke, and Leela realises there is a possibility she can only save one of them - leaving her to make an impossible choice!

Tegan notices that Peri is enjoying Tom's company, and questions Peri on it. Peri admits that she likes Tom 'a little bit', and Tegan tells her it is cute. Peri and Tom then spend the day studying together in the hospital.

Also, Darren and Nancy's arguing grows tedious, and the couple make the decision that it may be better if they split - for good! Dodger notices that Darren is cut up about it, and Dodger suggests to Darren that he, Dodger and Dennis go out to help cheer Darren up. Darren reluctantly agrees, and the friends head to The Loft. Darren notices a girl, Lauren Turner, whom he takes a shine too. After spending the night dancing and drinking, Darren kisses Lauren, however she pushes him back and heads to the bathroom. After half an hour in the bathroom, Darren enters to check on her - and is shocked to find her and Dodger having sex in a cubicle! Also, Dennis notices Blessing, and tries to impress her.

Leela proceeds to help Sinead from the wreckage, and Leela helps her out just as the car explodes, throwing Leela and Sinead backwards. Fraser begins to come-to, and panics. He attempts to open his door, but is is jammed. As the fire grows bigger, Fraser kicks the door open and tries to jump out - but his foot is stuck in his seatbelt! Fraser, panicking, tries to free himself, and Leela rushes over to help - but it is too late, and the car goes up in flames, with Fraser inside...!

The ambulance arrives, and Sinead and Leela are taken to hospital, whilst Fraser's body is dealt with. Lindsey pleads with Sinead to get checked out, but Sinead says that she needs to get to Katy. Eventually Sinead gives in, and after getting checked over, she rushes to Katy's room - only to find a tearful Freddie, Finn, Tony and Diane staring at Katy's cot. Freddie pulls Sinead into a hug, before revealing that Katy has passed away - but as Sinead breaks down in tears, Diane watches: will she believe her daughter?

Wednesday April 2 2014
In the aftermath of baby Katy's death, Sinead struggles to cope. She turns to Diane and Tony for comfort, however she is shocked to find they have turned against her. After struggling to convince Diane that she never harmed Katy and with Freddie taking Diane's side, Sinead turns to Ste for help. Ste comforts Sinead, however a high Ste accidentally says the wrong thing, and Sinead storms out - and straight into the bed of Ziggy!

After an altercation in the village which results in Patrick taking Holly's phone, Holly breaks into Patrick's flat to retrieve it. She is forced to hide in the bathroom when she hears Patrick and Maxine entering. Holly listens as the couple argue, resulting in Patrick hitting Maxine! Holly is shocked by her discovery...

Dodger and Lauren wake up next to each other on the boat, and Lauren makes her excuses to leave before rushing off.

Darren is livid with Dodger, and tells him that their friendship is over. Dodger questions what he has done, and Darren says that Dodger knew Darren liked Lauren. Dodger apologises, but Darren tells him to leave it.

Grace learns the truth about her father's death, and breaks down. Trevor comforts her, but Grace finds comfort elsewhere - in the arms of Patrick! After sleeping with Patrick, a guilty Grace heads home, to find Trevor waiting for her with a romantic meal. Grace tells Trevor she doesn't want his stupid meal or soppy attempts at romance - she just wants her Dad!

Blessing and Dennis continue to flirt, and after spending the day in The Dog, Dennis kisses her - however Blessing slaps him before rushing out!

Thursday April 3 2014
Holly questions Maxine on what she saw, and Maxine tells Holly to leave it. Later in Patrick's office, Holly tells Patrick she knows what has been going on. Patrick threatens her, calling her a stupid little girl and telling her if she tells anybody then something bad will happen. Holly says it isn't right and she is going to tell the Police, however Patrick throws her to the ground and in the heat of the moment he rapes her.

Sinead is shocked to wake up next to Ziggy, and leaves. Ziggy tries to follow her, but she escapes. Later, Ziggy sees Sinead in The Dog, and asks how she is. Sinead lashes out, just as Diane and Tony enter. An argument ensues, resulting in Diane slapping Sinead and telling her she was a terrible mother anyway! Sinead is then shocked to find Grace blames her for Fraser's death, and - realising everybody hates her, - Sinead decides it is best if she departs Hollyoaks...

Darren is angry to find Lauren in the pub, and questions her on the other night at The Loft. Lauren reveals she is sorry if she lead him on, but she doesn't think of him like that. Darren insists it is fine, however is is clear he is upset.

Peri decides she is wasting her life, and - convinced her brain tumour is going to kill her, - Peri packs a bag and tells Tom she is leaving Hollyoaks: and he can either come with her or let her go alone. Tom says he will go with her, however when he packs his bag, Tom alerts Jack, who tells Sam. Tom distracts Peri at the folly, and the pair kiss - as Jack, Danny and Sam arrive to take Peri home. Peri lashes out at Tom for grassing her up, telling him she never wants to see him again, however she collapses again, and Sam rushes her to hospital...

(Friday's episode coming soon...)

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JAMIE DORNAN CAST AS LUKE MILLER!

Film star Jamie Dornan has been cast as new character Luke Miller.

Dornan, 31, will play the new Irish mechanic who will arrive in mid April. Dornan is said to be over the moon with his casting, however did not comment. It is suggested Luke will arrive with his girlfriend, Holly Foster (Jacqueline Jossa) and Holly's sister Abbie Foster (Catherine Tyldesley).

Holly will study at the college, and Abbie will become a barmaid at The Dog.

Made a mistake, it's Danielle not Holly

Friday April 4 2014
Holly wakes up in an alleyway, having spent the night there. Holly is horrified after her ordeal with Patrick, and heads home, shaken up. Cindy questions if she is OK, and Holly says she is - however collapses! Cindy calls an ambulance, and Holly is rushed to hospital. After several tests, it is revealed Holly has pneumonia - but when questioned about why she was out so late, Holly decides not to speak up about her rape...

The Roscoe's struggle on what would've been Joe's 30th birthday. With Lindsey still cut up about Joe eloping, the pressure mounts on Freddie, who knows the truth: Joe is dead! However, a confrontation in the street between Grace and Sinead leads to Grace revealing a shocking secret to Freddie - Joe Roscoe is in fact alive, and in a coma in a hospital in Blackpool. Believing her to be bluffing, Freddie ignores Grace - until Grace sends Freddie photo evidence!

Lauren and Dodger meet up again at The Hutch, however Dodger is forced to choose between Lauren and his best friend when Darren enters. He chooses Lauren eventually, causing Darren to storm out, and Dodger and Lauren to head back to The Boathouse, where they have sex.

Monday 7 April 2014
Sam visits John Paul in prison, and he is forced to answer some tough questions. John Paul begins to feel isolated when Sam leaves, and receives a beating in prison!

Freddie rushes to London, and to the hospital where Joe is being kept. Freddie is shocked then he is alive, but it becomes clear that there is a good chance Joe will not wake up! Meanwhile, Lindsey seeks advice from Mercedes when she realises she is in love with Freddie...

Dennis becomes concerned about Blessing following her outburst on Wednesday, and Dodger gloats about his night of passion with Lauren.

Tuesday 8 April 2014
Cindy worries about Holly as she returns from hospital. Jason confides in Robbie, revealing he is worried about Holly. Robbie says she will be fine, however Robbie is still feeling guilty following John Paul's trial.

Things begin to get worse for Maxine as she receives another beating from Patrick, but it soon becomes evident that Patrick is regretting his actions. Maxine is heartbroken when Sienna discovers that Maxine is pregnant, and Maxine pleads with Sienna not to tell Patrick.

Fraser travels to London, and is shocked to find Freddie in Joe's hospital room. Freddie reveals he knows what Fraser did, and a fight ensues - which results in Joe's heart monitor going off! A distraught Freddie watches as the nurses attempt to resuscitate Joe.

Wednesday 9 April 2014
Ste worries about Sinead's mental state following Katy's death, and Ste and Sonny become determined to discover the truth behind baby Katy's death.

Freddie calls his family (Sandy, Lindsey, Ziggy, Jason, Robbie) to the hospital in London, where Freddie reveals the truth about Joe. The brothers are angry, whilst Lindsey is distraught, having fallen in love with Freddie in the past four months. Sandy visits her son (who the nurses managed to save) in his hospital room, and Joe's finger twitches - but is it just a reflex, or is he waking up?

Sienna juggles with whether or not to tell Patrick, whilst Diane prepares for Katy's funeral.

Thursday 10 April 2014
It is the day of baby Katy's funeral, and Ste is disgusted to discover that Sinead does not know about it! Ste reveals the funeral to a distraught Sinead, whose mental state is already deteriorating. After contemplating jumping from the hospital roof, Sinead breaks down, and Ste saves her from suicide. Ste then supports Sinead to the funeral, where Sinead is shunned and a fight ensues between Diane and Sinead - until Sonny arrives with the postmortem, and reveals Katy died of an undiagnosed heart disease! Diane attempts to apologise, however Sinead blames her for ruining her little girl's funeral - before kicking her out. Later, Sinead says an emotional goodbye to her daughter by her grave...

Sandy is distraught when the doctor's reveal they believe Joe's finger twitch was just a reflex, and Sandy is forced to make the decision to turn the life support machine off the next day. Her family are annoyed with her decision, but Lindsey helps convince them it is for the best...

Lauren and Dodger go on a date to College Coffee, where they run into newcomer Luke Miller. Dodger and Luke hit it off, and it looks like a new friendship could be brewing. After Luke leaves, Dodger suggests they head back to his - but Lauren makes her excuses to leave and rushes off!

Friday 11 April 2014
It is a hard day for the Roscoe's as they rally around Joe's hospital bed, having agreed to turn off the life support. As each of the brother's say an emotional goodbye, Freddie is the last one, and his goodbye speech ends in him revealing he is "sorry for everything". The Roscoe's watch as Joe's machine is switched off, and emotional music plays over the scene - but stops abruptly as Joe's heart monitor continues to sound, and his eyes flash open!

Sinead thanks Ste for his help, but Ste is too busy arranging with his dealer to pick up some cocaine. Sinead realises this, and tells Ste he needs help - but he does not listen.

Dodger questions Lauren on her strange behaviour, and Lauren apologises, before revealing that she received a phonecall at College Coffee - her father has passed away. Dodger comforts her, and the pair kiss.

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FOUR DEPARTURES, TWO RETURNS AND THREE ARRIVALS!
Four characters are departing the show in the upcoming weeks. The first departure is being kept under wraps, but is a character who has been in the show since at least 2008, meaning it could be Tony, Cindy, Jack, Darren, Holly, Tom, Frankie, Nancy, Ste, Mercedes, Carmel, John Paul, Sonny or Marlena.

The second departure is George Smith, played by Steven Roberts. George first appeared in 2011, and will be departing sometime in 2014. His exit storyline is being kept under wraps.

The third and fourth departures are relatively new characters Vincent Elegba (John Omole) and Danny Lomax (Stephen Billington). Vincent has been at the centre of an illegal refugee and secret homosexuality storyline, and has been in a relationship with departing character George - so will he depart along with him?

Danny is the bisexual husband of Sam, and father of Ste, Leela, Tegan and Peri. Played by Stephen Billington, he will depart in Summer 2014. His storyline is also being kept secret.

However, amongst the departure news, DigitalSpy can officially confirm that three characters will be returning to the show, whilst three new arrivals will be appearing.

The first return is Kathleen McQueen, played by Alison Burrows. Kathleen is the mother of Theresa (Jorgie Porter), whom is also returning. Kathleen previously appeared between 2009 - 2011.

The second return is Martha Kane, played by Carli Norris. Martha only left in late 2013, but Carli has been offered a two year contract as producers felt her character still had mileage, despite her family being dead.

The final return is Lisa Hunter, played by Gemma Atkinson. Lisa first appeared between 2001 and 2006. However it is thought that a whopping THIRTEEN characters are set for surprise returns in the coming months - but who is being kept under wraps!

Finally, three newcomers are joining the show. Michael Parr has been cast as Owen Smith, a personal trainer and college student. Rik Makarem has been cast as Dylan Hassan, a Music Teacher, and Danny Dyer has been cast as Connor James, a new barman at The Dog.

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Tony Hutchinson - Nick Pickard (1995-)
Cindy Cunningham - Stephanie Waring (1995 - 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008-)
Jack Osborne - Jimmy McKenna (1996-)
Darren Osborne - Ashley Taylor Dawson (1996 - 1997, 1999 - 2001, 2003-)
Holly Cunningham - Amanda Clapham (1997 - 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008 - 2010, 2012-)
Tom Cunningham - Ellis Hollins (1999-)
Frankie Osborne - Helen Pearson (2002-)
Nancy Hayton - Jessica Fox (2005-)
Ste Hay - Kieran Richardson (2006-)
Mercedes McQueen - Jennifer Metcalfe (2006-)
Carmel Valentine - Gemma Merna (2006-)
John Paul McQueen - James Sutton (2006 - 2008, 2012-)
Sonny Valentine - Aaron Fontaine (2006 - 2007, 2014-)
Marlena "Nana" McQueen - Diane Langton (2007 - 2009, 2012-)
Diane O'Connor - Alex Fletcher (2010-)
Sinead O'Connor - Stephanie Davis (2010-)
Finn O'Connor - Keith Rice (2010 - 2011, 2013-)
Esther Bloom - Jazmine Franks (2011-)
Dodger Savage - Danny Mac (2011-)
Dirk Savage - David Kennedy (2011-)
George Smith - Steven Roberts (2011 - 2014)
Dennis Savage - Joe Tracini (2011-)
Phoebe McQueen - Mandip Gill (2012-)
Maxine Minniver - Nikki Sanderson (2012-)
Sienna Blake - Anna Passey (2012-)
Patrick Blake - Jeremy Sheffield (2012-)
Robbie Roscoe - Charlie Wernham (2013-)
Trevor Royle - Greg Wood (2013-)
Vincent Elegba - John Omole (2013-)
Freddie Roscoe - Charlie Clapham (2013-)
Joe Roscoe - Ayden Callaghan (2013-)
Jason Roscoe - Alfie Browne-Sykes (2013-)
Sandy Roscoe - Gillian Taylforth (2013-)
Ziggy Roscoe - Fabrizio Santino (2013-)
Lindsey Butterfield - Sophie Austin (2013-)
Danny Lomax - Stephen Billington (2013-)
Sam Lomax - Lizzie Roper (2013-)
Peri Lomax - Ruby O'Donnell (2013-)
Tegan Lomax - Jessica Ellis (2013-)
Leela Lomax - Kirsty-Leigh Porter (2013-)
Grace Black - Tamara Wall (2013-)
Alex Browning - Ojan Genc (2014-)
Blessing Chambers - Modupe Adeyeye (2014-)
Lauren Turner - Lacey Turner (2014-)
Luke Miller - Jamie Dornan (2014-)

CURRENT CHILDREN
Charlie Dean - Charlie Behan (2006-)
Leah Barnes - Ela-May Dermican (2007-)
Lucas Hay - William Hall (2009-)
Kathleen-Angel McQueen - Nieve Gradison (2010-)
Oscar Osborne - Ralph + Zack Norman (2012-)
Matthew McQueen - Uncredited (2012-)
Ant Hutchinson - Alby (2013-)
Dee Dee Hutchinson - Charlotte + Annabelle White (2013-)
Rose Lomax - Mia (2013-)
Hilton Cunningham - Uncredited (2014-)

CURRENT RECURRING

CURRENT ANIMALS

DEPARTING
Unknown Departure (2014)
George Smith (2014)
Vincent Elegba (2014)
Danny Lomax (Summer 2014)

RETURNING
Theresa McQueen - Jorgie Porter (Regular. Returns August 2014)
Myra McQueen - Nicole Barber-Lane (Regular. Returns August 2014)
Harry Thompson - Parry Glasspool (Regular. Returns December 2014)
Kathleen McQueen - Alison Burrows (Regular. Returns 2014)
Martha Kane - Carli Norris (Regular. Returns 2014)
Lisa Hunter - Gemma Atkinson (Regular. Returns 2014)

FUTURE
Rick Spencer - Victor Gardener (Regular. Debuts May 2014)
Nico Blake - Persephone Swales-Dawson (Regular. Debuts June 6 2014)
Cameron Campbell - Cameron Moore (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Robert "Big Bob" Gupta - Vincent Ebrahim (Guest. Debuts 2014)
Kim Butterfield - Daisy Wood-Davis (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Dr. Charles S'avage - Andrew Greenough (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Lachlan Campbell - Nick Rhys (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Porsche McQueen - Twinnie Lee Moore (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Celine McQueen - Sarah George (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Shane Alderton - Jody Latham (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Danielle Foster - Jacqueline Jossa (Regular. Debuts April 2014)
Abbie Foster - Catherine Tyldesley (Regular. Debuts April 2014)
Owen Smith - Michael Parr (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Dylan Hassan - Rik Makarem (Regular. Debuts 2014)
Connor James - Danny Dyer (Regular. Debuts 2014)

RECENTLY DEPARTED
Fraser Black - Jesse Birdsall (2013 - 2014) (1 April 2014: Killed when his car exploded)
Katy O'Connor - Uncredited (2013 - 2014) (31 March 2014: Died from an undiagnosed heart disease)

Monday 14 April 2014
Sinead is shocked when a guilty Ste is arrested for Fraser's murder as the Police have found CCTV footage of Ste tampering with Fraser's brakes. Sinead is distraught, blaming Ste for stopping her getting to her baby in time!

The Roscoe's are amazed that Joe is awake and alive, apart from Lindsey, who has clearly fallen out of love with Joe. Sandy chastises Freddie for not telling Sandy sooner, before thanking him.

Holly tells Maxine the truth about what Patrick did to her. Maxine confronts Patrick, and receives a beating - which Sienna walks in on! Sienna screams at her Dad, revealing that Maxine is pregnant...

Grace plans her revenge on Sinead for 'killing' her father, however when Trevor discovers her murderous plans, will he stop them?