I hope you are right!!!

I thought it was refreshingly original that most of James' issues were due to his manipulative with of a mother. The Mac thing is a disappointment to me.

My gut reaction was that as well, but then when I started reading comments here I reassessed. I hope hope HOPE you're right.

It is and to be real it was ED storyline to do. Aaron was the character to do that story with because he had been portrayed for years as angry, depressed, self-injurious so it made sense character wise. I didn't feel like that was a story about the character's sexuality.

And this is my fear but it's typical Kirkwood looking for awards at the next BSA.

James already gets compared to Bredan and with this story that will only intensify, not to mention emmerdale too.

Gregory is fantastic and yeah he will pull it off but not without constant comparisons. The character has so much potential. He is brilliant to watch but no matter how good his performances are, it will always be another sexual child abuse plot involving a gay bad boy.

I'm rewatching on +1. I'm gonna pay really close attention to that last scene with everything in mind.

It's ambiguous to be honest. It could be sexual abuse or it could be creative physical/emotional abuse. I think we'll just need to wait and see where they go with this. I really loved that James was so honest about writing lies in his school diary as well, I feel like once he started to open up to John Paul it opened the floodgates.

I noticed today's episode was written by Richard Burke, he's the man who wrote James' speech to John Paul when he was unconscious after being hit by the car.

Best HO writer by a mile!

At least if we know we get an episode from him it will be a good one. In general they are writing James and JP really well. James/Mac and Alfie/Jade are easily the strongest storylines on HO right now.

I agree about us not knowing for sure until futher on. Unfortunately they've planted the seed now.

HOLY SHIT I just had a thought.

That post I made earlier about Richard Burke got me thinking about James' bedside confession to JP. Remember he said his cat died when he was eight? What if that's the creative thing Mac did to punish him?

I think Gregory is a breath of fresh air for HO. A truly adult actor on what's known as a teen soap. I hope there is some twist to this.

I don't think James is a Bredan I think he's more of a Robert from ED with his sly manipulative ways. Which is not good for HO. It would be one thing for a soap to revisit their own storyline but another soaps award winning story only months after it finished?

Evening and sorry I am late to the party.

You guys are expressing exactly what I was thinking and I am also slightly frustrated at the route this story has started to take. It's like watching Aaron's story all over again....albeit with slightly less tears. Why oh why has BK decided to tell this story and why oh why with James?

Having said that, Gregory was brilliant. Although he can at times be smug and nasty, he portrayed such a vulnerability tonight in his scene with JP.

Yes please!!!!!!!!!!! I was thinking the exact same thing. While JP wasn't raped by his dad as a child, they still managed to squeeze a rape into his story!

So do you guys think my cat theory flies? Or is that asking for too much continuity?

I didnt get any sexual vibes, just crueler violence, he didnt use his fists, was what james said could have been anything, burnt, starved etc

given he took Morticia from James as well to spite him (and make me delighted) i doubt it was sexual at all

Im so cross that they were shocked to see James as if hes not part of the family, the kids seem fond of him so why exclude him, and you know what will happen Mac, the mcqueens will adopt James cos they love broke people and then you will be fighting them too

😮 That would be much better than the sexual abuse angle. It would show just how twisted Mac is and it would certainly be in line with what James previously said.


I don't watch ED but I hear ya. I have no issue with duplicate stories in soap as it happens all the time but it sounds so similar and i feel it's too soon. I'd just like a interesting gay male character for once who hasn't been sexually assaulted. It's not too much to ask.

yes I think so

Bless Ahsan C, he's been re-uploading pretty much non-stop all yesterday and today, what a trooper!

He says he should have this week's McNight stuff uploaded by tomorrow

Watched the episode. I'm glad that James is taking steps to bring Mac to justice, I hope he doesn't desist. And I especially loved how he is following JP's advice, there's already a level of trust between them.

Mac is appalling. He needs to end behind bars or killed horrifically.

from c4 http://www.channel4.com/programmes/h...om-abuse/4827/

James did make the comment he just wanted to please his dad. That sounds like more than basic physical violence. I believe without doubt Mac killed the cat. I also can't understand how Marnie wasn't aware of any of this. This choosing between me and my dad didn't end well. She did leave with him in the end. Anyway hopefully tomorrow James will reveal exactly what went on.

As awful as this is, I hope that's what's James was referring to. This storyline will only gain from staying away from the sexual abuse route.

It's so exciting, there are so many skeletons to discover about this family.

Yeah. I like that there is viewer ambivalence over whether Marnie knew and we still don't know the extent of the abuse. The cat theory is a interesting one and something i can see Mac doing.

The nspcc link does seem to suggest the story will revolve around violence. I hope so any way.

Yeah, that statement from Channel 4 has put my mind at ease that there will be no sexual violence in this storyline. I might be proved wrong, but that's my assumption at the moment.

I guess the writers are not 100% sure about what to do with her, normally by now there is a hint of redemption, I have never felt sorry for her, just more and more annoyance and want here away from James

James has now told John Paul something he's never told anyone else his entire life, even his family, that's absolutely massive.