Hollyoaks favourite Jennifer Metcalfe has opened up about why she feared she would get the axe after an impressive run on the soap.
Making her first appearance on the soap in 2006, Jennifer has starred as Mercedes McQueen for nearly two decades.
During her time on Hollyoaks, Mercedes has been involved in a number of dramatic storylines which included seven weddings, multiple affairs, and many tragedies.
Most recently, Mercedes has been undergoing treatment for bowel cancer, having been diagnosed during the soap's missing year.
Earlier this year she was told that the chemotherapy was working, and in Tuesday's episode Mercedes rang the bell, which signalled the end to her chemotherapy treatment.
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Speaking to TV Times about her impressive run as Mercedes, Jennifer said that she was convinced that her time was up after about 10 years on the Channel 4 soap.
"I remember about year ten, I thought, 'They can’t possibly do anything else with me, so they’re probably going to kill me off soon'," she said.
According to Jennifer, who praised the team behind her character, Hollyoaks writers kept coming up with "amazing" storylines for Mercedes.
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She said: "You’re like, 'Wow!' One minute she’s at rock bottom, and then she’s being sassy McQueen. It’s the whole team that creates that."
Asked by the publication why she thinks Mercedes has lasting appeal, Jennifer said: "I think she’s ten-dimensional, and she seems to get away with murder and is unapologetic.
"With the character, you can explore serious scenes, emotional scenes, funny scenes, sassy scenes. She’s a character you can do a lot with, so you can’t get bored of her. And she’s a character who doesn’t give up. She’ll experience the lows, but drag herself up again."
Hollyoaks airs on Mondays-Wednesdays with its Channel 4 streaming premiere at 7am, then an E4 broadcast the same night at 7pm. Full episodes are also released on YouTube a week after their Channel 4 release.
Selected omnibus episodes are available via Prime Video.
Read more Hollyoaks spoilers on our dedicated homepage
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