Hollyoaks newcomer Charlotte Riley explains why Leah has changed so much

 The character returned to the village with boyfriend Imran Maalik.

Hollyoaks newcomer Charlotte Riley has addressed taking over the role of Leah Barnes after the character made a shocking return to the village with Imran Maalik. Leah and Imran met off-screen as they both travelled away from Chester and have now returned as a couple.

While some fans also noticed a change in Leah's personality upon her return, Riley insisted the character is only putting up a front now that's she's back to the place where she grew up.

"It's just one of those things where life changes, people change and grow and that's just what's happened with Leah, really," Riley told the Mirror.

She continued: "She's gone into this new era of life and it's a fresh start coming back with Imran. She's still the same Leah underneath but as you come in obviously you've got this front up and you want to show off how well you've worked and she's got all these ideas in her mind and she wants to do this project and work with people and it's like coming back to old friendships."

Leah, previously played by Ela-May Demircan, left the village in 2024 to go study in the US, entrusting her baby son James to the cares of his dad, Dillon. She had a tumultuous relationship with her brother Lucas, who was devastated when he found out that Leah had slept with his boyfriend.

The character seems to have put all the drama behind her as she embarks on a new life with Imran, with the pair set to tie the knot. But Riley has teased that the truth will "come out", hinting at some twists on the horizon for the new couple.

Leah's come back to a village where she left where she gave birth and coming back to that place is going to be all these little reminders when she goes around the village and she just has to put up this front really and that's what she's doing at the minute," Riley said.

"We've obviously got the big wedding and people are a bit confused to why she's got money and are second guessing things she might be doing and saying and no matter what, the truth always comes out in the end, so it'll all come out."

Home and Away in the UK Sonny’s recovery takes another worrying turn, as his determination to get stronger lands him in trouble with the police.

 

Next week on Home and Away in the UK, Sonny’s recovery takes another worrying turn, as his determination to get stronger lands him in trouble with the police.

Now back on his feet after months of paralysis following the train crash, Sonny (Ryan Bown) is determined to regain his independence by speeding up his recovery—but those around him are already worried that he’s pushing too hard.

Tane agreed to draw up a proper workout plan, but made it clear that Sonny would need to follow it properly—including the rest periods. Sonny reluctantly accepted the conditions, but soon started finding ways around them.

Next week, Yabbie Creek police are looking into a series of local thefts. David (Jeremy Lindsay Taylor) has put Richie (Rocco Forrester-Sach) on the case, with Richie checking online listings for anything that might match the stolen items.

The situation gets nearer to home when David is called to the surf club, where Alf (Ray Meagher) reports that the club garage was broken into overnight. A generator has gone missing, leaving David convinced that this is more than just local kids messing around.

As David starts asking questions about who locked up the night before, Lacey (Sophea Pennington) arrives to open the gym for the day.

Before she even gets inside, she realises something’s wrong. The door’s ajar, and the lock is broken.

Lacey then hears movement from inside, leaving her concerned that whoever forced their way in may still be there.

she rushes outside to alert David, who tells Lacey to stay back before making his way inside.

Lacey’s worried that her dad doesn’t know how many people could be inside, but David continues into the gym and calls out for whoever’s there to show themselves.

Instead of finding a burglar, David discovers Sonny working out alone.

Sonny is startled by the sudden police arrival, but quickly tries to explain himself. As far as he’s concerned, the gym was late opening, and he needed to work out.

David presses him on how he got in, and Sonny tries to downplay it by saying he “procured an entryway”. Lacey dismisses the excuse, pointing out that Sonny broke in.

Lacey’s furious, having thought there was a burglar inside, while Sonny argues that it’s all a misunderstanding.

When David says he needs to come to the station for a chat, Sonny’s stunned.

As David leads him out, Alf questions whether Sonny also had anything to do with the Surf Club garage robbery. Sonny insists that he didn’t, but the timing has already cast suspicion on him.

At the station, Sonny continues to deny any involvement in the garage theft. David points out that the garage and the gym were broken into within a few hours of each other, whilst Sonny argues that he wouldn’t have stolen equipment and then stayed behind to work out whilst still having to use a crutch.

When David asks whether police can take his fingerprints to help rule him out, Sonny refuses.

Remi (Adam Rowland) soon hears what’s happened and heads to the station to speak to Sonny. David initially refuses, but Remi later makes a direct appeal—he knows Sonny isn’t a thief, but he also knows his best friend has been going too far with his rehab.

David eventually agrees to let Sonny go, as there’s nothing connecting him to the garage theft and he has no prior form. But he warns Remi that this is Sonny’s only chance. If Sonny goes breaking locks and frightening Lacey again, there’ll be no discretion.

Remi hopes that the scare has worked. Sonny tells him he’s had enough action for one day and promises that the gym is the last place he wants to be right now.

But it doesn’t last long.

Acting on his suspicions, Remi later returns to the gym. For a moment he’s relieved, until Sonny waltzes in a few moments later, ready to continue working out.

Sonny insists he doesn’t need a babysitter as he heads straight to the weights, but a furious Remi refuses to let him carry on.

He physically blocks Sonny from starting another session, reminding him that Tane’s plan was meant to stop him from overdoing it—not give him an excuse to squeeze in extra workouts whenever no one’s watching.

Their argument continues outside, where they run into John. Sonny tries to leave, but John reminds him that he’s currently in charge of the gym and has a duty of care—either Sonny talks things through properly, or he can forget about coming back to the gym at all.

Sonny tries to walk away, but slips as he moves around Remi on his crutches. Embarrassed, he rejects Remi’s help and pulls himself back up.

Once Sonny sits down with John and Remi, he finally admits that forcing his way into the gym was a mistake. He explains that he’s become hyper-focused on his recovery goals and promises that he can now see he’s been going too hard.

John accepts this, but only up to a point. He tells Sonny that he can return to the gym if he sticks to Tane’s programme, and makes it clear that this is his last chance.

After John leaves, Remi tells Sonny that the speech may have worked on John, but it hasn’t fooled him.

Sure enough, Sonny heads straight back into the gym again, with Remi following close behind.

As the pair argue, Sonny compares his training to Remi’s dedication to learning guitar, insisting that he’s simply committed to getting better. Remi rejects the comparison, telling him that this is starting to look like a fixation.

Their confrontation is interrupted when Dana (Ally Harris) arrives after hearing from Alf about Sonny being questioned by police.

Sonny quickly insists that everything’s fine, but Dana isn’t so convinced.

As the three head upstairs to Salt, Sonny tries to stop Remi from staying for the conversation. Remi, however, isn’t ready to leave him alone with a softened version of events.

Sonny reminds Remi of all the times he’s had his back, including during his recovery, and says it’s time to return the favour.

Will Remi stay quiet—or will Dana finally learn how far Sonny has been pushing himself?

Home and Away is available to stream from 6am weekdays, with double bill episodes airing from 6pm on 5Star.

Home and away Monday 22nd June Episode 8736 Promo

 

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EastEnders' Chelsea Fox makes life-changing decision in early iPlayer release

 Libby's secret move is revealed.

EastEnders’ Chelsea Fox has made a life-changing decision, as she struggles to make ends meet financially after her son Jordan’s tragic accident. Chelsea has had a devastating time recently, with the news that Jordan may never walk again, and her mum Denise revealing that she has blood cancer this week.

When Libby returned to support her mum as Denise went into hospital to begin treatment, Chelsea opened up about to her half-sister about her current plight – and revealed that Gray’s nan Sheila has been sending cheques to Jordan that she hasn’t cashed.

Despite there being a significant amount of cash on the table, Chelsea insisted that she didn’t want money linked to Gray on the table. However, Libby secretly pocketed a birthday card to Jordan which contained Sheila’s phone number.

In today’s episode, while visiting Jordan in hospital, Libby realised that the young boy didn’t know about Denise’s cancer. Libby and Chelsea prepared to get tested to see if they were a match for their mum, in case the chemotherapy doesn’t work.

Chelsea told her sister that she needed to work hard to pay for whatever provisions Jordan will need, but she can’t be working behind a bar at night when she needs to be with her son. With Chelsea totally overwhelmed by her responsibilities, Libby took matters into her own hands and secretly phoned Sheila.

When the sisters went to visit their increasingly unwell mum, Denise made it clear to Chelsea that she should go home and rest, with Jack sitting with Jordan in hospital.

Later in The Vic, Chelsea spied a text on Libby’s phone and realised she had contacted Sheila behind her back. She was furious about her sister’s betrayal and reminded her that Gray is only Jordan’s biological father, not his dad. Libby tried to defend her actions, pointing out that the money would be useful, but Chelsea urged her to stay out of her life.

Chelsea opened up to Eve outside in the Square, and Eve gave her a much-needed reminder that Jordan is loved and she always puts her son first. The chat made Chelsea realise that in order to do the best for Jordan, she may need to change her mind about Sheila.

After making amends with Libby, Chelsea phoned Sheila herself and said that she needs her help. How will this meeting with Sheila unfold?

EastEnders' Shona McGarty and Tony Discipline branded "beautiful couple" as they fuel romance rumours

 The soap stars sparked romance rumours last month.

EastEnders stars Shona McGarty and Tony Discipline continue to fuel romance rumours with a new Instagram post. Shona split with her fiancé David Bracken in November after getting engaged in 2024.

During her time on I'm A Celebrity, where she confirmed the breakup, fans were quick to suggest romance was brewing between Shona and rapper Aitch, which she quickly rubbished.

However, in May 2026, fresh dating rumours began to swirl after Shona and Tony were spotted looking cosy on a night out, and began sharing pictures on social media.

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While neither Shona nor Tony have publicly spoken about a potential relationship, fans were quick to comment on a post Shona shared alongside her former co-star at an event.

She shared several pictures on her Instagram page, smiling with the duo posing with their arms around each other, as well as videos singing with friends as they watched DJ Sticky perform at London's Studio 338.

Shona captioned the post "what a day!!", and Tony commented, "Good times girl 🎉🔥."

Fans were quick to flock to the comment section, branding them a "beautiful" couple.

One user wrote, "Ayyy great pics you look so happy," while another added, "Made my day seeing you guys."

A third said: "Love seeing you so happy girl, you deserve all the happiness in the world."

The pair first sparked romance rumours after being pictured on the red carpet at the Women's Football Awards.

Shona confirmed her breakup with David while appearing on I'm a Celebrity as the conversation in camp turned to weddings and engagements.

Confiding in Tom Read Wilson, she said: "I just couldn’t be part of that conversation. It got too much. When I came in, I had just broken up with my fiancé. So, I just couldn’t do it."

She added: "The thing is, I really want a family. I would love to be a mummy, and a wife, you know?"

The former couple met in 2023 when David, a musician, messaged Shona on TikTok to ask if she would like to collaborate on a song.

Home and away Thursday 18th June 8735 Promo

 

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Hollyoaks Wednesday 17th June 2026

 

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