Hollyoaks confirms Morgan Osborne’s kidnapper in huge early release twist

 There's a dramatic return...

Hollyoaks has confirmed who kidnapped Morgan Osborne, and it’s a twist that no one saw coming.

The little girl disappeared this week when Frankie and Jacob left her alone in the house for a few minutes, and the Osbornes were left reeling.

Suspicion understandably turned to villain Clare, and Jacob also faced the wrath of the family when he received a text from her.

Darren therefore took matters into his own hands, luring Clare to a storage container to interrogate her about his daughter’s disappearance.

His questioning lasted all night, and in today's episode Nancy became even more worried that her husband still hadn’t found Morgan yet.

Darren’s own kidnapping came to an end when Donny – with Froggy in tow – arrived at the storage container and found Clare.

Clare denied taking Morgan, and Froggy somehow managed to persuade Donny that she was telling the truth, with Darren no further forward in his investigation.

Meanwhile, Nancy and Frankie were horrified when they received an anonymous text, asking for £10,000 in exchange for Morgan’s safe return.

As Darren returned home, he was presented with the frightening text, which was confirmation that Morgan had definitely been kidnapped.

Morgan’s disappearance had far-reaching consequences for the whole family, and Frankie and Jacob sadly ended their relationship after realising that they would always have doubts about one another.

While Darren and Nancy didn’t disclose the ransom text to family liaison officer Annie, they answered her questions to be helpful – including about whether Darren is Morgan’s biological father.

They resolved not to tell the police about the threat, scared that the kidnapper would hurt Morgan if they did, and the couple vowed to find the money themselves.

But in the closing seconds of the episode, viewers discovered who actually took Morgan – returning character Charlie Dean.

"I bet you’re happy to see your brother again?" Charlie said, as Morgan played with her toys, safe and sound.

Why has Charlie kidnapped Morgan, and why does he need money from his guardians?