Loretta Jones is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, and its spin-off series, Hollyoaks Later. The character is played by Melissa Walton and first appeared on-screen on 26 November 2008 during the first series of the Hollyoaks spin-off Hollyoaks Later as a new love interest for the character Dominic Reilly (John Pickard). She made her first appearance in the Hollyoaks series in February 2009 and was the first character to be introduced to the series by producer Lucy Allan. In 2010, Loretta was axed from the series, along with 15 other characters, during a cast cull by executive producer Paul Marquess.
The character development has Loretta having worked as a pole dancer and Walton put extensive research into the role, including visiting strip clubs. Despite this occupation Loretta has been portrayed out of conjunction with the blonde stereotype. She has been involved in storylines which include facing prejudice, body scarring issues and stalking fellow characters. The character is most noted for the series intending to portray her as a child murderer trying to piece her life back together. The plot was subsequently axed having caused a great amount of controversy among the British public after newspapers alleged that the storyline was copying a real-life case. Loretta has been positively received by the media for her appearance and has been dubbed a "blond bombshell". Before Loretta's departure from the series Marquess made changes to the characters persona: portraying her as a stalker being obsessive, calculating and pretending to have leukaemia. In her final storyline it was revealed that she had been sexually abused as a child and admitted herself to a psychiatric hospital.
Creation and casting The character of Loretta was created as a temporary love interest for Dominic Reilly (John Pickard) and was intended to feature only in Hollyoaks Later, the spin-off from the Hollyoaks series. In 2009 it was announced that the Hollyoaks' producer Lucy Allan had decided to introduce both Loretta and Cheryl Brady (Bronagh Waugh) into the main show. Allan said, "Cheryl and Loretta will bring an energy and a sense of fun to the show. Both Melissa and Bronagh impressed me with their performances in Hollyoaks Later and I'm sure viewers will warm to them quickly." Loretta was initially paired with Dom and, after ending their relationship, was given links to other characters in the series. Walton had a pole set up in her living room to practice pole dancing. Speaking of her research Walton stated: "I loved it. It's really good exercise. It's really good for toning. They didn't ask me to, but I did... I went and I had pole dancing classes. I had a pole put up in my living room."
Though Walton had initially signed on for a three-month stint Allan decided to renew her contract in 2009 and keep Loretta in the series until 2010. In early 2010 it was announced that Allan had stepped down from the position of executive producer and that Paul Marquess had taken over the role. It was soon revealed that Marquess planned to give Hollyoaks a "shake up", changing the productions team and beginning a cast cull by axing three established characters. Stephanie Waring (who plays Cindy Hutchinson) then revealed that all remaining cast members feared their own character would be axed. One month later Marquess announced his plans to axe a further 11 characters, including Loretta at the end of Walton's contract. It was also revealed that Loretta would depart at the same time as her love interest Jake Dean (Kevin Sacre).
On 8 June 2010 Walton filmed her final scenes for the series, along with two fellow cast members Scare and Gerard McCarthy (who plays Kris Fisher). She spoke of her upset over leaving her fellow cast members, but later said she was looking forward to pursuing other projects. Walton also confirmed that she was happy the door was left open for a potential return, stating that she would consider reprising her role as Loretta in the future. Walton also said she understood why Marquess axed her character, he did not feel Loretta had anywhere left to go after the cancellation of her main storyline. However, she also felt like she deserved another chance to prove herself.
Development and impact Characterisation Loretta has stated on-screen that she does not want to conform with the stereotype of a blond pole dancer, and makes it clear that she is a keen bird watcher and enjoys documentaries. Speaking of the character Walton stated, "I love that Loretta's not a stereotypical stripper sort of girl—there’s a lot more depth to her. She’s actually quite shy and reserved. She’s got lots of interesting little hobbies, like bird-watching and Roman history! Then at night she skips off and turns into a stripper. It’s like two different lives, and I think many real-life pole-dancers are like that. They’re really nice, normal girls by day, and by night they turn into these temptresses." Walton also praised the soap's realistic portrayal of the occupation, saying that many pole dancers attend university or have good professions but rely on stripping for extra money, and that she has met people like her character in the strip club where Hollyoaks films scenes. Walton hopes viewers will find Loretta's alter ego as a stripper tasteful commenting, "As tasteful as you can be in a pink frilly bra and knicker set, with a little skirt that’s more like a belt, and back-combed hair and fake eyelashes!" Loretta's stripper clothing is in stark contrast to her every day look of non-revealing clothing.
Loretta's relationships helped develop the character. Her first relationship is with Dom Reilly who shares her interests in bird watching, documentaries on ancient Rome and literature. The relationship immediately gave viewers an insight into the character. However, as their relationship progressed, it became apparent that Dom could not handle Loretta's profession as he feared for her safety, which ultimately led to their break up. Loretta's second relationship is a short-lived fling with Ravi Roy (Stephen Uppal) where she is determined to see the good in him, and help him while he suffers from a brain aneurysm, but ends the relationship when he attempts to assault her. Loretta then begins a secret romance with Jake, who had tried to murder his child and rape his wife. Loretta believes he had been misled and is still a good person, demonstrating Loretta's willingness to give people second chances. Walton comments, "[Loretta] is just lovely – she sees the good in everyone." When television listings magazine What's on TV challenged Walton to explain why Loretta would be interested in Jake after his crimes Walton said, "Loretta's big on forgiveness. She believes Jake’s changed, that he's learnt from his time inside and he's paid his debt to society."
After Marquess decided to axe Loretta he changed the character's direction and her persona. She became obsessive over men, controlling towards Jake, manipulative and began lying to get what she wanted. Jake later decides he does not want her, of this Walton states that: "She's not going anywhere. She's deluded and manipulative and he hasn't seen anything yet!" She also is shown have "bunny boiler" tendencies, with Walton agreeing to the label. Walton later revealed that Loretta began pole dancing to have power over men because of the abuse she suffered as a child although, as Loretta's exit approached, she was now a dangerous and deluded woman.
Child murderer controversy In November 2009, Loretta became the centre of media controversy when various media outlets announced that Loretta would be part of a storyline which revealed that she had murdered a child in her past. The controversy began when tabloid newspaper revealed the mother of murdered toddler James Bulger, Denise Fergus, condemned the storyline. While speaking to the news website Click Liverpool, she criticised the decision to air a plot that allegedly mirrored her son's death, stating they should have consulted her first. She said, "I'm shocked and disgusted at what Hollyoaks is doing. They have clearly based this story on what happened to James and it's outrageous that they should do this without consulting with me in any way." She threatened to encourage a boycott of the show. Channel 4 released a statement defending the plot, explaining it had nothing to do with any real life case: "The forthcoming storyline is not based on any real-life case and it will in no way seek to recreate real events. The storyline focuses on the psychological repercussions for two characters in the show who were responsible for the death of a 12-year-old girl in the past."
Speaking about delving into her character's history Walton commented to entertainment website Digital Spy, "It took a little while and until now, we've known little about her. Nobody in the village knows who she is or where she's come from. She's just planted herself in the village knowing hardly anybody. She's quite a mysterious character. I'm absolutely loving the opportunity to explore her backstory." Speaking about her reaction to the plot she continued, "I was like, 'Oh my gosh!' I was so shocked but absolutely chuffed to bits because this is what all actors want – something massive like this to sink my teeth into. I feel so privileged that they've trusted me with this story. I know they've wanted to do it for a while and they've finally chosen me!"
In the same interview, Walton described the storyline, "Loretta and Chrissy were best, best friends through childhood. They were closer than sisters. She somehow tracks Loretta down and turns up out of the blue after Loretta's finished a dance class. What we learn is that when they were 12, they bullied a young girl and didn't stop until they killed her. They kept pushing and pushing and eventually killed her. Since then, Loretta and Chrissy have been completely separated from each other, their families and friends. They've spent years in institutions having psychiatric and behavioural treatment."
Kevin Sacre, whose character was directly involved in the storyline, voiced his support for the plot stating: "I think the fact that it's the sort of thing that happens in real life means it's something that should be addressed. Anyone who buries their head in the sand is a bit naïve. And I think soap is a medium where you can explore issues of real life."
Just days before the episodes were set to transmit Channel 4 announced that it was axing the storyline, due in part to Fergus's reaction to the storyline. Whilst Walton had previously claimed the storyline was about three twelve-year-old girls, Channel 4 admitted the similarities between the story and the Bulger case. "This particular storyline was not based on any real life case and was not intended to recreate actual events. However, after conversations with Denise Fergus we have agreed to amend certain aspects of the storyline." Amber Hodgkiss, who was cast to play Chrissy, expressed her disappointment over the decision to axe the plot all together saying, "The storyline has been completely cut. I am not so happy about it. I would like it to go ahead, but I don't have that decision. It wasn't based on Jamie Bulger, but people portrayed it that way. It was quite a big storyline that could affect people, but it happens." Fergus said she was grateful that the plot was axed saying, "I'm grateful that they are respecting my wishes. I made it clear that I did not want those scenes broadcast and I'm pleased to say they clearly understood my feelings."
When episodes that were intended to feature the storyline transmitted, they instead featured a selection of then "last minute" scenes. In these scenes Hodgkiss portrays a new character, Caroline, who holds Loretta and Jake hostage.
Stalker and exit storyline