Brendan Brady is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Emmett J. Scanlan. The character was introduced on 5 August 2010 by series producer Paul Marquess during part of the show's overhaul, and became one of Hollyoaks most popular characters. He is easily recognised by his famous horseshoe moustache. He is the older half-brother of already established character Cheryl Brady (Bronagh Waugh). Following the announcement of Brendan's casting, he was quickly billed as the show's new "bad boy" character. Despite having the persona of a villain at the start of the show, as the show progressed the character was portrayed to be more of a tragic antihero. He made his final appearance on 22 March 2013.
Creation and casting Irish actor Emmett J. Scanlan was cast as Brendan by series producer Paul Marquess after being put forward for the role by casting director Dorothy Andrews. Scanlan previously auditioned for the roles of Kieron Hobbs and Des Townsend, but was asked by producers to drop his accent. Brendan was originally to be from Belfast, Northern Ireland, like sister Cheryl Brady. This detail was however changed to make Cheryl and Brendan half-siblings and Brendan's backstory was changed so he comes from Dublin, Ireland, to avoid confusion with Scanlan's accent.
Details of the character of Brendan were first hinted in April 2010, when Marquess referred to Brendan as a "very nasty man" appearing from Cheryl's past. Later in April, Brendan's casting was officially announced.
At the same time of his casting, the characters of Lynsey Nolan (Karen Hassan) and Bart McQueen (Jonny Clarke) were also signed to appear in the show. Marquess spoke of the characters' arrivals, saying: "This is a really exciting time for Hollyoaks and Brendan, Lynsey and Bart bring more fun, drama and sexiness to the show." Scanlan commented on his new role, saying: "I'm a bad-ass in it. I play a bad guy with a dark secret who goes by [the] name of Brendan. It's a good healthy stint of six to seven months and I can't wait to get started. It's all about new experiences and Hollyoaks has a very impressive history. It's great to be part of it." Scanlan originally signed a six-month contract, which was later extended.
Development
Characterisation The main focal point of Brendan's characteristics was his 'villain' persona. Scanlan described Brendan's personality, saying: "I don't know how to describe him in five words. I don't think he is either good or bad. Brendan's a man who defines his own moral code and principles, and lives with the consequences. He's the type of dude that will hit you as quick as look at you, but never touch a girl. His principles may be different to yours or mine but he's not good or bad, he's just... Brendan."
Actress Bronagh Waugh, who plays Brendan's sister Cheryl, has claimed that Brendan is "one of the most evil soap villains ever", stating: "Brendan is the nastiest bad boy I've ever seen — I'm talking worse than EastEnders''' Dirty Den. If you think he's been mean so far, you haven't seen anything yet! The thing is that he does care for Cheryl and has good intentions towards her. But events won't turn out the way he planned."
During an interview in May 2010, Marquess was asked about Brendan and if he was a bad boy. He replied: "Oh, definitely — he's an absolute bastard! I think people are going to think, 'Here's the next Warren', but they'll be surprised when they find out what the real story is. He is Cheryl's half-brother… and Cheryl won't hear a bad word against him..."
In a further interview with Press Association, Scanlan said: "I have never had the opportunity to play somebody as complex and as damaged as Brendan. He is without doubt a sociopathic, self-loathing, homophobic gay man and that in itself is a fascinating attraction for any actor to play. I think any actor would love a challenge, when you're doing a role if it pushes your boundaries and takes you out of yourself and allows you to experience different things. I think that's great. So coming up to do the part was exciting for me."
Scanlan later spoke about his character and said: "Brendan is a king manipulator. He lulls people into a false sense of security — it's like a fly being drawn to the spider. Because he's such a king manipulator, he can talk the underwear off this fella [Ste] and he's very confident. So yeah, he definitely knows. He sees Steven as a young, vulnerable guy who has no male friends, who hasn't had a father figure, and who — like Brendan — is a father himself. So Brendan can play with that." He also called Brendan "unpredictable" and "complex".
Marquess revealed in December 2010 that 2011 would explore more of the character's background and the reasons for his "twisted" personality: "What we've played in 2010 in introducing Brendan is this very dark and twisted character. One thing we want to do in 2011 is to explain why he's like that. The whole domestic violence angle does continues to play but in really quite an unexpected way. The safest thing I can say is everyone should remember it was Ste who hit Amy [Barnes] first. So it's a dark and interwoven story made all the more complicated by the introduction of a new love interest for Ste."
Domestic violence In September 2010, Kieron Richardson announced an upcoming gay plot featuring his character Ste Hay and Brendan, claiming the pair would embark on an "unusual friendship". However, Brendan and Ste's relationship will become violent, touching on domestic abuse. After the announcement, Paul Marquess said: "This is a long running storyline and while it is dark to begin with, the lessons that Ste learns are ultimately positive and life affirming. This story is about not being afraid to be who you are and while this is something Brendan struggles with, Ste is refreshingly accepting of his feelings towards another man. I hope viewers will be glued throughout the twists and turns as we unravel how Brendan came to be the twisted person we have been watching on screen."
Meanwhile, Scanlan admitted he was glad Brendan is becoming "a complex character" and "not a gratuitous soap villain, but a multi-layered character with depth, a troubled past and an unsure future". He continued: "I hope that as the storyline develops, viewers will be able to understand why Brendan has become the villain they see today. Brendan is compelled to manipulate and control everyone who crosses his path. At the moment this makes him dangerous but when we identify why he behaves this way, we will discover his vulnerabilities and this is exciting..."
Scanlan later explained: "Because Hollyoaks is a 6.30pm show we had to find different ways to tell the story in a convincing way and leave most of it to the imagination of the audience. And in more cases than not, your own imagination is much more visual and more horrific than what you see on screen, so we tried to push things, drop little things, without actually showing anything explicit, but it was an incredible experience. Brendan's an extraordinary character to play."
Scanlan, in an interview with Digital Spy, explained the research he put into the abuse storyline: "The thing about it is that every case is different and every story is different. The principles are the same, but it's always different. With this, the writers give you your homework, so to speak — you explore it and you research it, because you want to give it the best truthfulness that you can. Obviously it's your work that's going out on screen, and your credibility goes with that. So you definitely need to do your homework." After asked about what kind of impact and response he wanted the storyline to have, Scanlan replied: "I've always wanted the storyline to be subtle. I didn't want it to be thrown into this violent, sociopathic gay relationship straight away as that would lose its credibility — and credit to the writers and Paul Marquess because it has been very subtle and it's built over the weeks," he continued, "I also want the story to evoke emotion — not just in the cast around me, but in the crew, the writers, the producers and the people who are investing half an hour of their lives into watching Hollyoaks each night. Whether those emotions are hatred, disgust or love or anything — I just want it to evoke something. I want it to touch on things, and I hope people are affected by it. But things like this are completely outside of the actors' control - we just have to give some truth to the storyline and try to make it as interesting as possible. We can't leave people short-changed. You never know, Brendan might become the most hated guy in England soon - that'd be a nice thing to have on the resumé!"
Departure On 9 January 2013, Daniel Kilkelly from Digital Spy announced Brendan's departure from the show. Scanlan had decided to leave the role and his character’s departure came in March 2013. He explained that "the time has come for me to sign out of Hollyoaks, to bow out as Double B aka Brendan motherfucking Brady." Sharing the experience with fans had been the "greatest honour" for the actor. Kilkelly added that producers had devised a dramatic exit storyline for Brendan but remained secretive about any other details.
Storylines
Brendan first arrives during a fight between Mercedes Fisher (Jennifer Metcalfe) and Cheryl. He holds Cheryl back, and introduces himself as Cheryl's brother. He then catches up with Cheryl and reveals he caught his wife Eileen in bed with another man, and so he left his wife and kids behind in Ireland. Cheryl is sympathetic towards him. Whilst staying with Cheryl, Brendan steals £20 from her wallet. Later on in The Dog in the Pond, Cheryl mentions how she was unable to buy The Loft nightclub. Brendan tells her he has a friend called Danny Houston (Darren Day) who could help out. Barman Carl Costello (Paul Opacic) recognises the name and warns Malachy Fisher (Glen Wallace) that Danny is shady and potentially dangerous. Malachy confronts Brendan about this, but Brendan warns him to mind his own business. The McQueen home is robbed by Veronica (Lynsey McLaren), an accomplice of Brendan's. Brendan begins working as a manager at Chez Chez after Cheryl goes into partnership with Danny. Brendan then robs the club, but is recognised by Malachy. Cheryl does not believe that Brendan is responsible for the theft of the club's takings. To cover his tracks, Brendan later frames Veronica, who is arrested.
Brendan befriends Carmel Valentine (Gemma Merna), and plans to use her to smuggle drugs into the country from Barcelona. Ste convinces Carmel not to go, but when Brendan decides to take Ste's ex-girlfriend Amy Barnes (Ashley Slanina-Davies), Ste convinces Carmel to go ahead with the holiday after all. The student halls of residence is burgled by Doug Carter (PJ Brennan), who gives Brendan the money for drugs. Brendan's wife Eileen turns up at ChezChez unexpected. She reveals that their son Declan is ill and needs money for specialist treatment. Brendan accidentally mugs Cheryl, believing it was Rhys Ashworth (Andrew Moss). He then pays Eileen the money. As she leaves, Ste tells Malachy he believes Brendan was responsible for Cheryl's mugging, after seeing Brendan give Eileen the money. Malachy and Lynsey Nolan (Karen Hassan) confront Cheryl, who again refuses to believe Brendan would do such a thing.