Outcome of Channel 4 soap's ongoing storyline to be decided off-screen by members of the public
Hollyoaks is to ask a "jury" of viewers to determine the outcome of a rape trial storyline featuring the characters Gilly Roach and Jacqui McQueen.
The Channel 4 soap is leaving the details surrounding Roach's alleged rape of McQueen unclear in order to explore issues of consent during the runup to and duration of a week-long trial to be broadcast at the end of next month.
In Tuesday's Hollyoaks episode the pair, played by Anthony Quinlan and Claire Cooper, were shown entering a bedroom together and the door closing behind them.
Viewers will not see what happened between them before the trial, which turns on the question of whether consent was given, rather than whether the pair had intercourse.
An off-screen jury made up of viewers will be shown all the evidence in the case and, guided by a legal professional, asked to reach a verdict on it. Their decision will then determine the outcome of the on-screen story.
The jury will be drawn from a cross section of society, and will include non-Hollyoaks viewers, who are not aware of the characters. ... Read the rest here.
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