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So the summer might be drawing to a close but to us this is a good thing - because it heralds the return of HOLLYOAKS LATER.

Oh yes, kicking off on Monday, September 5th at 10pm on E4, this year's late night celebration of raunchy, sweary and sometimes deadly Hollyoaks shenanigans looks bigger and better than ever.

If you want a little taster of what Hollyoaks Later 2011 has in store for you, wrap your eyes around this:

OMG. A little bit of my brain just melted as it tried to process all of the Laterness going on:  

• Ooh, a mystery brunette called Honey. 
• Err... is that a new McQueen?
• Theresa going online dating? After what happened to India? Noo!
• AN AXE. Nothing ends well when there's an axe involved. Fact. 
• Riley and Mitzeee… about to kiss? Is that allowed?!
• Seth. In bed. With Mercedes? What? What? WHAT?
• A mankini! 
• SILAS WITH ROPE?!?!? APPROACHING THERESA!?

Need a lie down after that... but I'll be sure to be up again by September 5th at 10pm because Hollyoaks Later is back on e4. Holler!

Anyways, what do you make of the video? Let me know below...

The Hutch was back from his holidays this week with a new chilled outlook on life (yes, there was much hot tubbing involved). Here are the tunes that accompanied his return:

Monday 22nd August

Tuesday 23rd August

Coldplay - Major Minus

Wednesday 24th August

Amelia Sanday - Heaven

Thursday 25th August

L.M.F.A.O - Champagne Showers

Friday 26th August

Darwin Deez - Constellations

Head and the Heart - Honey Come Home

Groovy.

Check out what else happened this week in our Best Bits. 

Aaaah! Recognise the new(ish) characters Maddie and Jono that partied with Barty for the GCSE result shindig? No? Well...

The hot-to-trot twosome first appeared in the 'Oaks in June. Oh yes. Remember the time when Bart, Esther, Ruby and Sinead hot-footed to Abersoch, befriended Maddie, Jono and their bezzy mate Tilly, frolicked on the beach in virtually nothing and basically had THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES?

Yes? Watch the below vid and see the fun the cast had in making the episodes. No? Watch the below vid and find out what actually went on in Abersoch.

Ok, so I could just tell you what happened in words too, so here you go:

* Sinead got a nark on with Maddie because it turns out Maddie is Bart's ex - an ex who seemed intent on getting Bart back.

* Esther had a fling with the feisty flame-haired Tilly. It was a beautiful beach romance.

* Ruby got trollied, but even though she was very, very drunk, she still rejected hapless Jono's advances. Poor Jono.

What are the hot-to-trot newbies going to do next? Better keep watching to find out.

You can meet the whole Sixth Form gang in this rather sexy video

There were all the usual traits of a Silas style terror campaign this week – the gloves, the cryptic messages, the hiding around corners surreptitiously, the pursing of the mouth into that sinister little sneer of his. We did also see Silas add a few more tricks to his repertoire in the past week though…

Here’s the old coot looking out from Lynsey’s, all evil 'n' that…

Kiss and make-up

At the beginning of the week, Lynsey found herself in the unenviable position of having two killers on her case. Brendan was on a mission to find himself a beard (should that be tash?) to keep his sexuality secret and Lynsey started looking like a pretty good option.

After she gave him the elbow though, suddenly he wasn’t so fussed about defending her honour ‘n’ that.

When Lynsey accused him or his son Declan of using her most expensive lippy to scrawl offensive messages all over her vanity mirror, Brendan was less than made up. Who, you may wonder, was the real culprit? That old trickster Silas, of course…

Lynsey knew it, and she replied in kind with a message of her own...

Having a gas

Silas’s terror campaign really stepped up from a slow-burner to a steady mark nine when he broke into Lynsey’s flat and switched on the gas, leaving it to almost blow the gaff up. What a joker!


…But just how did Silas manage to execute this series of ‘Home Alone’ style pranks with such deft and perfection? That’s where it really gets clever. On one of his jaunts into Lynsey’s flat, Silas planted a webcam. That means that, when he’s not browsing friends’ holiday pics (see below), this silver surfer is able to know Lynsey’s exact whereabouts all of the time, with a swipe of his trendy Apple branded tablet device...

Here's lookin' atcha!

So this is where things stand. Silas has begun to put a more sophisticated operation together. That’s why it’s more important than ever for us to keep watching the watcher.

Brendan's on the case. He's let it be known that he's got Silas in his sights. Don't let the side down...

Be vigilant people!

...For more info on Hollyoaks' resident lady-killer, come cuddly old Grandad, keep following SILAS WATCH

It's Feelgood Friday! Or it will be once you've watched our teaser for next week's Hollyoaks, which seems to be a smiley, smoochy hugglefest featuring Father Francis (swoon), the return of Foxy (yay!), Carmel's poorly concealed bosoms (again), the Hutch in two different vests (wrong) and Mercedes growling a mention of John Paul (hooray!).

Watch, enjoy and keep an eye out for Cindy's expression at 21 seconds – what on earth has Dodger said to her?!:

 "Surrounded by naked bodies. Ever wondered how we got here?"We wonder about that each and every day, Father. But we're not complaining.

There are a few things to note about the AMAZING video above: 1) An abundance of new faces 2)  Tilly HAS returned 3) Sinead is giving Maddie the evil eye while kissing Bart 4) Ruby and her, er, assets...

1) You'll be wanting to know who all those peeps are in the video, eh? Well, it's the new Hollyoaks sixth form crew. Actually, Ruby and Esther aren't in sixth-form just yet, but, you know, they're mates with the sixth-form lot, so they're allowed to be in this video, ok? Other familiar faces are Jason, Bart and Sinead. No idea where Seth is - maybe he was on holiday with Tony when the video was shot?

Then, those who saw the Abersoch adventures of Bart, Esther, Ruby and Sinead will already know Jono (he says hashtag a lot), Tilly (more on her in a bit) and Maddie (more on her in a bit of a longer bit).

Anyway, I'm sure you're dying to know just who the new peeps are, right? Well, check out these brand-spanking new cast profiles and you'll find out:

• George Smith

• Neil Cooper

• Callum Kane

2) Despite saying she'd probably move to London, Tilly's coming to Hollyoaks, which for both us and Esther is quite brilliant news. Why us? Because Tilly is the one person who seems to keep Maddie the madam in check. We don't want Maddie getting too big for her undoubtedly stylish boots now do we? Why's Tilly's return good for Esther? Well, because Esther had a lovely little fling with Tilly in Abersoch. Our Esther will be hoping that sparks will once again fly with the flamed-haired lovely.

3) In the video up top, Sinead, in her words, is "getting off" with Bart yet they're currently both single. Are Hollyoaks' answer to Romeo and Juliet getting back together? #TeamJason fans won't be happy, but, then again, will Maddie? Maddie's an ex-girlfriend of Bart's and back in Abersoch it seemed she was intent on getting her man back. Will she be looking to do the same now she's living in Hollyoaks? Pretty much, I reckon. Pretty much.

4) Ruby's bosom has a face painted on it. Don't believe me? Watch again...

There were thrills, there were spills...this rumble in the jungle (well, woods) certainly lived up to the hype. Here's what went down, round by round: 

Round 1

The "Spillage in the Village" has begun! Jason initially has the upper hand with his shock arrival and scores some extra body blows by laughing at Sinead’s egg boiling inadequacies. Sinead, however, unleashes the devastating left hook otherwise known as baring her breasts and follows this up with a sneaky jab/train ticket purchase.

Winner: Team Sinead

Round 2

After last night's decisive victory Sinead cockily assumes she can deal a knockout blow by escorting Jason onto the train. Wrong! The train move is successfully blocked by 'the cops' and her subsequent tactic of 'falling over and hurting herself' fails to gain her the upper hand. It's a tough one to call during a tearful bought of heart-to-hearting between the two contenders, but Jason leaves Sinead reeling with a risky 'Bart wants me to stay' uppercut to the chin.

Winner: Team Jason

Round 3

After last night’s defeat, Sinead is looking down and out – her breasts now have no effect and she even resorts to dirty tactics of referring to Jason as “It”. Jason, however, fails to take advantage of his weakening opponent, instead opting to entertain the crowd with a series of ‘gags’. On spying a tender moment between Jason and Bart, Sinead looks ready to throw in the towel but the bell (or rather, the farmer with a shotgun) saves her from defeat. A tough round.

Winner: Draw

Round 4

This brutal round was a one-sided fight - literally, since Sinead wasn’t even there! Keeping his opponent on the ropes with some bruising jabs and effective first aid, Jason delivered a knock out punch by snogging Bart in a cellar. The referee is counting down, is the fight over for Team Sinead?

Winner: Team Jason

Round 5

So ladies and gents, Sinead v Jason reaches its final round! After spending Round 4 on the ropes, Sinead comes back fighting, bravely rescuing Bart and Jason from zombie farmer’s lair. Squaring up for a brutal woodland showdown, it looks like the two contenders are going to go the distance when they are both floored by Bart’s lack of emotional backbone. Tears and recriminations rain down and the final bell is drowned out by the sound of hearts shattering. Triple knockout.

Winner: Team Heartbreak

Verdict: Jason may have won more rounds, but we can all agree that there were no winners as Sinead, Jason and Bart trudged miserably back home. Will their lives ever be the same again?

One thing's for sure: bet they wish they'd gone fruit picking.

Listen to the top tunes from Fight Week!

It was a week of tears and heartbreak (or Bart-break, if you will), but what, we hear you ask, were the top tunes that accompanied Sinead and Jason's rumble in the jungle? Well here they are...

Monday 15th August

Hard-Fi - Good for Nothing

Tuesday 16th August

Delila - Go

Wednesday 17th August

Alice Gold - Runaway Love

Friday 19th August

Example - Changed The Way You Kissed Me

Like the sound of that? Then have a listen to some of this fine tuneage here: 

Well looky here, it's only this week's champagne poppin' teaser!

...and there is indeed "magic in the air" because, as you may have noticed, THE HUTCH IS BACK.

...but not as you know him. The Hutch has undergone somewhat of a transformation while he's been away. Hutch 2.0 is cool, he's laid-back, he doesn't care about consumerism. He even wears sarongs. This is quite a departure from Tony the centre-part-sporting, uptight scrooge that we've become accustomed to in days of yore...

So what exactly did Tony get up to on his travels? Here's a pic of him bungee-jumping in New Zealand:

You can find more of Tony's travel pictures on Facebook...

Q&A

To mark the wanderer's return, we hosted a special, live Q&A with Nick Pickard. This stalwart of British drama has seen them all come and go over the years. He's got his scars, some of them emotional, some of them physical. We found out during the chat that he picked up the scar on his head running into a doorway! What elsedid he have to tell us? What words of wisdom or consolation?

Read the whole interview here

Opinion

...So, what dopeople make of the new, re-invented Tony? Do you miss the old, suited and booted Hutch, or are you a fan of Tony the new-age hippie? What 'sarong' with a little tie-dye after all? Leave your comments and opinions below...  

Since we shared the news of Warren’s imminent departure from Hollyoaks you’ve been tweeting and FBing us in your droves to share your dismay that this Hollyoaks titan is once again leaving our lives.

So moved have we all been by this outpouring of love that Foxy himself, aka the wonderful Jamie Lomas, wanted to make sure you guys got this exclusive heartfelt message:

Legend.

We love you Foxy!

So after months and months of jealousy, tension and moping around the skate park, Jason and Sinead finally go toe to toe as things get love triangular in North Wales.

For the past few weeks it’s been Bart and Sinead against the world but one sneaky webchat later and Jason is set to gatecrash Sinead’s (slightly manky) love nest.

Their rivalry has been implicit until now, but this week the gloves are coming off (or on, in a metaphorical sense) and they are ready to RUMBLE.

Let’s look at the contenders:

In the red corner: Sinead “Bruiser” O’Connor

Strengths:
The O’Connor right hook is legendary – just ask Diane.

Weaknesses:
Has weeks of eating nothing but pancakes, takeaways and stolen egg sandwiches left this feisty lady without the fuel to fight?

In the blue corner: Jason “Scrapper” Costello

Strengths:
His slow burn defeat of evil bully Fern proved that this patient, understated warrior should not be underestimated.

Weaknesses:
Very little combat experience - he could probably beat Seth in an arm wrestle, but then who couldn’t?

So who won the battle for Bart-throb? Find out in our Jason V Sinead Big Fight Round-up

Listen to the top tunes from Fight Week! 

To celebrate the launch of Silas Watch, we thought we’d look back at killer grandad’s best lines last week:

“If you want to be a journalist and you’re serious about what you’re doing then there are bound to be casualties along the way” little does Nancy know that Silas means this literally.

"You wanna watch your step. You’re gonna get yourself KILLED one of these days” Silas smirkily saves Lynsey from death by BMX.

Heidi: “Dad, come and look at this”

Carmel: “A DVD of your great grandchild”

Silas *barely able to hide his disdain*: “IN-credible”

“As she <Texas> walks us through these woods tomorrow everything must be exactly as it was…it’s the DETAIL that’s important" *looks off evilly into the trees. He probably wants to murder the trees*  *Nancy looks on, obliviously.*

We particularly liked it when he was quite clearly making fun of Ethan:

“Ah! Detective constable! I take it you’re hoping today <the reconstruction> will smoke out the killer?”

“Detective! What a pleasant surprise!”

“Detective! You HAVE forgiven me for my article criticising your lack of success in this case...Haven’t you?”

LOLs all round.

Explaining why he’s putting on his murder gloves:

“They keep out the cold, even in August! One of the perils of being old”

Texas, predictably, thought this was a perfectly reasonable explanation.

On chess:

“People think that chess is complex but it’s not. All you have to do is isolate your queen and then…FINISH HER OFF”

Eep! Who knew chess could be so scary?

On mankind and womankind:

“We’re feeble!”

You might have a dodgy ticker, Silas, but you don't seem that feeble to us! 

Carmel: “You’re a good man. I can see it in that face of yours” – and that, ladies and gents, is the level of common sense being displayed by the populace of Hollyoaks village at the moment.

There’s going to be a lot of red faces when this is all over...

Keep up to date with all the latest scary Silas happenings with  Silas Watch.

Mandy is always dancing for a good cause! But we don't need any special cause to dance do we? If you do need an excuse to party, how about 'because it's Friday'? That'll do.

And to help you on your way, we've listed every great tune that played on the show this week. Treats, treats, treats to make you move your feets, feets, feets!

Monday 8th August

Blow by Ke$ha

Rumour Has It by Adele

Tuesday 9th August

Rolling in the Deep by Adele

Wednesday 10th August

Time is Running Out by Jessica Brando

I Got You by James Brown

Drumming Song by Florence and The Machine

Party at a Rich Dude's House by Ke$ha

Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) by Shakira feat. Freshlyground

Thursday 11th August

Howl (Lungs) by Florence and The Machine

Friday 12th August

Price Tag by Jessie J

Hiding my Heart by Brandi Carlile

Just when we thought Silas the serial killer couldn’t get any creepier, he blooming well does!

This week saw him raise the bar in sinister-behaviour-that-no-one-notices-except-us-and-Lynsey, as he skulked around the village doing things that, frankly, should have put him right to the top of Ethan’s prime suspect list (if he has one. We doubt it), including:

·      Wearing driving gloves. When he’s not driving.

·      Staring….intently…at Texas. A LOT.  

·      Sitting in the murder press conference and not taking any notes whatsoever. Almost like he knows what happened, eh?

·      Giving elaborate monologues about chess

Which brings us to what we found on our desk http://yfrog.com/kjh06muj. Eek!  We’re now way too scared to go wandering around a creepy woods alone.

Which is why we are launching SILAS WATCH, our campaign to keep an eye on this killer granddad, monitoring where he is and what he’s doing so we can all sleep safely in our beds and go internet dating without fear.

Follow the murderous old scamp's every move with SILAS WATCH

You can go now.

“You hate Gaga”… Cheryl has a lot of misconceptions about her brother, but this is perhaps her biggest yet. Evidently, Cheryl, you didn’t see THIS episode… http://bre.ad/03bgjf

“When I’m at home I quite like my space”… Yeah Frankie, which is why you let a gazillion people stay with you!

“And I’m a student, yeah, in case you’d forgotten that?”… Well, actually we had, Darren. When was the last time anyone saw him doing some study anyway?

“I love you, Stephen”... AT LAST! BRENDAN HAS SAID HOW HE REALLY FEELS!

“Hey... you are never too old for Disneyworld”…We never had Brendan pinned down as a Disney enthusiast until this moment. And then it all made sense (see the picture evidence above). Maybe it’s in all those old cartoons that he picked up his propensity for casual violence.

“Yes… about the same year that shirt was still in fashion”…ten points if you can guess the fashionista handing out style tips here...Glamour girl Mitzeee anyone? No? Perhaps it was the fashion student Esther? None of it. Our own Gok Wan is only Silas ‘lord of the cardigan’ Blissett!

“You should be chasing murderers… not skirt, you little twerp”. That, ladies and gents, is our Jacqui McQueen quote of the week.

“Make like a lion” ...This was Darren’s advice to Lee on the subject of winning Amy back. We think he should practice what he preaches. That’s why we created this: http://twitpic.com/61eb3a

“You should have protected your queen”… Silas, on beating his grandson Seth during a game of chess. Now then, is the old coot talking in riddles again? Or are we reading too much into this? Thoughts on a postcard please.

An amazing thing happened on Hollyoaks back in May. Lady Gaga's 'Born this Way' began to play at local gay haunt The Trojan Bar, and suddenly, like a beautiful butterfly, Brendan Brady (pictured above with son Declan) spread his wings and began to dance. It was magic. See the evidence here if you don't believe us: http://bre.ad/02bq9z

Incidentally, 'Born This Way' or 'Brendan's Theme', as it's now known, was one of the tracks that featured in this week's episodes. There were more great tracks too. Check them out below:

Monday 1st August

Lady Gaga 'Born This Way'

Tuesday 2nd August

Chery Cole feat. Will.I.Am 'Three Words'

Wednesday 3rd August

Jimmy and the Sounds 'Speak'

Friday 5th August

Lectrolips 'This Record Found'

After a week of fit pancakes, caravans of love and hot dog theft, Bart and Sinead have headed off into the unknown to live their dream and, er, hopefully wash once in a while.  

So what now for our dreamy duo? Where will they stay? How will they eat? Will Bart get some new underpants?

You can find the answers to these questions and more by following Bart and Sinead on Twitter:

@miss_sinead_xx
@bartman_95

You can also join in the Twitter fun by showing your support for your favourite corner of the Bart/Sinead/Jason love triangle by hashtagging and twibboning!

Are you Team Sinead? Tweet with #teamsinead and get the Team Sinead Twibbon!
Are you Team Jason? Tweet with #teamjason and get the Team Jason Twibbon!