Diane tires of Tony’s behaviour
AS DIANE AND TONY FIGHT, HOLLYOAKS’ ALEX FLETCHER REVEALS WHY SHE HOPES THEY WON’T SPLIT UP…
If your husband has loose lips all around the village, you’re going to be getting a few people in a headlock, aren’t you?” chuckles star Alex Fletcher (Diane) as we join her for a chat at the end of a day’s filming. And after a bold statement like that, we’re definitely intrigued to find out more about what her alter ego is up to this fortnight!
Diane’s marriage to Tony is on shaky ground, thanks to his recent kiss with ex-wife Mandy – and his current missus still doesn’t know he’s hiding his son’s killer secret! But as Alex tells us, there’s much more drama about to kick off…
Tony has been acting quite strangely recently – what does Diane think is wrong with him?
She puts a lot of it down to stress and money problems. She’s constantly trying to get it out of him, but he keeps snapping at her all the time. At this point, she thinks he could be having an affair. Diane doesn’t know what to do – so she ends up calling Finn, who was his best mate from years ago, and he comes back to the village to talk to Tony.
We have pics of them all dressed up for a retro night at the Loft. What was that like to film?
It was weird! I had a perm and an old shell suit – I was quite nostalgic, actually. That was the way I used to look! I used to have a shell suit in every colour. We were all laughing at each other and going, “Oh God, look at you!”.
So what happens at the party?
Diane gets all dressed up, but when she walks in, Cindy has her hands all over Tony! So Diane loses the plot and gets Cindy in a headlock, which I think she’s well within her rights to do!
Goodness! How was shooting that?
It was brilliant. I was more nervous about the fact that I had to do a sexy dance – Diane says to Tony, “Well if you’re going to start behaving like that with Cindy, then I’m going to start sexy dancing with a few hot boys!”. So I had to film that with a couple of the extras. But I was just dying, thinking, ‘I can’t be sexy, I haven’t got it in me!’. I had a few sleepless nights over that.
Tony and Diane are on rocky ground right now. How would you feel if they split up?
I’d be gutted, because I’d miss Nick [Pickard, who plays Tony] terribly. He’s such a breath of fresh air to work with, and we have a real laugh. Also, I’m quite set in my ways. If I suddenly had to start throwing my lips on someone else, I think it would freak me out a bit!
The audience knows that Tony is hiding the secret about Harry ‘killing’ Amy. How would Diane react if she discovered the truth?
Well, she’s a massive snitch, isn’t she? She’s too honest. So I think if she found out, she wouldn’t be able to keep it to herself. Amy was a mum, so I don’t reckon Diane could live with herself if she knew Harry had done it and didn’t shop him to the police.
Are you enjoying all of Diane’s family dramas?
I am – I love working with the youngsters and having that energy on set. But I just wish Diane wouldn’t nag so much! I do feel sorry for her because she’s got all this stuff going on with Scott after his suicide attempt, and Lily with her self-harming – and she’s got a rubbish husband! She’s having no luck right now – I think, ‘Thank God I’m not Diane!’.
What’s your wish for her for 2018?
I suggested to the scriptwriters that the Hutchinsons should have a holiday, even if they go to a caravan park. Some of my best holidays have been in a caravan! I just want to have fun family scenes… but I think I’m in the wrong job for that!