Melissa Hurst
| Melissa Hurst | |
|---|---|
| File:Hollyoaks melissa.jpg | |
| First appearance | June 2007 |
| Last appearance | September 2007 (Deceased) |
| Portrayed by | Carla Chases |
Melissa Hurst was a fictional character in the long-running British Channel 4 television soap opera Hollyoaks.
She is played by actress Carla Chases.
Character History
Melissa made her debut in the episode where Sarah decided she might quit modelling. She was originally a friend to Sarah Barnes and but has grown closer to Hannah Ashworth after discovering she is Bulimic, an illness which Melissa also suffers from. Melissa has henceforth helped Hannah to be more subtle and hide her eating disorder, encouraging her to exercise regularly along with starvation. She has also kept Hannah away from her family and friends so that she is not 'tempted' by food or Alcohol. Even persuading Hannah to stay at home when her family went to France. Melissa stays at the Ashworths during this period because she doesn't want to go home, as her Mum will force her to eat. She and Hannah started an extreme work out regime drinking only water and eating little to nothing.
Melissa had difficulties with Gilly Roach who thought she and Hannah were taking drugs because of the change in Hannah's personality. Sarah, Nancy and John-Paul have also noticed a change in Hannah and have grown suspicious of Hannah looking unwell. Their fears were reinforced when Sarah overheard Hannah and Melissa in the SU bar's toilets about "disposing of the evidence." Later that evening Hannah passed out and as a result her friends were convinced that she had been taking drugs.
When Hannah's family returned from holiday, Hannah's mum quickly noticed how skinny Hannah was so Melissa lied that she had given Hannah drugs rather than admit the truth. This resulted in Melissa being banned from the house.
Melissa continued to visit Hannah however,Gilly wasn't happy about this but Hannah and Melissa threatened to say he had raped Hannah if he didn't keep quiet. Nevertheless Gilly alerted Rhys to his concerns about Melissa and she was forcibly ejected from the Ashworth's BBQ.
Melissa had complained about a headache during the BBQ and continued to feel unwell as she and Hannah stood in the rain waiting for a taxi. She collapsed and was admitted to hospital - where it was later revealed she was in intensive care.
When Suzanne grounded Hannah for allowing Melissa into the house, she retaliated by following through with her threats on Gilly, saying he touched her inappropriately - Rhys and her family believed Hannah and Rhys punched Gilly before throwing him out.
Hannah meanwhile visited a lonely Melissa in hospital, in a touching scene; Hannah tells Melissa shes all she has got in the world and shes so happy they met. Melissa tells her she's a true friend. Hannah applies make-up to Melissa, who is so weak can't open the lip gloss. There is a montage of clips showing the wires, drips, Melissa's bones sticking out, etc., and Hannah's family looking for answers back at her home. When Hannah has finished appplying her makeup, Melissa asks how she looks, to which Hannah replies "stunning", Melissa replies "thought so." Hannah tells Melissa that she is the best thing that ever happened to her. Hannah cries throughout this entire segment. The song "My Skin" by Natalie Merchant plays throughout.
Melissa eventually engineers a plot to escape to Milan with Hannah, as she is certain that if she stays in hospital and continues to be force-fed she will get fat. Hannah agrees to the plan because she is fed up with her family interferring in her life. The two friends successfully leave the hospital the next day, but the duo find a flaw in their plan and have to return to Hannah's home to retrieve her passport.
The girls are detected by Josh before they can flee.Hannah's family are devastated that she wants to leave with Melissa and Rhys grabs his sister to prevent her from going. Melissa defends Hannah's decision and argues with Hannah's family. The stress of the situation causes her to collapse from a heart attack and despite Suzanne's attempts to revive her, Melissa dies shortly after at the age of 22. There follows a heart-breaking scene during which Hannah cradles Melissa's body, crying hysterically.
Melissa's death was one of the few episodes to not feature a wrap-up scene following the end credits.
A vision of Melissa reappears to Hannah in the episode following her death, as Hannah struggles to cope with her grief and is terrified that her mother will use Melissa's death to force her to eat. Hannah is seen trying on Melissa's dress (during the scene we see a flashback of Melissa proudly modelling the size zero dress for Hannah)Hannah however struggles to fit into the outfit, and a vision of Melissa appears and zips it up for Hannah. The two girls reminisce and Hannah says that "nobody makes her laugh like Melissa does" and touchingly is forced to correct herself "did", reminding herself that Melissa is dead.
'Melissa' later vanishes after Nancy and Sarah come over for a heart to heart with Hannah after her Anorexia is revealed. During the final scene of the episode, Hannah waves goodbye to the vision of Melissa, leaving her stood alone as she walks away with Nancy and Sarah.