Barry Sloane

(Before I start, I just need to add, I cant find many pics of Barry Sloane, so apart from the first one you are having James Sutton pics instead)

Fans of Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks are in for a treat, thanks to the addition of a new character.

Niall Rafferty (played by Barry Sloane) arrives in the village this week, and right from the start has tongues wagging furiously about who he is and where he's come from.   What they don't know is the lad is Myra McQueen's (Nicole Barber-Lane) long-lost son, and he's spent most of his life trying to track down his mother.

Barry says: "I'm really loving playing Niall and it's been great getting my teeth into the part. From what I know about his forthcoming storylines he sounds like an amazing character.  "He's going to get up to some pretty evil stuff and will use Michaela as his prey, so she'd better watch her back."

 

Niall's history is that when his mum Myra fell pregnant at the tender age of 14, she was forced to give up her baby by abandoning him in a church. He was brought up in a series of orphanages, where life wasn't exactly a bed of roses.  Now he's finally tracked down his real mother, it seems he's not looking for a warm welcome - rather a hefty dose of revenge. Setting himself up as a stylist in Evissa, Niall is very ambiguous and mysterious.

Warren (Jamie Lomas) is immediately suspicious of the newcomer when the latter lashes out at him - do male hairdressers normally let their fists do the talking?    However, to everyone else, Niall is a friend. And ironically, it's Myra who takes a particular shine to him and is won over by his charm - until Christmas Day, when he reveals his real identity.