Liberty gets a message to Sienna and Misbah reveals a secret.
Fugitive Brody Hudson (Adam Woodward) returns on a mission to prove his innocence, while Liberty Savage (Jessamy Stoddart) alerts her loved ones she’s still alive – is the game up for Summer Ranger (Rhiannon Clements)?
Mandy Richardson (Sarah Jayne Dunn) welcomes daughter Ella Richardson (Erin Palmer) home from prison only for the troubled teen to run away, Misbah Maalik (Harvey Virdi) makes a shock admission and Cindy Cunningham (Stephanie Waring) discovers a family secret.
Here are all your Hollyoaks spoilers for 9th – 13th August 2021.
Liberty makes contact
Still believing she killed Leah Barnes (Ela-May Demircan), guilt-ridden Liberty sneaks a note anonymously expressing her condolences into the cake box Summer has told her is for the funeral. It’s actually just a cake to cheer up the injured – and very much alive – teenager, but when Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson) finds the message he thinks his daughter’s attacker is playing mind games.
Sienna Blake (Anna Passey) sees the note and is thrilled to recognise Lib’s handwriting, though her relief at finally having proof her sister isn’t dead is in stark contrast to panicking Summer, who fears her plan is unravelling. While she figures out how to shut down the search for her hostage, an even bigger problem is about to arise for the barmy baker…
Brody returns
Sly Summer pretends to Sienna that fugitive Brody showed up in the village and attacked her, then lies he used to beat her when they were together, all of which she hopes is enough to convince Ms Blake their mutual ex really is capable of murder.
Sienna’s still not sure what to believe, despite Damon Kinsella (Jacob Roberts) desperately trying to make her see that Summer can’t be trusted, but the truth could be exposed when Brody actually does return to the village determined to clear his name. He sneaks into Sienna’s flat to see baby Faith, which he soon regrets when Sienna and Summer get home – will they catch him?
Mandy’s agony as Ella disappears
Another familiar face comes home this week as schoolgirl killer Ella is released from young offenders, but there’s a distinct lack of bunting and cupcakes to welcome her back to the village with Nancy Osborne (Jessica Fox) and Darren Osborne (Ashley Taylor Dawson) still angry that Charlie Dean (Charlie Behan) initially paid the price for her crime.
Feeling like a pariah after she’s forbidden to see Charlie and mum Mandy loses her temper with her, Ella reckons she’ll never be allowed to forget murdering Jordan and letting someone else take the blame – so she runs away. A frantic search ensues, and Mandy suffers a terrifying panic attack as she wonders whether she’ll ever see her daughter again…
Misbah is Shaq’s real mum
The real twist within the twist that Shaq Qureshi (Omar Malik) and Sami Maalik (Rishi Nair) do not actually share the same dead father, though the family would prefer to pretend they do, is revealed at last. However, we’re left with more questions than answers as an emotional Misbah confides in best mate Marnie Nightingale (Lysette Anthony) that she is not Shaq’s auntie – she’s his biological mother!
Meanwhile, oblivious to the secrets of his true parentage being discussed, Shaq continues to fight his feelings for his ‘brother’s’ girlfriend Verity Hutchinson (Eva O’Hara), who grows suspicious he has a thing for her when she realises he helped Sami buy her a thoughtful gift. When confronted by the sassy solicitor, will Shaq confess he’s fallen for her?
Elsewhere on Hollyoaks
- Luke Morgan (Gary Lucy) struggles with his mum’s death and worsening dementia symptoms, but life is about to get even more complicated after Cindy and Zara Morgan (Kelly Condron) make a shock discovery while sifting through Sue’s possessions. Turns out Sue was writing to someone in prison, someone that Luke would be horrified to learn his mother was in touch with – who was it? And should the girls burn the correspondence before he finds out?
- When Peri Lomax (Ruby O’Donnell) starts receiving mysterious gifts from a secret admirer, the family are creeped out and Ste asks landlord Fergus Collins (Robert Beck) to install more CCTV throughout the house for extra security. The irony, of course, is that sleazy Fergus livestreams his cameras and charges for voyeuristic footage on the dark web. Not only that, but Ste is about to discover a secret about boyfriend James Nightingale (Gregory Finnegan) from watching the footage…