Tony Hutchinson has been a Hollyoaks regular for 25 years, so needless to say fans were left in a state of shock when he appeared to have been murdered by Breda McQueen on the hit soap. But miraculously, he survived the attack and Nick Pickard – who plays fan favourite Tony – has addressed the "overwhelming" response to his dramatic storyline.
On Monday, Tony unexpectedly appeared alive on a pig farm near the famous Chester town, and fans went into meltdown. When speaking to the Radio Times about his fan's reaction to the plot twist, Nick said: "I'm not really active on social media. I'm not even a big texter, I'm a phone calls man. Although I did have a little look and I was overwhelmed by the reaction it got. It makes you feel nice to know loads of people are watching and enjoying it. There were thousands of comments."
Hollyoaks made light of the fan backlash on Twitter
Twitter users were left stunned when Tony was supposedly killed. One user tweeted: "I'm absolutely devastated that Tony has passed away, he was a wonderful character. I'm going to miss you so much Tony Hutchinson, RIP. I'm in tears, my heart is broken," and another added: "I still can't believe that they've killed off Tony. I won't have it!" Could Tony Hutchinson be the most popular soap character ever?
Nick has been part of the Hollyoaks family for 25 years
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Although Tony is still alive on Hollyoaks, things are still looking bleak for the beloved character – Breda is keeping him in a pig farm after all! As to whether or not she'll finish off the job, well, fans will have to keep watching. But one thing's for sure – if anything else happens to poor Tony fans aren't going to be happy!
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