“I’m really excited to see where the storyline goes.”

Hollyoaks star James Sutton has revealed that his character John Paul McQueen will have a new relationship after the one-year time jump.

The Channel 4 soap is lining up some big surprises this September, as a major stunt airs just before Hollyoaks’ timeline shifts forward by 12 months.

James recently spoke to Digital Spy about John Paul’s future in the show while taking part in a photoshoot for the Inside Soap Awards 2024.

Digital Spy was granted exclusive video access to Hollyoaks’ nominees photoshoot, and you can watch our full behind-the-scenes footage at the top of the page.

Asked about the highly anticipated time jump, James explained: “The viewers will not know what to expect! All the characters have, obviously, aged a year, and a lot of them are in different relationships now.

“There’s been some good news, some bad news – lots has happened over the past 12 months. So we’re filling in the blanks for the audience.”

He continued: “After the time jump, we find John Paul in a brand-new relationship, with someone who I think people will be quite surprised by. I don’t think it’s who people will expect, which is a joy to film.

“It’s an actor that I have worked with in the past a little bit and admire, get on really well with.

“So I’m really excited to see where the storyline goes and I hope that the viewers get on board as well.”

James has been nominated for Best Actor at the Inside Soap Awards, in recognition of his role in Hollyoaks’ groundbreaking storyline exploring the dangers of so-called “conversion therapy”.

The McQueens are also up for the Best Family award this year.

Reflecting on the battle for soap awards, James laughed: “I take them or leave them! I don’t hang my success on whether I’m nominated or whether I win awards, but arguably it is really nice to have a little nod.

“For people to say I deserve a nomination on some level is very, very kind and completely unnecessary, but thank you!”

Asked to give a pitch for Hollyoaks votes this year, he added: “Fans should be voting for all things Hollyoaks because we remain at the cutting edge of storytelling and high drama.

“We tell wacky, wild, wonderful storylines and we also do really important issue-based stuff that really resonates with our young audience and we tell those stories really, really well.

“We’re very proud of the show, and for that reason, I think people should vote for us.”