Louise Summers - Creation and Casting

Creation and Casting

Actress Roxanne McKee auditioned for the role of Louise in 2004 as part of Hollyoaks: On the Pull, a nationwide search to find a new actor for Hollyoaks. After being chosen from over 35,000 applicants, McKee began portraying Louise, who was introduced by series producer David Hanson in 2005.

In 2008, McKee hinted at a possible exit for her character, despite refusing claims that she wanted to leave. She told Look Magazine: "I'm not going to be there forever. I don't mind the long hours but I'll have been doing that for four years in October when my contract ends."

After her contract ended in October, McKee decided to leave the show in order to focus on other projects, mainly theatre. Several months after her final on-screen appearance, tabloid newspapers began to speculate that McKee would reprise the role to coincide with the exit of Jamie Lomas's character, Warren. McKee had previously told Digital Spy: "Well, Louise might not be dead! That's the exciting twist in the future....On screen, you'll feel like she's dead but depending on me and whether I want to come back for an episode in March — I might be back. I filmed an extra scene showing that I'm still alive. There are flashbacks which show me being killed, but then there's a flashback which viewers won't see for a while, that will be used if I choose to come back for the episode. I kind of want to come back and finish off Louise's storyline, but at the moment, I might be doing something else. It would be really good, though — I'd be going back to kill a few people off."