Zoe - Digital Spy Interview

Interview with Zoe taken from Digital Spy - Enjoy.

Almost two years into her Hollyoaks career, actress Zoë Lister - Zoë Carpenter in the soap - was recently handed her steamiest scenes to date: a steamy romp with her screen mate and boyfriend Mike's (Tony Hirst) daughter Sarah Barnes (Loui Batley). The aftermath of the incident, however, has caused nothing but trouble for the pair. While Zoë has tried to brush their night of passion under the carpet, Sarah has begun to question her sexuality. Next week, their fling is exposed by Kris (Gerard McCarthy) during the SU Bar's silent disco, resulting in a dramatic confrontation between the trio. Here, DS chats to Zoë Lister about the revelation episodes, Zoe and Mike's relationship and her lesbian scenes.

What was your reaction to the lesbian scenes with Loui Batley?
"I thought it was hilarious! I thought it'd be interesting, though. I was obviously quite worried about them. Loui [Batley] and I chatted a lot when we found out that it was going to be in the late-night eps and we were wondering 'oh no, what does this mean?!' But in the end, they weren't graphic or anything like that, so it was fine. It was completely mental filming them. Loui and I just had a massive attack of the giggles. I think the crew were more embarrassed than we were! We were kind of ignored for the day."

Did you not think it was slightly out of character for both Sarah and Zoe?
"I think from Zoe's point of view, she's quite a free spirit. She's not a lesbian at all, but she's had loads of drink on a girly weekend. Deep down, I think she's questioning things with Mike and how young she is compared to him. She's maybe got this internal list of things she has to do before she's 30! She throws caution to the wind and didn't associate Sarah with Mike at that moment. She woke up and thought 'whoops'. It wasn't a big deal for her and she didn't question anything. She was more concerned that Mike would find out."

This storyline's going to feature quite heavily in 2009, isn't it?
"Yeah. I think the character of Sarah is more traumatised by it all. She starts to question things and she's not quite so sure of herself as Zoe is."

Are Sarah and Zoe's feelings for each other real? Or did Zoe just get caught up in the moment?
"To Zoe, it was just one drunken moment. Zoe's quite secure in herself and I think that her relationship with Mike has made her that way. She's had some crap relationships in the past and Mike's helped her a lot."

Don't Mike and Zoe decide to go travelling?
"Yeah. Zoe's trying to gloss over everything. She's not delving too deep into why things have happened. She just wants things to get back to normal. She can't bear that Sarah keeps bringing the incident up and moping around over it. Zoe just wants to forget about it. She buys Mike this bike as a present to go travelling on and she's thinking about the immediate future more than anything. Zoe just wants her and Mike to go and have some fun around Europe."

All doesn't go to plan, though, does it?
"No, not at all. Basically, Mike finds out about Zoe and Sarah a few days after they make all their plans at the silent disco. Zoe and Sarah are having yet another argument about it in the loo and Kris overhears. So he goes marching into the silent disco and announces it to Nancy. There are a few people who don't have their headphones in at the time, one of them being Mike…"

What happens in the aftermath?
"There are a couple of episodes which span over the same night where Mike finds out, and then Mike just leaves. Zoe and Sarah try and beat each other out of the SU Bar to try and get their story in first and they end up scrapping with each other. Back at the Barnes' flat, there's a big confrontation where everyone's shouting and screaming. Mike ends up walking out, leaving Zoe and Sarah on their own again. They realise by this point that they're both in the same situation - they've both been humiliated, they're both without Mike, too. They kind of bond again - but not in a lesbian way! In their heads, they think everything's going to be okay, but when Mike returns, he throws them both out of the house… So that's the end of bonding!"

Does Zoe truly love Mike?
"Yeah, she does. When she's turfed out, I think it secretly gives her an 'out'. It just makes it easier for her. She goes back to halls and has a few days to think and realises that it's probably the best thing that could have happened. Regardless whether the lesbian encounter was with Sarah or someone else, I don't think anything would have happened with anyone if Zoe had been completely happy with her relationship with Mike. In reality, they both knew it wasn't going to be a long-term thing."

Is there a resolve on the cards?
"Well, Mike wants Zoe back and he's prepared to put his pride on his line. Zoe's moved on in her head by that point."