![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1_Hollyoaks-30th-anniversary.jpg\")
Nick Pickard and Sir Phil Redmond attend the Hollyoaks 30th anniversary celebration at St George’s Hall(Image: PA)<\/p>\n“I stayed in The Adelphi on my first night here and I fell in love with the city straight away”Nick Pickard and Sir Phil Redmond attend the Hollyoaks 30th anniversary celebration at St George’s Hall(Image: PA)<\/p>\n
Nick Pickard has portrayed Tony Hutchinson in Hollyoaks for three decades, taking on some iconic storylines on the Chester-set soap. The 50-year-old actor recently spoke to the ECHO about falling in love with Liverpool and called himself a “plazzy Scouser”.<\/a><\/p>\n This week has been jam-packed on Hollyoaks. With everything from a tragic plane crash to a disastrous wedding day, the soap gave viewers everything and more<\/a> to coincide with their 30th birthday celebrations.<\/p>\n However, aside from the jaw-dropping storylines, Hollyoaks<\/a> also marked the occasion with a special crossover episode with Brookside. After 22 years away from our screens, the iconic Liverpool soap made a dramatic return on Wednesday.<\/p>\n Filmed and set on Brookside Close in West Derby<\/a>, the show ran from 1982 to 2003<\/a>. As Channel 4’s first soap, it was pioneering and tackled important social issues<\/a> in the community in which it was based.<\/a><\/p>\n The special crossover episode <\/a>combined the two soaps in a unique twist. It also honoured Sir Phil Redmond, who created both shows.<\/p>\n The stars of Hollyoaks and Brookside arrived at St George’s Hall on Monday to celebrate the premiere of the one-off episode. It was a memorable evening as the actors turned out on the red carpet to mark the 30th anniversary of Hollyoaks.<\/a><\/p>\n The ECHO spoke to some iconic Brookside stars on the red carpet, including Louis Emerick and Suzanne Collins.<\/a> Hollyoaks legend Nick Pickard (Tony Hutchinson) was also in attendance for the glamorous event held at St George\u2019s Hall.<\/a><\/p>\n The 50-year-old has been part of the Hollyoaks cast since it first appeared on screens back in 1995. He remains the longest-serving cast member for his portrayal of Tony Hutchinson.<\/a><\/p>\n Speaking to the ECHO on Monday, he expressed his excitement about the Brookside crossover, which he described as a special way to mark three decades of Hollyoaks.<\/a><\/p>\n He said: “It’s so special. To think that I came here in 1995; I was 20 years of age, and I’m 50 now.” He added: “I think I stayed in The Adelphi on my first night here, and I fell in love with the city straight away.”<\/p>\n He told the ECHO: <\/a>“It was only a six month gig at the time, and you don’t know how it’s going to last or what’s going to happen. I’m still here all this time later and have formed lifelong friendships- it’s my home now.<\/p>\n “I’m a London boy, but I’d never go back there now.” He joked: “I’m a plazzy Scouser, as they call it.”<\/p>\n He fell in love with Liverpool after moving up North for Hollyoaks when he was just 20 years old. He said: “I just love the friendliness of people. You can go out anywhere in Liverpool and bump into someone; everyone has a good old gab.”<\/p>\n He joked his Hollyoaks co-stars call him Coronation Street’s “Ken Barlow” f<\/a>or his long-running stint on the soap.<\/p>\n Speaking about working with Scousers, he said: “The banter has always been fantastic. They give me loads for being from down south, and they call me Ken Barlow because I’ve been in the soap so long.”<\/p>\n![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1_HOLLYOAKS-30TH-BIRTHDAY-WEEK-TRAILER-SCREEN-GRAB-TONY-DIANE-IMMEDIATE-RELEASE-LIME-PICTURES.jpg\")
Nick Pickard as Tony in Hollyoaks(Image: Lime Digital)<\/p>\n