'It's surreal - Hollyoaks has been a whirlwind'

Soap star Isabelle Smith on her challenging story lines and how she's learnt to take care of herself

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Despite joining Hollyoaks just last year, Isabelle Smith has quickly become one of the soap's rising stars.

The actress took on the role of troubled teen Frankie Osborne in January 2024 and, eight months later, she won Best Newcomer at the Inside Soap Awards. She has also been nominated for Best Dramatic Performance at the 2025 British Soap Awards, which takes place on 31 May.

With hard-hitting storylines and potentially more awards to come, it's hard to believe that Isabelle was working on checkout tills before landing the job. "It's been very surreal - I never expected any of this to happen," she says. "I was working in the supermarket before I got my job at Hollyoaks so it's been a whirlwind." Viewers have watched as Frankie endured harrowing abuse at the hands of her brother JJ and recently began taking and selling drugs. The scenes are intense and Isabelle has a health condition that she has to manage at the same time.

"Endometriosis affects me every single day as I'm sure it does a lot of women," she says.