| Character Profile | List of appearances |
Jonny Baxter (born Gavin Jackson) was the area manager of The Teahouse (formerly Esther's Magic Bean), and a member of Stuart Sumner's far-right extremist organisation. He immediately began targeting Ste Hay, who was carrying out a hate campaign against the Maalik family, blaming Misbah Maalik for the death of his sister Tegan. Jonny manipulated Ste, claiming to be a long-lost son of Pauline Hay and indoctrinating him into absorbing their beliefs about Muslims.
After a failed terrorist attack on The Loft, an attempt to kill Ste for trying to leave the group, and the death of Stuart at the hands of his son Sid Sumner, Jonny was arrested. After having one last argument with Ste at the police station, Jonny never contacted him again.
Biography[]
2018-2019: Indoctrinating Ste[]
Jonny introduces himself to Ste.
Jonny arrived in the village in November 2018, witnessing Ste Hay's protest against Misbah Maalik outside Dee Valley University Hospital as Jonny entered Esther's Magic Bean. A few weeks later, Jonny revealed himself as the business's new area manager. As he introduced himself to Ste, employee Scott Drinkwell expressed his dislike for him. As Ste struggled financially since his food truck burned down, Jonny allowed him to set up a stall outside of the business. Ste ended up becoming close friends with Jonny, but Sinead O'Connor - the mother of Ste's daughter Hannah - and Ste's sister Leela Lomax had their doubts about him. Jonny then claimed to Ste that he was his brother, given up for adoption after being conceived during a one-night stand between Ste's mother and a random man she met at a pub.
When Ste's abusive step-father Terry Hay turned up in the village, Jonny had Terry attacked and warned him not to return to the village. As Ste's problems with the Maalik family continued, Jonny manipulated him into believing that Ste's targeting of the family was justified. Jonny's boss Stuart Sumner arrived at the coffee shop, now named The Teahouse. As they discussed Ste, the pair were revealed to have matching tattoos and had been attempting to isolate Ste from his family.
Jonny, Stuart and Ste tell Misbah that they've moved in next door.
After being attacked by Stuart's gang, Shahid Shirani spotted Jonny in Hollyoaks in April 2019 and confronted him, pushing him to the ground. The next day, Stuart and Jonny lured Shahid's brother Amir to the village and had Ste smash his delivery bike, which was recorded by gang member Paul. After Stuart purchased 65 Christleton Terrace - the house next door to the Maaliks - Jonny and Ste moved in with him.
2019: Terrorist Plot and Arrest[]
Jonny and Stuart arranged for an anti-immigrant protest in the village, with Ste assisting. However, Ste enlisted the help of George, who invited several of the "ban list" extremists, resulting in a riot in the village. The pair decided to evict Ste, with Jonny adamant that Ste would return "twice as loyal", and then tested his loyalty by getting him to speak with "D.C. Rawlings". Ste was left furious when Sinead got engaged to Sami Maalik, and Stuart had him attacked.
Jonny is injured in a bomb explosion.
Jonny and Stuart purchased a bomb to target the Dee Valley East Community Centre, but Jonny planned to detonate it at The Loft where Sinead and Sami's engagement party was being held. The bomb ended up falling off a table and detonating in the back garden, injuring Jonny. This ultimately revealed their plans to the village, resulting in severe backlash and a widespread campaign against the extremists. Stuart and Jonny decided to leave the village with Ste, but the pair discovered that he was lying about his whereabouts and believed he was trying to leave the group. After being stabbed, Jonny claimed to Ste that he wanted to leave the group.
Having gained Ste's trust, Jonny quickly betrayed him, tricking him into getting into a taxi driven by Stuart. Stuart drove the pair to a cliff, alongside his son Sid Sumner. Fighting his second thoughts on the situation, Jonny prevented Ste from escaping and cornered him at the cliff edge. However, the pair were swarmed by police, with Stuart falling to his death when Sid pushed him as Stuart charged at Sid. Jonny was arrested and, bitter over Stuart's death, told the police that Sid had murdered him. However, the charges did not stick, whilst Jonny was taken to prison after a confrontation with Ste.
Appendices[]
Residences[]
| Address | Duration |
|---|---|
| 65 Christleton Terrace | 10th May 2019 to 18th November 2019 |
Employment history[]
| Job | Duration |
|---|---|
| Esther's Magic Bean area manager | 14th December 2018 to February 2019 |
| The Teahouse barista | February 2019 to 18th November 2019 |
Background Information[]
- Ray Quinn's casting as Jonny was announced in November 2018.
- Jonny was axed at the end of the far-right extremism storyline in 2019, as was always planned for the character.
Introduction Sequence[]
Despite being a regular character, Jonny does not appear in the introduction sequence.
Quotes[]
| “ | Scotty boy! I've got it on good authority that there's an espresso machine under all that dust. How do you fancy grabbing a sponge and seeing if you can dig one out, eh? | ” |
— First line.
| ||
| “ | No, you did. You and that stupid little traitor Sid. I was nothing - I had nothing - before Stuart took me in. He was the closest thing to family I ever had. The only family I ever had. | ” |
— Final line, to Ste Hay.
| ||