Hannah Ashworth (also Osborne) is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Emma Rigby. Hannah first appeared on-screen on 30 September 2005 and her last appearance was on 12 February 2010. The character was in a controversial storyline in which she developed anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. The storyline attracted much attention from the press and won much critical acclaim for the writing and Rigby's performance. It also featured Hannah's best friend, Melissa Hurst, dying as result of an eating disorder, which was a first for British soaps. Rigby won many different awards for her portrayal of the character, including Best Actress at the 2008 British Soap Awards. Creation Background The character of Hannah was part of a new family unit which was cast in the show called the Ashworths, who moved into the Hunter family's old home. Her parents are Neville and Suzanne and brothers Rhys and Josh. Hannah's storylines are initially fairly lighthearted, because while Hannah was supposed to be 16, actress Emma Rigby was herself still 15 and therefore subject to the UK child employment laws which limited her availability for filming. Casting Auditions were held for the part of Hannah and actress Emma Rigby went on to gain the part. During some of the storylines the actress commented that playing the character was sometimes depressing and tiring but had this to say about one of her storylines: "I just threw myself into it, really. I didn't want it to be unrealistic or disrespectful to people who suffer from the illness and I didn't want to glamorise it, either. It was announced on 8 November 2008 that Rigby had decided to quit the show in order to pursue other projects, but her character would still be on-screen until June 2009. On 2 March 2009 it was announced that Rigby had extended her contract by a further six months after new producer Lucy Allen convinced her to stay with promises of a 'juicy' exit plotline. She was then scheduled to depart in December 2009. It was later confirmed she would leave early 2010. Development Personality and identity Once sunny and outgoing, tragedy has taken its toll on the character. Channel 4 publicity commented that the character's storylines are the factors which affected the character's self-esteem with putting up with the constant drama revolving around her family, being dumped by her boyfriend, and