Mitzeee Minniver
Anne "Mitzeee" Minniver is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Rachel Shenton. The character debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 23 July 2010. Mitzeee was created by series producer Paul Marquess for a different television series which was never commissioned and instead introduced his ideas onto Mitzeee. She is also one of the first characters created in Marquess's 2010 reinvention of Hollyoaks. Mitzeee is a wannabe glamour model and WAG, she is portrayed as being ruthless in achieving her goals and is fame driven. Shenton helped create her backstory and has stated on different occasions that Mitzeee uses femininity to get what she wants. Various media outlets drew comparisons to the character with pop star Cheryl Cole, and Mitzeee spells her career name with triple e's because she finds her name plain, a tag Shenton has also agreed with. On 20 December 2012, it was announced that Shenton had left the show and her final scenes aired on 15 February 2013.
Creation and casting
In January 2010, it was announced that Lucy Allan had stepped down from the position of series producer and that Paul Marquess had taken over the role. It was soon revealed that Marquess planned to give Hollyoaks a "shake up". In April 2010 it was announced that a series of new characters would debut following the departures of old ones. Among them was Mitzeee, she was originally billed as a "wannabe glamour model". Marquess later revealed to Inside Soap that he had previously created the character for a different series that had never been commissioned and decided to incorporate her into Hollyoaks.It was later announced that actress Rachel Shenton had been cast in the role. Shenton described the character as being the complete opposite of her. Shenton had previously auditioned for a role in Hollyoaks but was not successful. Speaking of her audition for Mitzeee, Shenton stated during an interview with entertainment website Digital Spy: "This role came up and I thought, 'Yep, brilliant - this is a good time to do this.' For Hollyoaks, it's a time of change. Paul has a great reputation and it felt like a really good time to do this." Shenton also credits herself in the creation of Mitzeee's backstory. Shenton conducted research into the type of character Mitzeee is, and how the backstory would make her act how she does in the present. Before the character had appeared on-screen Shenton received media attention for her image, with tabloids reporting on her likeness to Cheryl Cole and branded it as an attempt to 'sex up' the serial. Shenton described the attention and comparisons as "very flattering". In August 2011, of her future in the role Shenton said "I won't be going anywhere for a while. Mitzeee's such a great character to play."
Development
Characterisation
publicity describe Mitzeee as a "21-year-old aspiring glamour model she has a few big secrets up her sleeve likely to cause havoc in the village, and break many hearts along the way!" Mitzeee was also billed to Shenton as an aspiring model who wanted a better life and desperately wanted the lifestyle of the rich and famous. At the time of her arrival Shenton praised her stating: "I think that's really current because there are so many people, particularly young girls, who really want that and it is their goal." Shenton also claimed that the more viewers get to know Mitzeee the more they will realise she isn't as one-dimensional as she first seems. Shenton also described her adding: "She hides her intelligence well but she's actually a very intelligent girl. She's also quite manipulative and vindictive and some would say you have to be quite intelligent to do that! That's Mitzeee - there's definitely layers." She is also described as doing whatever to get where she wants to be and being quite ruthless in the process." Mitzeee is also popular with males, she often uses this to get what she wants. Mitzeee does not crave this attention, with Shenton stating "I think she's far too shrewd for that. She uses the attention to get what she wants and uses her femininity to get where she wants to be. I don't think for a second she's taken in by anything. She uses it as a tool, really." She has also been described as "fame-hungry" and a "gossip".Mitzeee's real name is 'Anne Minniver' and Shenton once said that the name sounded plain. On-screen she goes by her career name of Mitzeee, which is spelled with three "E's" - a spelling she makes a point of regularly in episodes. Of this, Shenton explains: "She says it to so many people, 'It's Mitzeee with three es', and she makes a point of it. It's slightly ridiculous as well and I think Mitzeee's a bit of an alter ego so she's having a bit of fun with it." Shenton also commented on the response she has been given from fans about the character: "I've been really, really pleased. I've had such a positive reaction to the role, which I was a little bit shocked about! I wasn't quite sure how people would take her, because I thought she'd be a Marmite kind of character where you either love her or you hate her! But everyone's reactions have been so lovely, and people seem to like her! I'm really grateful for the reactions I've received from the Hollyoaks fans." She also made references to Mitzeee's upbringing, and claimed that viewers would see a "different side" to the character during the third series of Hollyoaks Later.
Stalker and prison life
In April 2012, Mitzeee starts to receive disturbing gifts due to her celebrity status. Neil Cooper eventually admits to being her admirer but the strange gifts continue, leaving Mitzeee worried and paranoid. Mitzeee makes a live television debut and she accuses one of the guests of being her stalker, leading to her being dismissed. Mercedes McQueen is later revealed to be Mitzeee's stalker and she continues to terrorize Mitzeee. Mercedes begins to grow bored and begins to stop but when she discovers that Mitzeee and ex-boyfriend Riley Costello are in a relationship, Mercedes targets Mitzeee once again. A frantic Mitzeee accuses everyone of laughing at her but she is told she is mad. Mitzeee returns to her flat and Mercedes arrives to check she is ok when an extremely unstable Mitzeee brandishes a large kitchen knife, accusing Mercedes of being the stalker. Shenton said of this: "Mitzeee definitely has no idea that it's Mercedes - in fact, Mercedes is probably the last person that she'd suspect. She actually thinks that it's Lynsey and accuses her, because it seems to make sense." Mercedes overpowers Mitzeee and knocks her unconscious before she stabs herself, making it seem that Mitzeee has stabbed her. Of the aftermath of the stabbing, Shenton said "Mitzeee is petrified and picks up a knife in the kitchen. The next thing you know, Mitzeee wakes up after being unconscious due to the tablets and the wine. The first thing she sees is Mercedes with a stab wound and there is blood everywhere. Mitzeee doesn't have a clue whether she could have stabbed Mercedes, or if someone else came into the flat and did it." Mitzeee is later arrested and held in custody.Mitzeee struggles in prison as she is tormented by other prisoners and Myra McQueen is later transferred to Mitzeee's prison. Myra is convinced that Mitzeee stabbed her daughter and uses this opportunity to get revenge. Shenton told All About Soap: "I think at that point Mitzeee just wonders if things could get any worse for her. She's already having a really rough time, and then Myra shows up. It's a very calculated decision on Myra's part to get moved to the same jail. Myra will battle tooth and nail for her daughter, and you can just imagine the fighting spirit she has. There's a lot of serious verbal scrapping between Myra and Mitzeee, which in some ways is worse than a punch-up." Shenton also said that Riley is not as supportive as Mitzeee would like him to be as he is dealing with his own problems back in the village. She added that it's devastating for Mitzeee as she is madly in love with Riley and hopes that he will have a change of heart. Shenton said in September 2012 that Mitzeee will play a big role in the fifth series of Hollyoaks Later. Speaking to Inside Soap, Shenton revealed "So many horrible things have happened to Mitzeee - she's so far removed from the girl she was six months ago. This whole chain of events sends her into an even deeper depression. Her mum comes to visit her in jail, and that's the first point viewers will see something's really not quite right with Mitzeee now." She later added that Mitzeee's recent experiences will "change her for the good" and she will come out fighting. Shenton said that all of the latest trouble's in Mitzeee's life has ruled out any possibility of returning to her "glamour past" and that being framed for attempted murder has "hardened her". Speaking to a Daily Star reporter, Shenton said that "When she first arrived a year ago, she was this ditzy glamour model with big hair. Now you've seen a different side to her. I think this has changed her forever. I'd like to see her go back to a version of herself but I don't think you can ever go right back when something like this has happened."
Departure
On 20 December 2012 Shenton announced via social networking site Twitter that she would be departing the role in February 2013. Commenting on her exit, Shenton said: "Mitzeee's final week is not to be missed I've had an amazing two years playing Mitzeee. She's been on an incredible journey that's not over yet. It's been an absolute privilege to work with the cast and crew that make Hollyoaks such a special place. This has been one of the hardest decisions I've made, but I feel it's time for Mitzeee and myself to move onto pastures new". Shenton revealed that she had known she was going to leave Hollyoaks for over a year but that she had only decided that she would definitely leave six months prior to her exit.It was announced that Eamonn Holmes would appear in a guest role for Shenton's exit and that Carl Costello would also return for the storyline. It was revealed that Shenton's exit storyline would feature Carl returning to seek justice for Riley's death and that he would enlist Mitzeee in helping him punish Walker. An official statement by Hollyoaks teased the character's exit, saying: "Mitzeee and Eamonn's collaboration is a must-see and marks Rachel Shenton's departure from the show. However, it remains to be seen whether Mitzeee will get a happy ending away from Hollyoaks, or if her involvement with Carl has put her life in danger". Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy reported that Mitzeee and Maxine would both believe that they are pregnant by the same man which would lead to Mitzeee's discovery that she is pregnant, but not by the man she suspects of being the father.
During Mitzeee's exit Carl tells her he has planned for Walker to be killed by a hitman, leaving her in "total shock" as she does not expect Carl to take that course of action. Mitzeee initially decides that she does not want anything to do with Carl's plan although she later changes her mind. Mitzeee also discovers that she may pregnant, which Shenton said shocked her. During the scenes both Mitzeee and Maxine believe that they could be pregnant and take tests, with one of the tests showing a positive result. The actress said that she initially thought that Maxine would have the positive pregnancy test but when she discovered that Mitzeee would discover she is pregnant, she thought: "Oh my God, this is amazing - what more can this girl have to deal with?!' I was really interested to see how she would handle it". Shenton said that she found her final scenes difficult to film due to their intense nature and as some scenes did not require her to cry although she found herself becoming emotional. She added that she was pleased with her exit storyline which she had no influence over and instead left completely to the writers as she wanted "to see how Mitzeee's journey went" for herself. She explained that when she was told of Mitzeee's exit storyline she felt it was "just perfect" as it was "just so fitting" and it contained "every single emotion into that last week". Shenton opined that during her time on Hollyoaks Mitzeee had begun to feel almost "like a very good friend, as odd as that sounds! I really cared about her, and I think her two-year journey has been so full of different emotions". She said that she would like Mitzeee to be remembered "for everything that she is. I think she's definitely proved three-dimensional, and she's now a different person to who she was in the first few episodes". Her final scenes aired on 15 February 2013.