Phoenix Chi Brown lands first acting role in Hollyoaks

Phoenix Chi Brown, the 27-year-old daughter of Spice Girl Mel B, has landed her first television acting role on the long-running Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks.

The presenter and television personality will feature in a minor guest appearance alongside soap veteran Kieron Richardson, whose character Ste Hay is kidnapped in a dramatic upcoming storyline set inside a shopping centre.

In scenes scheduled to air on Wednesday, September 2, Brown's character will have a fleeting interaction with Ste during a special episode filmed on location at Runcorn Shopping City in Cheshire, according to reports in The Sun.

Shopping centre kidnap plot

Promotional pictures released ahead of the broadcast show Brown, who also works as a DJ, eating lunch at a table inside the shopping complex while Ste sits nearby on his phone shortly before being snatched.

Dressed in a red and white striped sweater and dark cargo trousers, Brown is captured looking over at Ste, who remains completely unaware of his impending fate.

The dramatic sequence begins when Ste persuades fellow characters Mercedes McQueen and Leela Lomax to pull over at the shopping centre for a brief toilet break while on their way to a spa getaway.

Unbeknownst to the group, they are being closely watched by henchmen dispatched by Gemma Johnson, who have been ordered to eliminate her romantic rival Mercedes. Ste is subsequently abducted during the stop. The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Brown for comment regarding her role.

Soap background and filming location

First broadcast on Channel 4 in October 1995, Hollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera created by Phil Redmond and set in a fictional suburb of Chester. The series is widely known for its fast-paced storylines, high-stakes dramatic plots, and focus on younger audiences.

Actor Kieron Richardson has played character Ste Hay on Hollyoaks since 2006, establishing himself as one of the show's longest-serving cast members over nearly two decades on screen.

The special episode was filmed on location at Runcorn Shopping City, a prominent enclosed retail complex located in Runcorn, Cheshire, which originally opened in 1972 and frequently serves as a location for regional television productions.

Television career and famous family

While her mother Mel B, 51, rose to global fame as Scary Spice in the iconic 1990s pop group the Spice Girls before building a career as a television judge on major talent shows, Brown is carving out her own career in broadcasting. Brown was born during Mel B's marriage to Dutch dancer Jimmy Gulzar, who is also 51.

Aside from her new role on Hollyoaks, Brown has made numerous television appearances in recent years across reality, sports, and talk show formats. Her credits include the ITV sports challenge series The Games, the BBC documentary series Born Famous, ITV's daytime discussion show Loose Women, and Channel 4's Celebrity Gogglebox, on which she appeared alongside her mother.

Nepotism debate and documentary

In addition to her screen roles, Brown has been an outspoken participant in public discussions surrounding celebrity offspring and career opportunities in the media industry. Last year, she fronted the Channel 4 documentary Born in the Limelight - Nepo Babies: Untold, which originally aired in October 2024 before returning to television screens in early 2025.

In the documentary, Brown claimed that nepo babies have never faced so much hate as she opened up about the struggles of having famous parents. Public obsession with the concept of nepotism babies expanded rapidly after New York magazine proclaimed 2022 as the year of the nepo baby, highlighting figures such as model Kaia Gerber and actresses Lily-Rose Depp and Dakota Johnson.

Speaking to the Radio Times during the release of the documentary, Brown acknowledged her background while addressing public scrutiny. "I can't deny that having Mel B as my mum has opened a few doors," she said. "However, there's been rising anger in recent years with what appears to be more and more children of famous people making it in the entertainment industries."

"Even when nepo babies are great at their job, they face a backlash fuelled by misunderstanding, jealousy or resentment," Brown added. "The issue has never before sparked so much hate or become so febrile and poisonous."

In the documentary, Brown questioned why society accepts Prince William as "the ultimate nepo baby in the Royal family but not in the world of celebs," pointing to figures such as Brooklyn Beckham who come under public fire. "Nepotism is everywhere, no matter what area you work in. It's just that the entertainment industry is very visible," she said, noting: "It's clear there is a problem … but we will get nowhere by targeting nepo babies as individuals. We must explore the bigger societal issues."