Hollyoaks actor Duncan James has opened up about coming out as gay – and kissing his old friend Adam Rickitt on the soap...
Duncan James had a pretty rough time at the height of his fame whilst in Blue – and he struggled when coming out as gay.
Today, he opened up about his experience on Loose Women, and how his Hollyoaks character Ryan's personal life actually almost mirrors his real life.
But one aspect of his character that Duncan certainly enjoys is all the kissing he gets to do!
Speaking to the Loose Ladies today, Duncan became VERY animated when explaining how he kissed his old friend Adam Rickitt.
He said: "I got to snog Adam Rickitt, which was quite fun! I've snogged Jen Metcalfe who plays Mercedes, too!"
Janet Street-Porter then asked him whether he gets nervous upon seeing the script and what will happen.
Duncan revealed that he was unaware that his character would be gay: "I was a bit shocked because I didn't know they were going to turn my character bisexual or gay, and I didn't know it was going to be Adam Rickitt at first who was going to be playing that part.
"He's a really good friend of mine and I've known Adam for years and years, so when he started he said to me, 'I've seen the script – we're going to be kissing then!' And I said yeah!
"He said, 'It's fine – just don't stick a tongue in!' But I was more nervous about kissing him than he was!"
WATCH: Ryan and Kyle kiss for the first time on Hollyoaks
Christine then revealed that they had an exclusive clip from Adam talking about kissing Duncan, who was on holiday at the time.
In the clip, Adam said: "Duncan, you're the first boy I've ever kissed! That's my wife laughing behind the camera!
"Yes, you're the first man I've ever kissed. You were very good! It was a pleasant surprise!"
Duncan then spoke out about his experience of realising he was gay, saying: "It was something that I didn't feel comfortable with sharing with the world, but I decided to do a story because it felt like the right thing to do.
"After years of hiding a secret inside me I wanted to be able to be who I am and I wanted acceptance.
"I carried this burden for so many years – I was worried about what the fans would think, I was worried about family and friends. I was living a lie, really.
"It was one of the best things I ever did. I wrote an article in the newspaper, thinking that I was going to get people shouting at me and saying horrible things but nothing like that happened; I just got positivity, love and support."
He added that he would love for other people to feel as though they could be their true selves, saying: "It's so important for people to feel comfortable with who they are, and to be able to come out and be proud of who they are.
"I was very lucky, I had a wonderful response from everybody, and it just made me feel happy that I could be me."
We love you, Duncan!
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