Nancy Osborne (Jessica Fox) left nephew and adoptive son Charlie Dean (Charlie Behan) devastated in tonight's Hollyoaks (17th March), as she dished out some harsh home truths to the troubled teen.

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Charlie has been struggling ever since the camping trip, when he accidentally caused Vicky Grant (Anya Lawrence) to take drugs and end up critically ill. Thankfully, Vicky survived, and Charlie and pal Leah Barnes (Ela May Demircan) were exposed for their role in what happened, narrowly escaping police action. But Charlie is traumatised, and it's clear that his mental health is suffering.

Charlie began smoking weed, and later caused chaos by setting off the fire alarm at school. Headteacher Nancy was criticised when she tried to go easy on him, so felt she had to expel him. At home, she caught Charlie playing video games and barked at him to start revising for his exams, insisting that she would ensure he still took his GCSEs.

Charlie shouted back at her, and was further frustrated when Nancy blocked him from going out. Her husband, Darren (Ashley Taylor Dawson), tried to persuade her to backtrack on Charlie's expulsion, and Nancy gave this some thought.

Meanwhile, Charlie was denied more marijuana from dealer Taz (Keaton Lansley), and when he chased after him and stole his bag of drugs, Taz caught Charlie and took it back, violently knocking him over.

At home, just as Nancy decided to let Charlie back to school, Darren discovered that the youngster had left the house while grounded, and when he returned, Nancy told him that she definitely wouldn't be changing her mind now.

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Angry Charlie demanded that she left him alone, revealing that she had no idea what he was dealing with. Although Nancy tried to find out what he meant, her attitude caused an already spiralling Charlie to snap, and he said he was moving out rather than being anywhere near Nancy.

Nancy was furious as she claimed it was inevitable he would turn out so rude and disrespectful – just like his father, Justin Burton (Chris Fountain) who was always in trouble. Darren tried to calm her down, but Nancy failed to keep her anger in check as she branded Charlie a thug who was "no son of ours", adding that his late mum, her sister Becca (Ali Bastian) would be so disappointed.

Charlie was hurt, rushing off after claiming he no longer had parents. In the park, foster sibling Brooke Hathaway (Tylan Grant), found Charlie. They explained their new job was causing them stress, and Charlie responded by telling them how he felt rejected by Nancy and that he knew he was nothing but trouble.

Charlie said he wished he knew where his real dad was, but was stopped in his tracks when he struggled to breathe, as Brooke tried to look after him. At home, Nancy felt terrible as she and Darren tried to find out where Charlie had gone, but will she get the chance to put things right?

While we wait to find out, you may be wondering what happened to Justin, Charlie's absent father. Read on for all you need to know about the memorable character.

What happened to Justin Burton in Hollyoaks?

Chris Fountain as Justin Burton in Hollyoaks.
Lime Pictures

Justin first appeared in Hollyoaks back in 2003 as a teen, rebelling when he found out his mum Liz (Andrée Bernard) had lied to him about the fact that his father had committed suicide. Justin took drugs, skipped school and stole to fund his new habit. Liz sent him to a boot camp after his behaviour turned violent, and upon his return he tried to make amends and prove that he had changed.

When Hollyoaks High teacher Becca Dean offered to help Justin study for his GCSEs, Justin developed a crush on her. Married Becca ended up abusing her position of trust and embarked on an affair with the teen, but Justin became jealous of her husband Jake Dean (Kevin Sacre), so he began seeing her sister Nancy at the same time to make her jealous. But the affair continued and Becca fell pregnant, unsure whether Jake or Justin was the father.

Becca ended things between them, but the affair was exposed and Justin moved in with Becca and Nancy when his mum left town. Becca left teaching and got a job in a fast food restaurant, but Justin's immaturity continued to shine through and Becca worried that he wasn't ready to be a father to her unborn child. Before she could dump him, Justin proposed, and Becca reluctantly accepted.

When she caught him threatening Jake, Becca broke up with Justin, and he got revenge by reporting her to the police for having sex with an underage pupil. Justin was later kidnapped by Jake, and after escaping, Justin testified against Becca in court, where she was soon found guilty. After being sentenced, Becca gave birth to baby Charlie, and Justin ended up confessing that he had lied about being underage with Becca. The police began the process of having Becca released, but her cellmate pulled out a knife and stabbed her, and Becca later died in hospital. Distraught Nancy attacked Justin, blaming him for her sister's death.

Justin was taken under Warren Fox's (Jamie Lomas) wing and got caught up in his dodgy world, and he fell in love with Warren's sister Katy (Hannah Tointon). But when Justin was revealed to have pushed Clare Devine (Gemma Bissix) off the balcony of The Loft, Clare kidnapped Katy in revenge. Warren pretended to kill Justin to save Katy's life, and Katy was eventually rescued.

Then young Charlie was diagnosed with leukaemia, and tests had to be run to see if Jake or Nancy could donate bone marrow. But doctors discovered that Jake couldn't be Charlie's biological father, meaning he was Justin's son. Justin was a perfect match as a donor, and he finally met his son, but decided that Charlie would be better off without him. Justin and Katy split, and he befriended Ste Hay (Kiron Richardson), later dating Hannah Ashworth (Emma Rigby).

In 2009, Justin and Hannah planned to leave the village, but after Justin did a dodgy deal with Warren, Hannah was injured in a fire thanks to Clare. Hannah still wanted to go away with him, but Justin ultimately loved her too much to let her leave her friends and family, so Justin left without her, never to be seen again.

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Hollyoaks is available to stream on All4 and airs every weeknight at 6:30pm on Channel 4 and 7pm on E4. Check out more of our Soaps coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight.

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