Waterloo Road series 17 has made fans’ wishes come true with Scarlett Thomas’ romantic storyline, with a kiss in the opening episode drawing ecstatic reactions online.
Thomas (the niece of Adam Thomas, who’s portrayed Donte Charles since the original series) plays Izzy, Donte’s daughter. She joined the cast for the show’s revival in 2023.
Things haven’t been easy for her. She lost her mum, Chloe, and she left at the end of series 13 to stay with her aunt Mika so she could mourn in peace without having to deal with Nicky, Preston, and Tonya staying in her house.
However, she has become a prominent character since returning in series 15. Notably, after their brief beef, her relationship with Cat Guthrie (Lucy Chambers) significantly evolves in the new series. Warning: mild spoilers to follow…
Waterloo Road fans ‘need more’ from Scarlett Thomas romance in series 18
Izzy and Cat’s romance is one of the throughlines in the new series of Waterloo Road. At first, they’re bickering like you’d expect them to, landing them in hot water with Jon Richardson’s Darius – until they sneak into the staff room, where they catch multiple teachers having a snog.
“This place is worse than Love Island,” Izzy says, and Cat replies: “We should probably get out of here before your dad pops in for a quick snog with the caretaker.”
Cat talks about how bizarre it is that Darius and Nisha are an item, because she’s “dead chill” and he’s a “strict little robot man”.
“You don’t have to be the same to like each other, you know,” Izzy says. “Why would you want to be with someone who annoys you half the time?” Cat asks, and after they both say they wouldn’t, they share a kiss.
@wlr_cizzyfan WLR SEASON 17 SPOILERS!! When they kissed I literally screamed #cizzy #waterlooroad #izzycharles #catguthriee #fyp ♬ original sound - eggaudios
There are already several edits of Izzy and Cat on TikTok, and their relationship (and its ups and downs, no spoilers) has been praised as one of the highlights of the new series.
“I prayed for times like these,” one user wrote on TikTok. “The way I cheered when them two kissed,” another commented.
“The best thing about series 17 was these two love birds,” a third wrote.
In addition to all the viewers reacting “Oh my god!”, others have speculated that they could be “endgame” – in other words, a couple that goes all the way, like Donte and Chlo.
“I hope we get more of them in series 18. Maybe something like Cat learning more about Izzy’s anger etc. I love them so much,” another fan wrote.
Is Waterloo Road returning for series 18?
Waterloo Road series 18 has already been confirmed by the BBC. Not only that, but series 19 is in development, too.
Air dates have yet to be confirmed, but if it matches the show’s earlier release schedule, new episodes will drop on BBC iPlayer sometime in September this year.
Cameron Roach, an executive producer on Waterloo Road, said its renewal is a “huge achievement and a reflection of the incredible creative teams in front of and behind the camera” (via Televisual).
Lindsay Salt, the BBC director of drama, said she was “delighted that Waterloo Road will be opening its corridors once again, with two more series of the hit drama about to start filming”. The question is, will Denise Welch return as Steph Haydock?
Read more: Scarlett Thomas defended by famous dad Ryan after backlash over not sitting her GCSEs
Waterloo Road series 17 is available to stream on BBC iPlayer now. New episodes will air weekly on BBC One.
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