Finola Hughes (Anna, GH) had a visceral reaction when her character’s home went up in flames. “It was rough!” she exclaims. “It was brutal. We shot it really late on a Friday night and it was pretty cool. I mean, it was really well done. The people that do this stuff, our special effects people, they really do a great job. It’s so silly, but you do get sort of sentimental — you get a sentimental attachment to [your character’s home] because it’s where you do your work and it’s kind of your set. For the longest time, Anna lived in the Metro Court and didn’t have her own set, and there’s sort of a sense of pride you take in it. It was like, ‘Yeah, I got a set!’ And then it gets destroyed! But it’s okay, it’s all part of the story.” Hughes did make sure that a special prop was spared. “I asked for the Union Jack photograph that was on Anna’s table not to be destroyed and I keep it in my dressing room.” As she observed the taping of the fire, she learned she wasn’t the only one with mixed emotions. “One of the artists that makes all the sets was standing next to me while we were watching it burn, and I said, ‘This is rough.’ And he goes, ‘Yeah, it’s really sad to see a set burn.’ So, I wasn’t alone in my mourning.”
