List of Hollyoaks Characters (2007) - Simon Crosby

Simon Crosby was a lifeguard at the local pool and quickly ingratiated himself to Sam "O.B." O'Brien after he saved young Tom Cunningham from drowning. He got on well with everyone, but when Gilly Roach went to work as a lifeguard, he saw Simon and a young boy as the boy left the changing room in tears. He began to suspect Simon was a paedophile, and eventually broke into Simon's home, and when he looked on Simon's laptop, he found photos of boys in swimming trunks. He told Tom's brother Max Cunningham, who panicked as Simon had taken Tom to the park and they weren't answering Max's calls. They broke into Simon's home and found a locked room which was a boy's bedroom. When Max caught up to Tom and Simon at the park, he began beating Simon until he was pulled away. Soon rumours spread around town and when Simon went into the Dog the next day, Gilly and Jake Dean taunted and jeered him. They followed him down the street, gathering a lynch mob who followed him to his home and smashed bottles and bricks against the doors and windows.

Meanwhile, Simon's ex-wife Gemma, whom he'd mentioned but no one had ever seen, finally showed up, and was horrified by Max's accusations. She told them the swimming photos were for certificates for each of the kids Simon taught, and the bedroom was a reminder of their son Connor, who had drowned, which was the reason Simon had become a lifeguard in the first place. When the police showed up, the mob ran away. Afterwards, Gemma, Max and O.B. raced to Simon's home, but by the time they got inside, they found him unconscious on the kitchen floor from vodka and pills, holding a photo of his son.

Simon soon recovered, but with his reputation in tatters, he realised he could no longer stay in Chester. He asked O.B. to join him working at a bar in Tenerife, but O.B. declined. They agreed to stay in contact.