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Diane O'Connor is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Alex Fletcher.

Casting
In 2010, Hollyoaks acquired a new series producer, Paul Marquess. After his appointment, Marquess embarked on the show's rejuvenation and axed a number of cast members. Marquess revealed that lots of fantastic new characters had been created to compensate for the departures. Following the announcement of the new Sharpe and Costello families, Marquess told a reporter from Inside Soap that a third new family would be introduced. Marquess told the reporter that the characters were still being developed. He said "They'll arrive with a story about how kids react when their mother is becoming more and more selfish in what she wants, and sort of screwing up the lives of her children in the process." In May 2010, Marquess told Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy that the new family would consist of a mother and father with two children. Marquess revealed that "something shocking" happens to the family and explained "It's one of the kids having a really, really big secret that we see - we're in on that from the beginning. You see what this kid gets up to and you think, 'Oh no, this is going to end in disaster'. And guess what? It does..."

The O'Connor family, described as a "four-member Liverpudlian tribe", were announced on 16 June 2010. It was announced that Fletcher had been cast in the role of wife and step-mother of two, Diane. Gary Cargill was cast as Diane's husband, Rob, and Stephanie Davis and Connor Wilkinson were cast as her stepchildren, Sinead and Finn, respectively. Of her role in the show, Fletcher said, "I am delighted to be back filming at Lime Pictures where I started my career on Brookside - then Mersey TV. I worked with Paul on Brookside and I'm thrilled and honoured to be working with him again, especially as this is such an exciting time for Hollyoaks." The actress added that she was "looking forward" to working with Cargill, Davis and Wilkinson. Marquess commented "We're very excited about the arrival of the O'Connors who burst onto screens in August with a very dramatic story-line. And I'm personally very excited to work with the fantastic Alex Fletcher again." Fletcher had recently returned to acting and employed a new agent when she learned that Marquess was producing Hollyoaks. The actress explained "[Marquess was] my old boss from when I was on Brookside, so I was like, 'Right - you need to bombard him with pictures and let him know I'm out there!' I think my agent stalked him for a bit! We got the message over that I was back and wanting to work." Fletcher then received a call asking her to audition for a role and was "up against some really strong actresses". The actress was given "free reign" in the audition. Fletcher was informed that she had been cast in the role on the same day as her audition. Fletcher began filming her scenes in mid-June. She told Kilkelly that working on the show is "practical" as she did not have to relocate. Fletcher made her first screen appearance as Diane on 1 September 2010.

In June 2011, Davis explained that Diane's role within the series would expand in the coming months. Davis told Kilkelly "I have had quite a lot of stuff with Diane and recently we've been filming together so much - it's been non-stop with full days." The actress added that Diane would begin to interact with other characters on the show. When asked about Diane's lack of storylines in 2011, Hollyoaks new series producer, Emma Smithwick, told Kilkelly "I really like Diane - I think she's great and I want to see more of her. It'll be a case of how do we bring her in, cross her over with stories and give her a place in the village." In August 2012, Smithwick revealed that Diane would appear more regularly and share scenes with the characters of Myra McQueen (Nicole Barber-Lane) and Martha Kane (Carli Norris). Smithwick told Kilkelly "I can't wait to see those three, as I think it will be so much fun." During a February 2013 interview with Kilkelly, Fletcher expressed her appreciation to Hollyoaks fans who campaigned for more Diane scenes. Fletcher said "I think really that's what's kept me in the programme - just the fact that people do say, 'We want to see more Diane'." Fletcher explained that Diane would appear more regularly as part of the show's plans to increase focus on the older characters. In April 2013, Claire Cooper (who portrays Jacqui McQueen) praised the decision to expand Fletcher's role in the soap as the actress had been "put on the backburner for a while". In July 2013, executive producer, Bryan Kirkwood, told Kilkelly that it was "a joy" to see Diane becoming a more prominent character within the series. Kirkwood revealed that Diane, along with the show's other older characters, would be added to the Hollyoaks opening titles to "emphasise the broadening out of the show".

Characterisation
Diane is introduced as the wife of Rob, and the stepmother of his two children, Sinead and Finn. A writer for Channel 5's Holy Soap website described Diane as a "loving wife", whilst Kilkelly called her a "devoted step mum". Fletcher deemed Diane to be a "good person" as she has raised Sinead and Finn, even though they are not her biological children. The actress agreed with Kilkelly's view that Diane has a "great" relationship with Sinead and Finn, saying "She does, and I wanted that. I didn't want her to be the wicked stepmother."