The General Hospital Nurses’ Ball 2025 edition kicks-off tomorrow on Tuesday, May 20th with the red carpet arrivals as mistress of ceremonies, Lucy Coe (Lynn Herring) works herself into a frenzy hoping all of her best laid plans go off without a hitch! But, since when has that ever happened?

GH has upheld the Nurses’ Ball tradition throughout the years (last year they took a year off from the festivities). What started in 1994 as an important statement during some of the most devastating times of the HIV/AIDS crisis in the U.S. and abroad, also dovetailed out of the heartbreaking love story of Robin (Kimberly McCullough) and Stone (Michael Sutton). Now, GH uses the episodes as a reminder that there is still work to do to help those globally, but it also serves as culmination of major plot points all convening at the ‘Nurses’ Ball.’

Michael Fairman TV chatted with the one and only Lynn Herring for a video chitchat now on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel to get a preview of what viewers will see over the four-episode event, how she feels carrying the torch since its inception, those dresses, and some remembrances of the late fitness guru, Richard Simmons, who back in 2013 was Lucy’s nemesis at the ball. In a very heartfelt moment, Lynn also shares her pride that her son with the late Wayne Northrop (ex-Roman, DAYS), Hank, now has a role on Days of our Lives.

Photo: ABC

SIDWELL AND LUCY

So, what’s the story with Jenz Sidwell (Carlo Rota) and Lucy Coe? Is she really intrigued by the guy romantically, or using him for his moolah especially since he underwrote the Nurses’ Ball in his entirety? Lynn Herring explained, “First, Carlo is actually so much fun to work with and that’s my problem right now. We had scenes today and we were laughing about them. We have no idea where this is going. I think secretly Lucy has gotten a little savvier than sometimes she acts. I mean, her silliness is definitely a cover. Sometimes it’s real and she needs to still grow up, but sometimes she kind of knows what she’s getting herself into. But the end result is worth it, and she got the ‘Nurses’ Ball’ underwritten!”

Photo: ABC

THE BEGINNINGS OF THE NURSES’ BALL

GH viewers love Lucy! They became even more fond of her from her undying passion to put on the ‘Nurses’ Ball’ and her subsequent “hosting” style. Herring recalls when she found out in 1994 that she got the nod to spearhead the event on-screen. Lynn expressed, “I think the first thing I did was cry, because our show had been impacted, the whole industry had and across the world, obviously the United States, a lot of the creative community. I remember I was so proud. I just remember thinking, ‘This is a gift and it’s meant to be that we can communicate what this is doing to our country.’ I just remember being completely overwhelmed and also pressurized because I think the whole effort by Lucy to make it right and to do it right was the tricky thing. We don’t always get it right. Sometimes, the numbers may be off base, sometimes you don’t love the dress, sometimes the interactions, but the heart of it, and the continuity and history is always true, and we try to represent that.”

Photo: ABC

RICHARD SIMMONS VS. LUCY COE

Over the years, Lucy has had some made some enemies, and people that just had it out for her. One of which was the late great fitness guru and OG General Hospital favorite, Richard Simmons.  Since the last time GH aired the ‘Nurses’ Ball,’ Simmons had passed away back in July of 2024 at the age of 76.

The year was 2013 and Richard revived his role as ‘himself’ for the ‘Nurses’ Ball. In remembrance, Herring shared, “Lucy generates an energy that I think sometimes can combust too much. Richard was very manic and hyper. He would be Lucy’s energy on steroids x 10. He comes to work though with the same joy of wanting to entertain. Richard wanted people to feel his love and acceptance and warmth and that’s the first thing you see.”

To this day, Lynn has a very special reminder of Richard, when he gifted her a dress. She shared the details, “I just admired Richard so much, because whatever he was going through, he would put that aside and wanted to be a true performer and really engage with all of us. We spent several days together, obviously, and then the last day he had this beautiful jeweled dress that he had gotten at an auction, or an art house, and he gave it to me. I told him, ‘Richard, I don’t need a gift, but I will keep that and treasure it,’ because it just represents everything he gave everybody. It was so fun in our scenes, because he would try to get so mad at Lucy, and we would be doing our nemesis stuff and then we would crack up. We did have to do several takes occasionally.”

Photo: ABC

LUCY AND HER DRESSES: HOW DOES SHE CHOOSE?

It wouldn’t be a ‘Nurses’ Ball’ without Lucy Coe having more clothing changes than one would see at a Beyonce Concert! Speaking of how the dresses get determined, Herring explained, “Shawn Reeves is our costume designer now. and back then it was Bob Miller before him. Bob would design the dresses. So a lot of times I never get to say Bob, “My whole back is out and my stomach.” But, I had to go with his designs and they were so magical. So, I never said anything. Now, Shawn has found a way to do this on a budget. You have to remember that our budgets are so different now. Shawn finds the most beautiful fabrics and he knows me so well, that we both will look in the mirror together. He brings a dress rack in and I’ll try them on and he will go, “Oh, no, Lynn,” or I will go, “Oh no, Shawn. That’s bad.”  I don’t think we’ve ever disagreed where we didn’t see it right away in the mirror and go, “That is not going to work!”

However, Lynn received a little added something for one of Lucy’s gowns for 2025: “This year, Shawn surprised me. There was a ‘yes’ dress and we both went, ‘This is nice.’ However, he added this whole bustle and beautiful train that I never saw coming. It’s so beautiful. I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”

Photo: JPI

HANK NORTHROP TO DEBUT ON DAYS OF OUR LIVES

It has been a rough several months for Lynn Herring after losing the love of her life, her husband, Wayne Northrop to Alzheimer’s late last year. The couple had been married for over 43 years, and share two sons. One of which, Hank Northrop, will debut in the fall on Wayne and Lynn’s old stomping grounds at Days of our Lives. “It’s been a magical journey that we’ve been on,” says Lynn. “Hank found out on his own birthday (about the role), and Wayne passed last November. It has been a gift from the folks at DAYS, and his dad. Hank just really believes his dad’s watching over everything he does. He feels a lot of pressure because he’s heard so many stories about Wayne’s pranks and all the bad things his dad did. I mean, Wayne locked people in their dressing rooms when they had to be on set!”

Herring added, “I kept telling Hank, ‘Don’t be like your dad!’ However, the way they’ve embraced him at DAYS has been so special, and James Reynolds (Abe Carver) wasn’t told that Hank was going to be working there, and he broke down and Hank broke down and at that point, they were only 10 shows in. Hank’s character on DAYS is very interesting, because it’s complicated I think they’ve changed it a little as they’ve gone and he just gets so excited.”

Photo: ABC

GH NURSES’ BALL PREVIEW

With the spotlight to be on Lynn over the next several episodes of GH, she teased about the 2025 Nurses’ Ball! “This year, they’ll (the fans) see a lot of interactions, and the musical numbers are really good and appropriate. They’re going to get a kick out of it, I think.”

Now below, watch our full conversation with Lynn.

Then weigh-in; what is your favorite part of the GH Nurses’ Ball? Are you excited to see Lynn take centerstage as Lucy Coe? What did you think of her touching words on Richard Simmons, and her son Hank Northrop? Share your thoughts in the comment section.