‘I found out I was pregnant hours before giving birth’
NAT’S ROLE IS A LABOUR OF LOVE
EMMERDALE star Natalie J Robb was on blazing form as her character gave birth while fire ripped through a barn. Natalie, 42, who has played Moira Dingle for nearly nine years, admitted she was initially shocked when she heard what bosses had in store for her. Moira, and the viewers, had no idea she was pregnant until her waters broke and she went into labour. Speaking exclusively to the Daily Star Sunday about the storyline, Natalie said: “Of course it was a bit of a shock, but this is soapland, and I’ve learnt to expect the unexpected. “I was able to speak to a lady who’d had a baby and didn’t know she was pregnant. It was her fifth child and she said that afterwards she felt a tremendous amount of guilt about all the things she’d done because she didn’t know she was pregnant.
“You’ll have a drink without thinking about it and do things that you probably shouldn’t have. The main thing is you feel very guilty and defensive as nobody believes that you didn’t know.”
Natalie arrived in the village in 2009 with on-screen husband John and their three children Holly, Adam and Hannah. John, played by James Thornton, was killed off in 2012 which led to the exit of the couple’s daughters.
She is now preparing herself for the departure of Adam Thomas, 30, who plays her son. She added: “I’m gutted. He told me a while before he decided to leave. He needs to tread the boards and see what else is out there.
“They’re keeping the door open so hopefully he’ll pop back at some point. I’ve known him a long time – we worked together on Waterloo Road.
“He’s like a son to me and I’m really going to miss him.”
Natalie is also shortlisted for Sexiest Female at this year’s Inside Soap Awards.
She joked: “It’s ridiculous. Have you seen how they make me look on the show? I wear very little make-up and frumpy clothes.
“It’s very flattering and I think a lot of women can relate to not being done up all the time, but I won’t hold my breath.”
Emmerdale continues tomorrow on ITV at 7pm.