TAMARA WALL
Hollyoaks’ Grace Black ...faces your questions!
Grace is one of the scariest people ever to live in Hollyoaks village – but will 40-year-old actress Tamara be afraid of the Inside Soap readers’ questions?
“What’s your favourite thing in Grace’s wardrobe?”
Grace doesn’t really have the same fashion sense as me, but there’s one pair of bright-pink stilettos which are my favourite. They’re so comfy. I also recently took a black suede handbag of hers. I borrowed it one night and haven’t taken it back yet!
“What’s the best piece of advice that Lisa Maxwell [aka Tracey] has given you?”
I love Lisa so much, she’s amazing! But she’s as mad as I am, so I probably wouldn’t take any advice off her to be completely honest. We’re both a bit doolally! We spend more of our time on set laughing than having any serious conversations. But she’s brilliant, and I love her to bits.
“Where’s your favourite place to film on the Hollyoaks set?”
Definitely not Grace’s flat, because it is dead boring – it’s just black and white because it used to be Trevor’s. So I think I would probably say the Loft, because there’s loads of pink lights in there, and pink is my favourite colour. Not the office, but behind the bar is definitely my favourite place to film.
“Can you tell us a secret about one of your onscreen brothers?”
Oooh, what exactly am I allowed to tell you? Jimmy Essex, who plays Adam, is really terrible for getting the giggles – so badly that he has to walk off set sometimes! Sometimes it will take us over an hour to film something because he just keeps laughing.
“If you were able to cast Grace’s next love interest, who would you choose and why?”
Oh, that’s a really interesting question! I’m going to have to say Lewis Hamilton
[see right]! I think that he would bring something a bit different. He’s done a bit of acting recently for Cars 3, so I definitely think he could be good in Hollyoaks.
“What’s happened to baby Curtis? We haven’t seen him for ages…”
I know! The little boy who plays him, Freddie, is absolutely adorable – but he’s at that age where he’s very close to his mum, and he won’t let her go. So bless him, we’ve
“What’s the best piece of advice that Lisa Maxwell [Tracey] has given you?”
had a bit of a nightmare trying to get him to sit still.
Also, Grace isn’t a great mum to be fair – she does palm the baby off a lot, so the boys have Curtis more than Grace does. But I do get excited when we have him in a scene because he’s so gorgeous.
“I understand that you’re a big fan of Formula 1, but would you ever fancy becoming a racing driver yourself?”
It’s interesting you ask that, as I’ve just got together with a friend to set up a campaign to get more women into motorsports. So I’m going to be doing a lot of go-karting, and track days down at Brands Hatch. It was my 40th birthday recently, and Duncan James
[Hollyoaks’ Ryan] bought me a supercar day as my birthday present – so I’ll get to go round the track like a nutter. Here’s hoping the car stays in one piece, or I’ll end up getting in big trouble!
“You’ve done a lot of theatre. What is your dream stage role?”
I want to do Velma Kelly in Chicago [the role played by Catherine Zeta-jones in the movie]. I auditioned for it years ago, but they told me I was too young at that point, and I never had the guts to go and do it again. Everyone always wants to play Roxie Hart, because she’s the lead role – but Velma’s the bitch. It’s like having Grace in a musical!
“Grace has gone a bit soft recently – do you miss her tougher side?”
I prefer doing the bad stuff, because it’s something you don’t get to do in real life. But I also love the fact that she has a softer side as well, so people love her – it would be awful to be a baddy all the time. I get the best of both worlds! But don’t fear, she’ll be bad again soon…
“What’s the best thing about living in Liverpool?”
Everyone is so friendly, especially taxi drivers – the best thing about getting in a cab here is the conversation. Sometimes I don’t want to get out because I’m chatting so much!
“Where in the world would you most like to visit?”
Cambodia. Me and my dad always said we would go to the Angkor Wat temple together, but sadly he’s passed away now and we never got to do it. He was big into Egyptology and all the ancient villages. So that’s on my to-do list when I get a good few weeks off work.
“Who in Hollyoaks would you like to work with more?”
Nick Pickard [Tony]. We’ve probably only had two scenes together in four years. He’s incredibly clumsy and he makes me laugh! He trips over himself constantly. He’ll hate me for saying that!
“What was the last thing that made you angry?”
I don’t get angry often – I’m quite chilled-out, so not like Grace at all! But traffic makes me angry. I can’t bear it!
“What’s the best birthday celebration you’ve ever had?”
My 40th was the best birthday party I’ve ever had – it was amazing. I did it in Bognor Regis where my brother lives. It was an 80s-themed bash, and everyone went all out with the fancy dress.
Jess Fox [Nancy] did all of my table decorations, and they were amazing. Honestly, it was one of the best parties ever – I cried all the way through it!
“You love F1 – but would you ever fancy being a racing driver?”