May your bubble never burst! Richard Arnold, Journalist

Breakfast telly star Richard looks back on his time as an Inside Soap staffer…

These days, he meets movie stars, music legends and television royalty for ITV’S Good Morning Britain – but Richard Arnold cut his showbiz teeth on the features team of this very magazine, back in the 90s!

“Inside Soap was where it all began for me!” he shares. “It felt a natural home, as I’d always loved telly. Soaps have provided quite the narrative for my life – getting to know the casts and visiting the sets.

Inside Soap was responsible for lighting that fire, and I had some fantastic experiences.”

Richard has interviewed lots of stars in his time, but he still remembers the glamour of his first Inside Soap photo shoot.

“It was with Emmerdale’s Malandra Burrows [Kathy Glover], Claire King [Kim Tate], Norman Bowler [Frank Tate] and Leah Bracknell [Zoe Tate],” he grins. “It was basically ‘Emmerdallas’

– Dallas in the Dales!

“It was always a moment when you interviewed someone like Helen Worth [Corrie’s Gail], or one of the Mitchells. I still remember interviewing Barbara Windsor when she joined Eastenders as Peggy. Then there was the first ever National Television Awards – sponsored by Inside Soap at the time – where I had a frisky old time with Julie Goodyear [Corrie’s Bet Lynch]!”

Having started out here, Richard understands all too well why the public loves soaps so much – and he’s delighted that 1000 issues on, Inside Soap is still going strong…

“In a rapidly changing world, soaps provide a community,” he grins. “We have such an appetite for them in the UK – they resonate with so many people, and that’s hugely important. I made the best of friends at Inside Soap, and that’s a great legacy to have. So may your

bubble never burst!”