10 Totally True Facts About… Michelle Hardwick (Emmerdale’s Vanessa)
lnsidesoap YOUR BRIEFING ON THE WOMAN BEHIND THE DALES’ VANESSA…
1 Michelle Hardwick was born on 26 February 1976 in Wakefield, to mum Lynn and dad Peter. The actress – who was clearly a big Five Star fan as a child – has a younger brother, Christopher, and studied at Leeds’ Scala Performing Arts School.
2 Michelle joined Emmerdale as Vanessa Woodfield in 2012. Vet Vanessa arrived to work alongside her best friend from university, Rhona. During her time in the village, Vanessa has helped wean Rhona off painkillers – but fell in love with her in the process.
She also had a relationship with 17-year-old Kirin Kotecha, which resulted in their son Johnny. Later on, Vanessa began seeing Charity Dingle and the pair recently got engaged. “As a local girl and a fan of the show, Emmerdale is my dream job,” confessed Michelle, shortly after joining. “After only two days, I felt at home.”
3 The actress was in Heartbeat spinoff The Royal from 2003 to 2011, as receptionist Lizzie Hopkirk. Michelle also appeared in Corrie in 1996 as Sheila Dixon, and returned in 1998 to play Naomi Russell. In 2012, she made herself known in Hollyoaks as DI Parker, who arrested Mitzeee Minniver! 4 Michelle likes to keep fit by running, and often takes part in charity races alongside her brother. “Initially, I couldn’t run to the bottom of the street or to the local supermarket without being out of breath or without stopping!” laughs Michelle. “But it feels so amazing when you’re out there. It’s just about getting through that first mile. That first mile is always a killer.”
5 Aside from acting, Michelle is also a talented singer. She sang on screen as Lizzie in The Royal, and also took part in ITV’S Abbamania 2, where she belted out Waterloo alongside Brookside’s star Vickie Gates (Leanne Powell) and ex-hollyoaks stars Will Mellor (aka James ‘Jambo’ Bolton) and Lee Otway (who played David ‘Bombhead’ Burke).
6 Michelle recently married Emmerdale producer Kate Brooks. The pair got engaged in December 2018, and tied the knot in the US in Elvis Presley’s former home Graceland. Following the ceremony, Michelle announced news of the nuptials in a post on Instagram captioned: ‘In over 100 degrees heat, on Tuesday 10 September, I became Mrs Brooks.’ Prior to her relationship with Kate, Michelle was married to music teacher and longterm girlfriend, Rosie Nicholl, between 2015 and 2017.
7 Just like her Emmerdale alter ego, Michelle is a lover of animals. She and wife Kate own a young Cavapoo called Fred – who even has his own Instagram account! Their pooch also played a very important role when Michelle proposed to Kate and wore a jumper stating ‘Mummy please say yes’.
8 Michelle has met her fair share of A-listers, but claims only two would leave her star-stuck. “The only person who would have that effect on me is Michelle Pfeiffer,” reveals the actress. “She’s my celebrity crush. Everybody probably knows that already! And I think I’d probably get a bit star-struck if I met Kylie Minogue, because she’s one of my idols.”
9 After starring in panto together, Michelle became firm friends with Home and Away actress Lynne Mcgranger (Irene). Lynne even flew to the UK to attend Michelle’s wedding to Rosie. “The two of us shared a dressing room when we did pantomime together, and really hit it off,” explains Michelle. “We’ve been in contact ever since.” With Lynne a panto regular in the UK, Michelle will always make the trip to see her mate’s show.
10 In June of this year, Michelle won Actor of the Year at the DIVA Awards – which celebrate the achievements of LGBTQI+ women. “I came out in my late twenties to my family,” said Michelle in her acceptance speech. “And the platform that I have now in Emmerdale – playing a gay character and as a gay woman myself – if I can help just a handful of young women then my job’s done. I’ll be a voice for as many people as I can, and I will continue to do so.”