“We have days on Emmerdale where we go a bit crazy!”
Who are Beyoncé’s favourite characters in Emmerdale?” Emma Atkins asks us, as she sits down in the make-up chair to get ready for our shoot. “All the Dingle ladies!”
The star may be up for Best Bad Girl at this year’s Inside Soap Awards, but given her penchant for comedy, we reckon she should probably be up for Funniest Female as well! Charity’s witty one-liners have had us in hysterics recently as she’s held court behind the Woolpack bar – and with the rate at which she insults the punters, it’s a wonder that anyone actually chooses to drink there!
But as we take a break for a chat with Emma, she informs us that she can’t get enough of her character’s outrageous behaviour…
What’s it like being nominated for the Best Bad Girl Award?
It’s great! Without your bad girls – and boys – in soap, it would be pretty boring, wouldn’t it? I really enjoy playing someone quite dark, because in real life you just never see those kinds of people. Well, I don’t, anyway! Sometimes when I get the scripts I think to myself, ‘Are they really going to make me say this?’. But then I realise it’s definitely something that Charity would say!
Are viewers of the show scared to approach you when you’re out and about? Do they think that you’re like Charity?
No, not at all – I’ve had some remarkably positive reactions, given the character I play! But I think that goes back to the fact that she’s quite funny – when someone makes you laugh, that instantly makes you warm to them. People generally say,
“Oh, you’re so naughty, but we love watching you!”. They will also be honest, and tell you if they haven’t liked a storyline you’ve done.
You’re up against your co-star Gillian Kearney (Emma) in this category, and her character has been particularly bad this year…
Gillian is amazing, and it would be criminal if she didn’t make it on to the shortlist! We’re very different baddies, though – I think because Charity has been in the show for such a long time, you need to balance that darkness with some humour, otherwise people would just end up hating her. But I do feel a bit sorry for Emma because she just keeps getting it wrong. She’s a psychopath – but she’s the very cutest kind!
Who else in the cast deserves to receive an award this year?
Well, they’ve already won several awards, but John Middleton and Charlotte Bellamy [Ashley and Laurel] should get everything going for the dementia storyline. It’s touched people on a massive scale. Also Chris Chittell [Pollard] should get an award for being the most positive man I’ve ever met. He’s always smiling, and he says good morning to everybody in the building. He’s so full of beans, and that has a real effect on us all.
We imagine that Emmerdale is a very happy place to work in general, though…
Oh yes, but we do have days where we go a bit crazy! Because we’re in a studio with no windows and no natural light, when we have long days we can be prone to giddiness! I don’t know where the hysteria comes from, maybe it’s just exhaustion. But when it hits you, it can be really painful – you know you shouldn’t be laughing, but you just can’t stop!
Who have you enjoyed working with this year?
I’ve loved Michael Praed coming in as Frank, and all the stuff between him, Charity and Megan. You can’t help but love Frank, despite the fact he’s a dirty criminal! I miss working with Jeff Hordley, though I do still like the frisson when Cain walks in the bar, and the digs that go on between Charity and Harriet. They’re both quite dry characters, and Harriet gives as good as she gets – so it’s been really fun working with Kath Dow Blyton.
Are you looking forward to Lucy Pargeter (Chas) coming back?
She’s back filming already, and it’s amazing! I’ve really missed Lucy, actually. It’s great when you’ve got a good relationship with someone in real life – you do hear about these people who absolutely hate each other, but have amazing chemistry on screen. I’d rather have it the other way round, though. I adore Lucy, and that means that when we have to hate each other on screen, we can have so much more fun with it!