EXCLUSIVE Emmerdale’s Gemma Atkinson: ‘I Want To Win NTA For The Girls’

Emmerdale newcomer Gemma Atkinson has some fighting words for her fellow nominees at the National Television Awards next week—so beware Richard Blackwood, Shayne Ward and Parry Glasspool.

The Carly Hope actress faces some stiff competition from the trio of males in the Best Newcomer category, which only makes her want the award even more. “It’s great to be with such great competition. I’m the only girl so I need to do the girls proud,” she emphatically told Yahoo Celebrity exclusively.

Gemma, 31, is no stranger to the world of soap, having shot to fame as Lisa Hunter in Hollyoaks, but it’s her latest role in the Yorkshire-set soap that is turning heads.

The blonde beauty tells us all about joining Emmerdale and a huge storyline to come for Carly.

Congratulations on the NTA nomination. How does it feel?

To be nominated in itself [on the long-list] was fantastic, but to be told I was shortlisted, I was like, ‘what?’ Then I was told I’m the only girl in the category and I was like, ‘Gosh, we need to do it for the girls then.’ We can’t have an all-guy category and a guy win!

You’ve done Hollyoaks and Casualty, so you’re used to the world of serial dramas. How does Emmerdale compare?

It’s a bigger scale but it’s also a different audience. When I was doing Hollyoaks, it was teenage lads and teenage girls, and now it’s the older generation. I had a woman who must have been 70-odd come up to me at the supermarket and say, ‘I love Carly.’ It’s a wider spectrum [of viewers].

How have you settled in over the last year?

I’m one of those people, I settle wherever I am, to be honest, and make the most of it. With Emmerdale I’ve felt at home since day one, from people in the canteen, to the crew, to the other cast members. They’ve made me feel so welcome.

It’s such a lovely place to work. When I signed up a lot of people said, ‘You’ve got a good one there, it’s a great place.’

The bonus is that I get to come home at the end of the day, which is a big plus for me.

[Photo: WENN]

Emmerdale recently re-signed you for another year and teased a big storyline for Carly. What’s that all about?

The good thing about Carly was that when I first started she had no backstory. So myself and Kate [Oates, producer] and the writers had the freedom to come up with things we thought the public would like and the subjects we could touch on.

We have come up with one, I can’t say specifically what it is, but it’s going to hopefully make people realise why Carly was so nasty and shut down when she first joined. She’s been through an awful lot in her life and it’s all going to come out.

The first hint of it comes out in February, where people will go, ‘Oh my gosh, I didn’t know that happened to her.’ It’s going to be a rollercoaster year for her — I can’t wait to get stuck in. It’s a subject that people will relate to, it’s heartbreaking, it’s going to be difficult to do. I’m going to be doing a lot of research.

[Photo: WENN]

You’re no stranger to powerful storylines, having tackled self-harming in Hollyoaks. Do these plots take a lot out of you?

It does, yeah. Mentally it does.

A lot of people can come home from work and switch off. But obviously if you’re working in soap or TV, instead of switching off, you have to learn your lines for the next day. I hate bringing my work home with me in that respect, but you do have to put in the work to learn your lines. Especially with a subject that people have been through you don’t want to offend anybody, you don’t want to make it seem easier than what it is—it has to seem real.

It is mentally draining, but if people are relating to it in a positive way … with Lisa Hunter, I had young girls coming up to me saying ‘thank you’ because I helped them get through it. One girl took me aside in a nightclub toilet and showed me her arms and it was all scars that had healed. She said, ‘I stopped cutting when Lisa Hunter stopped cutting.’ When there’s positive spins on dark stories, it makes it all worthwhile.

How often do you get recognised as Lisa then?

I do get recognised from Hollyoaks. It’s very flattering. I left when I was 22 and I’m now 31. So the fact people still remember it, it’s brilliant.

[Photo: WENN]

Do you enjoy the glamour of the NTAs—dressing up and such?

I love the fact we can all get away from work and spend time together. The train journey down, for me, is really good fun. It’s everyone out of work, we load up on Percy Pigs and chill. But if we could do all that in jeans and Converse, I’d be a lot happier! I’m not the best in a dress and heels. Trying to be ladylike, or not roll on my ankle, I’m not the best!

How will you celebrate if you win the Best Newcomer award?

I’ll probably just ring my mum. I’m working the next day so I won’t be able to drink or let my hair down. I’m on the early train back because we’ve got more filming to do. It’ll be an internal gratitude—I’ll feel really content and thankful.

The Best Soap race always tends to be between Coronation Street and EastEnders. Why does Emmerdale deserve it this year?

EastEnders being the only soap down south, everyone down south watches EastEnders. Up north, you flit between Emmerdale, Corrie and Hollyoaks. So if you don’t vote … it’s a lot more competition.

Viewing-wise we’ve done fantastic this year, our viewing figures and our story lines have been great. We’re doing subjects that everyone can relate to. The amount of time and money put into the show, I hope people vote.

Fingers crossed Emmerdale wins Best Soap at the awards because this year, especially, people have worked so hard and the story lines have been on-point. The writers and producers have been so passionate about how it’s played out. If anything’s not 100 per cent they won’t put it out. It’s nice that the public appreciate that.

Kate Oates, Emmerdale’s executive producer, is leaving and joining Corrie. Will you miss her? How will she fare at Corrie?

I will miss her, not even just professionally. Kate is a friend to everyone, she’s one of those producers who used to come out to dinner with us, she’d take the girls out to lunch. It wasn’t the case that we only saw her when we had a meeting about work. She was very much part of a friendship group with the girls. I know Charley Webb especially was close to her. We had a leaving do for her not long ago.

She’s going to do wonders for Corrie. I think they’ll have a shock in a pleasant way. It’s always a shock when a new producer comes but she’s great and she’s got great ideas. They’re in really good hands.

Gemma Atkinson is nominated for Best Newcomer at the NTAs. To vote visit nationaltvawards.com/vote.

For more EXCLUSIVE NTAs content click here.