Jo Joyner shocked by pin-up co-star

Jo Joyner had “no idea” her ‘Riptide’ co-star Peter O’Brien used to be a ‘Neighbours’ pin-up.

The former ‘EastEnders’ actress stars opposite the 62-year-old actor – who portrayed Shane Ramsay in the beloved Aussie soap – in the upcoming Channel 5 miniseries and she was stunned by how envious her friends were.

She said: “It wasn’t really until I got home [from Australia] and my mates were like, ‘I fancied him so much back in the day’.

“I wish I’d got a selfie with him. To me he was just a lovely guy.”

The 45-year-old actress – who has twins Edie and Freddie, 12 with husband Neil Madden – admitted it was a “no brainer” when it came to signing up for the series, in which she plays a woman whose husband goes missing while surfing.

She said: “It’s a great role and it came out of nowhere.

“Work was a bit quiet and I was asked for a Zoom meeting by the producers of ‘Riptide’, who told me the whole story and said, ‘Come to Melbourne. You’ll love it.’

“Luckily, it spanned some dates that meant my husband and kids could come out for about three weeks in the middle of filming.

“My husband has relatives in Australia so we had a big family reunion. So really, it was a no-brainer.”

Jo won’t be gathering her family round the TV to watch the show.

She admitted in a recent interview: “I can’t bear watching myself with other people in the room!”

It’s unlikely fans will get to see her on a reality show such as ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ or ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’.

Jo said: “I do get asked to do them.

“Many people I love and adore have done ‘Strictly’, like Sunetra[Sarker], Scott Maslen and Jake Wood, and they have been brilliant, but it just terrifies me. It’s not my skill.

“Ultimately, I’ve decided that me without food or sleep is not something that the nation needs to see either.

“I would be open to ‘MasterChef’ or ‘Bake Off’, where I might learn something, but last time I was asked, I couldn’t make the dates work.”