Lisa Riley says she went back to work too soon after loss of fiancé’s mother

Lisa Riley has admitted that she went back to filming ITV’s Emmerdale too soon after the death of her fiancé Al’s mother.

The 46-year-old actor, who plays the role of Mandy Dingle in the show, said that she went back to work before the funeral and admitted it was the wrong thing to do.

Al’s mother died at the age of 79 earlier this year.

“It has been a treacherous time and it’s still very raw in the family,” Riley told The Mirror. “In hindsight, when Nana passed I shouldn’t have gone back to work so quickly.

“But what I wanted to do was carry on regardless, and I had to really dig deep to shoot the scenes. I now realise it was the wrong thing to do before the funeral.

“I have spoken openly before about how my parents’ mums both died young and how I always called Al’s mum, Nana,” she added.

Riley also shared how Al’s mum “sadly lost her battle with cancer and it’s been horrible.

“The worst thing for me is when you see someone at the end in palliative care. It was identical to my own mum and it brought all those memories back. Al’s mum was like a second mum to me and we were all incredibly close.”

Riley portrayed Mandy Dingle in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale between 1995 and 2001, and again from 2019.

She revealed that the cast and crew over at ITV supported her and “have been beyond amazing”.

“I can’t even put into words how much their love and support has meant to me,” she said.