Emmerdale General News Thread

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Originally Posted by Perdita

Emmerdale will centre upcoming episodes around the Tour De France bicycle race.

The annual sporting event is primarily held in France, but also occasionally makes passes through nearby countries and will begin in Yorkshire in July.

The storyline involving the race is as yet unknown, but the ITV soap is looking for cycling extras in or around Yorkshire to appear in the show.

Extras should be "an experienced and keen looking cyclist with a good road bike, usual Lycra and equipment", according to Bradford-based casting agency Agency Oakroyd.

Paula from the agency said: "Basically if you look like you wouldn't be out of place at the Tour de France, I could book you in for some days' filming at the Emmerdale village in Harewood."

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Victoria Pendleton will appear on Emmerdale as part of the soap's Tour de France episodes.

Britain's most successful female Olympian will play herself, booked for the grand opening of the refurbished Home Farm the day before the Grand Depart of the Tour de France.
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Victoria Pendleton to appear on Emmerdale
© ITV

Nicola King (Nicola Wheeler) manages to secure the double Olympic gold medal-winning cyclist Victoria Pendleton for the launch, although her husband Jimmy (Nick Miles) goes into overdrive.

Pendleton said: "Appearing on a soap is something I never expected to have the opportunity to do. So when the chance came up I thought it would be really good fun and my mum is a massive Emmerdale fan so that made the decision very easy.

"Fortunately I'm playing myself, so it shouldn't be too difficult but it's still quite nerve-wracking. But the sun is out and I'm sure it will be fun and a great experience to do something different."

Kate Oates, series producer, added: "We are thrilled Victoria Pendleton is coming to Yorkshire to appear in an episode of Emmerdale.

"With the Tour de France coming to Yorkshire in July, the whole area is feeling the excitement of the event - and we felt it was only fitting Emmerdale was part of that.

"As well as a cycling theme to the re-opening of Home Farm, there will be mentions of the race and a few interesting cyclists passing through the village. Plus, Jimmy might get a bit excited at the thought of meeting a long-held crush..."

Emmerdale bosses have announced that they will be using special Tour de France-themed 'break bumpers' next month.

Show chiefs are paying tribute to the event as this year's race kicks off in Yorkshire on July 5.
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One of eight Tour de France-themed Emmerdale break bumpers
© ITV
One of eight Tour de France-themed break bumpers

'Break bumpers' are the brief shots showing the Emmerdale logo at the start and end of every advert break.

Emmerdale's technical co-ordinator Andrew Whiston came up with the idea of celebrating the Tour de France with special break bumpers. Eight have now been created and will air on Emmerdale from Tuesday, July 1.

Whiston commented: "I'm a keen cyclist so wanted our show to cover the Tour de France that is coming through Yorkshire. I realised it's harder to reflect this race in story, given it happens at a weekend and is a live event.

"So I thought about creating these special Tour de France break bumpers. The Grand Depart is the biggest thing to happen in Yorkshire for a long time and with Emmerdale at the heart of this county, it seemed obvious to many of us that we should feature this famous road bike race in some way."

Each five-second piece uses themes taken from the famous jersey colours and translates them into village scenes.

Whiston added: "Rather than just having somebody in a stripy top going down the road on a bike, the idea was to get the theme of the Tour de France into these - and different ways to get some colour in.

"With the Tour de France of course colour is very important, so one of our bumpers is a washing line with different items of clothing on which mirror the leaders jersey. So there is a yellow top, a polka dot skirt and a green pair of trousers, which is the colour for the highest points score. There is a white shirt at the end of the line which represents the fastest young rider jersey colour.

"All of these bumpers were shot at the Emmerdale village and they are all moving images. When you watch them back, it seems like a lot of effort for four seconds, but these bumpers are important. They are like having a full stop at the end of the programme, like a little breather in between the action and the adverts."

Emmerdale stars will take part in a charity cycle ride from Manchester to Yorkshire in support of Marie Curie Cancer Care. :thumbsup:

The soap stars will tackle the Tour de ITV - a 60-mile bicycle ride from Coronation Street's Rovers Return to the Woolpack - on Tuesday, July 1.

Gaynor Faye (Megan Macey), Jamie Shelton (Robbie Lawson), James Hooton (Sam Dingle) and Nicola Wheeler (Nicola King) are the first to be announced for the charity event, and they will be joined by Good Morning Britain's weather presenter Laura Tobin.

A number of familiar Corrie faces will also be on hand to lend their support.

The ride is part of the nationwide ITV Local Heroes campaign, which will run alongside the channel's coverage of the 2014 Tour de France.

Gaynor Faye said: "I'm excited to be doing something at the heart of our local community inspiring people to volunteer at sports clubs, which allows others to enjoy more sports and lead a healthy life.

"It's also great that we raising funds for a great charity like Marie Curie Cancer Care."

More cast members will be announced in due course.

Charlie Hardwick has won the Best On-Screen Performance prize at the RTS Yorkshire Awards. :thumbsup:

The actress plays Val Pollard on the show. Her biggest storyline recently focused on Val contracting HIV.

Congratulations to @emmerdale Charlie Hardwick @RTSYorkshire1 winner of Best Onscreen Performance - well done! pic.twitter.com/OHojIwX83b

— EmmerdalePressTeam (@EmmerdalePress) June 27, 2014

Emmerdale star Elizabeth Estensen recently praised the soap's cast and producers for their work on Val Pollard's HIV storyline, describing it as "perfectly pitched".

Other winners included Southcliffe for 'Best Drama', while Educating Yorkshire won the award for 'Best Show Filmed in Yorkshire'.

The 'Best Writer' award was picked up by Peaky Blinders scribe Steven Knight.

The award ceremony was set up to showcase the best of Yorkshire media production.

Tonight's Emmerdale episode paid tribute to the toddler who played Marlon Dingle and Rhona Goskirk's son Leo.

Harry Whittaker sadly passed away last week and was honoured at the end of the episode with a photo saying: "To Harry, With Love."

Mark Charnock, who plays Marlon, tweeted a picture of Harry alongside the message: "Our superhero. We were lucky to know you and hear your laugh. You lit up our lives, dearest, loveliest Harry."

Our superhero. We were lucky to know you and hear your laugh. You lit up our lives, dearest, loveliest Harry. pic.twitter.com/HQXqaGMDhq

— Mark Charnock (@MarkCharnock_) July 10, 2014

An Emmerdale spokesperson said: "Very sadly we can confirm Harry Whittaker's passing last Tuesday 1st July. We will all miss him greatly and have offered our sincerest condolences to his family at this very sad time."

Leo made his first appearance in the soap on May 31, 2011 and has also been played by another young child, Theo Tasker.

Former Emmerdale star Gemma Oaten has opened up about her anorexia battle in a heartfelt new blog.

The actress, who played Rachel Breckle in the ITV soap, wrote about her experiences in her first post as the official patron of SEED Eating Disorder Support Services (Support and Empathy for people with Eating Disorders).

The voluntary organisation was co-founded by her parents Dennis and Marg Oaten. In 2009, Marg was awarded an MBE for her work in setting up the group.

"Upon leaving Emmerdale, Eating Disorder Awareness Week was just around the corner and finally I felt I had the time and the incentive and the courage to speak out about my own personal battle with an Eating Disorder from the age of 10 years old," Oaten explained.

"My recovery began at around the age of 22 years old. By which time I'd lost half of my life to this awful mental illness. There's the truth. There's the cold hard light of day truth. I was alive but inside I was dead for all those years. To say I'm here writing this blog, as the patron of a charity born out of almost losing my life is nothing short of a miracle."

Offering words of support, the 30-year-old reassured readers that she will blog on a regular basis, adding: "I suppose what I want you to get from these blogs is comfort, hope and a smile...if you get all three then that really would make me happy indeed (and of course you too!)."

She explained: "Here's the thing you need to know. I aren't just some person off the telly who is preaching to raise a profile and to spout rubbish because one day, once upon a time, I skipped my lunch or made myself 'almost' sick. I am writing because I KNOW this stuff. I have BEEN THERE. I was that daughter. The girl of Marg and Dennis slowly wasting away.

"I know what it's like to be on bed rest, not allowed to see your family. I know what it's like to talk to a 'therapist' who has absolutely no clue what an eating disorder is. I know what it's like to cry yourself to sleep, never wanting to wake up. I know what it's like to be consumed 24/7 by counting calories, by trying to find a way to exercise, to thinking about the glass of water that just forced its way to my lips. I know what it's like to almost lose it all and die to this monster. I KNOW IT. I also know what it's like to look back."

Oaten further added that she wants the blogs to make sufferers feel that they are "not alone", before adding that her first idea for anyone reading was to begin reading.

"It may seem hard and time consuming, but you need a source, you need a clarity," she said. "You need pages in black and white, that can't be changed by your mind that is in the control of an Eating Disorder. I absolutely loved and still do love reading The Secret and Mindfulness (Finding Peace in a Frantic World).

"The reason being they opened my mind, they brought me comfort and they brought and harnessed positivity and an understanding of myself. They helped change my life."

Concluding, she wrote: "How amazing would it feel for just ten minutes a day not to be ruled and controlled by the ED? How amazing would it feel if one day you raised that to 20 minutes, to 1 hour, to 2 days, to ALL YOUR LIFE."

Emmerdale star Steve Halliwell is to release an autobiography next month as he celebrates his 20th anniversary on the soap.

The actor, who has played Zak Dingle since 1994, has penned the highs and lows of his career in the forthcoming memoir If the Cap Fits: My Rocky Road to Emmerdale.

Halliwell's autobiography has been described as "an honest tale of rejection and redemption" and is the story of his rise to fame, having previously spent time on the streets.

The actor's story is also said to trace a wider social, cultural and class history that permeated the country in the '60s and '70s.

Halliwell has made appearances in Coronation Street and All Creatures Great and Small, and was part of a celebrity band which had a number one hit single promoted by Simon Cowell.

His Emmerdale character Zak has been involved in some dramatic plots over the years, including attacking his son Cain and suffering a nervous breakdown.

If the Cap Fits: My Rocky Road to Emmerdale will be published next month.


I would not mind if Santa left this under my Christmas tree :D:

Emmerdale and Michael Parr storm the Inside Soap Awards

By Mayer Nissim
Monday, Oct 5 2015, 18:15 BST

Emmerdale has won the Best Soap prize at the Inside Soap Awards for only the second time in the 20-year history of the awards.

The soap's Ross Barton actor Michael Parr also picked up the prizes for Best Actor, Best Bad Boy and Sexiest Male at today's ceremony (October 5), which was sponsored by Dream Bingo.

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© ITV
Michael Parr as Ross Barton on Emmerdale

Ross's fling with Debbie Dingle, played by Charley Webb, was also named the Best Affair in soapland.

Emmerdale won a total of 8 awards on the night, with its other winners being Ryan Hawley (Robert Sugden) for Best Newcomer, Amelia Flanagan (April Windsor) for Best Young Actor, and Charlie Hardwick & Chris Chittell (Val & Eric Pollard) for Best Partnership.

Editor of Inside Soap Steven Murphy said: "Inside Soap readers have had the toughest job in the world this year, as all the soaps have been on cracking form.

"We're proud tonight to announce who and what have been named the nation's favourites, on a fantastic evening where we make sure everyone leaves feeling like a winner!"

The full list of winners was as follows:

Best Actor
Michael Parr (Ross Barton, Emmerdale)

Best Actress
Alison King (Carla Connor, Corrie)

Best Bad Boy
Michael Parr (Ross Barton, Emmerdale)

Best Bad Girl
Kate Ford (Tracy Barlow, Corrie)

Funniest Male
Joe Duttine (Tim Metcalfe, Corrie)

Funniest Female
Tameka Empson (Kim Fox-Hubbard, EastEnders)

Best Newcomer
Ryan Hawley (Robert Sugden, Emmerdale)

Best Young Actor
Amelia Flanagan (April Windsor, Emmerdale)

Sexiest Male
Michael Parr (Ross Barton, Emmerdale)

Sexiest Female
Jennifer Metcalfe (Mercedes McQueen, Hollyoaks)

Best Shock Twist
Bobby killed Lucy (EastEnders)

Best Affair
Debbie Dingle & Ross Barton (Emmerdale)

Best Partnership
Charlie Hardwick & Chris Chittell (Val & Eric Pollard, Emmerdale)

Best Show-Stopper
The live episode (EastEnders)

Best Daytime Star
Jackie Woodburne (Susan Kennedy, Neighbours)

Best Daytime Soap
Neighbours

Best Drama
Casualty

Best Soap
Emmerdale

Read more at: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s1...ap-awards.html

Wow they cleaned up. Way to go everyone at Emmerdale. Well deserved :clap::clap:

I'm so happy for Michael Parr! :)