James Thornton, Natalie J. Robb (John and Moira, 'Emmerdale') DS Interview
Since their arrival in July last year, Emmerdale's Barton family have been bubbling away in a bid to firmly establish themselves at the heart of the soap. Moira - played by Natalie J. Robb - was pursued by Marlon; Hannah's been bullied; Adam's tried to help his best mate Aaron through his sexuality crisis; John (James Thornton) gave into temptation when he kissed Eve; and Holly's drug problem is about to spiral out of control. Digital Spy recently caught up with husband and wife duo James and Natalie to talk about the ongoing substance abuse storyline and what's on the horizon over the coming months.
John and Moira react quite differently to the discovery that Holly's been kicked out of college…
[JT] "It's a tricky time for them because they've just come out of this problem with Eve and they've started to make headway with their relationship. They go out to see Holly's art exhibition at college and it's the first time they've been out since the kiss with Eve and they're getting on quite well - they're all flirty and having a laugh. That all stops, though, when they find out that Holly's artwork isn't on show and they want to know why. When they speak to the tutor, they're told that Holly's been thrown out for dealing drugs. John and Moira thought it'd been dealt with but they realise that it's a lot worse than they imagined."
[NR] "At first, she's really disappointed because she's lied about it all. While Moira tries to get some perspective on it, John flies off the handle."
How do they deal with it?
[JT] "Moira takes control and tells John to calm down so she can do the talking. So when they get back to the house, they walk in just after Holly and Roz have snorted cocaine off the coffee table. Even though they've been told what's happened [by the tutor], Holly continues to lie to her parents that she's still at college. At that moment, John just flips. He just feels so let down and trust is such a big thing in the family. So taking the hard line, John decides that she's going to graft on the farm until she realises what she's done."
The situation with Holly seems to be driving John and Moira apart…
[JT] "Yeah. They never fully resolve what happened with Eve. And their reactions to the Holly situation are so different, so they start to fall out over that, too."
[NR] "That's still part of the problem. They never actually sort the Eve situation because the first time she lets him back in, it's the whole art gallery event and it all kicks off again with Holly. From there, Eve stuff gets pushed aside. It'll always be there at the back of Moira's mind, as in their 20 years of marriage he's never done anything like that to her."
Holly's drug storyline continues to spiral way into the year, doesn't it?
[JT] "We've just had a meeting with the storyliners to talk about what's going to happen - and it's going to be huge."
[NR] "It's going to head into territory that Emmerdale's never been in before. We're going to be doing a lot of research - particularly Sophie. It'll be fairly controversial… and it gets quite dark, put it that way."
Is there something we don't know about the Bartons?
[JT] "Yeah, that might be true. We haven't heard anything but they can do anything. We've not really talked much about our backstory on screen, aside from Moira's mother who's on a cruise. Who knows what could happen? There's a lot of scope."
[NR] "Perhaps there could be a secret buried. It's been mentioned about Moira's mum - who loves toyboys! - and that her father was very strict. I still don't know why Moira left Scotland, so there might be a story there."
Do you think we'll ever meet Granny Barton?
[JT] "They keep referring [to] her. We keep laughing saying that Joan Collins would be great for the part! She'd be amazing."
[NR] "Maybe her mother's English, we're not quite sure. Joan would be brilliant. It'd be a coup if we got her in!"
What do you think of the show at the minute?
[JT] "It's really exciting. I know they have a lot of plans for the coming months, you're going to see changes [for the Bartons]. Their story will move in another direction. And the younger members of the cast are fantastic - James Sutton, Danny Miller, Adam Thomas… When they're all playing together, they're so good together."
Were you all disappointed that you didn't win more Soap Awards?
[JT] "Yeah definitely. I've heard rumours that the voting was very, very close on the viewer votes and that Emmerdale wasn't that far off, which is interesting to hear. We just need to encourage all the fans to vote more!"
[NR] "Definitely. We were nominated in every category and didn't win anything. I thought Danny Miller should have won something at least - the storyline's been fantastic from the acting to the writing and directing. We all work hard in soap but I felt the awards could have been more balanced. I don't think EastEnders is any better [than the other soaps] at the moment. I was gutted for the cast but that doesn't mean that we won't win anything next year. I hope we go from strength to strength from here."
James, apparently your wife Joanna Page is wanted by Emmerdale bosses?
[JT] "I'll be totally honest with you - she's not joining Emmerdale in the near future. But as an actor, you never say never to anything. At the moment, she has so many other things on the go. She's just done this great show for BBC Three, a sci-fi drama called The Fades. It's a pilot with Andy Buchan and Daniela Nardini. She loves it and she's hoping it'll get picked up for a series."
Bonus bits from 'Emmerdale's John and Moira
I recently had a natter with Emmerdale's farming duo John and Moira Barton - actors James Thornton and Natalie J. Robb.
They've been around and about for roughly a year now and with each member of the clan mingling with separate characters throughout the village - John with Eve, Moira with Marlon, Adam with Aaron - they're about to come together for a family story of their own.
Click here to read the main portion of my interview.
Or read on to find out more about John and Moira's marriage...
Is John and Moira's marriage safe?
[JT] "One of my big worries is that they're going to split John and Moira up. Selfishly, I love working with Natalie and the rest of my screen family. We have such a laugh. From what we heard from the storyliners, though, they want to throw these massive tests at them. The story's not just about a girl getting hooked on drugs - it's about her family dealing with the situation, how each member deals with it and - hopefully! - how we all pull through it."
Do you think they're enough for each other?
[JT] "Yeah, definitely. What I love about their relationship is that she's a strong woman - she doesn't take any prisoners. She's the boss of the house and he respects that. She calls the shots!"
[NR] "No question. If they split, they'd find it really hard to live without each other."
Is that why John gave into temptation with Eve? Has he always had a wandering eye?
[JT] "We don't know much of the backstory for the Bartons, but what we do know is that they have a really solid marriage. He was flattered that Eve was taking an interest. Both John and Moira had fun in their youth and there are a lot of hints about their old party lifestyle."
[NR] "Both John and Moira have always had a look at other people. Like when Marlon fell in love with Moira, the first thing she said was, 'In 20 years of marriage I haven't even looked at a man'. She said that, though, because she didn't want to hurt Marlon or cheat on John. John's always been her soulmate and even though she knows he looks, she never thought he'd ever act on it. Moira sensed it before it happened, which made it worse!"
What kind of man do you think it'd take for Moira to cheat on John?
[NR] "Good question! It'd have to be someone similar to him in their values and how they are as people, as opposed to their looks. So far, the only person she'd trust to cheat on John with would be Marlon - he's loyal, trustworthy and certainly quirky. He'd be a safe bet."
What about Declan?
[NR] "That'd be on a passionate level, I think. He's got the John look about him. Somebody else suggested Declan to me the other day, too actually. So that's an interesting one. I wouldn't say no to a love triangle with Declan and Natasha - and the catfights that'd go with it!"
Are you pleased with the family's development since you all joined?
[NR] "Yeah, absolutely. I'd have liked to have had a little more story sooner, but you can't ram a new family down an audience's throat. You have to ease them in gently. Everything we've had recently, though, has been fantastic. The more we all do together, the stronger we become as a unit on and off screen. I'm really happy [with] it all and this story coming up is going to be a tough one as we'll be tackling issues that affect people on a daily basis. Hopefully we'll do it justice."
