James Thornton leaving including huge stunt

[tammyy2j]

Why couldnt they kill off Moira as well as John

[alan45]

Why couldnt they kill off Moira as well as John

And the rest of their brood

[lillabet]

http://i2.cdnds.net/12/05/618x383/so...log_0502_2.JPGhttp://i2.cdnds.net/12/05/618x412/so...log_0502_4.JPG

[alan45]

http://i2.cdnds.net/12/05/618x383/so...log_0502_2.JPGhttp://i2.cdnds.net/12/05/618x412/so...log_0502_4.JPG

Already posted see post 48 above

[lillabet]

Already posted see post 48 above

Sorry

[alan45]

Sorry

No worries

[Perdita]

Natalie J Robb has revealed that she was injured filming next week's Emmerdale car crash stunt.

The Moira Barton actress told the Daily Record that she suffered bruises to her ribs after the first night of filming the expensive scenes with on-screen husband James Thornton (John Barton).

After rekindling their love for each other, the couple set off for a night at a hotel, when their Land Rover hits an ice patch on a country road, skidding at high speed before falling onto its side.

Robb explained that parts of the Land Rover crash were filmed inside a mechanism to simulate the effect.

"It went too slow for me," she said. "I wanted it to go faster. I love the waltzer. James wasn't so keen on it though.

"When you let the harness go it starts to crush you a little bit and felt claustrophobic. After the first night I had bruises on my rib cage, so they added padding."

Robb added: "It was spooky to shoot because it was on the moors, dark and the weather was terrible. It gave a really uneasy sense of reality to the whole thing."

Emmerdale's John and Moira accident scenes will air during Thursday's hour-long episode at 7pm on ITV1.

[alan45]

Luckily she was saved by her airbags

[Perdita]

James Thornton has admitted he's looking forward to mowing the lawn and taking the bins out now he's leaving Emmerdale.
The actor is bowing out after playing farmer John Barton for two-and-a-half years and told Inside Soap that although he has loved his time on the show he is excited about having some time off.
James, whose character will be left fighting for his life after a car crash, said: "I had a brilliant time working on the crash - you always want to be involved in something as dramatic as that. But now I'm looking forward to time off, cutting the grass and sorting out the bins - all those things I haven't had a chance to do!"
The 36-year-old said he is close to his soap family and "really proud" of what they have achieved.
The actor, who is married to Gavin And Stacey star Joanna Page, continued: "But after two-and-a-half years it's time for me to do something different and see what happens. I live in London and have been away from home all this time, plus it's unusual for me to play a part as long as I have this one. I enjoy not knowing what's coming next!"

PA

[alan45]

Emmerdale airs James Thornton's final scenes in the coming days as his time playing farmer John Barton comes to a dramatic end.

John is about to make a huge decision as he resolves to rebuild his relationship with estranged wife Moira (Natalie J Robb), finally willing to forgive her affair with Cain Dingle.

However, as John and Moira head off in Andy Sugden's Land Rover to spend the night at a hotel together, disaster strikes as they hit a patch of ice, skid off at high speed and end up teetering dangerously over the edge of a ravine. Later, as the vehicle slips and plummets below, will John and Moira fall to their deaths?

Digital Spy recently caught up with James to hear about the huge stunt and his decision to leave Emmerdale.

How are you feeling now that your time at Emmerdale has come to an end?
"I'm really sad, actually. I've had an absolutely brilliant time here, and it's the people that I'll miss more than anything else. Being here for three years, you really get to know everyone and you build really close relationships. As an actor, it's always difficult when you finish a job - but definitely more so with Emmerdale."

As it was your decision to leave, how difficult was it to make that choice?
"It was a really difficult decision. When I took the job, I agreed to do three years and I always thought that would be it. But then once I started work, it actually surprised me just how great the job was - especially building friendships with people like Kelvin Fletcher and my on-screen family.

"As it got closer to the three years, I needed to make a decision over whether I was going to leave as planned, or stick around for a long time. In the end, I decided to carry on with my original plan, which was to do three years and then look for other jobs. I've never done a job for more than three years, as what I enjoy about being an actor is being able to play different roles. I enjoy the challenge, so it was time for me to move on."

How did the Emmerdale bosses feel about your decision?
"Our producer Stuart Blackburn was absolutely brilliant and really understanding. What was really great was that I didn't want to leave on a weak storyline, so we discussed ideas and came up with this brilliant exit plot.

"It's a real tragic love story between John and Moira, and just by chance, it tied in really well with Cain and Moira's affair storyline. Off the back of that, we were able to create a fantastic storyline for John and Moira, where the audience have been willing them to get back together."


What was your reaction when you heard about the big stunt?
"I thought it was brilliant. Stuart promised me that they were going to make this exit really big and he wanted to really get behind it. As I learned more, I discovered that the scale of John's departure was going to be huge, and that the amount of money they were spending was massive. So I was really, really pleased. As an actor, you always want to do something that's going to grab the audience's attention."

What was it like to film the stunt?
"It was really good fun. We had three consecutive night shoots, and we were working until 3am each time. It was very cold up on those moors! The filming all took place on a very tight schedule, as we had so much to shoot and it was on such a massive scale.

"But we had a fantastic team working on it and everyone just threw themselves at it. What we've managed to achieve is amazing. Michael Lacey has directed the block and we were really lucky to get such a great director.

"What's great about Emmerdale is that we're set in the countryside, so we're not necessarily tied to the studio. So that allows us to do something like this, where we are up on the top of a cliff for a massive crash storyline."


Were you able to do much stunt work?
"I did as much as the insurance company would allow me to do, so I was able to do a lot of stunt driving with swerving. I did everything up until the point where the car is launched into the air. After that, there was a stunt guy to do the huge crash.

"Then they had myself and Natalie in the vehicle again for the section where the car is teetering over the edge of a cliff. They put us into a machine like a big tumble dryer! The car went into it, we sat inside the vehicle, and it spun the car upside-down. Because the vehicle rolls when it crashes, you're able to see us rolling around, so we've got some really good shots from that. It was like being at the funfair!"

John and Moira are back together by the time of the crash. Does that mean John was ready to forgive and forget over her affair?
"Definitely. What becomes clear in this storyline is just how much John and Moira love each other, and that's what is really great about it. Because this has come off the back of the Cain and Moira storyline, it gives the whole thing a lot more power and makes it a lot more emotional."

What was your take on the spark between John and Chas?
"Well, that was because John couldn't cope with everything that had happened between Moira and Cain. He found it really hard to forgive, and he thought that his little thing with Chas would help him to move on mentally. The way I played it was that John was just forcing himself to do it. Obviously the two of them got along, but John just couldn't go through with it in the end."


We can't spoil whether John survives or not, but we know he's definitely leaving! How will the Bartons cope without him?
"I think it'll be tricky, because it's such a strong family unit. But if John dies and Moira survives, I think that would leave Moira in a really interesting situation. She's such a strong woman and she's played by a brilliant actress, and I think it would open her up to so many brilliant opportunities.

"In a way, the Barton family have been quite isolated up on the farm. They have their own little world away from the village, but now it opens it all up."

Do you think we could see bigger stuff for Adam as a result of this?
"I was talking to Stuart the other day, and he told me that there are some massive, massive plans for Adam this year. I think Adam Thomas is a brilliant actor and he's so instinctive. From what I've heard, you're going to see a different side of Adam Barton and a lot more drama for him. You'll see him tested in so many ways. It's huge, actually, what they've got planned for him."


How will you look back on your time as part of the Bartons in general?
"Looking back, I'm really proud of what we've done. When we started on the job, we all decided to stay in the same hotel, because we didn't have anywhere to live at first. We made the decision to hang out and do a lot of things together, as we wanted to quickly create that family bond. We worked really hard on it.

"It can be difficult when you're all strangers, but fortunately we all just got on really naturally. We wanted the Bartons to be an ordinary family dealing with ordinary problems. So we saw them being tested by problems with their kids, but always managing to pull through them."

Gaynor Faye joins the show next week, and you've worked with her on two other programmes. How do you feel about missing her this time around?
"It's weird! I actually bumped into her the other day. I've played her boyfriend twice now, on two different drama series. We did one called Playing The Field, about a women's football team, and another one called Between The Sheets. So when I saw her, I said, 'It looks like it's not going to be third time lucky, doesn't it?!'

What are your future career plans?
"I just want to carry on doing different projects. What's brilliant is that I took this job and I'd never done soap before. I'd done theatre, drama, films, but never a soap. It's been a really interesting experience and I've learned from it, so now I just want to carry on learning. Hopefully you never stop learning and improving in this business, so I want to carry on challenging myself."