Gemma Atkinson would love 'feisty' Coronation Street role

29 July 2020

Gemma Atkinson would love to play a "feisty" 'Coronation Street' character.

Gemma Atkinson

The 35-year-old star - who has appeared in the likes of 'Hollyoaks', 'Emmerdale', and 'Casualty' over the years - is keen for a stint on the cobbles, particularly with its connection to her home city.

She told Inside Soap magazine: "I think the only one left for me to do is 'Corrie', and it's filmed in my city so that would be perfect!

"I'd love to have a character like Suranne Jones had with Karen McDonald - northern, feisty, and a little bit chavvy.

"Someone who always has the right intentions, but ends up in the wrong predicament!"

Given Gemma's history in Soapland she has a lot of happy and emotional memories from the range of stories she's tackled over the years, particularly in 'Casualty' and 'Emmerdale' as Tamzin Bayle and Carly Hope respectively.

She said: "In 'Casualty' I had such a laugh with Jane Hazlegrove [aka Kathleen 'Dixie' Dixon] and Matt Bardock [who played Jeff Collier].

"Quite often, we used mannequins on the stretchers, and the amount of times we accidentally dropped them during a scene - or its head would just roll off!

"And with 'Emmerdale', I loved the storyline I was given about Carly's little boy, Billy, who died of cot death.

"Myself and Mark Charnock [aka Marlon Dingle] - who I adore - threw ourselves into it."

Gemma left 'Emmerdale' in 2017, and the proud mum - who has 12-month-old daughter Mia with her man Gorka Marquez - has ruled out a return unless it was just for a brief guest role.

She previously explained: "I love 'Emmerdale'. It's a great show. But going back would mean doing a commute to Leeds, doing 12 hours of filming and then going back again. So I wouldn't see Mia.

"People keep messaging me saying I should go back, but I can't go back at the moment.

"I'm really enjoying my radio show at the moment. I get to work on my doorstep and it's very short hours. That means I can be at home with my daughter. I could maybe do a couple of episodes at 'Emmerdale', but I can't go back long-term."