Natalie Anderson has defended her Emmerdale sexual abuse storyline, in which her character Alicia Metcalfe was assaulted by teenager Lachlan White - played by Thomas Atkinson.
Natalie Anderson
Speaking on ITV's This Morning, she said: "We knew that there would be [complaints]. It's a sensitive storyline.
"Kate, our producer, was quite prepared for the fact this would be shocking. Everything was implied and nothing was explicit."
A number of complaints (47) were made to broadcasting watchdog OFCOM after the scene aired, but the actress goes on to insist that much praise was given for tackling the controversial plot.
"I think to be honest, in the grand scheme of things, there's been more praise than complaints.
"There is so much more to come with the storyline and they should stick with it to see how the story unfolds."
She also praised her co-star, Thomas, for his maturity in going through the storyline.
"He's helped me and put me at ease a lot because he's been so mature about the whole thing."
Following the episode, an Emmerdale spokesperson said: "Lachlan is a very troubled teenager and his assault upon Alicia is the beginning of a very dark storyline for his character.
"We thoroughly researched this aspect of the plot and the drama was intentionally implicit rather than explicit."