Post by tomsgirl on Jun 30, 2007 1:45:39 GMT 1
Inside Soap 9-15th June 2007.
You ask - Linda Lusardi.
Linda landed the role of Emmerdale's Carrie Nicholls earlier this year. Here, the 48-year-old actress talks about her past as a Page 3 girl and how she fought off cellulite...
How did it feel to be a part of the Tom King murder storyline in the Dales?
Betty, Middlesbrough
If you're going to come into Emmerdale, what better way than in the middle of the biggest plot the show has ever seen? There was a huge amount of hype surrounding it, so it was great for me to be involved.
What would be your dream role?
Malcolm, Saffron Walden
If you'd have asked me that question last year, I would have said a character in a soap opera - and now I'm playing one. After this, I feel like I could do anything. I lie in bed at night with a smile on my face, thinking, 'I'm in Emmerdale'.My children, Lucy and Jack, are very proud of me, and they enjoy watching Emmerdale. I think it makes up for me not being with them during the week, because if they spot me on telly, then it feels tike they've seen me. Mind you, I might have to stop them tuning in to the show if the writers make Carrie really nasty!.
Who do you get on best with in the cast?
Jerry, via e-mail
Adele Silva [Kelly],
Charley Webb [Debbie]
and Lucy Pargeter
[Chastity], as they're
the people I've been
hanging around with
most. Because I'm
working in Leeds
away from my home in
Hertfordshire, they look
after me, and take me out
in the evenings for meals
and things. They've really
welcomed me into the cast. It's been lovely.
When did you first get the acting bug?
Fiona, Fife
It happened by accident. I was appearing on a lot of chat shows back when I was a Page 3 girl, and somebody offered me a part in a play called Funny Peculiar. I didn't even know I'd be interested, but thought I'd give it a go. I really enjoyed it, and realised that's what I should have been doing all along. That was 18 years ago!
Did you ever worry that you wouldn't be taken seriously as an actress because of your modelling background?
Melanie, Manchester
Yeah, but all my worries were unfounded. Although people probably had preconceived ideas about me when I turned up at rehearsals - and maybe even before I got the part in Emmerdale - once you start work and get on with it, everyone tends to forget. You're not given a job unless you can do it and, to be honest, I've never had any problems. I don't think there's as much of a stigma attached to glamour modelling these days as there used to be.
How do you get on with Kelsey-Beth Crossley, who plays your on-screen daughter, Scarlett? Helen, Hereford
Oh, she's a little darling, I adore her. She bought me a teddy and a card for Mother's Day. We go out shopping together, and her mum, Carol, is the same age as me, so we get on well, too. With Kelsey-Beth, though, I do sometimes forget that she's only 14, and don't always tailor my jokes and conversation!
What would people be most surprised to learn about you?
Chloe, via e-mail
I love cars - I've just bought myself a nice new Lexus. I spend so much time in my car driving to and from Leeds every week that it's lovely to be surrounded by luxury on the journey. Once, though, I was taken for a drive around Brands Hatch racetrack with Nigel Mansell, and I've never been so scared in all my life. We were going so fast - I thought I was going to die!
I remember reading somewhere that you're a big fan of pantomimes. What is it about them that you enjoy so much?
Elle, Bangor
This will be the first Christmas in 18 years that I haven't done panto, and it's going to be very strange. I love the fact that a panto is usually a child's first experience of theatre, and if they love it, then the chances are they'll go to the theatre again. Plus, it's the only show where the audience can interact with the actors, and you always know you'll be performing to a full house each time you're on stage. Pantomimes are a part of our heritage - Christmas just wouldn't be the same without them.
You took part in the Channel 4 reality show The Games a few years back. What was the most useful thing you learned from that?
Jessica, London
That exercise does work. I was training four hours a day, four days a week, and was the slimmest I've ever been, the fittest I've ever been and the happiest I've ever been. For the first time in my life, I had no cellulite! I haven't kept it up, but it did prove to me that however old you are -I was 45 when I did The Games - you can still transform your body with exercise.
You ask - Linda Lusardi.
Linda landed the role of Emmerdale's Carrie Nicholls earlier this year. Here, the 48-year-old actress talks about her past as a Page 3 girl and how she fought off cellulite...
How did it feel to be a part of the Tom King murder storyline in the Dales?
Betty, Middlesbrough
If you're going to come into Emmerdale, what better way than in the middle of the biggest plot the show has ever seen? There was a huge amount of hype surrounding it, so it was great for me to be involved.
What would be your dream role?
Malcolm, Saffron Walden
If you'd have asked me that question last year, I would have said a character in a soap opera - and now I'm playing one. After this, I feel like I could do anything. I lie in bed at night with a smile on my face, thinking, 'I'm in Emmerdale'.My children, Lucy and Jack, are very proud of me, and they enjoy watching Emmerdale. I think it makes up for me not being with them during the week, because if they spot me on telly, then it feels tike they've seen me. Mind you, I might have to stop them tuning in to the show if the writers make Carrie really nasty!.
Who do you get on best with in the cast?
Jerry, via e-mail
Adele Silva [Kelly],
Charley Webb [Debbie]
and Lucy Pargeter
[Chastity], as they're
the people I've been
hanging around with
most. Because I'm
working in Leeds
away from my home in
Hertfordshire, they look
after me, and take me out
in the evenings for meals
and things. They've really
welcomed me into the cast. It's been lovely.
When did you first get the acting bug?
Fiona, Fife
It happened by accident. I was appearing on a lot of chat shows back when I was a Page 3 girl, and somebody offered me a part in a play called Funny Peculiar. I didn't even know I'd be interested, but thought I'd give it a go. I really enjoyed it, and realised that's what I should have been doing all along. That was 18 years ago!
Did you ever worry that you wouldn't be taken seriously as an actress because of your modelling background?
Melanie, Manchester
Yeah, but all my worries were unfounded. Although people probably had preconceived ideas about me when I turned up at rehearsals - and maybe even before I got the part in Emmerdale - once you start work and get on with it, everyone tends to forget. You're not given a job unless you can do it and, to be honest, I've never had any problems. I don't think there's as much of a stigma attached to glamour modelling these days as there used to be.
How do you get on with Kelsey-Beth Crossley, who plays your on-screen daughter, Scarlett? Helen, Hereford
Oh, she's a little darling, I adore her. She bought me a teddy and a card for Mother's Day. We go out shopping together, and her mum, Carol, is the same age as me, so we get on well, too. With Kelsey-Beth, though, I do sometimes forget that she's only 14, and don't always tailor my jokes and conversation!
What would people be most surprised to learn about you?
Chloe, via e-mail
I love cars - I've just bought myself a nice new Lexus. I spend so much time in my car driving to and from Leeds every week that it's lovely to be surrounded by luxury on the journey. Once, though, I was taken for a drive around Brands Hatch racetrack with Nigel Mansell, and I've never been so scared in all my life. We were going so fast - I thought I was going to die!
I remember reading somewhere that you're a big fan of pantomimes. What is it about them that you enjoy so much?
Elle, Bangor
This will be the first Christmas in 18 years that I haven't done panto, and it's going to be very strange. I love the fact that a panto is usually a child's first experience of theatre, and if they love it, then the chances are they'll go to the theatre again. Plus, it's the only show where the audience can interact with the actors, and you always know you'll be performing to a full house each time you're on stage. Pantomimes are a part of our heritage - Christmas just wouldn't be the same without them.
You took part in the Channel 4 reality show The Games a few years back. What was the most useful thing you learned from that?
Jessica, London
That exercise does work. I was training four hours a day, four days a week, and was the slimmest I've ever been, the fittest I've ever been and the happiest I've ever been. For the first time in my life, I had no cellulite! I haven't kept it up, but it did prove to me that however old you are -I was 45 when I did The Games - you can still transform your body with exercise.