Emmerdale fans were treated to a soap surprise in Tuesdays hour-long episode (January 20) as Gemma Oaten made a shock return in her role as Rachel Breckle. Rachels return wasnt announced by show bosses before transmission, so fans will have been stunned when she arrived as an unexpected witness at Charity Dingles trial. In a further twist, Rachel delivered the evidence which proved crucial in securing a guilty verdict for Charity, giving the schemer her comeuppance at last. We recently caught up with Gemma to hear all about her top-secret comeback and what may be in store next. How does it feel to be back? It feels lovely and its great to be back. It also feels like I can really enjoy it now that everybody knows about it! It has been nice being slightly incognito and having this big secret, because hopefully the audience are going to love it. When were you first approached to return? The first call came back in August. That was unbelievable, because Id literally just got settled into life in London! That call was just a feeler, but I had an inkling from that point that this might be happening. It was October when it was all signed, sealed and sorted and Ive been filming since November. Its been a whirlwind really, because I feel like I havent really been gone for that long! Rachel left on January 16 last year and shes back almost a year to the day. Its crazy. There was obviously unfinished business with Rachel, so did you always expect to come back at some point? I couldnt say anything at the time because it would have totally spoiled things, but myself and Emmerdales producer Kate Oates had spoken about the storyline of Rachel leaving and then coming back. Kate was really lovely and said, I will be ringing you and bringing you back, thats for sure - but you can never be complacent. When it did happen, it was lovely and Kate said, I told you so! I feel very lucky that Ive had this year out, but then equally lucky that Ive been able to come back so soon and fit straight back in where I left off. If anything, its better because Im not so overwhelmed by the cast like I was when I first joined! Theres been quite a build-up to Rachels return… Absolutely. I remember that I spoke to Emmerdales press office and they told me in advance that there would be a body found and Archie would come back. People were then tweeting me saying, Oh my God, theyve killed you off-screen! Then you had certain people saying, Oh well, they cant have thought that much of her! I was happy for that to carry on because I knew deep down what was going to happen next! With all of the recent mentions of Rachel, have you been tuning in over the past year? Yeah! Ive not been able to watch it constantly because Ive been quite busy, but Ive always tried to tune in or catch the omnibus if Ive missed something. I kept hearing Rachels name and asking, Am I getting royalties for this?! I should have got that in my contract! (Laughs.) I tried to keep abreast of what was going on, knowing that there was a potential return coming up and also so I could understand what everybody was tweeting about! Was it hard to keep the return a secret? I was constantly having to cover my tracks and tell a white lie here and there, but to be honest, the best thing you can do is not say too much! The more you elaborate when youre giving an excuse, the more people know that youre lying. If people saw me in Leeds, Id link it to working for Capital Radio or visiting friends. There were so many times that people on East Coast trains were saying, Are you back? Obviously my immediate family knew and some very trusted friends, because it would have been hard to disappear without anyone knowing where I was! Luckily Ive picked the right ones to tell! Its been difficult to keep it a secret, but weve got through it. With the show not always filming in sequence, were these court scenes the first ones you filmed? Yeah, it all worked out brilliantly. It was my first day back and I was straight into the court scenes. I couldnt have asked for a better scenario, because obviously the nerves that I felt coming back as myself were there in Rachel because she was also very nervous. That was a really exciting day and really fitting for the character. It all tied in really well. What is Rachels state of mind now? I think theres a lot of damage thats been done. Shes had to go through this horrendous ordeal of leaving the man she loves, saying goodbye to her family and going on the run. Thats probably toughened her up a lot. I know the viewers always saw Rachel being feisty but when she left at the end, she was a shadow of the girl that came in two years before. Charity really ground her down. Rachel has definitely come back with more of an edge. Her feistiness and her spirit are still there, but theres definitely an undertone of hardness there. Shes come back to fight and shes done that, as Charity has gone down! How long are you back for? Its open at the moment, but Im definitely back for a good time. I dont want to tempt fate with any contract talk, but Im not going anywhere for a while. Youll see my trackies for a while yet, which is exciting! How will Rachel feel about Sams romance with Tracy? Shes going to be crushed when she finds this out and youll see that as this week plays out. Rachel is quite gobsmacked and slightly hard done by, because she left the village to protect Sam and now hes with this girl with heels and blonde hair! But then that opens up the possibility of maybe a love triangle down the line. Theres a lot of good stuff to play. Would you like Rachel to fight for her man? Definitely! Selfishly, I love working with James Hooton who plays Sam and thats always a joy. I think Rachel and Sam had something very special and sweet. Hopefully the viewers have always championed those two together. There might be some obstacles along the way and Rachel might need some people to egg her on, but shes definitely going to try. Are you getting on well with Amy Walsh, who plays Tracy, in real life? Shes a cracking girl. Shes from Leeds herself and you can just tell that Emmerdale is where shes meant to be. Weve got a lot of stuff coming up and weve been filming together a lot. Its quite funny because James is just in the middle of it all, lapping it all up! Amy is very professional, but equally very giving and a lovely laugh. I couldnt be in a better position, really! Is there anyone in particular whos given you a warm welcome back? Ive been really lucky - Ive had hugs galore! Its just been a joy to walk into the studio and have that warmth. The main ones are Alicya and Kelli who play Ruby and Ali. They never took my name down from the dressing room door, bless them! Being with them again has just been brilliant. Ive also really loved being back with James and the lovely Jane Cox who plays Lisa. Ive missed them. Theres also Fiona Wade who plays Priya - we didnt get to work together much previously, but Ive missed her too. Weve all kept in touch, but I havent physically seen them much at all. Me, Alicya and Kelli cried in the dressing room when I came back and I havent stopped beaming since!
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 21:12:12 +0000
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