1 week Ago By Jennie Buzaglo
Emmerdale star Natalie Robb shared how she would react if her character was to be killed off the ITV soap. The actress, 49, has portrayed the role of Moira Dingle since 2009 and is currently tackling one of her most challenging storylines to date. In September, Moira was informed that she has a brain tumour and will undergo surgery to remove it in scenes set to air next week.
Natalie admitted she was "really excited" upon discovering she was being given such an important storyline, however, others were concerned about what this meant for her future on the soap. Speaking exclusively to Express.co.
uk and other press, Natalie confessed: "Everyone was saying, 'Are you worried they are going to kill you off?'" However, the soap star revealed she was assured "straight away" that this storyline would not be the end for her character. Despite this, Natalie admitted she wouldn't have a problem if this was the case, saying: "When people do decide to do that for you, that’s in the lap of the gods, there’s nothing you can do about it." The ITV star admitted she's been shocked by the reaction to the storyline as she continued: "The feedback that I’ve had from people on social media, the amount of people who are actually going through this in real life, it’s extraordinary - I had no idea.
"It’s been great that we’ve raised awareness and that people have been able to relate to it," adding: "It was a privilege, I was honoured to get that responsibility." The Bill actress opened up about the importance of portraying the storyline accurately on screen due to the impact it has on people in real life. "The one thing I did want to make sure was with the research and speaking to a neurologist, that we got everything right because people do go through it," Natalie explained.
She went on: "When they sometimes do things for dramatic effect, that’s fine. But when it’s a real life health issue then we do really have to get that right because people can get rather upset if it’s not portrayed correctly." Natalie touched upon how Moira is feeling as her surgery approaches, confirming she is "terrified" of losing husband Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) and her children.
"Moira is actually terrified, mainly because she could lose Cain but never see her kids again," Natalie explained. "She’s also feeling very vulnerable, Moira’s a strong character and to suddenly lose her identity almost and slowly lose all of the small pieces of her." Teasing a tricky road ahead for her character post-surgery, Natalie added: "And fear of, after the operation, is she going to be quite right?".
