Emmerdale newcomer Georgia Jay has revealed there’s a steamy romance on the cards for her character Steph.
Steph is set to stun estranged parents Ruby Fox-Miligan (Beth Cordingly) and Caleb Miligan (William Ash) when she arrives in the village later this month.
But amid the heavy family drama that’s set to ensue, Steph also catches the eye of recent returnee Ross Barton (Michael Parr).
‘The bad boy of the village!’ Georgia grinned. ‘She’s never been to this place and I think she’s used to a fast-paced city life and now she’s in the Dales. She comes across Ross and there’s an immediate chemistry there.
‘But it’s very playful and I think the playfulness between them and the wit and the dry humour between them is what creates the chemistry. Neither of them wants the other to win, kind of thing.
‘I think for the first time Ross is probably not used to someone wearing the trousers. I think he’s quite taken aback by her.
‘She definitely uses it as ammo towards her parents because she knows that he’s not the kind of guy that they want for her. It’s a really fun dynamic to play. There’s a lot of fun to be had. I don’t know where it’s going but it’s currently good!’
The actress – previously known for her roles in Giri/Haji and Glow & Darkness – said that her character is set to take Ross by surprise, who returned to the Dales after six years last month.
‘It’s a really fun dynamic between them. It’s exciting to play because they’ve got something. It’ll be interesting to see where it goes.’
However, Steph and Ross’ relationship is set to cause further friction with her dad.
‘You will enjoy watching Caleb getting wound up by this,’ Georgia reveals.
‘When she meets [Ross], it’s going to be another dagger. Caleb definitely doesn’t enjoy it when he sees us leaving the B&B together, he’s not too happy about that!’
William Ash, who plays Caleb, adds: ‘[Caleb’s] heard about his reputation as well from the rest of the family, he doesn’t think he’s good enough for her.’
Steph hasn’t seen either of her parents in well over a decade, but her arrival has been hinted at in recent weeks after Ruby’s dying mum Helen mentioned her.
As Steph makes her debut, she will be accompanied by Ruby’s dad Anthony – portrayed by Nicholas Day.
Ruby’s not seen her father in over 30 years it doesn’t look like it will be a happy reunion.
Beth Cordingly, who plays Ruby, explains: ‘Steph’s been told by Anthony that he really wants to make amends for not being in Ruby’s life and wants to build this family back together, and Ruby’s having none of it.
‘Ruby feels double betrayed because she’s just beginning to try and build a relationship with Steph and this person from her past that she doesn’t want to see appears, who Steph has also been building a relationship with. That’s the other element that comes in.’
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV1 and from 7am on ITVX.
