Michelle Hardwick, beloved by Emmerdale fans for her role as kind-hearted nurse Vanessa Woodfield, sent soap fans into a panic this week when she was announced as a cast member of new film Eyes of Bairns.
Written by Chloe McLaughlin, directed by Katie Fenton-Green, and produced by Paris Rogers, the short film is currently being crowd-funded.
The Instagram page for Eyes of Bairns describes it as a film ‘about growing up in the shadow of domestic abuse’ and has been slowly revealing cast information, the first of which is Michelle, who’ll be playing Rose.
The caption of the announcement reveals more about Michelle’s new character.
‘Rose has always had a strong moral compass but she’s thrown for a loop when her estranged father asks to see her on his death bed. Now happily married to her wife, Rose is a million miles from her difficult upbringing. She hasn’t seen her dad in over twenty years and if it was up to her she’d quite happily never see him again,’ says the bio.
‘Will Rose gets the answers she needs? Will Rose get the apology she desperately wants? And even if she does, will Rose forgive her father?’
The comment section was flooded with excitement for Michelle’s new role.
Co-star Ash Palmisciano, who plays Matty Barton, left a trail of heart emojis, while former co-star and current Coronation Street star Natalie Anderson added ‘Yes!!!’
Coronation Street star Sally Carman-Duttine commented: ‘Amazing!’
One fan, however, asked the question on the fans of soap fans everywhere. Chantelle.1985 commented: ‘HOLD ON!!!! What about Emmerdale???’. There was a collective sigh of relief when Michelle replied: ‘alongside it’.
Chantelle replied: ‘Panic over, carry on as normal, good luck x’
Vanessa is treasured by fans of Emmerdale, with a legion of fans dedicated to her former relationship with Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins), the duo dubbed ‘Vanity’.
The two have recently been drawn back into each other’s orbit, with Charity finding herself in the centre of a storm, as ever, of her own creation.
Offering to be a surrogate for her granddaughter, Sarah Sugden (Katie Hill), Charity’s life has taken one dramatic turn after another. Drunk and devastated following the failure of the first embryo transfer and an argument with husband Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb), Charity tried to kiss Vanessa, who kindly turned her down.
A further (and much worse) argument with Mack blew him and Charity further apart and sent Mack into the deadly clutches of John Sugden (Oliver Farnworth).
After a second embryo transfer and a drunken night with Ross Barton (Michael Parr), Charity was confirmed pregnant, though she has no idea whose baby she’s actually carrying.
When Vanessa became aware that Charity had not only lost Mack but was pregnant, she offered her ex a shoulder to cry on, which Charity gladly accepted.
As Vanessa listened, an increasingly desperate Charity revealed that there’s a chance that the baby she’s carrying isn’t Sarah’s.
When Vanessa presumed that there was a chance the baby was Mack’s, Charity failed to correct her.
Imparting wise words to Charity that she should be open and honest with her family, Vanessa implored her to put things right. But of course, this is Charity Dingle, and she resolved to remain with her head planted firmly in the sand.
Would you like to see a Vanity reunion?
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Absolutely!
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Absolutely not!
Emma Atkins previously spoke on the impact that ‘Vanity’ had, saying: ‘A lot of people took to that and it resonated. The fact it was two women, it made a brilliant impact for a lot of people,’
When asked if there could be a potential reunion between the two, she said: ‘I think when they do have scenes together, there’s always that potential for an opening again, of reconnection, because they get on so well as friends,’ she said.
‘There’s always that spark and you never know in soap properly what they choose to do from one moment to the next, and it’s always a joy to work with Michelle.’
‘So either way, it’s going to be a win-win. Even if they just have a lovely friendship, because there is a friendship there to be had.’
