We're not going to lie, we love our soaps! Whether it's Alfie and Kat Moon having a barney outside the Queen Vic on Eastenders or Tracy Barlow and Becky McDonald pulling each other's hair out on Coronation Street, we love them!
So when we got the chance to sit down with Emmerdale's Marlon (Mark Charnock) and Paddy (Dominic Brunt), we couldn't wait to find out just what is going to happen between Marlon and the vicar's wife (Oh yes!) and whether Christmas will bring festive joy to the residents of the village.....clue...don't hold your breath!
Q. What is going to happen between Marlon and Laurel?
A: Mark Charnock: Obviously I can't tell you because they’d shoot me, but it has been amazing actually because me and Charlotte (Bellamy, who plays Laurel Thomas) have been mates since she’s been in the show. Bizarrely the characters have never been put together, so it's bit of a blank canvas really and it has been one of the best story lines I've ever had because she’s obviously amazing. She is an amazing actress. It's nice actually to do something that is morally questionable because he's (Marlon) a good guy, the character, generally speaking. There’s been a really interesting response from people, there’s been a real split to my surprise. I thought it would be much more heavily against me but there’s been people surprised by how well the characters work well together. It's been exciting, so it’s been one of the most rewarding things I've done on the show. I'm buzzing at the minute. But in terms of whether Marlon and Laurel will declare their love for each other? I'm not sure anybody has decided where it is going to go yet.
Q. Coming round to Christmas time, it's traditionally when the most dramatic storylines happen, is there going to be an explosive drama this year?
A: Mark: Oh actually on Emmerdale, we’ve had two or three Christmases that have been quite quiet episodes. This year (laughs) is just…it’s the first time I've read a script and cried for a long time.
Dominic Brunt: I’ve not read it yet!
Mark: It’s lots of…I can’t say can I? The PR steps into explain: What we’ve said so far is that it is Debbie’s storyline, there’s a lot of focus on that, Christmas day in particular and Amy as well, and really the Marlon/Laurel relationship – it's those three storylines at Christmas that we focus on.
Mark: But all these stories come to a head, it's one of our biggest day episodes we’ve done in a long time. It’s a fantastic piece of drama.
Q. So it’s not going to be a happy Christmas then?
A: Mark: Well it's going to be mixed, that’s the safest answer.
Q. And with your two characters, they’ve been through a lot with the Rhona (Zoe Henry) love triangle situation. But now they’re best buds again, how realistic do you think that is? If you were personally in that situation, do you think you could forgive and forget?
A: Mark: Yeah I could.
Dom: The way it's played out, I suppose so, they (Marlon and Rhona) were in a relationship that wasn’t working so they split up and I know there’s plenty more fish in the sea, but it wasn’t an affair (when Paddy and Rhona got together).
Q. Dom, everyone always says don’t work with children and animals but on Emmerdale you’re working with both babies and animals, how is that?
A: Well Theo (who plays baby Leo) is just a joy. He’s a very quiet baby, he’s just brilliant, he’s the cutest thing in the world. There’s two babies actually and they’re really easy, quiet babies.
Q. How did you feel when you were told that you were going to be involved in the Downs Syndrome storyline?
A: Dom: They haven’t really lent on it. It's there and I think it's quite good they’re saying first and foremost it’s a baby that is loved .
Mark: The Downs Syndrome aspect, we always wanted to make it incidental, you know, it's obviously an issue but we didn’t want it to be this flag waving thing. We wanted to show that people with babies with that particular condition.They’re just normal families.
Dom: The parents with kids who have Downs Syndrome, you think you’re going to go into a room and they’re going to be like ‘ooh it’s a nightmare, we didn’t expect it’ but you don’t you just see parents with children that they love and that’s what the charity try to do, show that Downs Syndrome are happy and they’re actually really healthy.
Q. With Marlon and Paddy – they’re best friends that have gone through a lot together but in your opinion, what could break them up completely?
A: Dom: Death. Marlon’s death (laughs).
Mark: It's hard to say really, I can't really think of anything that would because they’ve already had perceived betrayals but I think they’ve been through so much together – Marlon’s lost his wife – they’ve been through these life changing things. When you’ve been through that much with somebody, I don’t think anything could possibly break them up.
Q. Was it intentional that Paddy And Marlon's Big Night In drew comparisons to The Hangover?
A: Dom: I think the main premise of the film is that the child is missing. However there is drink involved and the memories are lost so there are definitely....Mark interrupts...
Mark: I would say that The Hangover has nicked the idea off others because it's not an original idea, there's been so many films and sitcoms, but hopefully we've got away from the film enough.
Q. And what's the wildest night out you two have ever had?
A: Dom: (laughs) I drink quite responsibly and sit at a table.
Mark to Dom: You like a drop of wine.
Dom: (In a posh voice) Yes, I like a drop of wine.
Mark: I think it's probably principal to the answer of that question. I've had many lost nights...actually I'll give you this example. I was at the Met Bar this one night many years ago when I thought it was cool. I was dancing away on my own and I bumped into this guy and spilled my drink on him and I was like 'oh mate, I'm so sorry, let me get you another drink'. Anyway so I talked to him for a while and I said to him, 'It's so nice to meet someone of my own height'. It turned out that I was talking to myself in the mirror.That was a low moment for me.
Once we controlled our breathing from laughing so much, we moved onto the next question...
Q. What did the other cast members think when they heard you were doing a spinoff?
A: Mark: I think they were all jealous and haven't spoken to us since (laughs). No, I think they were pleased for us, we we're a mutually supportive cast and I think generally people were genuinely pleased, so it's been a nice, supportive response, everyone was asking how it was going.
Q. Apart from you two, who else are you closest to on set?
A: Dom: Zoe (Who plays Rhona) because I work with her all the time.
Mark: Charlotte and Danny Miller.
Dom: You have your little clumps that you work with, you know but then someone will satellite in and go out again. But it's a pretty close cast anyway and it's a shared green room so there's no real space for cliques.
Q. Who is your favourite Emmerdale family?
A: Mark: Dingles.
Dom: Yeah, the Dingles, definitely! They've got everything haven't they? I liked the Tates at the time, but the thing is they just wiped the floor with everybody.
Mark: I was a fan of the Dingles before I came into it so you can imagine how I felt when I found out I was going to be a Dingle.
Dom: I was an honorary Dingle because I married Mandy!
Read our review of Paddy And Marlon's Big Night In here!
Who has been naughty in the Dales?
Entertainment News