Gemma Atkinson shares the surprising reason she won’t return to TV soaps

Actress has decisively shut the door on a return to her soap opera beginnings. The star, who initially rose to fame as Lisa Hunter on Channel 4’s Hollyoaks from 2001 to 2005 and made a brief comeback three years ago, has since graced other TV favourites such as I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!, The Bill, and

After these stints, Gemma, now 40, transitioned to , playing Carly Hope and leaving the Yorkshire Dales behind eight years later. In an exclusive chat with the , Gemma revealed why she’s steering clear of soap operas for now. “I would love to go back to acting again, 100%, I would love to do a one off drama where there was a start date and an end date, so I could plan childcare around it,” she explained.

The actress, who is also lending her celebrity support to Soccer Aid for UNICEF this year, elaborated on her family commitments: “My partner Gorka [Marquez], he starts from July, so from July to Christmas, he’s kind of wherever his partner is based, if he has a partner. So it’s kind of all up in the air. So to go back to a soap wouldn’t really be realistic because the hours are so few and far between, you’re either in 12 hours a day or you’re in two hours a day, your schedule can change at the drop of a hat.”, reports The Mirror.

Soap star Gemma Atkinson has expressed her fondness for her time on the soaps, crediting them for where she is today: “I loved my time on all the soaps, its where I am now because of them but I think, now that I’ve got the children, I just wouldn’t be able to commit unfortunately. But I do still watch it [] and I don’t want Marlon to be killed off, I want Mark to stay in.”

As England gears up with celebrities like Louis Tomlinson and Jill Scott for a star-studded match, Gemma’s fiancé, Gorka Marquez, will play for the World XI team.

Gemma couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought of a friendly rivalry with Gorka, saying: “There will definitely be a rivalry between me and Gorka,” and revealing his playful taunts: “He’s still rubbing it in about the Spanish game in the Summer. So yeah, he will still be rubbing it in but I’m going to put the kids in England shirts, he’s outnumbered.”

She also praised the inclusion of names like Jill and Toni in the team.

The proud mother of Mia, six, and one year old Thiago, Gemma is overjoyed to see women’s football gaining the spotlight, sharing her thoughts during an event at Manchester’s Hotel Football: “I think it’s great that women’s football is finally coming centre stage. My daughter plays football at school.

“We never played football, it just wasn’t a thing when I was at school, we played rugby but it was tag rugby – we weren’t allowed to wrestle, we had to have a little tag on that you pulled off, that in itself is just ‘Why? Why can’t we do it properly?’ The fact that we can now, Mia is five and she asked for a football for Christmas last year, so she got one off Father Christmas, so that’s being flung around the house at any opportunity, which is marvellous but I’m trying to support and encourage. So yeah, who knows, she might be a future Lioness herself.”

Gemma, host of The Overshare podcast, revealed her pride at being part of Soccer Aid, scheduled for Old Trafford in June. “It’s on my doorstep, Manchester, there’s a positivity in the air,” she professed, further hinting: “There’s going to be some lighthearted rivalry on the day.”

She’s unfazed about potential bad weather, remarking, “It’s going to be amazing, I don’t care about the weather, even if its raining people will show up.”

When discussing her motives for joining Soccer Aid, Gemma opened up: “As a mum myself, you realise the impact it can have. The thought of my kids needing any help or support from charities is heartbreaking. You just want to provide everything for them. The fact that we’ve raised over £100 million for children worldwide is just incredible.”

Gemma, a passionate advocate for the sport, emphasised the impact of even small contributions: “£20, £10 a ticket, you think ‘That’s not a lot, lets go,'” she said. She further highlighted the significant difference these funds can make in a child’s life: “To the people who are receiving it. It is unbelievable the differences you can make to a child’s life. Hopefully one day we’ve got like people like Jill Scott playing the Lionesses or little girls watching. You can think, I can do that. And with the right support and you know, the resources they can do and that’s why we’re here to help.”