Jill Halfpenny speaks to us

Jill Halfpenny speaks to us

Jill Halfpenny is probably best known for her character on Eastenders - one of Phil's wives and for her win on Strictly Come Dancing.

She tells us what she's been up to lately and what's she's doing next.

You've recently finished filming Murdoch Mysteries, how was that?

It was fantastic, ye. i'd never been to Toronoto before so that was great. We got to go to the Yukon as well which is somewhere that I don't think I would have ever have gone, had it not been filming. It was a fascinating place.

What was your character Elizabeth Bryant like to play?

She was the owner of a hotel in the Yukon, quite a fiesty woman who lost her husband and had had to run the business and be alone for the last few years. Then she was wrongly accused of stealing something and went to prison for something that she didn't do.

You've also done a lot of work on the West End - any plans to go back to this?

You know what, I don't really plan things like that, I jsut wait and see what comes up. If an audition came up that I fancied going for, or there was a part that I wanted to go for then I'd do it. I don't really think 'Oh, I have to get back in the West End.'

What else have you got coming up?

About to start on Wild at Heart.

You've done both TV and theatre, but which do you prefer?

I really love both of them and if I'm doing one, I'm kind of missing the other and vice versa, so I'm kind of lucky that I get to do them both all the time. Because if I couldn't do them both then I think I'd really miss one.

You won Strictly Come Dancing a few years back - do you still dance often?

No, I don't really. Obviously when I done Legally Blonde I got to dance a little bit, but nothing like the dancing we did in Strictly. It's not something that I get to do unfortunately.

How else do you stay in shape?

I go to the gym and watch what I eat.

You're also an ambassador for children's charity Kids Cape - what have you been doing with this recently?

I'm just about to go to one of their Zap sessions, I don't know whether you know anything about them but they get small groups of children who are being bullied quite badly and they get them to come to London for something that is called the Zap sesion. Where they get taught to not let the bullying affect them, how to deal with the bullies and it's really, really great work so I'm actually going to go there next week and be there to witness one of those sessions. I'm really looking forward to it, because it means I'll get the chance to meet the children as well.

Taryn Davies

Jill Halfpenny takes Seven Seas JointCare, scientifically developed to help maintain healthy, flexible joints. For more information visit jointcare.com


by for www.femalefirst.co.uk
find me on and follow me on