Sheree Murphy's Age Worries

The 34-year-old actress - who recently joined the Channel 4 soap as Anita Roy (Saira Choudhry)'s long-lost mother - was shocked when she learned her screen daughter would be a teenager rather than a baby.

She explained: "I always thought eventually I'm going to be playing a mother at some point as I get older, but maybe a mother to a baby or a toddler, not to a 17-year-old, so I feel really old."

Sheree - who is best known for her role in 'Emmerdale, where she played Tricia Dingle - is still settling into her new character but can't wait to get to grips with her new role.

She explained: "I've only done a few scenes here and there, so I've kind of not got my teeth into it yet and I still feel like the new girl, which is awful. I hate it! But everyone is lovely and I'm really looking forward to it."

The pretty brunette will first appear on the show at the end of April, where she will be known as Kate and go on a date with Anita's older brother Ravi Roy (Stephen Uppal).

However, it will soon become clear her real identity as Anita's long-lost parent Eva is set to quickly come out and shock the village with her "secret past".

She added to Holy Soap: "I hope she's got a secret past. It would be interesting to play. She obviously had her daughter when she was very, very young."