Former Emmerdale star Sian Reese-Williams talks "struggle" with soap fame
Former Emmerdale star Sian Reese-Williams has reflected on her "struggle" with soap fame.
The Welsh actress spent five years playing Gennie Walker in the Dales, and later returned to the world of soap as Jodie Rodgers in Holby City during its final years on the air.
She looks back on the intensity of soap fame on the S4C series Taith Bywyd, where she explains that judgment from fans still impacts her to this day.
"I found that [world] quite difficult, it was a struggle for me," she said. "When you are in a soap opera, there is a kind of ownership, because people see you every night."
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The actress went on: "You're in their living room every night, and people forget that you're a person sometimes, and the things people feel they can say to you are too personal...And there's a lot of people who aren’t very nice, and that can be tricky.
"The things people said about her [the character] were 'unlucky in love', 'ugly duckling'...When you hear that every day for five years, for me, that had an effect on my confidence, and it took quite a lot of time to deal with that. And still now, when I hear a negative voice in my head, I know it comes from that period."
Fans will no doubt remember Reese-Williams's infamous departure from Emmerdale where he character Gennie was murdered by Cameron Murray to protect his involvement in Carl King's death.
She has since gone on to appear on BBC One crime procedurals Line of Duty and Silent Witness, and more recently played a detective in the BBC's Wolf series.
Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV1, and streams on ITVX.
Read more Emmerdale spoilers on our dedicated homepage
If you've been affected by the issues raised in this story, organisations who can offer support include the NHS, Samaritans on 116 123 or Mind on 0300 123 3393. Readers in the US are encouraged to visit mentalhealth.gov.
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