Tracy Metcalfe in Emmerdale, played by Amy Walsh, has been away for what seems like ages! But now she’s back and she’s getting married!
What?!
Last time we saw Tracy – when she came back to Emmerdale during the storm back in the autumn – she was engaged to her new fella but couldn’t resist a brief rekindling of the romance with her old flame, and baby daddy, Nate.
She even decided Nate was the one for her, and went to see him in hospital after the storm, only to see Naomi at his bedside.
And now it seems Nate’s missed his chance though, because next week, the villagers find out that Tracy’s about to walk down the aisle to get married!
Emmerdale: Amy Walsh returns as Tracy!
We caught up with Amy Walsh, who’s back from maternity leave after having her daughter Bonnie, to find out all the gossip about her alter ego’s wedding.
“It’s been so lovely to be back,” Amy tells us. “I popped back for the 50th and that was short but sweet, but now I feel I’ve never been away. It feels so normal for me to be here. I’ve never felt so at home as I do there.”
She says that she’s tried to keep up with all the goings on in Emmerdale while she’s been away, but being a new mum made it difficult.
“I missed a lot and there’s still stuff I will go back and watch like Liv’s death. I tried to keep in the loop, but it’s really hard, because it’s on at bedtime! It keeps you on your toes, keeping up with character development while you’re away and you do miss things! Nate’s had about five girlfriends since I’ve been gone, I daren’t even ask!”
Friends reunited
Of course one of the benefits of being back at work is being reunited with her friends on set.
“It’s lovely!” Amy gushes. “Really nice. The hair and makeup team are like sisters. I’ve cried a few times in their chair already, just from pure exhaustion! But it’s like family. Roxy (Shahidi, who plays Leyla) and I had barely seen each other but we’d kept in touch, and we’re really close, obviously.”
Amy posted a picture of her and Roxy doing yoga in their dressing room, which she says is one of the best things about being back at work.
“Doing yoga, going for a run at lunchtime, chatting away like no time has passed makes me feel like me again,” she explains.
But she admits it’s not easy juggling the pressures of working on a soap with motherhood.
“I thought I used to be tired. I always complained about being tired before!” she jokes. “It’s hard, I’m not going to lie. But I secretly get a kick out of being pushed to my limits. Part of me has got a new lease of life from the pressure.”
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Wedding bells!
Tracy is back unexpectedly next week, when Moira and Cain hear from Nicola that Nate’s dashed off to the town hall.
Puzzled, Moira and Cain are worried Nate will do something stupid like fight for custody of little Frankie, so they race after him. And when they see Tracy outside the register office with a handsome man, they realise Nate could be trying to stop her wedding.
Forced to act quickly, Cain kidnaps his own son and bundles him into the van.
Of course, bride Tracy is oblivious to all this.
Real life imitating art!
So how did Amy enjoy playing a bride?
“It was funny because I’m getting married this year too,” she says. Amy will be tying the knot with fellow soap star Toby-Alexander Smith.
The pair met in 2019 when they were both in the audience at Strictly Come Dancing. Their daughter was born in December 2021 and they’re getting married later this year.
Despite being in the thick of her own wedding planning, Amy had a lot of input into Tracy’s dress for her big day.
“I know my character better than anyone, having played her for nine years,” says Amy. “They were happy for me to have an input.”
And it was a bit like deja-vu for the double bride-to-be!
“I had just picked my own dress two weeks before, so I was back at the shop again,” Amy laughs. “I was looking through the dresses not wanting to see one I liked more than mine! Tracy is more mature now. She’s grown up a bit. She takes herself more seriously. She’s also been married before so I took all those things into consideration. It was fun finding the right dress. Tracy just gets it a little bit wrong, doesn’t she? We’ve Tracy-fied it!”
Chaos reigns!
And as for the wedding itself, Amy says there is only one word for it – chaos!
“The wedding scenes were nice to film, but it was chaos! Cain and Moira are there, Nate’s there, Frankie;s there. It doesn’t quite go to plan, let’s say!”
But it was familiar to Amy, who’d done it before! “It was another chaotic wedding day for Tracy,” she points out. “I only remembered afterwards how bad her wedding day to David was! She’s got form for those crazy weddings. And it’s definitely more fun to play than an average wedding day!”
Read more: Complete Emmerdale cast list 2023 – meet them all here!
Are you pleased to see Tracy back in the village? Emmerdale usually airs on weekdays at 7.30pm, with an hour long episode on Thursdays.
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