Emmerdale's Beth Cordingly breaks silence on soap star relationship
When Beth Cordingly was offered a part on Emmerdale, she didn’t have to look far for advice.
Her partner, Ian Kelsey, is himself a veteran of the ITV soap, playing Dave Glover for three years in the 1990s. So Beth knew he would be the perfect sounding board when she was considering whether to take on the role of feisty troublemaker Ruby Milligan.
Ian, 57, her partner of three years, encouraged her to go for it – along with her parents and daughter. Beth, 47, says: “Ian was really supportive and wanted me to do it, which is lovely.
“There is that thing as an actor where you are always taken away from home. But he totally gets it. He knows a lot of the crew and cast and so it’s lovely to be able to share what I’ve been up to, knowing he understands. That’s important when you are away and he is always keen to find out how filming has gone each day.
“We are both very supportive of each other’s careers which is important when it is such a competitive industry.”
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Beth and her Emmerdale co-star Will AshThe pair first met 20 years ago, went on to marry other people and then bumped into each other again in 2021. Inseparable ever since, she beams as she talks about their happy relationship.
“I am very in love with Ian and very happy,” Beth says with a smile. “I think it really does work him being an actor too. He has been so fantastic.”
Her own stable relationship is a far cry from Beth’s new character, Ruby. She arrives in the Yorkshire Dales to patch things up with her estranged husband, Caleb, who has been having an affair with Nate’s wife, Tracy.
And to say Ruby is furious to find her husband has feelings for another woman is an understatement. “Caleb was Ruby’s bad boy,” Beth explains. “They met when they were young, she was from a posh family and she got pregnant with Nicky.
“Her family kicked her out and Caleb was all she had. They have a very volatile relationship and sometimes break up but she is so in love with Caleb. She can’t live without him. There is that unwritten rule that it is OK to have a fling whilst they are on a ‘break’ but not actually fall for anyone else.
“And so when Ruby arrives in Yorkshire, she is threatened by Tracy. She can see he has feelings for her and she sets out to destroy Tracy. She is a troublemaker, a fireball, and she doesn’t care who she hurts. She also has an impulsive temper.
“But most of all, she is passionate about Caleb. When they are together, she is on top of the world. Playing such a troublemaker is so fun and it would have been hard to turn this role down as it is quite rare you get offered parts like Ruby at my age. She is so unpredictable!”
Comparisons have already been made between Ruby and the soap’s other big “soap bitch”, Kim Tate. Bringing it full circle, Ian’s character, Dave, had an infamous affair with Kim when he starred in the soap.
“Ruby isn’t as sophisticated as Kim Tate,” says Beth. “Kim is far cooler and more measured. We do have some scenes together which is so cool as Claire, who plays Kim, is a legend.
“I’d like to think I am a lot kinder than Ruby in real life and more of a people pleaser. That said, when I told my mum Ruby had an impulsive temper, she laughed and told me: ‘That won’t be a problem for you to act out!’”
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A woman’s woman, who wears her heart on her sleeve, it’s easy to see why the very likeable actress has fitted in so well with the rest of the Emmerdale cast.
Beth has previously starred in EastEnders and Dead Set“I genuinely have been so lucky,” Beth enthuses. “I have been blown away by how gorgeous everyone is. It’s a really happy atmosphere on set and it’s also incredibly seductive as it makes you never want to leave.
“Will, who plays Caleb, and Lewis, who plays her son Nicky, are so brilliant too. We’ve quickly slotted into that perfect family TV dynamic.”
Beth laughs as she admits she turns the script over with great trepidation every week. “I am always wondering what on earth she will do next!” she chuckles. “I had also forgotten how many snogging scenes you have when you are in a soap. I wanted to be one of those actresses who is really cool about it but I usually find it embarrassing.”
The commute between her home in Sussex and the Leeds TV studio means she has had to learn to spin a lot of new plates juggling her work with quality time at home with her family.
She adds: “But I am slowly learning and I am so glad I accepted the role.”
Not that Beth is new to TV. Over a 25-year career, she has starred in Family Affairs, EastEnders, Dead Set, Secret Diary of a Call Girl, The Burning Girls and as PC Kerry Young in The Bill. Beth reveals she and the rest of The Bill cast are still in regular touch 20 years later, and chat in a Whats-App group.
“It’s very flattering people still talk about my role in The Bill,” she says.
“I am lucky as I have had so many great jobs. My character in Family Affairs, Sara, was complicated like Ruby too. But I prefer playing characters who create drama.”
One of her proudest career moments was starring in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s productions of Romeo and Juliet and the Merry Wives of Windsor.
“Now I am in my late forties, I realise I’ve had some great roles,” adds Beth. “It took me 20 years to get to the RSC but I’m so glad I did. I even got to meet the King when I was working in the plays. I was invited to Windsor because of the King’s love of Shakespeare. I found myself standing between Judi Dench, my idol, and Helena Bonham Carter, also a legend, thinking ‘what am I doing here?’ It was like an out of body experience!”
Her new commute means very little free time at the moment. But when she can, she enjoys motorbiking with Ian – the couple recently put a hilarious video up of their trip to Normandy on YouTube.
“Ian rides the bike,” says Beth, smiling. “I just sit back and hold on!”
Returning to her debut in the soap, Beth smiles as she predicts opinion will be divided when viewers get to see what Ruby is like.
“I won’t be looking at Google when the scenes are first aired,” she admits. “I know people will either love or hate her. Some will say ‘oh gosh she is awful’ but I think some will like her because people like troublemakers.
“She has got a fabulous wardrobe; it looks very designer and glamorous, and she will be wearing plenty of figure-hugging dresses. I am more of a jeans and T-shirt person at home and now, when I look at some of her clothes, I wonder if I should put more effort in!”
As for what she’d love to happen to her new character, Beth laughs: “That’s the best thing about being an actress. I don’t have to make the decisions. It would be great though if she stays with Caleb.
“And I‘d love her to carry on making trouble. Being nice is boring.”
- Emmerdale, weekdays on ITV1 and STV, 7.30pm.
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