Emmerdale fans have flocked to social media to heap praise on young actress Amelia Flanagan, after an emotional episode of the ITV soap, with the teen star’s dad leading tributes.
Last night’s special episode was entirely focused on Amelia’s character April Windsor, and her experiences since running away from home on Christmas Day.
The emotional scenes saw her take refuge in a squat, witness the stabbing of her new friend Bex, and give birth to a still born baby in a public toilet.
Following the harrowing scenes, Amelia’s dad took to Twitter/X to share his pride for his daughter.
‘Couldn’t be prouder of Amelia, she worked so hard on this,’ he wrote. ’11 years ago when our little 5 year old got the job we could never have dreamed that one day she’d be trusted with her own ep. Proudest dad ever right now!’
Fans were quick to share his sentiments in their replies, with Zoe writing: ‘She did amazing what an episode brilliantly done and heartbreaking also great work Amelia.’
‘I watched with tears streaming down my face. She’s absolutely wonderful. Although it makes me feel old as I remember her arriving as a little girl too well. She’s going to achieve HUGE things,’ Meg agreed.
‘She broke my heart in tonight’s episode, even some adults would struggle with pulling this off but she completely nailed it! She is an absolute shining star,’ Kirsty added, while Graeme simply said: ‘Absolutely outstanding!’
Amelia’s co-stars also expressed their pride for the young actress during a chat with Metro last year.
‘She’s got this amazing ability to play so much stuff behind her eyes, so when you’re in close doing really intense work, you can see it all,’ Mark Charnock, who plays April’s dad Marlon Dingle, told us.
The special episode was focused around April (Picture: ITV)
‘Her eyes are a gift to the camera because they’re blue, and she can’t hide anything with her eyes, so it’s all there, and it’s just heartbreaking to watch.
‘She was always such a brilliant child actress, but she’s gone straight into being a really superb actress. I’m so chuffed for her, she’s brilliant.’
Michael Parr, who recently returned to his role as Ross Barton, agreed, telling us: ‘She’s absolutely crushing it. She was a cute kid and now she’s a gorgeous young woman.
‘She’s managed to maintain all the talent that she had as a kid. Sometimes with kids they’re good when they’re kids but they go through a bit of an awkward stage, and maybe that isn’t what they want to do anymore.
‘But she’s hardworking, dedicated, on her script all the time. She’s a really great person to work with, and we have a lot of fun as well!’
Amelia’s parents have plenty to be proud of, as she is not the only family member achieving big things in the world of soap.
Her younger twin siblings, William and Isabella, are currently starring in rival ITV soap Coronation Street, as Joseph Brown and Hope Stape.
Joseph recently found himself in trouble with the law after making a hoax call to ambulance services and delaying their response to Mason Radcliffe’s stabbing.
It later transpired that he had been egged on by devious Hope, who has recently taken up filming prank videos to post online.
