Ash Palmisciano made history by playing the first transgender character on Emmerdale. He first appeared on screen as Matty Barton in 2018 and has since been involved in several challenging storylines.
Ash’s character Matty and Amy Wyatt (Natalie Ann Jamieson)’s relationship in Emmerdale has had its ups and downs since they’ve been together, with their wedding proving to be somewhat of a disaster.
Following the nuptials, Ash teased to us that further woes were about to hit the couple: ‘You never know what’s around the corner and things impact will impact them. With the importance of the story and the representation, it’s a solid message there.
‘But who knows?’
‘We’re always here for the drama!’ added Natalie.
…and they weren’t wrong! In last night’s (6th June) episode, Matty faced a barrage of transphobic abuse from teenager Josh (Osian Morgan), who went on to push Samson Dingle into him – unaware that he was holding a knife at the time.
How old is Ash Pamisciano?
Ash Palmisciano was born in January 1990, making him 34 years old.
Who is Ash Pamisciano?
A master of many crafts, Ash Pamisciano is an actor, poet, writer and narrator.
He was originally brought in to advise Emmerdale on their new transgender character, through a charity called All About Trans. They then asked him to audition and the rest is history.
He described the casting and the role as a ‘big thing’ and said he has been pleasantly surprised by the reception he’s received.
According to his IMDB page, he has also worked for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) and was the first transgender actor to appear on the RSC stage.
What has Ash Palmisciano said about his transition?
In April 2019, Matty received top surgery, which left him overjoyed.
‘I think at the time we were going to go down that path, it was lockdown and surgeries weren’t happening in the UK and in reality there are huge waiting lists. So, I really believe it’s true to show a real reflection and so does Emmerdale – and when the time is right, it could be something really exciting to explore.’ Ash explained at the time.
‘Matty’s had a bit of a turbulent time with himself in the sense of getting his hormones right and waiting for his surgery and trying to navigate this relationship; he’s never spoken to people about it and he’s always dealt with stuff on his own – he went off to transition on his own, he doesn’t really do well with communicating his feelings.’
