Soap fans were stunned to discover Emmerdale’s latest newcomer was an iconic 80s superstar.
Actress Sharon Maughan plays Helen, the estranged mother of Ruby Fox-Milligan – played by Beth Cordingly.
She’s been absent from her daughter’s life for three decades but stunned son-in-law Caleb Miligan (William Ash) this week when she got in touch.
TV veteran Sharon is fondly remembered for her Nescafé Gold Blend TV adverts, which transmitted during the 80s and 90s.
The ads in question – which were similar to soaps in that they often ended on a cliffhanger – saw Sharon and co-star Anthony Head play a couple who embarked on a romance over a cup of Nescafe.
The campaign proved so popular that Sharon and Buffy The Vampire Slayer star Anthony reprised their roles for a host of US commercials to promote Gold Blend, which was known as Taster’s Choice in America.
74-year-old Sharon has an impressive acting resume, with roles in the Enigma Files, Anna in By the Sword Divided, and Tricia Williams in Holby City.
Over on Emmerdale, Caleb Miligan (William Ash) slipped away from the Emmerdale village to visit a lady called Helen in yesterday’s (September 17) episode – who is Ruby’s mum.
While we don’t know a great deal about Ruby’s past, we do know that she’s never really had a good relationship with her parents.
It was revealed that her family made her choose between them and Caleb and as a result of choosing her partner, Ruby was seemingly banished from the Fox clan.
During the episode of the ITV soap, Caleb acted on the phone calls he had been receiving recently and made his way to the hospital. There, he faced a very unwell lady in a bed. Calling her poisonous, Caleb then confirmed he was looking at Ruby’s mum, played by Sharon.
As they chatted, Caleb continued to make it clear that Ruby wasn’t going to go anywhere near her mum. He revealed that Helen had previously tried to pay him to leave Ruby, and pushed her to having an abortion when she became pregnant.
Helen then asked Caleb if he saw much of Stephanie. His response was to tell Helen to never mention his kids’ names again, allowing us to learn this is the name of Caleb’s daughter.
When Caleb and son Nicky (Lewis Cope) first arrived in the village, it was briefly touched on that Nicky isn’t Caleb’s only child. We don’t know why Caleb doesn’t see Stephanie, but his furious response when Helen mentioned her name certainly suggests she also has a fractured connection with her dad.
Later on in the episode, Caleb put forward a proposal to Helen. With knowledge she wants to see Ruby before she dies, Caleb somewhat took advantage and said if Helen gives him £100k, he’ll try and get Ruby to the hospital for her.
