Gaynor Kay Mellor (born 26 August 1971), better known as Gaynor Faye, is an English actress and writer, best known for playing

Judy Mallett The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' in 1995, by order of first appearance. Daniel Osbourne Daniel Osbourne is the son of Ken Barlow (William Roache) and Denise Osbourne (De ...

in ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'' from 1995 until 1999 and

Megan Macey ''Emmerdale'' is a British soap opera first broadcast on 16 October 1972. The following is a list of characters that first appeared during 2012, by order of first appearance. All characters were introduced by the soap's executive producer, Steve ...

in ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, '' ...

'' from 2012 until 2019.

Career

Faye has played the roles of Holly Quinn in ''

Playing the Field ''Playing the Field'' is a BBC television drama series following the lives of the Castlefield Blues, a fictitious female football team from South Yorkshire. Outline Inspired by Pete Davies's book ''I Lost My Heart to the Belles'' – which w ...

''; Lauren Harris in ''

Fat Friends ''Fat Friends'' (also known as ''Kay Mellor’s Fat Friends'') is a British drama that aired on ITV from 12 October 2000 to 24 March 2005, consisting of 25 episodes over four series. Set in Leeds, the series explores the lives of several slimm ...

''; Georgia Lovett in '' Between the Sheets'' and Julie in ''Stan the Man''. She has also written two episodes of ''Fat Friends''. In 2006, Faye appeared in ITV's ''

Dancing on Ice ''Dancing on Ice'' is a British television series presented by Phillip Schofield alongside Holly Willoughby from 2006 to 2011, who then returned in 2018, and Christine Bleakley from 2012 to 2014. The series features celebrities and their profe ...

''. Her skating partner was

Daniel Whiston Daniel J Whiston (born 21 November 1976 in Blackpool) is an English ice skater. He appeared in ''Strictly Ice Dancing'' on BBC One and for all series of ITV show '' Dancing on Ice'' since its inception in 2006. He won the first series of ''Danc ...

. On 4 March 2006, she was crowned the inaugural ''Dancing on Ice'' champion. From 2006 to 2007, Faye starred as Anna Williams Bedford in '' The Chase'', a television series co-written with her mother for

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

. She has also brought out a video based on the exercise routine she followed during ''Dancing on Ice''. Faye appeared in the stage adaptation of ''

Calendar Girls ''Calendar Girls'' is a 2003 British comedy film directed by Nigel Cole. Produced by Touchstone Pictures, it features a screenplay by Tim Firth and Juliette Towhidi, based on a true story of a group of middle-aged Yorkshire women who produ ...

'' alongside

Lynda Bellingham Lynda Bellingham, OBE ( ; 31 May 194819 October 2014) was an English actress, broadcaster and author. She acted in television series such as '' All Creatures Great and Small'', ''Doctor Who'', '' Second Thoughts'' and '' Faith in the Future''. Sh ...

at London's

Noël Coward Theatre The Noël Coward Theatre, formerly known as the Albery Theatre, is a West End theatre in St. Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster, London. It opened on 12 March 1903 as the New Theatre and was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham's ...

in 2009. This was written by Juliette Towhidi and Tim Firth. In September 2010, she was a guest panellist on ITV's ''

Loose Women ''Loose Women'' (previously known as ''Live Talk'' from 2000 to 2001) is a British talk show that broadcasts on ITV1 weekdays from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. The show focuses on a panel of four female presenters who interview celebrities, talk about ...

''. In 2011, Faye played Zarina Wix in children's programme, ''

Dani's House ''Dani's House'' is a British children's comedy series broadcast on CBBC and starring Dani Harmer. The first series premiered on 26 September 2008, and its fifth series concluded on 19 July 2012. It has received several awards and nominations f ...

''. In October 2011, it was announced that Faye would join the

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

soap opera ''

'', playing

Declan Macey Declan Macey is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'', portrayed by Jason Merrells. He was introduced on 15 April 2010. The ''Emmerdale'' website has described the character by saying "Declan is a shrewd business ...

's ambitious half-sister

. Megan first appeared on-screen on 21 February 2012. Faye left the role in 2019. On 11 November and 16 December 2011, she guest presented the

ITV Breakfast ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited (previously known as GMTV Limited) is the national ITV breakfast television licensee, broadcasting in the United Kingdom. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of ITV plc in November 2009. The breakfast license ...

programme ''

Lorraine Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...

''. In March 2021, Faye appeared in the

drama ''

The Syndicate ''The Syndicate'' is a British television drama series. It was written by Kay Mellor and is broadcast on BBC One. It sees five members of a betting syndicate win the lottery. Each series follows a different syndicate. The first series is set ...

'' as Cheryl Armitage.

Personal life and family

Gaynor Faye was born in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

to TV scriptwriter

Kay Mellor The name Kay is found both as a surname (see Kay (surname)) and as a given name. In English-speaking countries, it is usually a feminine name, often a short form of Katherine or one of its variants; but it is also used as a first name in its own r ...

and Anthony Mellor. Her maternal grandmother was Jewish. She has one sister, Yvonne. Faye lives with long-term partner Mark Pickering in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The couple have two children.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* 1971 births Living people English television actresses English soap opera actresses Reality show winners Actresses from Leeds English people of Jewish descent People educated at Lawnswood School {{UK-tv-actor-1970s-stub