Natalie Anderson

Natalie Anderson first appeared on television in 1996 as Francesca in The Biz, and she has been a familiar face on British screens ever since. She made the Top 50 in the original series of Pop Idol in 2001, narrowly missing a place in the live finals after finishing third in her group. Before that, she was a cheerleader for the Bradford Bulls rugby league team.

Her breakout role came as Nurse Stella Davenport in the ITV1 drama series The Royal, a part she played from 2005 to 2008. The series gave her lead storylines, and she left at the same time as Scott Taylor, who played ambulance driver Frankie Robinson. Earlier, she took guest roles in Wire in the Blood, Holby City, and Dalziel and Pascoe. In 2010, she joined the cast of Emmerdale as Alicia, Leyla's sister.

Anderson has also worked in film and music. She played Ewa in the British film Freight, released in December 2009, and released her debut album Return to Me on 24 November 2008. On stage, she performed as Nessarose in the London production of Wicked, replacing Caroline Keiff on 11 May 2009 and leaving at the end of her contract on 27 March 2010. Anderson is 44 years old, stands 5'4" with a slim build, and has brown hair and brown eyes. British by nationality, she was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire.