I worked on a children's show that was also for Channel Seven, so I already knew a fair number of the cast and crew and I always hoped that one day I'd be able to work on the show because I loved everybody who was a part of it. I loved my character and I had never imagined being blessed with such an interesting character as Amanda!
Amanda went from being a villain to a victim in the end, didn't she?
Yes, I mean I never thought I'd see the day when there was someone more evil than Amanda on the show, but her sister Kelli really took the cake!
How did you feel when you found out what Amanda's final storyline was going to be about?
I thought it was nice to actually see the other side of Amanda. Having played her for so long I obviously really liked her myself, and I was really pleased that you got to see some of her nicer qualities. I think the whole Kelli storyline probably went on for a bit too long, but having said that, it was nice to see the romantic side of Amanda as well.
So did you prefer it when Amanda was being devious and having battles with the likes of Beth and Irene?
(Laughs). Well, you know at the time I really didn't enjoy it that much. I was a bit worried that everyone was going to think I was really like that and take offence. You know, it's never a good thing not to be liked, I guess. But as time went on and I got to play the nicer side of Amanda I realised how much I actually did enjoy playing the nastier side of her. So looking back now I would say it is definitely more fun to play the bad girl.
What sort of reaction did you get from the public when Amanda was being a schemer?
You know it wasn't that bad. I was expecting people to be throwing things at me – I'd heard really bad things from other actors who'd played nasty characters, people coming up to them in the street and abusing them, but I never really had anything like that. I guess because I did Dancing With The Stars prior to joining Home and Away, people had got to see the real me, so I think they could make the distinction a lot more easily.
If you think about the Vale women – Amanda, Kitty, Kelli and Belle, they could probably keep a psychoanalyst in business for quite a while, couldn't they?!
(Laughs) I always joke with my husband about that. He used to read all my scripts and say “You know if all this really ever happened to someone you'd end up in a mental institution!” and I believe that would be the case. You look at Amanda's mum, Kitty, and you think well, it's no wonder Amanda turned out the way she did!
Was it fun to play a character who had all these complicated family relationships?
Yes, absolutely. At first, when I first saw Jess Tovey who plays Belle, I was like “You want me to play what? How old do you think I look?!” But those relationships for me, and working on them in the show, you build really great friendships through those storylines, and it was really nice for me to explore things that obviously hadn't happened to me in real life.
