Emily Atack feared she'd be 'unlucky in love' forever before meeting 'polar opposite' boyfriend
Emily Atack has opened up about her past struggles with love and self-esteem. The 34 year old, who is currently on our screens in the new Jilly Cooper series Rivals, is now happily in a relationship with nuclear scientist Dr Alistair Garner, with whom she shares her four-month-old son Barney.
The star, who shot to fame as Charlotte Hinchcliffe on The Inbetweeners, has revealed that she feared she would never find love. Speaking to Hello! magazine, 34 year old Emily shared: "I thought I was always going to be that person who was unlucky in love, and I think once that narrative is painted, it's hard to break. I'm a very confident person, but I've had very low self-esteem in the past, forming bad patterns and habits. And then I got to a point where I was just like, maybe that's never going to happen for me. And then it just did."
She also discussed the contrast between their careers, saying it's "quite funny" comparing their workdays, but she's grateful to have found someone who "understands" the nature of her job.
READ MORE:ITV This Morning's Ben Shephard red-faced as Coleen Nolan strips naked live on air
READ MORE:Get cosy this Christmas with Emma Louise Connolly's matching mini-me Fair Isle jumpers
She shared: "So, comparing our days is quite funny. I'm like, ‘What did you do today? How are the nuclear reactors? ’ And he’s like, ‘yeah, good, how about you? ’ And I say, ‘I tried to fit into some Spanx, and I couldn't.’ So, in that way, we couldn't be more polar opposite, but we are so similar."
She also added that the pair have the same sense of humour and she is grateful to have met someone who "understands my life and my world."
It comes as Emily appeared on Loose Women on Monday 21 October, to discuss motherhood and Rivals, in which she plays Sarah Stratton, with Ruth Langsford, Coleen Nolan, Katie Piper and Brenda Edwards.
Emily gushed over being a new mum to baby son Barney and why he’s one of the reasons she’ll continue her campaigning around online sexual harassment. She said: “There's no such thing as a perfect parent but… there's now so many more reasons why I'm going to continue campaigning and doing these things. I want my son to grow up in a world where women are treated better… It's my chance to kind of educate in the best way I can.”
Emily added: “I love him so much. When I left the house the other day, I looked at him and my partner in bed, and I was going off to promote Rivals, and I just thought, ‘Life doesn't get better than this’.
The actress also expressed her delight over the positive reaction to Rivals. Describing the first time she read the script, Emily said: “I read the script and obviously they said, 'There's going to be lots of nudity, are you going to be up for this?’. I was like, ‘Disney, there was no way on earth that you are going to get me playing tennis...’. That’s what I was worried about!”
She added: “It was honestly the best job I've ever done in my life. The cast were amazing. People say, ‘Don't meet your heroes’. I met every single one of them, and they're all my friends now, and they are just amazing.”
