Exclusive: Rivals stars Emily Atack and Claire Rushbrook talk 'raunchy' scenes and working with 'naughty school girl' Jilly Cooper

Emily Atack opened up about filming "raunchy" scenes in Disney+'s racy romance series Rivals, adapted from Jilly Cooper's bestselling novel about the cut-throat world of 1980s independent television.

Set in the fictional county of Rutshire, the series explores the longstanding rivalry between MP and notorious womaniser Rupert Campbell-Black (Alex Hassell) and the charismatic controller of Corinium Television, Tony Baddingham (David Tennant).

Joining her co-star Claire Rushbrook in a joint interview with HELLO! ahead of the show's premiere, Emily, who plays Sarah Stratton - the ambitious wife of the deputy prime minister - revealed that while this isn't the first time her family and friends will see her strip off on-screen, she doesn't think they know "quite how raunchy" her latest role is.

"My friends and family have seen me do this quite a lot now, worryingly," joked Emily, who is the daughter of actress Kate Robbins and musician Keith Atack. "My family work in the industry as well, so they kind of look at a professional stance but I don't think they know quite how raunchy this one is. I might shield with my dad's and my son's eyes, but apart from that, it's not real," said the star, who welcomed her first baby, a son named Barney, in June.

Chatting about filming the sex scenes, Emily explained that they were "integral" to the plot. "I was completely comfortable, completely fine. I'm there doing a job," explained the 34-year-old. "We have intimacy coordinators and I get on so well with my cast members and the crew.

"It was all very carefully thought through," continued the actress. "It's written really beautifully. The scenes are integral to the plot and storylines, so it's just not just nakedness for no reason."

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Claire, who plays David Tennant's on-screen wife, aristocrat Lady Monica Baddingham, added: "Jilly is, at heart, so completely playful as a woman herself and also in her writing. It's so playful and joyful and tongue in cheek, so I don't feel any of what could be just dismissed as salacious steaminess is that.

"The people who are doing those scenes are cared for by intimacy coordinators and also we know the bigger picture is just a joyous celebration of that group of people from that time in that world."

The duo also spoke about what it was like having Jilly visit the set, with Claire describing her "glowing, impish, gorgeous energy" while Emily called her a "legend" and said the author encouraged the cast to "have fun".

Claire explained: "Her nature and who she is, and the essence of her books, was so infectious."

Emily said: "When she was around, it's sort of a bit like, 'The headmistress is here, got to stand up straight!'"

Claire added: "Or the naughtiest girl in school, more like!"

Rivals is available on Disney+.