# Lisa Riley

Lisa Jane Riley (born 13 July 1976) is an English actress, comedian and television presenter. Riley is best known for portraying the role of Mandy Dingle in the long-running ITV soap opera Emmerdale between 1995 and 2001, and from 2019 onwards. She also replaced Jeremy Beadle as the presenter of You've Been Framed! between 1998 and 2002. She was also a contestant on the tenth series of Strictly Come Dancing, and a panellist on the ITV daytime series Loose Women.

## Career

Riley trained at the Oldham Theatre Workshop from the age of nine, and was signed by an agent three years later. Riley's early roles included appearances as an extra in both Coronation Street and Brookside as well as a cast member in Butterfly Kiss which was directed by Michael Winterbottom. She then appeared in a guest role as Mandy Dingle in the British soap opera Emmerdale in 1995. After proving popular with the audience, Riley was invited to join the soap's regular cast the following year. In 1996, Riley won the National Television Awards for "Most Popular Newcomer" for her work in Emmerdale. She continued to play Mandy until 2001 after deciding to pursue other television roles.
Riley portrayed Princess Jean in the CITV Awards 1997, and also presented You've Been Framed! between 1998 and 2002, taking over from the former presenter, Jeremy Beadle and raising viewers figures to more than 13 million at its peak in the process. Riley even appeared on You've Been Framed! herself, in a clip one of her old school friends sent to the show, which the crew didn't tell her about beforehand.
In 1999, Riley co-presented the six-part ITV series Birthrace 2000 with Davina McCall, which featured couples trying to have the first baby of the millennium.
Riley featured as Rebecca Patterson, a "shy, retiring, twenty something" woman, in the drama series Fat Friends across three series between 2002 and 2005. Riley portrayed Goody McEldrich in a 2011 episode of the UK children's show 'Young Dracula', and during 2012, she appeared as Nadia Hicks in the second series of ITV crime drama, Scott & Bailey. Between 2011 and 2013, Riley made guest appearance as Tina Allen in the BBC school drama Waterloo Road. Later that year, Riley signed up as a contestant on the tenth series of Strictly Come Dancing, partnering with Robin Windsor. Riley juggled the rehearsals for Strictly Come Dancing with filming two appearances for Waterloo Road in February 2013. The couple were eliminated during the semi-finals, on 16 December 2012. She has since appeared on the 2013 live tour and the backstage show Strictly Confidential, directed by Craig Revel Horwood, who often praised her on the show.
In September 2016, it was announced that Riley had joined the ITV daytime series Loose Women as one of three new panellists, following a series of guest appearances during the year. In May 2017, Riley featured in the BBC miniseries Three Girls as Lorna, the mother of one of the main characters. In August 2018, Riley starred in another BBC drama, Age Before Beauty, as Tina Reegan, a gothic tattoo artist. Riley's return to Emmerdale for one storyline was announced on 13 November 2018. The character returned for a guest stint from January 2019. She later returned full-time from September 2019.

## Personal life

In late 2016, Riley lost over 10 stone in weight, and a year later, she had a surgery to remove excess skin.

## Stage roles and filmography
### Theatre

| Years | Title | Role | Location |
| 1999/00 | Dick Whittington | Fairy Bowbells | Bradford Alhambra |
| 2000/01 | Dick Whittington | Fairy Bowbells | Wolverhampton Grand |
| 2001/02 | Aladdin | Slave of the Ring | Grand Opera House, Belfast |
| 2002/03 | Goldilocks and the Three Bears | Ringmaster | Swansea Grand Theatre |
| 2003/04 | Goldilocks and the Three Bears | Ringmaster | Darlington Civic Theatre |
| 2004/05 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent |
| 2005/06 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Fairy | Venue Cymru |
| 2006/07 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Fairy | Kings Theatre, Southsea |
| 2007/08 | Aladdin | Slave of the Ring | Southport Theatre |
| 2008/09 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Plaza Cinema, Stockport |
| 2009/10 | Aladdin | Slave of the Ring | Kings Theatre, Southsea |
| 2010/11 | Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | Grand Opera House, York |
| 2011/12 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | Wicked Queen | Princess Theatre, Torquay |
| 2012/13 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | Queen Malevola | Kings Theatre, Southsea |
| 2013/14 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | Lisa - The Lady's Maid | Cliffs Pavilion |
| 2014/15 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Spirit of the Beans | Lyceum Theatre, Crewe |
| 2015/16 | Jack and the Beanstalk | The Spirit of the Beans | Bradford Alhambra |
| 2016/17 | Aladdin | Genie of the Ring | Wolverhampton Grand |
| 2017/18 | Jack and the Beanstalk | Fairy | Wolverhampton Grand |
| 2018/19 | Beauty and the Beast | Mrs Potty | New Theatre, Cardiff |

### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1995 | Butterfly Kiss | Danielle | |
| 1996 | The Woolpackers: Emmerdance | Mandy Dingle | Emmerdale spin-off video |
| 1997 | Emmerdale: The Dingles Down Under | Mandy Dingle | Emmerdale spin-off video |
| 1999 | Emmerdale: Don't Look Now! - The Dingles in Venice | Mandy Dingle | Emmerdale spin-off video |
| 2000 | Secret Society | Beth Trailor; Amazon Woman No. 1 | |
| 2006 | Six Bend Trap | Mary Myrani | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1994 | Coronation Street | Bettabuy Worker (uncredited) | Episode #3666 |
| 1995–2001, 2019–present | Emmerdale | Mandy Dingle | Series regular |
| 1997 | Flight | Unnamed | Television film |
| 1998–2002 | You've Been Framed! | Presenter | |
| 1999 | Put Out More Fags | Cath | Television film |
| 1999 | Birthrace 2000 | Presenter | 6 part TV series also known as Birth Race 2000 Tonight's the Night, Birth Race 2000 Animal Passions, Birth Race 2000 A-Z of Conception and Birth Race 2000 On the Job with Lisa Riley, along with a preview episode titled Birth Race 2000 On Your Marks. |
| 1999, 2006, 2007, 2013, 2016–2018, 2020, 2021 | Loose Women | Herself | Guest; regular panellist; 69 episodes |
| 2000 | Aladdin | Princess's Handmaiden | Television film |
| 2002–2005 | Fat Friends | Rebecca Patterson | Main role (series 2–4) |
| 2002 | Having It Off | Frankie Brookes | |
| 2003 | The Afternoon Play | Helen | Episode: "Heroes and Villains" |
| 2003, 2012 | Doctors | Sandra Reynolds; Laura Mowbray | 2 episodes |
| 2003 | The Bill | Belinda | Episode: "143: Bold as Brass" |
| 2006 | Holby City | Lyn Forbes | Episode: "Pride Before a Fall" |
| 2011 | Young Dracula | Goody McEldrich | Episode: "The Enemy Within" |
| 2011–2013 | Waterloo Road | Tina Allen | 6 episodes |
| 2012 | Scott & Bailey | Nadia Hicks | 2 episodes |
| 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017 | Strictly Come Dancing | Herself; Reporter; Superfan Quiz Host; Friday Panel | Contestant (5th Place) |
| 2014 | Inspector George Gently | Sylvia Ryan | Episode: "Blue for Bluebird" |
| 2014 | Moving On | Moira | Episode: "The Signature" |
| 2017 | Three Girls | Lorna Bowen | Main character |
| 2017 | Lisa Riley's Baggy Body Club | Presenter | |
| 2018 | Age Before Beauty | Tina Reegan | Main character |

#### Guest appearances

* This Morning (2001, 2012, 2013, 2019, 2020)
* The Alan Titchmarsh Show (2009)
* The Wright Stuff (2009) – Guest panellist
* Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two (2012, 2013, 2014)
* Let's Dance for Sport Relief (2013)
* Lorraine (2013, 2016, 2018, 2020)
* Keep It in the Family (2015)

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 1996 | 2nd National Television Awards | Most Popular Newcomer | Emmerdale | Won |
| 1999 | 5th National Television Awards | Most Popular Actress | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2004 | TV Quick Awards | Best Actress | Fat Friends | Nominated |
| 2020 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Actress | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2020 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Partnership (shared with Bradley Johnson) | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2020 | Inside Soap Awards | Funniest Performance | Emmerdale | Shortlisted |
| 2021 | 26th National Television Awards | Serial Drama Performance | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2021 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Actress | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2022 | 2022 British Soap Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2022 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Comic Performance | Emmerdale | Nominated |
| 2024 | RadioTimes.com Soap Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Emmerdale | Pending |