EastEnders fans thrilled as Jo Joyner opens up about reuniting with onscreen mum for new BBC thriller For Her Sins
EX-EastEnders star Jo Joyner has delighted fans as she opened up about reuniting with her Walford mum Ann Mitchell for a new Channel 5 psychological thriller.
The pair – who have not worked together since 2018 – will be starring alongside each other in drama For Her Sins.
The actress, 46, joined Holly Willoughby and Josie Gibson on ITV’s This Morning on Monday.
Jo played Tanya Branning on EastEnders, while Ann portrayed her mother Cora Cross on the BBC One soap.
Jo, who is Laura, and Ann, who is Maggie, play a mother and daughter in the Channel 5 show.
Presenter Holly said: “Fans of EastEnders are going to be delighted that you and Ann are back together again.”
TV favourite Jo said: “I know…what are the chances, very different dynamic.
“Strange in that when you work with somebody – the saddest parts of doing a drama is that you’re unlikely to work with them again.
“Sunetra Sarker and I were lucky – we had a 15 year gap and came back after No Angels to Ackley Bridge. I thought that was amazing, we get to be cast together again.
“However, I said this before, my dad doesn’t have a sister but I think if she did, she would look like Ann.
“I do get it, I get what the casting people are seeing and I texted her and said ‘we must really look like each other if this is going to keep happening’.
“It was a real treat because she’s wonderful and she’s a wonderful actress and she has a wealth of knowledge.”
Fans raced to share their excitement over the reunion, with one writing: “It will be great to see Tanya and Cora back together again.”
Another posted: “Oh Tanya will be starring in her new thriller with her onscreen mum from EastEnders, this looks good.”
The veteran actress will star alongside Rachel Shenton, playing the role of a woman with a perfect life.
However, when Rachel’s character Emily arrives and befriends Laura, her life is turned upside down.
It’s unclear why Emily is plotting Laura’s downfall but the series will aim to reveal the exact reason.
Jo continued: “It was so nice to tell a story about two women, because I’m often paired with men, some wonderful men like that I’ve worked with over the years.
“I work really well in a duo with men but it’s really nice to be with a woman.
“Female relationships are complex and it reminds me of when you’re at school, when you think someone has said something double-edged.”
Jo opened up about her character dealing with her own anxieties as a new mum.
She said: “I was very lucky, my husband was at home and was around and was the second wheel.
“In this story, Laura’s husband is working away and he’s setting up his own company, so she’s on her own quite a bit and her mum is quite powerful as she’s a career woman.
“This is what I loved about it, we meet Laura and she has a great career, she’s together, she’s on maternity leave.
“I really resonated, she’s in control of her life and knows her place and then at home, somehow it’s chaos.
“So she is at a weak point when Emily comes along and offers her a bit more fun that she’d forgotten, as you do when you become a mum.”
The four-part series begins tonight on Channel 5 at 9pm.