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Chris Bisson has played Jai Sharma on Emmerdale for almost two decades but he once appeared on rival soap Coronation Street

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Chris Bisson previously shared the brutal reason he left Coronation Street before making his Dales debut on Emmerdale.

Actor Chris has played Jai Sharma on the long-running ITV show since 2009. And it’s fair to say the character has been involved in several big moments during his stint.

From drug addiction to his turbulent love life, his time in the village has not been short of drama. Especially at the moment, as in Monday’s episode (January 12), Ray Walters’ (Joe Absolom) dead body was discovered in a van at Caleb Miligan’s (William Ash) depot.

Fans will know that evil Ray was murdered last week, with his killer unknown. But over in the Dales this week after police discovered Ray’s body, Jai was immediately questioned and he insisted he was innocent and had nothing to do with Ray’s murder.

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However, soap fans will remember that actor Chris starred on Coronation Street before joining Emmerdale. He played Vikram Desai, the cousin of Dev Alahan (played by Jimmi Harkishin).

Vikram arrived in Weatherfield in 1999 and ran the corner shop before it was Dev’s. He was also the co-founder of Street Cars alongside Steve (Simon Gregson).

However, in 2002 Chris decided to quit the soap. His exit storyline saw Vickram take a one-way trip to Mumbai after he got involved in drug smuggling to clear his gambling debts – before clearing out Street Cars’ tax account.

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Speaking about why he quit Corrie, Chris previously said he was frustrated with his storylines. He told Manchester Evening News: “I’d thought about leaving Coronation Street several times before I finally quit.

“That was because I hadn’t had a decent storyline for a while. I have been an actor since I was 13 and I’m not particularly worried. I played the same part in Coronation Street for four years.”

Seven years later, Chris landed the role of Jai Sharma and has been a big part of Emmerdale ever since. The character arrived in the village with his siblings Nikhil (Rio Makarem) and Priya (Fiona Wade). However, according to Chris, Emmerdale bosses were considering axing him from the soap following his character’s redemption over the years.

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He told OK!: “There were conversations being had about where we had gone with the character. Very frank and honest conversations with me and the producer saying ‘have we gone too far now and it is time to call it a day or do we redeem him?’.

“But we came to the conclusion that actually he wasn’t a bad character. He came in as a much nicer character and he did go off the rails but we have really pulled him back and that’s lovely to play.”

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Victoria Beckham has paid tribute to her Spice Girl pal, Melanie Chisholm, on her birthday, but left one of the famous faces from the girl group out in a cryptic post

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Victoria Beckham has parked the drama with her son, Brooklyn, to wish her Spice Girl pal, Melanie Chisholm, a happy birthday.

The artist formerly known as Posh Spice, 51, is at the centre of a family feud after her oldest son, 26, reportedly sent her and husband, Sir David Beckham, 50, a legal letter, warning them to stop contacting him. The Beckhams have been surrounded by rumours of a row since Brooklyn and Nicola swerved David’s big birthday in May. However, Victoria, has now taken time away from the drama to pay tribute to her pal, Sporty Spice.

Taking to Instagram, she shared a snap of the Spice Girls in a sweet message. However, the fashion designer failed to include Geri Halliwell-Horner, aka Ginger Spice, in the photo – and in the tribute – in a cryptic post.

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READ MORE: Brooklyn fumes over ‘deep insult’ to Nicola as real reason for legal letter is uncoveredREAD MORE: Brooklyn Beckham reveals the heartbreaking reason why he blocked David and Victoria

Captioning the snap in which Victoria, Mel B, Mel C and Emma Bunton lark about for the cameras, flashing V signs, Victoria wrote: “Happy Birthday @melaniecmusic. Kisses @officalmelb @emmaleebunton.”

Victoria found herself at the centre of a fresh feud at the end of last year, with insiders claiming she issued an ultimatum to Geri after weeks of frustration over the singer’s reported refusal to sign up to a proposed Netflix documentary celebrating the group’s 30th anniversary.

The Spice Girls are said to have spent months planning a stellar anniversary to mark 30 years since Wannabe shot them to stardom.

Netflix is said to be eager to commission a behind-the-scenes documentary following the success of the Beckhams’ own documentaries. But several sources say the project has stalled because Geri is “dragging her heels,” leaving the rest of the group with their head in their hands.

One insider told USA OK!: “Victoria is really pushing to get this Netflix documentary over the line. She understands how huge it could be for them both, creatively and financially, and the whole project has been stalled waiting on Geri to sign. Eventually, Victoria lost patience – she told her the rest of the group is committed and she can’t keep delaying things.”

Meanwhile, Victoria was also said to be ‘surprised’ that Geri is planning her own reality show – which is said to address the fallout surrounded her husband Christian Horner’s sacking from Red Bull – after the fashion designer released hers.

A source told Closer: “Geri doing her own reality docuseries just as Vic is about to release hers has raised some eyebrows among the Spice Girls.

“The show is meant to be about Geri setting her narrative straight after the controversy, but Vic and the other girls seem surprised that Geri is following so closely in Vic’s footsteps.”

The Mirror has contacted Victoria and Geri’s reps for comment on this story.

This Morning and Capital Breakfast presenter Siân Welby has opened up about regretting a tough decision she made after giving birth to her first daughter, Ruby in 2024

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ITV’s This Morning and Capital Breakfast host Siân Welby has admitted wishing she’d taken a longer maternity break.

The 39-year-old presenter, who shares 18-month-old daughter Ruby with fiancé Jake Beckett, welcomed her baby in June 2024, but has since revealed she would have preferred more time at home with her newborn, given the choice.

Discussing her concerns about how becoming a mum might affect her flourishing career as one of Britain’s most recognisable broadcasters, Siân has shed light on those pivotal early months.

Speaking to The Sun’s Fabulous about her brief maternity period, she said: “That’s the reality, isn’t it? You have to make decisions in life.

“I had momentum, and I thought: ‘I can’t totally let this drop because what a shame, I’ve finally got these shows that I want to do’.”

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The Capital Breakfast show co-host also addressed the limited paternity leave available to fathers.

She argued that the current system must evolve to reflect modern families where mothers sometimes out-earn fathers. Siân noted: “It’s not always fair on dads that they get two weeks’ paternity leave, and that’s that.

“For some people, it suits them way more to have the dad at home. It might be that the mum is the one who has the better job.”

This isn’t Siân’s first candid discussion about her pregnancy journey, having previously revealed on Giovanna Fletcher’s ‘Happy mum Happy Baby’ podcast that she deliberately kept her pregnancy under wraps from numerous people.

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As for the reasoning behind it, Siân revealed that, once more, it stemmed from anxieties about job security and a need to demonstrate her capabilities: “When you first start a job, you think ‘nobody knows what I’m actually like, that I’m trustworthy’ and you have to prove yourself.

“I felt like I had proven myself [on This Morning], that I can do this and that – when I got that first cover with Dermot, I knew I was pregnant but I didn’t tell anyone.

“In the back of my mind I was thinking, ‘If I tell them I’m pregnant, will this put them off getting me in again? And will they think I’m gonna be off for ages?’