Emmerdale legend Charley Webb has opened up on her formative years as part of the village as fans call for her return to the show.

Charley Webb, 37, is known to millions of Emmerdale fans as Debbie Dingle in the ITV soap – making her debut as a teenager. She has appeared in nearly 2,000 episodes of the show. Charley was last seen as Debbie, in Emmerdale, back in 2021.

Since her exit, Charley has appeared in TV shows The Last Shadow and Better as well as on the stage in production Quiz – the play based on the infamous Who Wants to be a Millionaire? cough scandal.

Charley will once again take on a theatre role in The Ladies Football Club. She has been cast in the world premiere stage adaptation of The Ladies Football Club by Stefano Massini. It will be presented at The Crucible Theatre in Sheffield – the play will run between Saturday, February 28 until Saturday, March 28. You can find out more and buy tickets here.

Mother-of-three Charley will play Abigail with other cast members including Jessica Baglow, from Gentleman Jack, and Ellie Leach from Coronation Street. The Ladies Football Club is billed as a powerful story of friendship and community directed by the award-winning Elizabeth Newman.

Ahead of the first performance, in Sheffield, we caught up with Charley Webb with the star giving us some insight into her time as Debbie in Emmerdale. Charley, who is based in North Yorkshire, said: “That period of my life is always going to be so special to me. It was such a huge amount of time and in such formative years, if you like. A lot of my best friends are there – it was always such a fun place to work.

“It is like a family. I know everyone always says that but it is. I’m still so, so close to so many of them. It was just like going to work with so many of your friends.”

In recent weeks, we’ve seen Emmerdale fans call for a return of Debbie Dingle to the village. For now, we know acting star Charley Webb is bust with a special project.