Emmerdale actor Johnny McPherson, who plays Dr Liam Cavanagh in the ITV soap, has opened up about his romance with co-star Natalie J. Robb almost a year after they first got together.
Both Johnny and Natalie, who stars as Moira Barton, are regulars on the soap but didn’t spark a romance until a charity trip to Lapland last Christmas.
The pair only had their first kiss in January but moved in together just three months later when the country went into lockdown.
Despite things moving fast between them, Johnny has revealed his relationship with Natalie has gone from strength to strength in lockdown.
He said, “We had to make a decision as lots of couples did. We decided to move in together and so, yes, lockdown did fast forward our relationship.
“We get on so well. We come from quite different backgrounds but we are essentially the same person. We are both a pair of big kids. We have exactly the same stupid humour.”
“There is nowhere to hide during lockdown. It’s a real test of whether you do get on with a person and thankfully we got through with flying colours,” Johnny added to the Mirror.
“We hadn’t spent any proper time together until that Lapland trip and we got on like a house on fire.”
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1 of 28Peter Amory and Claire King
Peter Amory AKA Chris Tate and Claire King, who played his stepmother Kim Tate on Emmerdale, were married for 10 years. Status: Divorced
2 of 28Jennifer James and Lee Boardman
Jennifer James and Lee Boardman met on the set of Coronation Street in 2000 whilst playing Geena Gregory and Jez Quigley. The co-stars married in 2001. Status: Married
3 of 28Samantha Giles and Peter Amory
But Claire wasn't the only co-star who caught Peter's eye, as he also dated Samantha Giles AKA Bernice Blackwood. Status: Split
4 of 28Nicole Barber-Lane and Liam Fox
Hollyoaks' McQueen matriarch Nicole and Liam, who plays Dan Spencer on Emmerdale, were married for 16 years but split in 2015. Status: Separated
5 of 28Nadia Sawalha and Marc Bannerman
Nadia Sawalha portrayed businesswoman Annie Palmer on EastEnders whilst Marc Bannerman played Gianni di Marco, and the EastEnders stars dated for three years. Status: Split
6 of 28Charlie Clapham and Tamara Wall
Charlie has also dated another of his co-stars - Tamara Wall AKA Grace Black.Status: Split
7 of 28Matthew Wolfenden and Charley Webb
Matthew Wolfenden and Charley Webb met on Emmerdale, where Matthew plays David Metcalfe and Charley stars as Debbie Dingle. Status: Married
8 of 28Claire Goose and Jonathan Kerrigan
Casualty co-stars Claire Goose (Tina Seabrook) and Jonathan Kerrigan (Sam Colloby) dated for several years. Status: Split
9 of 28Harley Bonner and Ariel Kaplan
Ariel Kaplan and Harley Bonner met on the set of Neighbours where they play twins Imogen Willis and Josh Willis. Status: Together
10 of 28Chris Milligan and Jenna Rosenow
Chris Milligan and Jenna Rosenow also met on Neighbours, playing Kyle Canning and Amber Turner. Status: Together
11 of 28Daniel Brocklebank and Rob Mallard
Corrie actors Daniel Brocklebank (Billy Mayhew) and Rob Mallard (Daniel Osbourne) dated very briefly before ending their romance in July 2017. Status: Split
12 of 28Nadine Mulkerrin and Rory Douglas Speed
Hollyoaks actors Nadine Mulkerrin (Cleo McQueen) and Rory Douglas Speed (Joel Dexter) took their on-screen romance into real life! They even got engaged in December 2018.Status: Engaged
13 of 28Daisy Wood-Davis and Luke Jerdy
Hollyoaks stars Daisy Wood-Davis (Kim Butterfield) and Luke Jerdy (Jesse Donovan) have been posting a lot of loved-up snaps together lately. Status: Dating
14 of 28Sally Carman and Joe Duttine
Coronation Street stars Sally Carman and Joe Duttine are reportedly dating after a string of 'secret dates'. After attending Corrie's summer party together in July, reports suggest the couple are very happy together. Status: Dating
15 of 28Sophie Porley and Adam Woodward
Hollyoaks actors Sophie Porley (Ellie Nightingale) and Adam Woodward (Brody Hudson) are now dating. Status: Together
16 of 28Owen Warner and Stephanie Davis
After her on/off romance with Jeremy McConnell came to an end, Stephanie Davis returned to the cast of Hollyoaks and it didn't take long for her to announce she was dating co-star Owen Warner (Romeo Quinn). Status: Together
17 of 28Mark Jordon and Laura Norton
Emmerdale's Mark Jordon AKA Daz Spencer and Laura Norton AKA Kerry Wyatt met on the set of Emmerdale and began dating in 2015. They announced their engagement on New Year's Day 2019.Status: Engaged
18 of 28Fiona Wade and Simon Cotton
Emmerdale's Fiona Wade, who plays Priya Sharma, announced in 2017 that she was dating someone, and when she posted a cryptic photo in the summer of 2018, many were sure that she was in a relationship with Simon Cotton, who had a small part on the soap in 2017. They also announced their engagement on New Year's Day 2019.Status: Engaged
19 of 28Charlie Clapham and Stephanie Davis
Charlie played Freddie Roscoe in Hollyoaks, and dated Stephanie Davis AKA Sinead O'Connor in 2014. Status: Split
20 of 28James Sutton and Sammy Winward
James Sutton, who currently plays John Paul McQueen but formerly played Ryan Lamb in Emmerdale, and Sammy Winward AKA Katie Sugden had a brief romance in 2010. Status: Split
21 of 28Chris Chittell and Lesley Dunlop
Emmerdale co-stars Chris Chittell, who plays Eric Pollard, and Lesley Dunlop, who plays Brenda Walker met on set and got married in Cornwall in 2016. Status: Married
22 of 28Tina O'Brien and Ryan Thomas
Corrie couple Tina O'Brien (Sarah Louise Platt) and Ryan Thomas (Jason Grimshaw) dated for six years and share daughter Scarlett. Status: Split
23 of 28Alfie Browne-Sykes and Amanda Clapham
Alfie Browne-Sykes and Amanda Clapham met whilst both starring on Hollyoaks as Jason Roscoe and Holly Cunningham and are reportedly dating. Status: Dating
24 of 28Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan
Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan were Neighbours sweethearts, and fans across the world rooted for them to make it. Sadly, the co-stars split in 1989. Status: Split
25 of 28Jeff Hordley and Zoe Henry
The Emmerdale couple and college sweethearts married in 2003, and now play Rhona Goskirk and Cain Dingle on the soap. Status: Married
26 of 28Alan Halsall and Lucy-Jo Hudson
Coronation Street co-stars Alan (Tyrone Dobbs) and Lucy-Jo (Katy Harris) married in 2009 and share daughter Sienna. After splitting in March 2016, the pair reunited, but in 2018 announced they were splitting for good.Status: Split
27 of 28Emmett J. Scanlan and Claire Cooper
Hollyoaks' Emmett J. Scanlan AKA Brendan Brady and Claire Cooper AKA Jacqui McQueen tied the knot in January 2015. Status: Married
28 of 28Anna Passey and Nick Rhys
Hollyoaks stars Anna Passey AKA Sienna Blake and Nick Rhys AKA Lockie Campbell have been together since 2013.Status: Together
As for the future, Johnny admitted that he and Natalie would like to start a family.
“Yes, it’s definitely a possibility,” he added.
“But I am so lucky as Natalie and I both love acting and as long as I’m working then I am delighted. I have a fantastic job and Natalie is wonderful, too.”
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Johnny and Natalie had managed to keep their romance under wraps for the majority of their relationship but sent the rumour mill into overdrive in June when they appeared on a Zoom call together to wish their co-star Liam Fox happy birthday.
Natalie confirmed they were together a month later during an appearance on Loose Women.
She told the panel, “Our first date was in mid January, and then we were just having a couple of dates in February and then obviously March lockdown happened.
“And we were together at the time that Boris Johnson announced it. So we’re like, ‘Oh.” So he’s been kind of staying with me, and then they were saying, yes, it could be three weeks. Yes, it might be six weeks. I was like, ‘Oh, okay!’.”