The former EastEnders star has long had links to the city
Former soap star Samantha Womack has forged an incredible career in television and on stage, but she saw her life change after filming in Liverpool over 25 years ago. Today, generations will know her for her role as Ronnie Mitchell in EastEnders and Samantha, now 50, is also currently touring the country in a new production of the Broadway classic, 42nd Street.
The uplifting show is regarded as the “original showbiz musical” and will arrive at the Liverpool Empire from September 4 to September 9. Samantha is part of a star-studded cast that includes Liverpool legend, Les Dennis.
But the actress has a strong association with the city as she lived here while filming the late 90s ITV crime drama, Liverpool 1, where she met Emmerdale’s Mark Womack. Produced by Lime Street Productions for ITV, the show centred on the work of a fictional Merseyside Police vice squad.
The drama starred Samantha Womack, nee Janus, alongside Liverpool actors Mark Womack and Paul Usher, who rose to fame as Barry Grant in Brookside. First airing in 1998, it produced gritty storylines set at the heart of the city’s underworld involving drugs, sex, paedophilia and murder.
But despite consistently strong viewing figures, ITV chose not to re-commission the show after the second series. These images, courtesy of our archive, have been unseen for years and captured when the lost show was filmed in the city over two decades ago.
Two images show Samantha inside the former Blue Bar during the time of filming Liverpool 1, as well as sitting outside with the Albert Dock as the backdrop. Another photograph shows Samantha with the barmaids from Vernons pub in Dale Street during the filming of the then-new police TV series.
In the picture, Cathy Worthington Alexandra Bruchez, Michelle Parry, Tracey Flynn and Marie Anne Barton are also photographed. Here, you can also see co-star Mark Womack and Samantha smile for the camera after switching on the Christmas lights in Liverpool city centre
Samantha forged a lifelong connection to the city when filming the show as she married co-star, Mark. Samantha is best known for playing Ronnie Mitchell in Albert Square but first rose to prominence after performing for Britain in Eurovision in 1991.
As for Mark, 63, today he is known for playing DI Mark Malone in Emmerdale, as well as his roles as DI Pete Hammond in Merseybeat and David Callard in Murphy’s Law. He has also recently starred in BBC’s The Responder, also set in the city.
In Liverpool 1, Samantha played DC Isobel De Pauli and Mark was cast as DC Mark Callaghan. It was on the set of Liverpool 1 that the pair met and they married and went on to have two children together.
In later years, Samantha and Mark acted together in a filmed version of Nicky Allt’s LFC comedy One Night in Istanbul. In 2013, they also made their first-ever joint appearance on stage in the play Hope at Liverpool’s Royal Court.
However, the couple split in 2018, but they remain on positive terms. Samantha recently told the ECHO that she hopes to see Mark on stage in Boys From the Blackstuff at the Royal Court while she’s in the city.
She also said she “always feels at home in Liverpool.” Samantha said: “I love Liverpool. My kids have grown up there partially and I’ve loved watching this incredible place that’s shaped my life grow and change.”
“Life’s too short to not be able to close to people. I’ve learnt that throughout my life, you lose people and I think it’s important to be warm, be kind and be supportive. Family should be strong in whatever way it is. In this day and age I’m yet to find a family now that isn’t blended. Everyone is far more understanding of people with stepkids, different partners, or same-sex marriages.
“I love that about our community now. It’s just try and be kind and get on with each other. That’s our policy and we have the best time.”
Their daughter, Lili-Rose, is a musician studying at LIPA and she praised Liverpool for treating her well as she revealed she has been welcomed into the city’s flourishing music scene. Samantha’s strong links to the city have meant she has often been described as an honorary Scouser.
She even slipped into using some Liverpool slang during her chat with the ECHO as she casually referred to her “trainees.” Samantha has now traded the hustle and bustle of city life for the quiet of the mountains in Valencia where she lives with her partner, Oliver Farnworth, who is also set to star in the new production of 42nd Street.