THE BIG interview
EASTENDERS | BBC1 MONDAY
EastEnders star Emma Barton reveals her marathon training secrets, and mulls over Honey’s status as the last Mitchell woman standing…
It’s a tall order to come up with a genuine soap first these days – yet EastEnders are attempting it this week, as the show prepares to shoot scenes live at the London Marathon, to drop into the following day’s episode! Actors Emma Barton and Jamie Borthwick will be running the 26.2 mile route for real, while also filming a handful of scenes as their characters Honey and Jay, who on screen are running the iconic course in memory of their beloved Lola.
Thankfully, both Emma and Jamie have completed the marathon before, back in 2019, so both know what they’re letting themselves in for! As Inside Soap chats to Emma over Zoom a few days before the big event, she talks us though her training regime, as well as pondering Honey’s place in the Mitchell family tree…
Hi Emma! How does it feel to be running the marathon again – and this time filming scenes for EastEnders to boot?
It’s a massive thing, the London Marathon, isn’t it? We’re a Londonbased show and we’re doing something that’s never been done before. So it’s very exciting, but also very nerveracking. It was quite short notice when I did it five years ago, and I’d never really run before so I had issues with things like runner’s knee. This time around I’ve worked a lot harder, I’ve been doing all the strength training and sticking to a programme.
How has the training been going?
I have a regime in place – I run four times a week, then try to do a Pilates or weighttraining session as well. It’s pretty exhausting, it takes up so much time. But I feel ready. Although now I have what they call ‘maranoia’, which I had never heard of before. I just want to wrap myself in cotton wool because I’m frightened of catching a cold or not getting enough sleep and overdoing it!
And in terms of filming the scenes for EastEnders, how will that work logistically?
I’m going to treat it like a live episode. Thankfully Jamie and I aren’t speaking as Honey and Jay while we’re running! We’re hoping to film bits at the start and finish line, as well as the Cutty Sark and Tower Bridge. We’ve already been practising running in our costumes!
Have the rest of the EastEnders cast been supporting you?
I’ll tell you what, the cast have been amazing. They’re just like, “I can’t believe you’re doing this!” And it is a massive thing for us, because we’re actors, not athletes. It’s really tough and time-consuming, and you
