'Oaks star hopes for 'serious' drama roles

Hollyoaks star Emma Rigby has vowed to concentrate on "serious" roles after she bows out of the soap in December.

The 19-year-old actress recently confirmed that she plans to leave her part as Hannah Ashworth on the Channel 4 show in order to pursue new projects.

Rigby originally announced her decision to quit in November last year, but she later extended her contract by six months following talks with series producer Lucy Allan.

Discussing her future plans in an interview with The Sun, the star revealed: "I am seriously nervous about leaving a stable job like Hollyoaks, especially in the current climate of the time.

"But I don't feel that a soap like Hollyoaks will hinder my career in any way. It's been a fantastic experience and I wouldn't change it for the world. I think soaps get a lot of bad press. They aren't taken seriously enough even though we act day in, day out. I do wish people would see how valuable this is.

"I want to get into some more serious stuff when I get out - theatre, films and drama."

Rigby also ruled out the possibility of following in the footsteps of Gemma Atkinson, who has focused on glamour modelling since leaving Hollyoaks in 2006.

She commented: "I'd absolutely never do what Gemma Atkinson has done. The glamour scene is not me at all. I don't think I could be labelled as a glamour babe. Everyone has their own opinions of what will give them success, so it's completely up to her, but you won't catch me doing anything like that."

Rigby made her Hollyoaks debut in 2005. In 2007, she tackled one of the programme's most hard-hitting storylines, which saw her character Hannah suffer from the eating disorders bulimia and anorexia.