Emmerdale star Lisa Riley has responded to fans’ messages about Eric Pollard’s (Chris Chittell) Parkinson’s storyline in a sweet Instagram post.
The Mandy Dingle actress revealed that she has received a lot of messages from fans since scenes aired which showed Eric opening up to Mandy about his diagnosis.
During a big week for the Dingles, Mandy was one of a number of family members asked to provide an alibi explaining where she was on the night that Craig Reed (Ben Addis) was murdered.
In flashback scenes that revealed the truth of Mandy’s whereabouts, viewers learnt that she had been with Eric, who explained to her that he had Parkinson’s disease.
Mandy was horrified when Eric swore her to secrecy, insisting that he wanted to deal with it all alone.
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Many fans felt a connection to this heartfelt story and were quick to reach out to the stars, which Lisa Riley was very appreciative of.
‘I’m away on holiday and I’ve been woken up to your beautiful, beautiful, kind messages about last nights episode,’ she wrote beneath a still from the episode itself.
Eric has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (Picture: ITV)
‘Firstly thank you and secondly for the lovely Chitters to have been given such a powerful, heartfelt storyline is fantastic, I hope you all enjoy how it plays out over the upcoming months.
‘Parkinson’s has affected so many many many people, let’s see what’s next!’
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Fans rushed to the comments of the post to praise the performances of both Lisa and Chris, as well as share stories of their own experiences.
‘Yours and Chris’s acting was beautiful. Hope to see more of this duo as the storyline progresses,’ one wrote.
‘It was extremely emotional and an illness close to so many people. You were amazing and I did fill up when you were crying,’ another said.
Speaking about the responsibility of the story, Chris Chittell said:
‘I feel really privileged to be given this storyline. Parkinson’s is indiscriminate, deceptive and wickedly unkind targeting so many.
‘I want to do this storyline justice for the most courageous of people who are having to bear the brunt of this condition.’
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The star reached out to followers.
