Emmerdale Priya Sharma star's life – Famous husband, glam bikini snaps and soap exit

Priya Sharma’s life is turned upside down in Emmerdale this week, as Chloe accuses her of having an affair with Al Chapman.

While viewers know that Al was having a steamy fling with Chas Dingle, all eyes have turned to Priya – who is left shocked by the allegation.

However, Priya convinces her that she is not Al’s lover – leading Chloe to realise who he may have been having the affair with.

READ MORE: Emmerdale’s Fiona Wade set to exit soap after 11 years amid anniversary mass cull

Since joining the soap in 2011, Priya has been at the centre of many of the soap’s biggest storylines, and it seems that she may be unwittingly embroiled in another as the truth about the affair unfolds.

As viewers wait to find out what will happen next, Daily Star takes a closer look inside the life of Priya Sharma actress Fiona Wade.

Life before Priya Sharma

Although Fiona is familiar to soap fans as Priya Sharma, the star rose to fame on children’s drama Grange Hill as Joanna Day, a role she played between 1996 to 1998.

From there she has not left our screens, appearing in a number of huge TV series including Where The Heart Is, Holby City, Waterloo Road, Inspector Lewis, Tracey Beaker Returns and Law & Order: UK.

Emmerdale is not Fiona’s only soap role either, as she also played Sandeesh in two episodes of Coronation Street in 2011.

However, in the same year she landed her role as Priya Sharma, where she has continued to play the fan-favourite character for more than a decade.

Famous husband

It’s not only fame that Fiona has found on Emmerdale, but also love.

The star met writer and actor Simon Cotton in 2017 when he played Home Farm client Hugh Bryant, who later terminated his business with Home Farm after his car was set on fire.

Prior to Emmerdale, Simon had also starred in The Fall Of The Krays, The Unseen, Doctors and Prime Video series Hanna.

He and Fiona hit it off on set and began dating, before Simon proposed to Fiona two years later in 2019.

As part of the proposal, Simon left a sequence of clues involving her family at various locations, before popping the question.

Speaking about the proposal, Fiona told The Sun: “It was a sequence of clues, involving my best friends and my mother. And he took me to this beautiful hotel in London, then he took me to my home where my dad passed away.

“It was candles and flowers and then the next day we went to Paris.”

The couple later married in a sweet ceremony at Euridge Manor and Orangery in The Cotswolds, with Fiona walking down the aisle in a stunning strapless lace gown.

They have since celebrated their wedding anniversary with sweet posts on Instagram, including one in 2021 where Simon paid tribute to his wife by sharing a snap of them on their big day.

He captioned the beautiful post: “Two years walking through this life together. I can’t wait for a million more”.

Tragic loss

Away from the cameras, Fiona suffered a heartbreaking loss at the age of 24 years old, when her father Colin died from oesophageal cancer.

Speaking about her father’s death, the actress said his diagnosis had come as a huge shock and explained that she had never heard of this specific type of cancer before.

“He was such an amazing person, the best father I could ever wish for and it was so sad and shocking when he was diagnosed,” Fiona told Leeds Live.

“I had never heard of this type of cancer before and I always feel to this day that if we had been more aware of oesophageal cancer or reflux disease then for sure earlier diagnosis would have made a huge difference and maybe saved his life.”

The star has since teamed up with the Oesophageal & Gastric Cancer Charity (OPA) and became its patron, raising awareness of this type of cancer.

Fiona also paid tribute to her father on the 10th anniversary of his death in an emotional Instagram post, saying: “Can’t believe it’s been 10 years since I lost my amazing dad. Think of u everyday, and you’re still the most beautiful person I’ve ever known.

“You have the purest soul, Such a wonderful father to me, I’m so lucky to have had you in my life. I love you.”

Anxiety battle

Fiona has also spoken openly about her three-decade long battle with anxiety, with the actress revealing to OK! Magazine that at her lowest point she “couldn’t even get on the train.”

However, she explained that her anxiety was due to having “taken on so much” at a young age, and that now she does not let her anxiety stop her.

She said: “I’m a very positive person, so it’s weird to think I can be anxious and worried about things all the time.

“But that’s the thing: you can be confident, love your life and be happy and still have the most crippling anxiety. You just never know what’s going on with someone.”

Fiona continued: “At my lowest point, when I was a little bit older, I literally couldn’t even get on the train. I couldn’t do anything.

“Looking back, it was because I’d taken on so much. I was at a young age when I didn’t understand myself. Now I do and so it doesn’t stop me from doing anything.”

Soap exit

Fans were left devastated earlier this year after Emmerdale bosses confirmed that Fiona would be leaving the soap after more than a decade playing Priya.

During her time on the soap, Priya has been involved in some huge storylines including her fling with Cain Dingle and marriage to Rakesh Kotecha.

However, ITV confirmed to Digital Spy in October 2022 that Priya will be departing the dales, and that Fiona is due to film her exit scenes in the upcoming months – although no details have been given about her storyline just yet.

Fans took to social media as the news broke, with one saying: “Gutted it’s been confirmed that @FionaWade_ is leaving #Emmerdale, hope Priya gets a good exit and not just in a taxi.”

Another tweeted alongside a crying emoji: “Priya”

“Gutted to hear about Priya’s exit, a shame for such a lovely character. I wish Fiona the best of luck in what she does next. Priya has been underused, she deserved more storylines. some that standout are her ED story and scars story, which will stay with me forever,” added a third.

Glam snaps

Fiona has delighted fans both on and off-screen, with the actress regularly sharing a number of glamorous snaps on her social media pages.

One snap showed the actress looking radiant as she posed in a tiny yellow bikini, flaunting her endless legs and toned figure.

She captioned the radiant post: “And then the sun came out,” followed by a sunshine and a smiling emoji.

Another stunning snap showed Fiona wearing a silver strapless sheer dress with a sweetheart neckline, with the star looking incredible as she lounged on a grey velvet chair.

She captioned the Instagram post: “Thank you @laperlalingerie”, with fans going wild for the snap in the comments.

One fan posted a string of fire and love heart eye emojis, while others hailed her as “stunning”, “gorgeous” and “sexy.”

Emmerdale airs weeknights on ITV

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk