She has an older brother called Paul and a long-lost sister Julie, whom she
only met for the first time in 2001.
She became famous in her twenties as the sexy Liverpudlian barmaid Gina Ward in Heartbeat (1992). As well as an actress, she is also a singer and while she was in the series she released two minor chart hits (neither reached the UK Top 40). She was able to showcase her musical talent in A Talent for Deception (1993), where she performed Lulu's hit "Shout".
She gave birth to a son named Jake Simpkin on the 10th September 2003 with
husband Mark Simpkin. She gave birth to her second son, Freddy Jay Simpkin, on August 8, 2008. He weighed 8 lbs.