Emmerdale Zoe Henry is married to Jeff Hordley
Soaps

Emmerdale star Zoe Henry: Her real-life marriage to telly icon and wholesome hobby

We're all going round to Zoe and Jeff's for dinner!

Emmerdale star Zoe Henry has been through the wringer as her alter ego Rhona Goskirk.

But away from the cameras, Zoe’s life is much less dramatic! 

Emmerdale stars Zoe Henry and Jeff Hordley
Zoe, pictured here at The British Soap Awards 2017, is married to co-star Jeff Hordley (Credit: SplashNews.com)

The soap actress is happily married to Emmerdale co-star Jeff Hordley, who plays Cain Dingle, and the pair have two teenage children.

And when the dramas of the Dales get too much for the pair, they’ve got a very wholesome hobby to help them unwind!

What else has Zoe Henry been in?

Accomplished actress Zoe started her on-screen career with a small part in the first ever episode of ITV comedy-drama Cold Feet.

And she went on to have roles in shows including Grafters and The Bill.

Zoe starred as Casey in Corrie (Credit: Photo by ITV/Shutterstock)

Then in 2001, she got the job as Rhona Goskirk in Emmerdale for a short stint, returning for eight months the following year.

Zoe also had a small role in Coronation Street, playing a character called Log Thwaite, who was a friend of Spider Nugent.

But in 2007, Zoe landed the part of Casey Carwell in Corrie.

Casey was a friend of Claire Peacock and abducted Claire’s baby son.

And just to make sure she got the full set, Zoe also appeared in EastEnders in 2007, playing a police officer Detective Constable Deanna Cunningham, who was investigating the killing of Trina Johnson.

Who does Zoe Henry play in Emmerdale?

Rhona first came to the village for a month, covering for Zoe Tate who had gone on holiday. She had a brief romance with Marlon Dingle – aww, they go way back!

The following year she returned to the show, this time for eight months, and picked up with Marlon once more. But Rhona left and stayed away from the village for several years.

Rhona and Marlon have a long history (Credit: ITV)

When she came back in 2010, covering for Paddy Kirk, she had a brief rekindling with Marlon before realising she’d fallen in love Mr Kirk.

And since then she’s had Marlon’s son, Leo, who has Down’s Syndrome. She’s been married and divorced from Paddy, and been addicted to painkillers, as well as having a romance with Pete Barton, and Graham Foster, which ended when poor Graham was murdered.

And then there was Pierce Harris.

Rhona’s evil ex-husband raped her on their wedding day. And then he returned to the village to torment her, even kidnapping best friend Vanessa as part of his crazed revenge.

Pierce was violent (Credit: ITV/YouTube)

And it was Pierce who murdered poor Graham – though we’ve got to be honest, there were a few people queuing up to finish him off!

Earlier this year Pierce contacted Rhona to tell her he was dying and wanted to see his grown-up son – once more bringing confusion and chaos into the poor vet’s life.

Although she agreed to help him locate Marcus, Pierce died before they got to meet.

Rhona has failed to tell Marlon about any of this and now Marcus is in the village, starting a possible romance with Ethan Anderson, Rhona feels backed into a corner.

Will she finally come clean to Marlon? And how will he react when she does?

How old is Zoe Henry?

Fortunately Zoe, can escape from Rhona’s heartbreak and peril at home.

She 48 years old lives with husband Jeff and their two children Violet, 15, and Stan, 11, as well as dog Ronald.

And the family share a gorgeous home in the Yorkshire Dales.

Zoe and Jeff first met at drama school before working together on Emmerdale.

They married in 2003, two years after Zoe joined the soap.

Emmerdale Zoe Henry Jeff Hordley Celebrity Supply teacher BBC
Zoe Henry and Jeff Hordley appeared on Celebrity Supply teacher during lockdown to teach about growing vegetables (Credit: BBC)

Zoe’s allotment

The couple are keen gardeners and often share updates from their allotment with fans on their social media.

Both actors have revealed working outdoors and growing their own produce has been vital to their health and well-being.

Jeff has Crohns disease and in 2009, he spoke about his experience with Express.co.uk to raise awareness of the disease.

Doctors had initially put his symptoms down to irritable bowel syndrome, but Jeff continued to feel unwell.

His symptoms became so severe they began to interfere with his studies, and exhaustion meant he couldn’t make it to class.

“I was a drama student in Manchester and sometimes I had to miss lectures because I was too tired,” he said.

“I even had to drop out of my final year plays.”

Symptoms include diarrhoea, stomach aches and cramps, blood in poo, tiredness and weight loss, although some people don’t have all of these symptoms.

It’s a life-long condition that can’t be cured, but can be managed.

Jeff takes a mixture of probiotics and supplements as well as making huge changes to his diet. He also keeps active and goes running.

Zoe and her mental health

For Zoe, the benefits are for her mental health.

Speaking the Express.co.uk she said: “Jeff has Crohns. He was diagnosed when he was about 18, so he was 23 when I met him, and it’s sort of changed our lives.

“There’s a lot to be said about mental health and having your hands in the soil – that’s a big one for me.

“For Jeff, it’s the health benefits of eating what we’ve grown.”

The couple even made the cover of a recent edition of the National Vegetable Society’s quarterly magazine.

Perhaps real life will meet art sometime soon and Rhona could start helping out at Dr Liam Cavanagh’s allotment in Emmerdale!

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Kerry Barrett
Freelance Soap Writer