Emmerdale star Kelli Hollis has opened up about her four-year stint on the ITV soap – reminiscing about one iconic star who showed their true colours on set.

The actress, 49, played Ali Spencer on the ITV soap between 2011 and 2015.

Kelli’s last appearance in the Dales was a decade ago after her partner Ruby Haswell (Alicya Eyo) died in a helicopter crash and she decided to move to Liverpool.

Three years later, while off-screen, her alter-ego died in a car crash.

Speaking exclusively to Daily Mail about her time on the ITV show, Kelli recalled her first day on set – and there was on star in particular who made her day extra special.

Kelli said: ‘It was nerve-wracking. I remember meeting the amazing Shirley Stelfox, who played Edna.

‘Everybody sort of warned me, they were like, “Just so you know, she’ll try and freak you out, she’ll try and scare you”.

‘So I dipped out into the little smoking quadrant, and there she was. I was so nervous to meet her.

‘I went, “Hi Shirley, I’m Kelly”.

‘She was there with this beautiful mane of hair that you never saw on screen, just sat there and she just went, “Oh, is it you from that new, horrible effing family?”

‘And I went, Yeah I effing am! Do you know what I mean?” And that was it.

‘And that was it sort of like bonded us for the whole time that I was there.

‘I absolutely adored Shirley.

‘Obviously, she just did it to try and tease you and, you know, try and sort of freak you out a little bit.

‘But I absolutely loved Shirley. It’s so sad she’s not with us anymore, but I remember that happening on my first day.’

Shirley played Edna in Emmerdale between 2000 and 2015.

The soap legend passed away in December 2015 aged 74 after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Kelli’s first ever scene on the show was also pretty big – as she filmed on the show’s most well-known location.

She told us: ‘I think it was a Woolpack scene, you know, throwing you in at the deep end.

‘Walking into the wool pack with so many sort of iconic faces, and you know people you seen all your life.

‘It’s like you know them, because like, say, if you’re a big soap fan, you know these people, these characters, inside out, it was so welcoming.

‘It felt like you’d been there forever, if you know what I mean.’

When asked if there were any other blunders that happened on set, Kelli revealed: ‘I remember at the beginning, they already had me hitting somebody.

‘I remember having to do a scene in the village with Tom Lister, who played Carl King.

‘For something, I had to run out and basically go to punch him. I remember that not going so well at the first few takes.

‘I’m only little, but that didn’t work quite well, that first morning.’

As well as Emmerdale, Kelli has appeared in Shameless, Waterloo Road, Doctors and Ackley Bridge.

Emmerdale airs on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX.