Emmerdale icon Moira Dingle unrecognisable in 𝕊exy photoshoot years before ITV soap

ITV soap star Natalie J. Robb looks worlds away from her alter ego Moira Dingle in an unearthed 90s photoshoot.

The actress looked stunning in a sultry photoshoot before joining Emmerdale. Natalie took part in the photoshoot to promote her band called The Kinky People. Natalie, who was the lead singer of the band, looked fresh-faced as she stripped off to a small bandeau-style top for one of the photos.

She sported a smoky silver eyeshadow look and a 90s top-knot hair style. In another picture, she posed in a pink top with her long hair flowing. The Emmerdale actress lifted up her top slightly to flash her toned stomach and tease a tattoo and belly-button piercing.

Natalie first burst onto the scene aged nine for her first television appearance in an STV docudrama alongside Tom Conti before taking on more regular roles including in the Scottish soap Take The High Road. She also appeared in Sky TV’s Dream Team and BBC soap Doctors. The actress continued to attempt to take her band The Kinky People into the charts while pursuing an acting career.

In 1997 Natalie released a single called Keep Your Love with dance group Partizan and subsequently singing on trance track I Will Be There with artist Absolutely the following year. Natalie has largely kept her love life private but it was revealed back in 2020 that she and co-star Johnny McPherson, who plays Liam Cavanagh, were dating, with the pair moving in together during lockdown.

Natalie was promoting her band The Kinky People

Natalie embarked on a music career after several acting roles

Johnny told The Mirror at the time: “We had to make a decision as lots of couples did. We decided to move in together and so, yes, lockdown did fast forward our relationship. We get on so well. We come from quite different backgrounds but we are essentially the same person. We are both a pair of big kids. We have exactly the same stupid humour.”

However, the pair split in 2021, with Natalie revealing that the co-stars realised they were “better off as friends”. The actress joined Emmerdale in 2009 as Moira Dingle and has been a fan favourite ever since. Moira has been involved in numerous hard-hitting storylines, including affairs, battling alcoholism and the death of her daughter.

The farmer’s wife and her family were brought in by series producer Gavin Blyth as part of an overhaul of the ITV soap. They were described as being “sexy, modern and contemporary” with actress Natalie adding at the time that being part of a modern-day farming family is what drew her to the role of Moira.

In recent scenes, Moira’s marriage to Cain Dingle (played by Jeff Hordley) has continued to be under strain, with Moira’s son Matty Barton (Ash Palmisciano) in prison after being falsely accused of stabbing Cain’s nephew Samson (Sam Hall). Moira ordered Cain to get Samson to see sense but she ended up furiously lashing out at him when he admitted he was unable to get his nephew to change his mind. Moira branded him “weak and pathetic” before goading her husband to resort to violence when he lost his temper.