EMMERDALE star Paula Lane has broken her silence about the controversial Ella Forster child killer storyline.
The actress plays Ella who tonight was revealed to have brutally beaten her childhood friend to death when they were both just 11 years old.
Viewers watched as Ella revealed the full harrowing truth of what happened to her as a child.
She told unlikely confidant Cain Dingle how she had been abused and neglected by her drug dealer father for years before finding solace in schoolmate Joanne and her mother Ruth.
Ruth had kept her fed and safe during the summer holidays but then Joanne had turned her back on her to get her old friends back.
In a fury, and terror about being abandoned back to her life of neglect, Ella – real name Ruth – lashed out and beat her friend to death with her bare hands.
With her secret out, she was dumped and kicked out by boyfriend Liam Cavanagh, rejected by pal Manpreet Sharma and become the village’s pariah.
Now actress Paula Lane has opened up about Ella’s shocking secret.
“Ella is so ashamed of her past and she knows that as soon as she reveals all she risks losing everything with Liam,” she said.
“Everytime the truth has come out in the past, she has had to move on and start again, so it’s incredibly painful to share and know that there is no going back now.
“I guess she feels he deserves the truth especially with everything he went through with Leanna.”
She added: “It’s a heaviness she carries all the time in the back of her mind.
“Pretending to carry on as normal is a short term fix and behind closed doors the guilt is very real.
“Every birthday is a reminder of what happened and will never allow her to fully move on.”
But she will find more support when Mandy Dingle stands by her.
Paula revealed: “In a conversation with Mandy, Ella says she always had to run when the truth has been exposed.
“I expect she’s experienced this reaction quite a few times and then has found herself living out of her car again.
The Sun's Soaps Editor Carl Greenwood on the controversial new storyline
EMMERDALE has taken a big swing with its latest bombshell child killer storyline – and I for one am glad that they have.
These are exactly the types of storylines that soaps should tackle.
For all the sensationalism, huge stunts and so-called issues-based storylines – the hearts of soaps should be people.
And they shouldn’t shy away from damaged people like Ella.
Yes, she’s a killer and yes she killed a child as a child – but she’s settled in the right place – Emmerdale makes Midsomer look like the safest place in the UK.
Undoubtedly there is going to be a backlash to this storyline.
It’s only a matter of time before there are comparisons to real-life cases like Jamie Bulger’s killers or Mary Bell, but they would be unfair.
But as unseemly as it could be described – this is a powerful storyline.
Bosses have played a blinder by casting Paula Lane – and by slowly integrating her into the village and showing her true personality.
This is a careful, nuanced storyline that explores something that most show’s wouldn’t dare. Bosses should be applauded for that.
“Mandy and Ella from day one found something in each other that just sparked.
“I think because the two have admitted they both have dark pasts and haven’t made the best choices in life, there is a real empathy there and protective nature for each other.”