Danny Miller has been overwhelmed by the support he has received by fans over his ‘Emmerdale’ abuse storyline.
The 25-year-old actor’s character Aaron Livesy has been at the centre of a shocking plot which has seen him reveal his father Gordon Livesy (Gary Mavers) raped him as a child.
The harrowing and emotionally affecting storyline reaches its culmination tonight (15.04.16) with a the conclusion of Gordon’s historic sexual abuse trial with viewers seeing what verdict the jury reaches.
Danny has won universal acclaim for his performances as Aaron and he has been delighted with the response he’s had from the British public.
Speaking on ITV’s ‘Lorraine’, he said: "A lot of people are fighting for justice for Aaron and hoping Gordon gets convicted. It’s a storyline that touches people in different ways, the only feedback that we have had is positive because we’ve done it in the right way. People (have been) stopping me in the streets and on social media it’s been such a big thing, people have been really supportive of it."
Danny revealed the soap’s research team worked closely with the NSPCC and Childline to make sure what happened on screen was a true to life as possible, and he hopes the plotline will raise more awareness of abuse.
He said: "Unfortunately, there are these things going on in the world and we want to raise awareness of that. I think what a lot of people are frightened about is not being believed and their message is not being listened to by the people closest to them."
Danny returned to ‘Emmerdale’ in 2014 after a two-year break from the show and although he’s been involved in several tough stories he’s enjoyed his second stint in the Yorkshire Dales a lot more than when he was first cast.
He explained: "When I came back, there was a lot of younger cast there. The first time around, there was only me, Adam Thomas and Kelvin Fletcher, who were of a similar age. Now, there are lots of us in our 20s and early 30s. So it is better the second time around. First time, I was still learning my craft. Now I can enjoy it more."