‘Mess with Cain and you'll get abuse!'

Emmerdale’s Mark Womack on playing dodgy copper DI Malone, the dark Dingle’s nemesis…

- Alison Slade

EMMERDALE

MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY / ITV / 7PM / SOAP

Soap wouldn’t be soap without a villain, and throwing his weight around in Emmerdale right now is corrupt cop DI Malone. It’s a gift of a part for actor Mark Womack, and a case of third time lucky.

‘I auditioned for a role a few years ago and couldn’t do it – I don’t want to say which character, because it’s not fair on the actor playing him,’ Mark, 59, tells us.

‘But I can say that, originally, I went up for the role of Graham. Sometimes, you’re just not right for the part, and with soap, it’s got to be the right fit. So when this came up, I was really chuffed!’

Here, Mark – whose wife, Sam, played EastEnders’ Ronnie Mitchell – tells us about being the village’s latest baddie, and how he and his family are coping with lockdown...

Tell us about how you’ve created this twisted character…

The initial brief was that he was a corrupt policeman and a nemesis for Cain. With soap, I think it’s important to make sure it’s rooted in reality, so I asked if I could play it with my own accent, and they were like, ‘Yes, not a problem.’ With every part I play, I think how it would be if my life had taken that turn. So I imagined I’d gone into the police force. As for the corruption, I think Malone was pulled into it, but enjoyed the power trip. When I read the scripts, I saw he was arrogant but I’ve tried to do it with a bit of a smile.