ANGELA'S BRAVE MOVE 'I'VE HAD TO LEARN TO LET GO'

At 50, the beloved Kiwi actress has taken on several exciting new roles

- Sophie Neville

When Angela Bloomfield first read the script of her new project, in which she plays a lesbian woman searching for love, she had to take a big, deep breath. With its opening scene involving a very racy Zoom call, the former Shortland Street star was forced to muster all her courage.

“But I was so excited, I practically said yes before I’d even finished reading the script,” laughs Angela as she sits down to chat about Joey’s Heart, a romantic short film in which she plays Joey, a self-described “gay Bridget Jones”.

The character couldn’t be more different from her iconic role as Shorty’s Rachel McKenna, but Angela relished the chance to challenge herself.

“Some aspects did take bravery on my part, but that’s what made me think, ‘You’ve got to do this,’ because I knew it would stretch me, teach me and get me engaged,” she says. “The intimacy with females was something I had very little experience with, so that was a win as well. There are times in your life when you have to put yourself out there. And there are not enough films that portray queer love stories, so it was a real privilege to be involved.”

It’s a sunny Sunday afternoon when Woman’s Day visits Angela at home on Auckland’s North Shore, where she lives with her children, Max, 18, and Maya, 17. It’s been a big few months for the actress, who celebrated her 50th birthday in December and recently started a new job in the building industry.

While some people approach a milestone with trepidation, not so Angela, who is embracing the new decade with positivity and enthusiasm.