Gemma Oaten relied on Universal Credit to cover her rent after the pandemic brought her work to a halt. The 42-year-old, best known for playing Rachel Breckle in Emmerdale from 2011 to 2015, found herself struggling financially when theatres shut in March 2020. As bills mounted, the former soap star said she faced sleepless nights and was ultimately forced to claim benefits.
In a resurfaced 2022 interview, Gemma spoke openly about the period before she was able to regain her financial footing. Asked whether she had ever found it difficult to make ends meet, the former Emmerdale actress said: “Yes. The worst time was at the start of lockdown in 2020. I was on tour, doing a play called Ten Times Table by Alan Ayckbourn. It was cancelled and, like many people in the industry, I got no compensation.”
She continued: “All the theatres were closed, the TV studios stopped producing, and I had no money coming in. People think if you’ve been on television, you must have money. But I was renting and I started having sleepless nights about my bills. By May, I realised I couldn’t make it work.”
The ITV star said she received the support for around a year, until she was able to secure work again.
“So I took a deep breath, and did what a lot of people did. I went on Universal Credit. I was on it for about a year, and I also got the self-employment grant from the Government,” Gemma explained.
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She added: “That helped me pay my rent and then I started doing some public speaking work online.”
The actress and presenter also recalled receiving a substantial fee for a single speaking engagement.
Speaking to the Daily Mail’s This is Money, Gemma said: “I was once paid £7,000 for an hour and a half of my time, doing a keynote talk at a gala dinner. I spent some of it on a holiday and saved the rest.”
Gemma is the CEO of Support and Empathy for People With Eating Disorders, known as SEED, the charity established in Hull by her parents, Marg and Dennis, 25 years ago.
She is also a regular presenter on BBC Radio Humberside and Radio York.