Emmerdale's Ash: What's to come for Matty?

EMMERDALE’S ASH PALMISCIANO: COULD MATTY’S DESPERATION TO BE ACCEPTED PUT HIM IN DANGER?

"I constantly have to remind myself I can't believe how amazing it is"

Ash Palmisciano

How far will he go to impress his new friends? Actor Ash Palmisciano, aka Matty Barton, is here to discuss the toxic masculinity storyline that’s brewing in the Dales. It’s a story set to leave his superfan mother on the edge of her seat.

And, as the show’s first transgender actor, Ash tells us what it’s like to become an unexpected a role model, how he ‘accidentally’ landed the job, and why he’s got high hopes for Matty.

"Emmerdale have been amazing right from the word off. They said, 'We want to tell an authentic story, and if there's anything that we do that you think needs to be more authentic, let us know'"

Ash Palmisciano

WHO IS ASH PALMISCIANO?

Ash plays Matty Barton in Emmerdale, and is best known for being the first transgender actor and character to ever appear on the Yorkshire-based soap. While Ash won Best Newcomer at the 2018 Inside Soap Awards, Emmerdale is the just the second job the actor’s ever had in TV!

Ash made his on-screen debut in 2015 on BBC2’s Boy Meets Girl - a sitcom about relationships in the transgender community.

MATTY BARTON's YEAR IN EMMERDALE

The character Matty Barton first appeared in Emmerdale in 2009 as Hannah Barton (played by Grace Cassidy), but after several years of negative experiences, she ran away and started a new life in London.

- In June 2018 Hannah Barton returned to Emmerdale as Matty Barton (played by Ash Palmisciano), having secretly transitioned from female to male. Mum Moria was shocked and rejected his gender transition. After Matty was left hospitalised in a transgender attack, Moria rushed to his side, and the pair started to reconnect.

- Matty’s endured a hard year, with mixed reactions to his gender transition. On New Year's Eve he was involved in a transphobic attack by Issac - a previous boyfriend of Hannah’s. Matty was wrestled to the floor in an attempt to remove his top, to prove he wasn’t a ‘proper man’.

- Horrified by the attack, Matty underwent ‘top surgery’ in April 2019 as part of his gender transition. Matty’s breast tissue was successfully removed to produce a more masculine appearance. Post surgery Matty has developed a newfound confidence, but is desperate to find a group of friends that will accept him for just being Matty...