Roxanne Pallett (born 26 December 1982 in Carlisle, Cumbria) is a British actress and singer. She’s most famous for playing the role of Jo Sugden in ITV soap opera Emmerdale from 2005-2008.

Pallett was born and brought up in Carlisle, Cumbria by her English mother and grandmother. Her maternal-grandfather was Italian, and her mother and Iranian father split before she was born.

Educated at Robert Ferguson Primary School and Trinity School, she then graduated with a BA Honours degree in Media and Cultural Studies from Liverpool John Moores University. Pallett studied at the Manchester School of Screen Acting on weekends, and began auditioning outside her studies.

In her last year at university, Pallett co-formed girl band Urban Angel, writing songs for them with production and management by ex-East 17 member and Ivor Novello award winner Tony Mortimer. After landing a deal with a record label, Pallett spent a year developing her music.

In 2005, Pallett auditioned for the role of Delilah Dingle in Emmerdale. After some final callbacks and workshop based auditions, the producers asked her to play the feistier role of Jo Stiles, a role they were still writing.

Pallett won critical acclaim for her major domestic violence storyline in 2008-2009, and later revealed that in real life she had also been in a relationship in which she suffered domestic violence.

In August 2008, Pallett became the public face of the Early Warning Signs campaign for UK domestic violence charity Refuge, that urges young women to look out for early signs where a partner may turn violent in a relationship.

During her 130 shows and three years on Emmerdale, Pallett was nominated for several awards as Sexiest Female, Best Storyline and Best Actress at The British Soap Awards 2007, 2008, 2009, the Inside Soap Awards and TV Quick Awards 2008.

Tom Cooper | Elite.