Emmerdale’s Mark Jordon and his fiancée Laura Norton have revealed they’re expecting their first child together.
In a new interview, the soap star, 55, insisted he knew his partner, 37, was pregnant even before they took a test in June, but admitted they had planned to get a house and tie the knot before growing a family.
Their news certainly came as a nice ‘surprise’ for actor Mark, who was cleared of assaulting a pensioner in August 2019.
Happy news: Emmerdale’s Mark Jordon and his fiancée Laura Norton have revealed they’re expecting their first child together
‘In my heart I knew before looking at the test. We both looked at the result and there was so much joy, but for a weird moment we were both deadly silent’, TV star Mark said, while the actress added: ‘I had tears in my eyes, we’re over the moon!’
The former Daz Spencer character, who already shares Joseph, 22, and Poppy, 19, with his former wife Siobhan Finneran, admitted the couple tend to ‘go with the flow of things’, with Laura revealing they planned to get a puppy just two weeks before finding out she’s pregnant.
Their baby is due on Mark’s birthday on January 25 and the pair are in ‘no rush’ to find out their gender as they’re focusing on welcoming a ‘healthy’ child.
On becoming a mother, the brunette told OK! magazine: ‘It’s something I’ve always hoped would happen. I hope my instincts kick in. I feel very calm and safe knowing that I’ve seen what an amazing father Mark and how brilliant his kids are.’
How sweet! In a new interview, the soap star, 55, insisted he knew his partner, 37, was pregnant even before they took a test in June
Priorities: Their baby is due on Mark’s birthday on January 25 and the pair are in ‘no rush’ to find out their gender as they’re focusing on welcoming a ‘healthy’ child
The Newcastle native revealed they were left ‘in tears’ when they decided to go to a private hospital for her first scan as partners are not permitted to attend the appointment at NHS facilities due to coronavirus restrictions.
As an excited Mark hailed fatherhood his ‘best job’, Laura credited him for helping out with their new pet pooch as she suffers from fatigue.
The To The Sea Again director’s daughter has been also playing a role in supporting her stepmother through her pregnancy by making her nutritious smoothies.
On his children’s reactions to having a younger sibling, Mark said: ‘Poppy has been calling her “Baby Mama”. Joseph has his own flat so we met him for a walk and he did this wry smile and said, “That’s cool!”‘
Laura, who plays Kerry Wyatt on Emmerdale, was due to return to filming the ITV soap four days after they discovered she’s expecting, so she was forced to inform producers of the news.
The media personality claimed her co-stars Charley Webb and Fiona Wade ‘bizarrely predicted’ she was pregnant earlier this year, and revealed fellow mother-to-be Michelle Harwick has been giving her advice in lockdown.
She also insisted she hasn’t thought about having more children in the future and she’s keen on purchasing a property with the Oldham native, as she has a place in Yorkshire, while he lives in a house near Saddleworth.
The duo claimed they hadn’t moved in together earlier and had originally split their time equally at each other’s abodes as they ‘didn’t want to rush things’ and had a ‘good routine’.
They also gushed about their ‘perfect’ engagement, which saw Mark get down on one knee during a Spanish holiday, after asking her father and his children’s permission to take her hand in marriage.
Their wedding had been pushed back due to Mark’s theatre tour which was scheduled to run up until December, as well as lockdown and their upcoming arrival.
Mark enthused they’re looking forward to the baby now more than ever, shut down the prospect of tying the knot while pregnant, and have delegated the planning of the nuptials to Poppy.
In July 2018, the father-of-two was accused of assaulting Andrew Potts by biting him on the face outside the Farrars Arms in Oldham.
A jury found the thespian not guilty of affray, unlawful wounding and assault by beating, after Mark denied the charges and claimed he was acting in self-defence.
Having been at his side throughout the trial, Laura recently claimed the couple have been looking forward to planning their wedding.
Moving on: Their news certainly came as a nice surprise for actor Mark, who was cleared of assaulting a pensioner in August 2019 (pictured after the trial)