Alicia Gallagher

On 23 May 2010, it was announced that Anderson had joined the cast of Emmerdale as Alicia, the estranged sister of established character Leyla Harding (Roxy Shahidi). Of her casting, Anderson commented "I'm absolutely thrilled to be joining the show. It'll be wonderful to be working back home in Yorkshire again. I'm a Yorkshire girl so a part in Emmerdale is a dream come true!" She made her screen debut as Alicia in August. ==Development==

Characterisation Upon her introduction, Alicia was described as being "in-your-face" and "trashy" by Steve Hendry from the Sunday Mail. A ''What's on TV'' writer called Alicia "a brazen, spiteful, mouthy barmaid". Anderson worked closely with the make-up and wardrobe teams to make Alicia look "as extreme as possible." Family Alicia was introduced along with her husband, Justin (Andrew Langtree), and their son, Jacob (Joe Warren-Plant). Anderson told Digital Spy's Daniel Kilkelly that Alicia dotes on her son and "loves him to pieces", but things between her and her husband were strained when they first arrived. Anderson called Alicia "a strong family woman", who wanted to be a good wife and mother. Shahidi thought Leyla just wanted to be Jacob's aunt and treat him like anyone would treat their nephew. While attending a Halloween party, Alicia noticed Priya getting drunk and became worried, so she decided to tell Jacob the truth. Alicia learned all about Andy's troubled past and told her sister that it was ancient history as far as she was concerned. Anderson told Kate Woodward from Inside Soap that Alicia could pack a punch and Andy had one chance, so if he blew it, Alicia would be off. Alicia tried to be supportive, but her feelings surrounding her own infertility made it hard for her to deal with her boyfriend having a baby with someone else. Deciding that she needed to give Jacob the perfect birthday, Alicia began stealing from Leyla's shop. Alicia stole cigarettes and alcohol from the stockroom and sold them on. Alicia and Jacob went to stay with Andy, who made it clear that it was not a permanent arrangement. He was also shocked that Alicia had resorted to stealing from the shop. Leyla missed Jacob and found it hard to cope without him around. Andy became curious about Alicia and Leyla's relationship and he pressed Alicia for more information. A show spokesperson commented "She really struggles to talk openly about the situation with Andy. But he's insistent – they can't have any secrets if their relationship has a hope in hell of working." Alicia was temporarily written out of the show and her exit storyline saw her sent to prison, after she punched Val Pollard (Charlie Hardwick) in the face. Of learning about the storyline, Anderson said "When I told the show I was pregnant I had no idea what they were going to do. I had absolutely no say and, to be honest, I really thought they would say, 'She's gone off in a taxi to see her sister', something really normal, and that would be that. Then this elaborate story came about with a previous conviction and I was going, 'thank you'. I just thought it was brilliant. It's really good fun and comic in a lot of ways. I felt privileged they had thought of it that way." Alicia returned on 18 December 2012, while Anderson signed a new one-year contract. Johnson told Digital Spy's Daniel Kilkelly that Dom liked Alicia "a lot" and wanted to make a go of things with her. He was unaware of how deep Alicia's feelings were for David, as he did not know about her history. When Dom found a positive pregnancy test in his home, he assumed it belonged to Gemma. However, Alicia surprised them both when she claimed the pregnancy test belonged to her. Alicia persisted on a new start with David and Jacob in Portugal. On 3 June, Alicia, David and Jacob were seen leaving the village for Portugal, but it was later confirmed that this was not Alicia's final exit scenes. A show spokesperson explained that Anderson's departure would air later in the year. Anderson revealed her reason behind quitting the soap on Lorraine, stating that she left to spend more time with her three-year-old son, Freddie, ""To be honest, the main thing was my little boy. I went back to work really early after I had him... he was 11 weeks old when I went back to work." She continued to state how the show's filming schedule proved too much for her, especially when she would "go a week" without seeing her son. It had also recently been revealed that Alicia would leave without her husband David. Alicia's exit scenes aired on 10 September 2015. ==Storylines==

Alicia comes to the village to warn her sister Leyla to stay away from their mother's funeral. Leyla attends anyway and Alicia tells her not to expect a reconciliation. Alicia returns when her marriage to Justin breaks down and she argues with Leyla, revealing that she adopted Leyla's son, Jacob. Their mother had persuaded Leyla to allow Alicia to adopt him as Alicia is infertile. Leyla asks Alicia and Jacob to move in with her and her boyfriend, David Metcalfe, and Alicia gets a job in The Woolpack. When Jacob has an allergic reaction to some nuts, Alicia accuses Leyla of neglecting him. She also feuds with Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter) and Eve Jenson (Suzanne Shaw). Alicia flirts with Nathan Wylde (Lyndon Ogbourne) and Leyla warns Alicia not to trust him. Alicia also flirts with Declan Macey and he invites her to a housewarming party at Home Farm. Alicia and Declan flirt as he shows her around and he invites her upstairs, but his ex-wife and his daughter arrive and Alicia leaves. After an argument with her ex-husband, Alicia meets Declan at The Woolpack and they have a drink together, before she goes home with him. Leyla and Alicia argue about Jacob and her going out at night, but Jacob overhears them. Alicia soon discovers that Jacob has run away and blames Leyla, but Justin blames her. The police are called in and Alicia gives a press conference. Justin tells Alicia that he is Jacob's biological father and Leyla admits they had a one-night stand. David finds Jacob in an abandoned building and comforts him as he is taken to hospital. Alicia refuses to give Justin access to Jacob and he threatens to go for custody, but Leyla defends Alicia. Alicia is furious when Justin collects Jacob from school without informing her. She reveals her fear that Jacob will hate her as a result of Justin spoiling him. Leyla tells Alicia that she should not stop Justin seeing Jacob, as Jacob misses him. Alicia later calls Justin and agrees that he can have access to their son. Alicia begins dating Andy Sugden. When she suffers financial problems, Andy offers her a loan, but she refuses to take his money. Andy then tries to get her a job at the veterinary surgery, but she tells him not to interfere in her life. When Andy and Debbie Dingle find out that their daughter needs a bone marrow transplant, they decide to conceive a saviour sibling. Alicia supports Andy, but is dismayed when he and Debbie have sex to conceive the baby. Alicia struggles with the situation and she and Andy break up. Alicia turns to David for support and she moves back in with him. Although David views their friendship as platonic, Alicia finds herself developing feelings for him. When Val Pollard berates David for allowing her husband to begin a new relationship, Alicia becomes angry and punches Val. Val reports her to the police and Alicia is charged with assault. It emerges that Alicia has a prior conviction for assault and has a suspended sentence. Worried that Justin will take Jacob, David suggests to Alicia that they marry so he can be Jacob's guardian. Alicia agrees and they marry. She then admits her true feelings to David, but he tells her he does not feel the same. Alicia is then sentenced to a year in prison. When Alicia is released from prison, she is upset to learn that David is now dating Priya Sharma. Weeks later Alicia begins dating Dominic Andrews, although his daughter, Gemma, does not like her. Alicia realises her true feelings for David and goes to his house to tell him, but Priya answers the door and tells a stunned Alicia that the couple are now engaged. This devastates Alicia, but she soon has to concentrate on her new family with Dom when he discovers that Gemma is pregnant. Gemma confides in Alicia about her mother walking out on her and Dom, the pregnancy and her feud with Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper). During a siege in The Woolpack, Cameron Murray holds several residents hostage, including Alicia, David and Priya. Alicia is accidentally shot by Cameron and she starts to succumb to her injury, before Cameron allows David to take her out of the pub. Alicia is rushed to hospital where she is treated and later resuscitated. David and Alicia admit their feelings for one another and they begin a relationship, which devastates Priya and Dom. Believing Priya will tells Jacob that she is not his mother, Alicia and David sit him down and tell him the truth. Jacob is upset and runs away to stay with Priya. Alicia and David soon get engaged and immediately book a Christmas wedding. After a few incidents before the wedding, Alicia and David marry. On the same day, Leyla returns and the sisters argue. Leyla tells Alicia that her boss is calling her and is working as a recruitment consultant. Alicia doesn't believe the story and finds out that Leyla is actually impersonating her as a stripper. Leyla and Alicia have a heart to heart and with the realisation that Leyla isn't coping, she lets her sister stay in her house. The following year, Alicia is sexually assaulted by Lachlan White after he misunderstands her friendliness for affection. The ordeal causes Alicia to breakdown. When Val's son, Paul, offers her and David to run a bar with him in Lisbon, they accept. David and Alicia leave the village. David makes a return when Eric has a heart attack. Alicia joins him, after Val is killed in an explosion. Alicia and David try to console a grieving Eric, but Alicia tells David that she wants to return to Portugal. However, David refuses and reveals that he bought the shop and needs to be there for his father. Realising they want different things, Alicia and David break up and she leaves for Portugal the next day. Alicia then files for a divorce. ==Reception==

In 2015, Anderson was nominated for Best Actress at the British Soap Awards. When Alicia arrived, Katie Begley from the Daily Star commented "If Emmerdale suddenly finds itself facing a shortage of push-up bras, fake tan and hair extensions then we know exactly who to blame – brassy newcomer Alicia Gallagher." When Alicia was shot, Barrett's colleague Mark James Lowe quipped "Our hearts were in our mouths as we watched the docs desperately trying to resuscitate poor Alicia. Is it only us who thought she was a goner for a moment there?" ==References==