Acting Television Atkinson rose to fame playing
Lisa Hunter in the
Channel 4 soap opera
Hollyoaks. Atkinson and
Marcus Patric (who played the character
Ben Davies) subsequently appeared in a spin-off series called
Hollyoaks: Let Loose for
E4, in which their characters started a new life together in
Chester. This was followed by
Hollyoaks: In the City, also screened on
E4. Other television roles included appearing as herself in the pilot for
Plus One, part of the pilot series
Comedy Showcase in October 2009. In 2009, she appeared as Ria Crossley, the girlfriend of a drug dealer in
The Bill. Atkinson also appeared in the British
independent film Boogie Woogie, which premiered at the
Edinburgh International Film Festival in June 2009. In May 2011, Atkinson began filming for her part in the
BBC medical drama
Casualty. She played the part of Tamzin, a paramedic; appearing onscreen from 13 August 2011, but had confirmed via Twitter that she would only appear for ten weeks (10 episodes). She left the show on 1 October 2011, after her sixth appearance but later returned to the show as Tamzin for the last time in 2014. In 2015, Atkinson began playing the role of
Carly Hope in the
ITV soap opera
Emmerdale. Then in November 2021, it was announced that Atkinson will reprise her role as Lisa Hunter in
Hollyoaks.
Film Atkinson appeared in the 2010
horror film called
13Hrs in February 2009 and a UK gangster film called
Baseline in March 2009. Atkinson played the role of Hannah in the 2011 romantic comedy film
How to Stop Being a Loser. The film also starred
Richard E. Grant,
Jill Halfpenny and
Pamela Anderson. She played the role of Harriett in the 2012 film
Airborne. In 2013, she starred in a remake of
Night of the Living Dead, released in 3D. Also in 2013, she appeared in ''
Devil's Pass''. Atkinson played the role of Rhea Wagner in the 2016
Bollywood film
Fever. In 2017, Atkinson starred in the horror film
Cain Hill, alongside Emmerdale co-star
Michael Parr and
Kingsman 2 actor Tony Cook.
Stage Atkinson appeared in
Peter Pan at the
Manchester Opera House in December 2008. She took the title role alongside
John Thomson who played
Captain Hook. Atkinson appeared in the West End production of Tim Firth's
Calendar Girls at the Noël Coward Theatre, from 28 July to 17 October 2009 where she played the character of Elaine. Atkinson also went on tour with
Calendar Girls, she played Celia aka Miss September in the production. The January to April 2010 tour of
Calendar Girls also starred
Lynda Bellingham,
Judith Barker,
Debbie Chazen,
Letitia Dean and
Jan Harvey. Atkinson played the lead female role, Belinda in
Neil LaBute's play
This Is How It Goes at the
King's Head Theatre in Islington, London from 7 September to 3 October 2010.
Reality television Atkinson has appeared as a contestant on reality TV series such as ''
I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, Celebrity MasterChef and Soapstar Superstar''. In January 2007, Atkinson reached the last four stage of ITV's
Soapstar Superstar. Songs performed on
Soapstar Superstar: • Day 1: "
Who Knew" (
Pink) • Day 2: "
Fields of Gold" (
Sting) • Day 3: "
I Love Rock 'n' Roll" (
Arrows/
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts) • Day 4: "
Love at First Sight" (
Kylie Minogue) • Day 5: "
You're Still the One" (
Shania Twain) • Day 6: "
Brass in Pocket" (
The Pretenders);
Pink Medley: "
Just like a Pill"/"
Feel Good Time"/"
Last to Know" In December 2006, she appeared in
Celebrity Weakest Link with
Marcus Patric. In 2007, she took part in the BBC's
Celebrity MasterChef competition. In November 2007, she appeared in the
seventh series of ''
I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' in Australia. She finished in fifth place. In January 2008, Atkinson appeared on
Celebrity Mastermind. On 15/16 March 2008, Atkinson co-presented the
Play.com Live gaming expo at
Wembley Stadium with
Virgin Radio presenter
Iain Lee. Atkinson and her family appeared on
All Star Family Fortunes on 20 September 2008, competing against
Antony Cotton and his family. The Atkinsons did not win the show; however, Gemma was given £1,000 for her chosen charity. On 12 November 2008, she appeared in
Jack Osbourne's
ITV2 show
Adrenaline Junkie filmed in South Africa. She did a
bungee jump, a
skydive, a
glider flight and swam with
great white sharks. In 2013, she appeared in an episode of
I Love My Country, on
BBC One. She took part in a celebrity edition of
The Chase in December 2015. After the team beat the chaser,
Shaun Wallace, Atkinson took home £25,125 for her chosen charity, Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary. In Autumn 2017 Atkinson competed in the
fifteenth series of BBC's
Strictly Come Dancing, where she was partnered with professional dancer
Aljaž Škorjanec. The couple reached the final of the competition on 16 December, where they finished either second, third or fourth (results not disclosed via the BBC), losing out to Joe McFadden.
Glamour modelling In early 2006, Atkinson underwent
breast enlargement surgery, which took her
bra size to a 34E. She said in an interview with
Maxim magazine that she lost weight due to a fitness regimen and her breasts had declined in size and that the surgery had restored their original size and shape. Since launching her parallel career as a glamour model, Atkinson has appeared in provocative photoshoots wearing
lingerie and
swimwear, for magazines such as
Arena,
FHM,
Loaded,
Maxim,
Zoo and
Nuts. In October 2006, she appeared in three of these publications in a single month, becoming one of the most prolific celebrity glamour models in the UK. She has also released calendars yearly since 2006, with those for 2008 and 2009 shot in Thailand. Since 2006 she has appeared in
FHM's 100 Sexiest Women list, debuting at number 32. Following her appearance on the cover of
FHM, she moved up to 23 in 2007, She ranked number 46 in
AskMen.com's
99 Sexiest Women of 2008.
Promotional work Atkinson has undertaken a wide range of promotional work; she was the female face of the 2007
British Grand Prix and worked for the Orange promotion "On Yer Bike London" prior to the
Tour de France. She has also modelled for lingerie brands, including being the face of
La Senza and
Ultimo's D-G range. She opened Ultimo stores within
Debenhams branches in London, Belfast and Glasgow.
Other work Atkinson has also played
Goldie Lookin Chain's love interest in the music video for the single "R'n'B" and featured on the cover of the CD single release. Atkinson made her debut video game appearance in
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (2008) in the role of Lt. Eva McKenna, which she reprised in
Command & Conquer Red Alert 3: Uprising (2009). She also took part in
EA's "Be the One" event in
Trafalgar Square on 29 October 2008, which forms part of the
London Games Festival. Also in 2013, Atkinson appeared in the video to
Rizzle Kicks's song "
Skip to the Good Bit". From 1 February 2017 to May 2018, she co-hosted the
Key 103 breakfast show with Mike Toolan. She presented the Hits Radio breakfast show alongside
Gethin Jones and
Comedy Dave for the first year of
Hits Radio's broadcasting, Atkinson now presents the drive time slot across the
Hits Radio Network with Mike Toolan. ==Charity work==