Gaynor Faye

Gaynor Faye was born in Leeds to TV scriptwriter Kay Mellor (1951-2022) and Anthony Mellor.

Her maternal grandmother was Jewish.

She has one sister, Yvonne.

Faye has played the roles of Holly Quinn in Playing the Field; Lauren Harris in Fat Friends; Georgia Lovett in Between the Sheets and Julie in Stan the Man.

She has also written two episodes of Fat Friends.

Gaynor Kay Mellor (born 26 August 1971), known professionally as Gaynor Faye, is an English actress and writer.

She played Judy Mallett in Coronation Street from 1995 until 1999 and Megan Macey in Emmerdale from 2012 until 2019.

In 2006, Faye appeared in ITV's Dancing on Ice.

Her skating partner was Daniel Whiston.

On 4 March 2006, she was crowned the inaugural Dancing on Ice champion.

From 2006 to 2007, Faye starred as Anna Williams Bedford in The Chase, a television series co-written with her mother for BBC One.

Faye released a video based on the exercise routine she followed during Dancing on Ice.

Faye appeared in the stage adaptation of Calendar Girls alongside Lynda Bellingham at London's Noël Coward Theatre in 2009.

This was written by Juliette Towhidi and Tim Firth.

In September 2010, she was a guest panellist on ITV's Loose Women.

In 2011, Faye played Zarina Wix in children's programme, Dani's House.

In October 2011, it was announced that Faye would join the ITV soap opera Emmerdale, playing Declan Macey's ambitious half-sister Megan Macey.

On 11 November and 16 December 2011, she guest presented the ITV Breakfast programme Lorraine.

In March 2021, Faye appeared in the BBC One drama The Syndicate as Cheryl Armitage.

Since 2021, Faye has narrated Hornby: A Model World following the works of Hornby, Scalextrix, and Airfix on the Yesterday channel.

In September 2023, Faye starred in the Channel 5 drama series The Inheritance, appearing alongside Samantha Bond, Jemima Rooper, Rob James-Collier and Adil Ray.

Faye lives with long-term partner Mark Pickering in Leeds, West Yorkshire.

The couple have two children.

During the Covid-19 Pandemic, Faye took online courses in semantics, Spanish and counselling.

She said, "I know people who really struggle with their mental health and it’s important for me to know what to do for my family, my kids, my loved ones – to help people when they’re struggling. To help other people is what I want to do."

Faye practises Buddhism.

She told OK! magazine: "I've been a Buddhist since I asked a friend 25 years ago what skin cream she used because she was so glowing and she said: "It’s not cream, it’s because I chant" [...] It's just part of my life now, it's like brushing my teeth. In the morning, I do it to set up my life and so I can live in a higher life state."

Megan first appeared on-screen on 21 February 2012.

Faye left the role in 2019.