CELEBS SHINE AT TRUCKFEST

The trucks were out, the crowds were out… and so were the celebs. ESP was there to grab a word with the stars at this year’s Truckfest in Peterborough.

The East of England showground was packed over the bank holiday weekend with fans of the big mean machines but also those keen to catch a glimpse of gorgeous soap stars Kym Marsh and Ricky Whittle… including our own Face of ESP Tori Bradshaw.

ESP’s reporters went behind the scenes with Corrie and Hear’Say star Kym on Sunday and Hollyoaks and Strictly Come Dancing’s Ricky on the Monday. Lucky Tori got to cuddle up to Mr Sixpack himself and hasn’t stopped smiling since!

ESP’s Mikey Clarke interviewed Ricky who revealed - “My uncle would be so jealous to know I was here. He used to make model trucks. He was so protective over his creations. There was just one time he let me hold one. I had a picture taken with it, and my uncle was so keen to take it back that he tripped and broke it!”

It also sounds like we might catch a glimpse of Ricky out on the town in the city - “This is my first time in Peterborough during the day, but I’ve been here quite a few times in the evening. I really enjoy the nightlife.”

Ricky is known to most as Calvin on Hollyoaks but started out in the footy series Dream Team – no surprises there as he was with Arsenal FC as a schoolboy. That’s not the full extent of his sportiness though as he revealed - “I just missed out on doing the hundred metres for Great Britain. I had the exact same time as the guy who beat me. I guess his shirt must have blown forward in the wind because he beat me by a couple of centimetres.”

What many people don’t know about Ricky is that he almost never got into acting. As a child he was passionate about following in his dad’s footsteps. “My dad was an RAF Pilot. I really wanted to be a pilot myself but my eyes weren’t good enough.” Ricky’s dad’s profession got him into loving a particular film. “I love Top Gun. That is my most favourite film in the world! Days of Thunder is also great. It’s basically Top Gun in cars.”

Ricky and Kym were both interveiwed in the main ring by compere Dave King and signed autographs for eager fans. Kym was looking hot but disappointed the boys as she was sporting a huge rock on her left hand!

Read all about Pep Cipriano’s close encounters with Kym Marsh (we think our Man About Town reporter has a crush…) and more of Mikey Clarke’s chat with Ricky Whittle in the June issue of ESP.

Photos: Terry Harris – not to be reproduced without the express permission of ESP magazine.