Emmerdale star Lisa Riley reveals how fake posts affected her on set

Emmerdale star Lisa Riley has gotten candid about having to deal with AI-generated online posts and how that has impacted her time on set of the ITV soap.

The Mandy Dingle star, who was also a fan-favourite campmate during last year's I'm a Celebrity, has been outspoken about her fertility struggles in the past and how seeing fake posts of her likeness holding a baby scan and a newborn has hurt her.

"I've had nasty things said about me before, but nothing killed me like that," she told OK! recently, addressing how that affected her and her fiancé of six years, Al Benković.

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"It's the fact I’m holding the baby. Whoever made it is making millions on clickbait. They don't care about the damage it's caused me and Al, but mostly me," Riley continued.

"I cannot put into words what I went through that week. I did not want to dress up as Mandy Dingle, put the lashes, wig and lips on. I was a little broken bird," she finally said.

Earlier this year, Riley took to her Instagram to call out the fake posts, writing: "THIS HAS TO STOP!!!!!"

"It's absolutely horrendous!!! Saying that I’m pregnant again!! How is this allowed it makes me so upset……what world do we live in that these lies, and more lies are allowed to be put in the public domain. I’m sick to death of it now!!!" she also wrote.

Riley received the support of fans and co-stars alike, with Emmerdale also condemning the nasty posts in an official statement.

The post from the show's official account offered some guidance to fans of Emmerdale and Coronation Street as stars across both ITV soaps had been involved in the spreading of fake news.

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"It has been brought to our attention that a lot of AI-generated Facebook pages are posting fake news about Emmerdale and Coronation Street actors and the programmes in general. Some of these posts are extremely hurtful and damaging to reputations," the soap noted on Instagram.

"Please only follow genuine news outlets and feel free to report those you think are fake via the usual methods."

This week, Riley also appeared on Loose Women, where she shared how her faith has helped her navigate the loss of her mum, Cath, who died of cancer in 2012.

Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 8pm on ITV1, and streams on ITVX.

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