Emmerdale star Emma Atkins has promised that the soap’s upcoming limo crash disaster will spark “months” of aftermath.

The show is gearing up to air one of its biggest ever stunts, as 17 villagers head off for a doomed night out.

Friends, family and neighbours split up into boys’ and girls’ groups as two limos arrive in the village to start the night in style.

Both vehicles crash during the journey – with one put in a particularly worrying position when it’s left stranded on an icy lake.

Speaking about the storyline for the first time, Emma – who plays Charity Dingle – commented: “I am so proud of what Emmerdale has produced and my message to fans is to watch these spectacular episodes. It’s high drama, very emotional and let us just say do not miss it – because you’re in for an absolute ride of a lifetime.

“And the ramifications and the ripple effect will go on into the village for months to come in terms of the outcomes of this week.

“I was so proud just being amongst the people involved in this big storyline and watching them pull out some of their best acting I have ever seen. It’s been remarkable and very humbling to see my friends completely smash it.”

Charity is driving the girls’ limo at the time of the crash, as the vehicles arrive in the village without chauffeurs for the evening.

Asked whether she was really driving the limo, Emma replied: “No, and I was absolutely gutted when I realised that in real life I wouldn’t be able to – for health and safety reasons, because I really wanted to drive a limo.

“But the design and director make it look so real, it looks as if I am – they put a television screen next to me, just outside the driver’s seat, playing footage of someone driving. They’ve made it look like I was driving.”

The lake itself was created by the Emmerdale design team on the show’s set, allowing cast and crew to film in secret without spoilers emerging.

Emma added: “I’m so incredibly excited due to the fact that the design team and the special effects did such a great job and I can’t wait to see how it is all cut together – I’ve not seen it. But people went above and beyond the call of duty to make it look magnificent.

“We had a special team in to make the ice out of wax. It looks incredible. I took the most amazing panoramic view photo, I was spellbound. It was like something from a Marvel movie. It looks so treacherous. So as soon as you take a step onto it, your body goes into an automatic self-preservation state as you’re assuming at any moment it could go.”