Inside Emmerdale’s Belle star Eden Taylor-Draper’s Aussie getaway with high school sweetheart

Emmerdale actress Eden Taylor-Draper – who has played Belle Dingle in the ITV soap since 2005 – jetted off to Australia with her high school sweetheart boyfriend Ed Lewis

Emmerdale actress Eden Taylor-Draper escaped the British weather as she jetted off on holiday for some fun in the sun. The star – who has played Belle Dingle in the ITV soap since 2005 – headed to Australia for a break with her high school sweetheart boyfriend Ed Lewis, who she’s been dating for seven years.

Taking to Instagram, Eden, 26, shared a string of snaps from their Brisbane trip, saying that she’d had “the best two weeks”. In one, she and Ed can be seen enjoying drinks together, while others show them hanging out with friends and family. Embracing Aussie life, Eden also posted a video of herself stroking a koala bear in a tree, and another clip showed her whale watching on a boat.

**Eden enjoyed the trip with her high school sweetheart boyfriend Ed Lewis** (Image: Instagram)

Commenting on the post, her former co-star Adam Thomas wrote: “Wowowowowo,” while Isabel Hodgins, who plays Victoria Barton in Emmerdale, said: “I’m glad you had a good time. Don’t ever leave me again!” Natalie Ann Jamieson, known for playing Amy Wyatt, added: “Incredible!!!” and Matty Barton star Ash Palmisciano said: “Those whales.”

Eden first met long-term boyfriend Ed while attending Harrogate Grammar School. They frequently appear on each other’s social media pages, often sharing pics of their dates, holidays and milestone moments. In 2019, she celebrated Ed’s achievement of graduating from Durham University. Posing beside her beau in his graduation gown, Eden proudly wrote alongside: “You did it.”

**She spent time with family and friends** (Image: Instagram)

**The star said she had “the best two weeks”** (Image: Instagram)

The actress has grown up on screens over two decades, with the star taking on more and more hard hitting storylines – ranging from a tense battle with schizophrenia, engaging in a steamy affair with a doctor, faking a pregnancy and losing her on-screen mum Lisa Dingle. She’s currently embroiled in another explosive storyline after Belle feared she had killed estranged husband Tom King with an axe.

**Eden won Best Actress at the Inside Soap Awards** (Image: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

Upon her return from Australia, Eden attended the Inside Soap Awards on Monday (30 September), where she picked up the gong for Best Actress. The Dingles also won the award for Best Family. Sharing a photo from the glitzy bash, she wrote on Instagram: “Thank you so much to everyone who voted for me as best actress the support and love means everything to me. I am so grateful.”

She was inundated with praise, as actress Karen Blick, who plays Lydia Dingle, said: “So well deserved lovely.” Lisa Riley, AKA Mandy Dingle, gushed: “Absolutely BRILLIANT from your very proud Momager,” while Coronation Street actor Jack P Shepherd said: “Fantastic news.”