Pauline Quirke drops more than 6st since Christmas

Pauline Quirke has revealed she's shed more than six stone, after piling on the pounds in the Emmerdale canteen.

The former Birds Of A Feather star, who plays Hazel Rhodes, got a shock when she stood on her weighing scales before Christmas and discovered she was 19st 6lb.

"It was a bacon or sausage roll of a morning, a meal at lunchtime in the canteen and then cooking myself a dinner back at the flat of a night. I was just getting bigger," she told Woman magazine.

"I knew exactly what I wanted to get to - 11st. As of last week I was 13st."

Pauline insisted she was losing weight the traditional way through lower-calorie meals instead of going under the knife.

"I won't put myself through any surgical procedure if there's an alternative. It's all manageable. I've never been hungry."

Former Celebrity MasterChef contestant Pauline revealed earlier this year that she loved looking after co-stars Marc Silcock - whose character Jackson died in the recent assisted suicide storyline - and Danny Miller (Aaron).

"Marc and Danny come and see me in my flat. I cook for them and spoil them a bit," she said.