Having last appeared on stage in the nationally acclaimed ‘Shrek the Musical’ back in 2011, Amanda Holden made her long awaited return to the stage in what could prove to be her toughest role yet.
In a behind the scenes video documenting her latest acting role, Holden is seen to struggle with nerves and even forget her lines on two occasions in front of impatient directors.
But as is always the case in show business, all is not as it first seems.
Holden, a mother of two children herself, was actually filming a spoof advert in her latest role as the face of Pebli Town, a revolutionary new pre-school toy that fuses traditional play with the latest technology.
With Holden reciting her lines to a team of directors made up of three children, Pebli Town is designed to give youngsters full control of four traditional play pieces and a physical play board that in turn interacts with a tablet to bring the toy to life.
“As an actor, it’s not often you’re asked to perform poorly in front of directors that are a similar age to your own children,” said Holden.
“What has impressed me most about Pebli Town is that children are really the directors of their own show. It’s also a toy that allows parents to be more involved whilst accommodating for all key developmental and educational needs a parent would want for their child.”
With four exciting interactive game modes, Pebli Town is designed to help develop children’s problem solving skills and hand eye coordination whilst sparking creativity, imagination and self-expression.
“As a performer myself, I think it’s really important that children are given the opportunity to express themselves and show their creative side at play time,” admitted Holden, who is mother to nine-year-old Alexa and three-year-old Hollie.
“I know from my experiences that children can be incredibly creative if encouraged in a fun way.”
As an established actress, singer, presenter and judge, the daily juggle between career and family life remains an admittedly challenging one for Holden.
“Like every mother, sometimes it feels a little like the time you have to spend with your children is going, it’s slipping away. It’s about finding a balance and making sure you get to spend the right amount of time with your family and my current workload absolutely allows me to do this.”
“It’s scary how quickly your children grow up so its important parents spend as much time with them as possible.”
“Even physically, Lexie went from a size two to a three in two months and she has gone to school with a sort of side, low ponytail and there’s no Alice T-bar shoes anymore, she has got slip on shoes. Because Holly is three and a half and looks up to her big sister, she tries to dress the same and appears more mature than an actual three and a half year old. You can even have a full conversation with her.”
With Pebli Town representing a new age of toys being brought to life through technology, the current trend of parents allowing their children to have unfettered access to their own tablets and mobile devices is growing, with children now spending an average of two hours 56 minutes in front of a screen every day.
According to a recent survey by ComRes, 84 per cent of parents believe there are educational benefits in their children having access to tablets and smartphones, a statistic Holden supports.
“It can only be a positive thing introducing children to technology in a way that is safe, controlled and benefits their educational development,” said the 44-year-old.
“Pebli Town has got the balance right as 99% of all game play is still done on the board so you avoid having your children glued to a tablet.”
As for Holden’s future career ventures for the rest of 2015, her relentless workload doesn’t look as though it will ease up just yet.
“I am filming something for the BBC now and doing a load of stuff for Text Santa. As for acting, there is a possible musical in the running but I can’t tell you too much at this stage. Watch this space!”