A BUDDING girl footballer will bring Otley interest to television screens this autumn when she makes her acting debut in a hit BBC TV series.

Neelly Murrell, a 16-year-old pupil at Prince Henry's Grammar School, will appear as an extra in Playing The Field, which features the exploits of a women's football team, when it returns for another series in the autumn.

The Bradford City women's player spent three-and-a-half days filming an episode after the whole team was invited to take part in filming crunch scenes in a fictitious football match.

But for Neelly, who would like to become a football coach, the filming process was far from the glamour associated with television.

"Everything took so long to film. You have to wait for things like the sun to go in for continuity reasons. It was freezing cold and very slow - there was a lot of waiting about it was not at all glamorous," she said.

"We had to do one take 36 times because the girl who was due to score a goal couldn't do it right. But I would be happy to do the series again if asked."

It was listening to the jokes of actor Ricky Tomlinson, who plays father Jim Royle in the hit comedy The Royle Family, that proved the highlight.

"It was quite a laugh. Ricky was really funny and friendly and was always cracking jokes. We were also playing pool with Judy Mallett, who used to be in Coronation Street and who's in the new series. Everyone was nice and friendly, really."

Neelly featured in Playing The Field as a substitute on the bench and also in a scene where her team is celebrating.

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