The Bury-born actress is in support of the former Greater Manchester mayor
Emmerdale star Lisa Riley sent a supportive three-word message to Andy Burnham as he becomes Prime Minister.
The former Greater Manchester mayor ran as an MP in the Makerfield by-election after Josh Simons stood down from his role. This took place three months after Burnham was blocked from running in the Gorton and Denton by-election.
He went onto win the Makerfield seat to become an MP once again, and after Sir Keir Starmer announced his resignation as Prime Minister last month, Burnham launched his leadership bid.
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Mr Burnham took over as leader of the Labour Party on Friday (July 17), and now on Monday (July 20) he made his first speech as Prime Minister as Starmer tendered his resignation at Buckingham Palace.
In his first speech as PM, Burnham said: “Britain needs to show the world that we can regain our stability once again, and that is our challenge – to make politics work, to make it work better.”
He will start announcing his cabinet appointments later today. There has been much speculation particularly as to who will be his Chancellor. The two names being widely discussed are Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.
On the morning of Mr Burnham becoming PM, Emmerdale star Lisa Riley took to her Instagram as she showed her support for the former Great Manchester mayor.
In a simple three-word message, she wrote: “Good Luck today @andy.burnham”. Lisa was born in Bury, Greater Manchester in 1976, celebrating her 50th this year.
She grew up in the Bury area, specifically Tottington, attending Hollymount School and taking acting classes at the Oldham Theatre Workshop from age nine.
Earlier this year, Lisa was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to drama and to charity as part of the King’s Birthday Honours list for 2026.
She said of the honour: “Wow if this is not my best 50th birthday present being awarded an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours list, I don’t know what is.
“I am being awarded an MBE, Member of the Order of the British Empire, for my services to drama and to charity. To say I am humbled is an absolute understatement. To have been able to do my job as an actor for 36 years now, never having a day out of work in our industry, is an honour in itself.”
After playing such an iconic role for over 30 years, Lisa noted that she’s the “first ever cast member of Emmerdale” to have been awarded an MBE.
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