Actress and model Carmell Roche has starred in Dubplate Drama, ad campaigns for top brands like O2, ESPN, Virgin Media, and Big Brother UK and modelled for the likes of Ed Hardy by Christian Audigier. In new British urban comedy Anuvahood she acts alongside Jamie Winstone.

Carmell, tell us a bit about the character you play in Anuvahood?
I play Kesha; she’s a friend of Yasmin and Maria. Basically, Femi who plays Bookie tries to chat me up but I’m not really interested.

Anuvahood features a big star cast how was it like working with the crew?
It was great but most of them are my friends already. Adam’s one of my closest acting friends and Aisleyne is one of my best friends. Also, it was great working with Jaime Winston.

Did you witness any ego trips or diva acts on set?
Nah, it was all fun. Jaime Winston is really down to earth, she’s lovely and amazing. She came up to us and introduced herself ‘hi I’m Jaime’ but in my head I was excited like yes I know your Jaime Winston. But, everyone was chilled to be honest.

How special is this film to you?
It’s really special to me because Adam’s one of my best friends and it’s his film. It’s my first feature film as well so I’m really happy to be part of it.

Why should people go and pay to watch this film? What can the audience expect?
Omg! It’s hilarious. Aisleyne’s bit with Richie is so funny I can’t wait to see that on screen. We’ve got talent like Miss Jocelyn and Richard Blackwood for comedy. We’ve got amazing acting talent like Adam, Ashley and Jaime so it’s a really good film.

And, what’s next for you Carmelle?
I’ve got another film coming out in the summer and a few other projects lined up too.

Words by Nadifa Shiekhey

Click on the link for more info on Anuvahood

Check out the official trailer

How was the shoot like for you?
Amazing! Really enjoyed the whole day from start to finish!

You had a rock chick theme going on, how hard was it to unleash your rock side or are you just a natural rock star?
Not hard at all! So, yes, perhaps my natural rock chick side has now been unleashed for good

How would you rock a rock star look in a wild fantasy…
Very well!! )

Who’s your favourite rock star?
Tough question as there are quite a few iconic female rock stars that I like, although I’d have to say the ultimate would be Debby Harry. She has perfect blend of hot and sexy with that rock star quality, plus the talent to accompany it!

How did it feel when you first found out that you were the October winner of the iCandy model search?
I was so, so pleased to be the first winner! It was a huge deal for me that so many people had showed their support and voted! It means so much to me and I am literally grateful to all of them.

How sexy did you feel on the shoot?
Extremely sexy! It wasn’t at all hard to turn it on for the camera!

Did you sneak in couple of votes yourself?
I can honestly say I didn’t, no. It was tempting at the beginning, however, I figured that if it was meant to be it would happen, so I chose to leave it in the kind hands of the public and fate.

How do you dress on a daily basis? Do you have to look sexy all the time?
I do love to dress up to look and feel sexy for sure, but I also love to kick back and relax in my comfy clothes such as jeans and cosy jumpers.

Define what sexy means to you?
Sexy is confidence and feeling sexy within yourself. Hot outfits do certainly help enhance feeling sexy, but ultimately it comes from within.

What advice would you give to the girls who want to apply to the iCandy model search but feel too scared or shy to do so?
My advice would be to give it a go anyway! What’s the harm? I’m a huge believer in fate and if you don’t try, you’ll never know. If nothing else, at least you gave it a good shot! )

How was it like working with the iCandy team?
A+ !! The iCandy team were really fantastic! Friendly, talented and professional. Highly recommended!!

Click here to check out Genna working it out for the iCandy cameras!

By Nadifa Sheikhey

Photography: Joby Rawlins

Styling: Tailia Santo and make-up Jodie Sparkle at creative expressions

Venue: www.amikalondon.com

Join iCandy’s facebook fan page here: www.facebook.com/icandyonline

If you want the chance to be the next iCandy Model Search winner you can enter by clicking on this link www.icandy-mag.com/register_profile/

Your character she basically gets stuck into a full on sex scene from the minute she’s on screen!
[Gasps] Noooo! Oh my goodness have you seen it already? [giggles and puts a hand over her mouth]

Yeah, its pretty gritty! Were you prepared for that?
Yeah I definitely knew how sexual my character was! And I knew I had to go for broke and basically do what I know how to do best!

Haha! Are you anything like that in real life? I had to close my eyes at one point!
[Laughs] You know what in actuality I am so far removed from the character. I can imagine some of my ex’s watching the scene and thinking they want a refund or at least a rematch because they never got that reaction! So I would like to think if viewers are taken in by the scene it’s because I’m a good actress!

Was the role written with you in mind or did you audition?
I auditioned for it. When I got it what worried me was some people might think the role had been written for me because of the Mike Tyson thing [a poster of Mike hangs on the wall of the room where Aisleyne gets busy with her love interest]. I mentioned it to Adam and he said if I felt uncomfortable they would write out any mention of him for me. I went off, thought I didn’t get the part and an hour later Adam was on the phone congratulating me!

So you changed your mind about the Mike thing?
Yeah. It was weird having a sex scene with my ex lover peering down on me but hey, sometimes you’ve just gotta role with it! And you can’t go at a sex scene half hearted you have to give it your all!

You were in Dead Set, now you’ve done Anuvahood. Are you fully committed to an acting career?
100%. This is what I love doing.

Do you worry about forever being type cast as an overtly sexual woman?
I must admit that did worry me at one point. But at the end of the day if you look at a lot of actresses they often start off doing scenes they wouldn’t necessarily do once they became well known. And this film is comedy it wasn’t a deep sex scene, I want to focus on being in comedies!

There were a lot of great comedians on set. Pick up any tips from them?
Well Jocelyn was my idol! She is so off the wall and a big character. We are really alike. So getting the chance to work with her and learn from her was brilliant.

Did you have any on-set demands?
[Laughs] Oh yes I was a big time diva! I demanded a Red Bull…but then I discovered that they subtracted £1.20 from my fee, the tight arses [Laughs and then says to Adam ‘cough cough I’m thirsty’- Adam shakes his head and rolls his eye’s.] See how they don’t want to even give me a drink now we’ve wrapped on filming (laughs again). But honestly we were so lucky with this film, great cast, crew, script and director. We were all just happy to be part of Adams vision and we really bonded.

Words by Mary Bello

Click on the link for more info on Anuvahood

Check out the official trailer

Mz Bratt
When I was really young there was this guy I liked so when Valentine’s Day came I bought a huge card a filled it with loads of pictures of us. On the other side I have been on dates where I’ve burped in front of a guy. That’s not romantic at all! But if he likes me, he’ll accept me how am – the good and the bad.

Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace
After a date this guy brought me home and got into the lift with me to go to my floor. He said he was the best kisser in Hackney and pounced on me. It was like washing machine tongue and to make things worse when we reached my floor he made the lift go down again so he could kiss me some more. I never saw him again. I couldn’t breathe when those lips were on me!

Jocelyn Jee Essien
One time, on Valentine’s Day my boyfriend got us tickets for the London Eye and I was trying to do the necessities you see, he may have wanted a holiday, he may have wanted a car, but I decided to do his shopping for him, because he had run out of food and he didn’t have any food in his cupboards at the time. So I went to Sainsbury’s and brought bags and bags of shopping. I knew I would be staying over… OK it was for me as well, but I got him loads and loads of shopping and I got in a cab to meet him. When he came to pick me up the whole cab was just full up with shopping and I started unloading it – and the cab man didn’t help me – and my boyfriend stood there and he was just like, ‘what the f*** have you done?’ He had a sports car at the time, so none of it could fit in his car, so we literally had to jam things on our laps. He was driving with like bags of vegetables and stuff on his lap, he was annoyed. It wasn’t a great start to Valentine’s Day.

We’ve also got an exclusive photoshoot, interview and on set video with Portia Freno who plays Persia in Anuvahood

Check out the Anuvahood official trailer

When Portia Freno arrives at the photo shoot and interview day with the Anuvahood cast she is amazingly unassuming. Fresh faced, free from make up wrapped up in a comfy jumper her off duty look is a million miles away from the sex symbol you might have seen in magazines, modelling bikini’s and strutting on screen in a movie.

When she played Persia the hot chick that catches the lead characters eye – was it a case of art imitating life?

“What me?!” she giggles, remarking self deprecatingly “I’m not sexy at all!” Oh Portia if only I could run a poll on that right now to disprove your statement “but I can say this, the scenario I’m in during the film is not dissimilar to the kind of thing that might happen to me on a regular day- a guy approaching me on the street and I’m not interested. But my character was a little more stuck up than I would be! Kay finds it hard to be real and he comes off as a loser and transparent. Persia wouldn’t have it! The sad thing is he has a sweet side. If he hadn’t started getting all excited, who knows she might have taken the bait because he flattered her and took an interest in her at first!”

I get the feeling that Portia is a woman that is hard to get and as we talk further I discover I am right “I’m really, really fussy with guys. And I’m not a fan of men who approach me with the same old lines. I’m never interested when guys walk up to me in the street. I’ve got an amazing partner and the way he approached me- that’s exactly how I like a guy to act!” So what did the man in question do to win Miss Freno’s heart? “He saw me at a fashion show in Africa. He didn’t approach me there he just took note of who I was, he knew that if it was meant to be we would bump into each other again.” Ahh, sounds all kinds of storybook romance to me, a little serendipity going on there. If it was meant to be it would be. And it was because the two ended up seeing each other at an awards show and the rest is history- years later they are still together “He was smart and thought what is the best way to get this girl? He figured it out and got me!” When grilled further about whether she lives with her Mr Right or whether they have plans to marry she clams up “I don’t really want to go on about him too much- he’s not industry, so I like to keep things between us private.” You have to admire her style- she separates work from her private life- and why not? Being an actress or model is just like any profession- if you’re a lawyer or teacher the whole world doesn’t know who you are getting biblical with or married to- unless you feel like exposing it. One things for sure its obvious from the glint in her eye that this is definitely a love affair for the history books.

In the movie and with her modelling work she is the quintessential hot girl but in life there’s a serious depth and dexterity to her character. “People are always shocked when they get to know me. When they discover that I’m not that into raving every night. I love books, I can be quite shy but obviously extroverted when its required! My biggest passion is food, I love food.” Her tone of voice gets incredibly dulcet and her pupils dilate when she mentions that deliciously satisfying F word. And if you follow this foodie on twitter (or read her blog- Portia also writes) you’ll notice that she often mentions what she’s eating or something food related. Perhaps we’ve got a budding Nigella Lawson on our hands? Is she tempted to share some culinary delights with the rest of the world? “I wouldn’t mind a cooking show actually, but I’d probably hold up filming and eat everything!”

She confesses a mini culinary disaster that happened today “I tried to make a mocha before the interview started but it went horribly wrong, look!” She indicates to a rather dubious looking hot drink- oh well no ones perfect.

After tackling modelling and movies is there anything left for this young woman to conquer? “Oh definitely.” She smiles,” I sing and I’ve been offered the chance to do tracks that would have been pop hits but I want to do it my way in my own style.” No doubt that she will!

Words by Mary Bello

Click on the link for more info on Anuvahood

Check out the official trailer

Look out for our features on the rest of the girls from Anuvahood, Mz Bratt, Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace and Carmell Roche coming soon.

This Bristol raised beauty has been modelling for four years and was one of the top ten ladies in the final of the Miss Flavour 2009 contest. Gemma’s modelling credits include various web publications, Nuts magazine, a shoot with celebrity photographer Scott Ninness and iCandy favourite, Overlord X. As well as studying to become a make-up artist this sexy socialite has appeared in an episode of E4’s Skins but between jobs and castings still makes sure she has time to party!!…

Likes…
Modelling, Fashion, Travelling, Make-Up, Dancing, Gym.

Dislikes…
Rude People (no excuse for it), Spiders

What is the most important thing to remember as a model?
Just be yourself and do not change for anyone. Always remember where you’ve come from and who has been there for you. You also need a lot of dedication, motivation and aspiration.

What has been your most exciting shoot so far?
It has to be my shoot with the amazingly talented Overlord X/Mo-am. Amazing! The shots were hot!! The styling and make up was done by Loan Kim Nguyen, she was amazing. I just love the setting, lights and the way the pictures were shot. One word…BRILLIANT!!!! I would definitely work with Overlord again.

You were a finalist in the Miss Flavour 2009 contest, how was the experience?
Off the hook! I loved every bit of it from the voting, rehearsals to the night itself. I met some great people who I am now in contact with on a regular basis and I’ve had a great response from doing it. Even though I didn’t come 1st place I still achieved a good network of people within the industry.

You love to party…are you ‘seated chic’ or ‘dancing queen’?
Well, all I can say is….IM A DANCING QUEEN BAAAABBBYYYY!!!

What attracts you to becoming a make-up artist?
I’ve always been a creative character usually through my modelling or dancing, so I thought why not try make up. I love to experiment with materials, colours and effects so I’m also looking into TV, Media and Theatre make up.

What do you hope to achieve in 2010?
My goals this year are to expand my horizons within modelling, pass my driving test (be warned, I’ll be on the roads!), travel more and to continue my studies in Make-Up.

Finish the sentences:
Beauty… brains and intelligence

Men… hot, good-looking, intelligent, thoughtful and romantic

Sex… S=Sensually, E=Excited/Expressive, X= X-tacy

Money… can’t buy love.

Click here to see more of Gemma Webb

Interview by Berni Christie – photography by Overlord X