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Struggling actress Tess is Cat's best friend and flatmate who has an uncanny knack of falling for all the wrong sorts of women.

Terribly sardonic, Tess's vulnerable side is buried under self-deprecating comments, sarcasm and anger. In contrast to her organised and tidy flatmate Cat, Tess is scandalously messy and lives a chaotic life.

Sometimes lacking confidence, Tess is a sucker for women who treat her badly. Although she might rant to her friends when a girlfriend treats her badly, Tess generally ignores their advice, letting lovers off the hook whenever they feed her a sob story.

After a messy break-up with her last girlfriend, Tess gets involved with daytime TV presenter, Lou Foster, but it's typically turbulent and dramatic.

Tell us about your character Tess

Since leaving drama school she's done a couple of acting jobs but has to make ends meet by doing odd jobs. She's struggling because things don't seem to be getting any better and she's at a stage in her life now where she's beginning to question whether she will ever get that big break.

Although pretty unlucky, professionally, Tess has really close friendships, primarily with Ed. She has a great sense of humour and finds a joke in most situations.

For some reason, she also seems to attract disaster – if something can go wrong for Tess, it generally will – I think it's because she often acts without thinking about the consequences!

What is it about Tess that makes her so bad at finding true love?

I guess it's difficult for Tess to find true love because she hasn't enough confidence in herself. She believes everyone else is better and she's unworthy so often gets treated badly.

She's also got a good heart and is very trusting. This means that sometimes she doesn't see when girls are manipulating her. She attracts, and seems to be drawn to, the wrong sort. Generally, her friends aren't that keen on the girls Tess brings home – especially Chloe, her long term ex-girlfriend who has treated her so badly over the years.

Is she even remotely aware that her mate Ed is in love with her?

She has absolutely no idea that Ed is in love with her! It just doesn't enter her head, they are best friends and he's a boy.

If Ed ever told Tess his true feelings towards her, her world would implode. She trusts Ed more than anyone and for him to think about her in that way would mean he'd betrayed that trust.

What's her relationship with the rest of the group like?

Tess is incredibly close to Cat and Frankie. She gets different things from them both.

Cat and Tess seek advice and support from each other. Afterall, Tess was there for Cat when Frankie left two years ago. They are polar opposites when it comes to organisation, though. Tess is messy and completely haphazard when Cat is the tidiest most organised person you've ever met.

Frankie and Tess enjoy a more fun-fuelled but incredibly close friendship. They both love going out and I think they feed off each other's love of a debauched lifestyle. I think Tess gives as good as she gets when Frankie makes fun of her – she's not at all intimidated by her whereas others might be!

How did you enjoy playing the role of Tess?

I had such a brilliant time filming and playing Tess has been so exciting. She was a character I could really get my teeth into as she has a lot of comic scenes but also goes through a lot emotionally.

Was it at all awkward filming the sexy scenes with Roxanne McKee [Lou]?

Not at all – we got pretty giggly at one stage as it was so strange. You have to laugh, otherwise it would be weird.

What was it like filming in Glasgow?

Glasgow is a beautiful city and it has a special place in my heart now. I love it – it's lively, buzzy and people are friendly there. The cast went out a few times but filming was pretty full-on so mainly we went out for dinner and then drank tea in our apartments – crazy, I know.

Were there any memorable moments from filming?

Roxanne and I were filming outside one night. It was pouring with rain and so windy that neither of us could stand up. I was wearing a thin coat and was absolutely freezing after each take – the costume girls would run in to hug me so that I was warm enough.

What attracted you to the drama?

I love that the characters are so well formed and I really cared about them when I read the scripts. It's also funny and dramatic at the same time, to me that's a winning combo.

Most of all, though, I was desperate to play Tess. Sometimes you read scripts and think: 'I really have to play this.' I was so excited when I got the part.