Soap actress Nikki Sanderson has spoken candidly about the gruelling two-year journey she and her partner, former Emmerdale star Anthony Quinlan, endured to conceive their first child.
The Emotional Struggle to Conceive
The 41-year-old, famed for roles in Coronation Street and Hollyoaks, revealed the couple had faced a difficult battle to fall pregnant. They had even begun the process of In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) before discovering, to their shock and delight, that Nikki was naturally expecting.
In a joint interview with OK! magazine, the couple explained they were "thrilled but kind of held back from getting too excited" initially, due to an awareness of potential complications. Anthony, also 41, admitted they had become resigned to needing medical help, stating: "We wanted this so much and we were just hoping, hoping, hoping."
Planning Ahead: Freezing Eggs Early
The pair, who have been together since early 2022, took proactive steps early in their relationship due to Nikki's age. They chose to freeze her eggs just months after they started dating, a conversation Nikki initiated because she was conscious of her "biological clock ticking away."
She recalled her anxiety about raising the topic so soon, but praised Anthony's supportive reaction: "He just went, 'Nikki, I think that's a really good idea.'" The actress described the overall experience as "really hard" on them both, making their eventual happy news difficult to believe at first.
A Christmas Miracle Announcement
The couple announced they were expecting on Christmas Eve 2024, sharing a sweet video on Instagram that zoomed in on a Christmas tree bauble containing a baby scan image. The caption read: 'Happy Christmas from the 3 of us', alongside a Christmas tree emoji, and confirmed: 'Baby Quinlan due 2026'.
Speaking about their first scan, Nikki described a mix of elation and anxiety. "The first time seeing the heartbeat on the scans was the most amazing, incredible feeling... But I also felt a lot of anxiety," she shared, worrying about the baby's wellbeing and their ongoing journey.
Anthony, who now runs an online personal training business, echoed the sense of disbelief, saying the positive result felt surreal after previous disappointments.
