Jodi Anasta reveals how she balances raising daughter Aleeia and starring in Neighbours

NEIGHBOURS star Jodi Anasta made the ultimate sacrifice when she joined the TV soap. But she has no regrets in pursuing an acting career.

JODI Anasta made the ultimate sacrifice when she joined the cast of Neighbours.

Playing Elly Conway on the Melbourne-based soap has meant being separated from her three-year-old daughter, Aleeia, for several days of the week because the youngster remains in Sydney with Anasta’s ex-husband Braith.

Actress Jodi Anasta who joined the Australian TV soap Neighbours. Picture: Ian Currie

The starlet admits that her desire to return to acting was partly responsible for the breakdown of her marriage to the former Sydney Roosters captain. The high-profile couple split in 2015 after three years of marriage because, while the Fox Sports commentator wanted more children, Anasta wanted to throw herself back into acting.

Jodi and Braith Anasta before their marriage broke down. Picture: Chris Pavlich

Though she misses Aleeia desperately, Anasta, 32, has no regrets about her decision to go back to work.

She has become quite a deft hand at the weekly flights between the two cities, even laughing that she’s come to view some of the airport staff as being her “airport family”.

“I use the time (on the plane) to get through my scripts then, when I am with Aleeia, it’s all about her and spending time together,” she says.

“A mother’s guilt is always there. But I feel like I am also setting a good example for Aleeia, showing her women can have a successful career and be a mother. Aleeia has adapted to this so well. She’s a happy, vivacious little girl.

Jodi Anasta and her beautiful daughter Aleeia. Picture: Instagram

“I love what I do and being able to work on a show like Neighbours is an incredible opportunity. That they (the producers) were able to restructure the schedule so that I could be with Aleeia and still be part of the show is incredible. It shows what strong family values they have.”

Anasta, then known by her maiden name of Jodi Gordon, first found fame on Home and Away playing Martha, the granddaughter of Alf Stewart (Ray Meagher). It was a role that won her a Logie and made her a household name.

Anasta’s love-life, first as the girlfriend of Channel 7 heir Ryan Stokes and then as a NRL WAG made her the subject of frenzied attention. While her ex has moved on with his personal trainer, girlfriend Rachael Lee, Anasta prefers not to talk about her love life.

Jodi Anasta in a scene from Ten’s long-running soap, Neighbours. Picture: Supplied

“Being on a show like Home and Away or Neighbours, or even just being a working actor, there’s always going to be some level of interest in you,” she says.

“I just do my thing.

“I don’t worry about it. I have an amazing job and a wonderful, supportive family.”

Although a childhood fan of the show, Anasta said Home and Away had taught her that the reality of life on set was far from glamorous.

Jodi Gordon on the set of Neighbours with Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne. Picture: Supplied

She admits to often starting her day at four am for a quick run on the treadmill before being on set by six. But she also gets lots of time off to spend with her young daughter.

“It was a bit daunting at first as I hadn’t done fast-paced soap for seven or eight years,” she says.

“There are always lots of scripts to learn in very little time. But it’s not forever.”

Far from moaning about her gruelling schedule, Anasta said she is relishing her time on Neighbours and in Melbourne.

Jodi Anasta is one of Aussie TV’s rising stars. Picture: Tim Carrafa

She says the cast had been extremely welcoming and she now considers many of them to be good friends.

Anasta has now spent a year on the popular Channel 11 drama. She is about to embark on a juicy storyline that sees her character, Elly, in a love triangle with her best friend Paige (Olympia Valance) and Mark (Scott McGregor).

It’s a storyline that Anasta identifies with, though she hastens to add that she’s never been part of a love triangle herself.

“I was a little bit scared of doing this storyline at first,” she says.

“But this isn’t just about two women fighting over a man.

“It’s about two friends putting each other before themselves. As a woman, I have friends that I wouldn’t want to do anything to upset. It’s the girl code.”

Watch Neighbours, Eleven, weekdays, 6.30pm