MEET the newest Hollyoaks cast member – Beth Kingston from Bournemouth.

It was revealed this week that 22-year-old Beth from Charminster would be adopting the role of new student India after she entered the soap’s ‘Desperately Seeking’ competition.

Beth was announced the winner of the open auditions live on T4, beating the estimated 1,700 girls who entered.

She said: “To get down to the final 25 felt amazing and I was so excited, let alone getting to the final three and then actually winning.”

A keen actress all her life, Beth started dancing and acting classes at the age of four and took part in an array of amateur productions all the way through university.

The Bournemouth University history graduate said she thought it would be good to get a degree behind her but always knew she would get back into acting afterwards.

Since graduating last summer, she has completed a post-graduate acting course that finished in May.

Beth said: “I have been applying for lots of things and have been doing various short films, but nothing like this. I was expecting it to take much longer to get to this position.”

The Hollyoaks producers have thrown her straight into the deep end and the past week has been a whirlwind of events, including press, radio and TV interviews, photo shoots and the Soap Awards.

Beth will be on set filming today and she was handed the script immediately after winning.

Unfortunately, viewers will have to wait until September to get a first glimpse of her on screen.

Beth said: “This has been my dream since I was a little girl and I have just been so lucky.

“The future is definitely looking brighter and it can only get better from here.”