Kate Ritchie was the ‘envy of all the girls on set’ when she kissed Heath Ledger on Home And Away 

‘He was absolutely gorgeous’: Kate Ritchie reveals she was the ‘envy of all the girls on set’ when she locked lips with Heath Ledger on Home And Away

On Tuesday’s episode of Anh’s Brush with Fame, Kate Ritchie revealed what it was really like working with Heath Ledger.

The 42-year-old actress starred alongside the late actor when he appeared on long-running soap Home and Away in 1996. 

Heath played bad boy Scott Irwin, and he and Kate’s character Sally shared some on screen kisses – the pair were both around 17 years old at the time.  

Co-stars: On Tuesday’s episode of Anh’s Brush with Fame, Kate Ritchie (pictured) revealed what it was really like working with Heath Ledger

Kate said of the experience: ‘I always find it really awkward talking about him, because I hate it when I hear people talk about other people of that calibre. 

‘Because it’s as if they’re trying to attach themselves to that success, and I’m certainly not trying to do that. 

‘But my own experience with working with him is that he was absolutely gorgeous and just fun. 

Memories: The 42-year-old actress starred alongside the late actor when he appeared on long-running soap Home and Away in 1996 (pictured). Heath played bad boy Scott Irwin, and he and Kate's character Sally shared some on screen kisses - they were both 17 at the time

Memories: The 42-year-old actress starred alongside the late actor when he appeared on long-running soap Home and Away in 1996 (pictured). Heath played bad boy Scott Irwin, and he and Kate’s character Sally shared some on screen kisses – they were both 17 at the time 

‘And I was the envy, of course, of all the girls on set. Because I was the one that got to lock lips with him, repeatedly.’ 

The radio host added, laughing, ‘I think we did a few takes, probably unnecessarily’. 

Heath was tragically found dead at a New York City apartment on January 22, 2008, after accidentally overdosing following months of physical and mental exhaustion.

She told the program: 'My own experience with working with him is that he was absolutely gorgeous and just fun. 'And I was the envy, of course, of all the girls on set. Because I was the one that got to lock lips with him, repeatedly'

She told the program: ‘My own experience with working with him is that he was absolutely gorgeous and just fun. ‘And I was the envy, of course, of all the girls on set. Because I was the one that got to lock lips with him, repeatedly’ 

The radio host added, laughing, 'I think we did a few takes, probably unnecessarily'. Pictured on Home and Away

The radio host added, laughing, ‘I think we did a few takes, probably unnecessarily’. Pictured on Home and Away 

Reportedly a drug user on and off for years, things came to a head when he was juggling too many films – including his last role The Dark Knight – on very little sleep and he started relying on various cocktails of prescriptions to shut his mind off.

‘I couldn’t stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going,’ he told the New York Times in an interview in November – just two months before he died at the age of 28.

He was ultimately found dead from a lethal combination of six drugs in his system: two types of narcotics, two types of anti-anxiety medicine and two types of sleep medicine.

Tragic: Heath was tragically found dead at a New York City apartment on January 22, 2008, after accidentally overdosing from a lethal combination of six drugs. He was 28

Tragic: Heath was tragically found dead at a New York City apartment on January 22, 2008, after accidentally overdosing from a lethal combination of six drugs. He was 28