In 2019, she began portraying the role of Sue Carp in the Channel 4 comedy-drama series Ackley Bridge.
She won the best actress award at the Monte Carlo International Television Festival in 1998 for her role in Amber Films' The Scar, about a County Durham pit community in crisis.
For her role on Emmerdale, Hardwick has been nominated seven times at the British Soap Awards, winning in 2006 for Best Comedy Performance.
Hardwick has acted in a number of stage productions, including starring in Cooking with Elvis alongside Frank Skinner, which toured nationally.
[2] In 2019, Hardwick joined the third series of the Channel 4 comedy drama Ackley Bridge as Sue Carp.