OHMYGOSSIP — Tracie Bennett returned to ‘Coronation Street’ after being promised a “dark” storyline.
The 59-year-old actress is back as Sharon Bentley – having previously starred as the character on and off from 1982 to 1999 – and 22 years later she’s working with nephew Harvey Gaskell (Will Mellor) to find Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson) and stop her testifying in his trial.
Reflecting on the plot, Tracie said: “Why bring Sharon back and waste it? I wanted to do it because the storyline was so dark.
“Sharon was always complex and I’m interested in people’s flaws.
“If you just play nice all the time that’s fine but to see the flaws of a human being who is under pressure and has all this guilt and a sense of duty to their family – it was all whirring in my head, and after a year of not doing much I wanted to get my acting chops back!”
Since leaving ‘Corrie’, Tracie went on to become a leading lady on Broadway and the West End, earning plaudits for roles in the likes of ‘Hairspray’, ‘End of the Rainbow’ and ‘Les Miserables’.
Her hectic schedule meant ITV bosses contacted her about a potential return 18 months ago, with the pandemic meaning things took a little longer to come to fruition.
She added: “It’s like a dance. They don’t know if you’re available so they put feelers out.
“If I’m in a long-running show for two years then I can’t get out of it, so they asked quite early at which point they had a couple of storylines in mind.
“Then the pandemic happened but by September 2020 we had the dates tied down to me starting around February this year.”
And Tracie is hopeful her third cobbles run could be extended, although there is plenty to consider when it comes to fan reaction and the state of theatres after lockdown.
She said: “There are things beyond my control but they’re talking about whether they might want me to stay.
“It’s up to them. They have expressed that so we’ll see. If the public hate me that might be it, but that’s acting!”
Source: VacationHunter.Online
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