Coronation Street actor Simon Gregson, who is at the centre of the soap's harrowing miscarriage storyline, has revealed that he and his wife have lost 11 babies. This week, viewers saw Simon's onscreen partner Michelle Connor, played by Kym Marsh, tragically lose her baby at 23 weeks. T
The plot is particularly poignant given that Kym lost her own son Archie back in 2009. And now Simon, who plays her onscreen husband Steve McDonald, has spoken of his own real-life heartache.
Simon Gregson and Kym Marsh have been at the centre of Coronation Street's harrowing miscarriage storyline
"Me and Emma have lost children," the 42-year-old told the Mirror. "First one at 21 weeks and four days. As a bloke being there and witness to all this, you feel completely helpless.
"Your wife who has carried the baby and has not given birth to the baby. Then there's all the stuff that goes along with being a human being – the chemical reaction, everything that goes on in your brain.
"The hormones and all that kind of stuff. The bloke's completely helpless. What's he supposed to do but support? Men and women grieve differently for all sorts of things. We decided to let Michelle show the raw emotion, but Steve's grief will come later."
Simon and his Emma have been married for 17 years, and are parents to three little boys
Simon and Emma have been married for 17 years, and are parents to three sons – Alfie, nine, Harry, seven, and Teddy, who turned one last month. Emma has previously revealed that they lost Teddy’s twin in the early stages of pregnancy.
Simon was prompted to reveal the full extent of the couple's loss when his wife was targeted by an online troll over the storyline. He wrote in response: "To the £&)( who tweeted my wife we've lost 11 babies 1st being 21 weeks 4 days. Maybe think or do your research before tweeting somone."
Michelle, meanwhile, has revealed she felt compelled to take on the miscarriage story to honour her son, and to encourage other people to talk about their own experiences.
"My gut instinct was to do this because, I felt, what better way to raise awareness of this subject, and also to honour my son," she said. "This subject has been very taboo for far too long. Sharing is absolutely imperative to being able to put the pieces of your jigsaw back together."