Coronation Street actress Lucy Fallon has said she struggled to contain her emotions when she was approached by a real-life victim of sexual abuse while out in Manchester. The 21-year-old actress is currently at the centre of a harrowing grooming storyline, centred around her 16-year-old character Bethany Platt, and her older boyfriend Nathan Curtis (played by Christopher Harper). And it seems her role is having a far-reaching impact. Speaking recently to the Belfast Telegraph, Lucy reflected on the moment a fan approached her, while she was paying her respects to the victims of the Manchester bombing.
Coronation Street's Lucy Fallon and Christopher Harper as Bethany Platt and Nathan Curtis
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"I went to Manchester to put some flowers down at St Ann's Square and a lady of 60 came and tapped me on the shoulder and said, 'Can I just whisper something to you?'" Lucy recalled. "I thought she was just going to say that she really like Corrie. But she said, 'I was sexually abused by my dad when I was younger.' She got really upset and she said she really appreciated what I had done. It makes me feel really proud when people say stuff like that."
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The two stars are at the centre of a harrowing grooming storyline
Speaking about filming the hard-hitting storyline, Lucy said: "We do the difficult scenes very quickly and I get to go home after. I have a long drive home and I listen to music, but you can't completely switch off just like that." She added: "It has been hard and all the crying scenes are tiring, but when you realise it does actually happen to people, acting is nothing. For me it isn't real and I get to go home and have a normal life, whereas those people don't."
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Coronation Street producer Kate Oates, meanwhile, has said the team are "achingly proud" of both Lucy and Christopher. "I definitely want to keep Lucy central to the show because she has shone through all of this," she said. "We have got some plans for her and when the scales do fall from her eyes she takes power and responsibility back. It is important that we see Bethany being active in saving herself rather than just being pulled out of the situation."