Corrie’s Tracie Bennett had to defend her soap acting career to 'snobby' actor

Sharon Bentley only returned to Coronation Street last week, and fans of the ITV soap are already convinced she’s up to something.

Tracie Bennett has reprised her role on the cobbles after 22 years, but said coming to a “brand-new” set was “fantastic” for her.

The 59-year-old actress first appeared in Coronation Street in 1982 as Sharon Gaskell, Rita’s foster daughter. She left the role two years later in 1984, before returning in 1999.

Her extensive theatre career has included a role in She Loves Me at the Savoy Theatre, for which she took home the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Musical.

She’s also appeared in everything from Les Misérables, High Society and Hairspray.

But her acting career hasn’t all been plain sailing.

Tracie revealed that she experienced “snobbiness” from an actor who was “too big to name” when she made her first foray into theatre.

When asked if she’d ever encountered “snobberies” about soaps in the acting industry, Tracie admitted: “I had snobbiness from an actor. I can’t tell you who he is because he’s too big.

“Basically, what they were saying is ‘well, you know, soaps are all right, but I have to say it’s not what I think acting’s about’.

“And I just thought – try doing 20 scenes with suicide and alcoholism on the same day, scene after scene after scene. Try doing those costume changes!”

Speaking about her run on the Street, Tracie added: “I had 22 scenes a day, full on, about major issues. It was hard, even when I was younger, because you’re always having to do the issues.

“They always gave me and Barbara [Knox] slapping scenes, and arguing scenes, and then comedy scenes because if they think you can do it they will write it.

“That’s what me and Barbara enjoyed and we looked forward to,” she explained.

Returning to Corrie after so many years was “emotional”, Tracie admitted, but she said she was “lucky” that she was coming into a brand-new set rather than the former Granada studios.

“It was emotional for me, because I’m that type,” she explained. “I think it would have been really hard if it was Granada because without that I probably wouldn’t be working now, to be honest.

“That was a proper jumpstart for me because I was fresh out of drama school. You had six cameras and one little street and just about 12 or 13 of us.

“I went through so much development as a person from 1982 to 1984, in real life as well. I’m glad it’s all brand-new now because it’s a bigger [street] and I can make new memories, which is fantastic for me, like a new start, almost.”

And seeing No7, which Sharon helped to build, was extra special for Tracie.

“No.7’s still there that I built!””she laughed. “It says underneath the windowsill 1982, and I remember Sharon painting it and bricking it and doing things with Len Fairclough.”

And dishing the dirt on what Sharon is up to after her return, Tracie admitted she’s definitely up to no good.

“She’s older now. She’s about 55,” Tracie explained. “I think ‘she can look tired, she can look haggard sometimes’. She’s had cancer, so I’ve whitened [my hair], and [after cancer] your nails are a nightmare so I didn’t have them done.”

“Sharon was a foster child,” Tracie explained, “but she’s got brothers. So she got cancer and her brother Wayne looked after her very well all the way through, and got her through it.”

The actress explained that her brother Wayne died, leaving his business to Sharon – and a responsibility to care for his son Harvey.

“So Harvey emotionally blackmails Sharon. She’s had a lot of time to think since she was ill and nearly died, so she’s allegedly been thinking long and hard and she’s trying to change and come back and make it right.”

But Sharon’s intentions aren’t that clear cut – she’s back on the street to locate Leanne, Nick and Simon to bolster her nephew’s case.

“Sometimes she’s enjoying the ride and she’s pleased with herself because she’s doing good for Harvey,” Tracie said. “But every time she feels someone is a nice person or they’re harmless, she feels massive remorse [for lying].”

“But there’s a limit coming,” Tracie teased. “Harvey gets a bit sassy and Sharon’s like ‘Oi! I’m the authority figure here’. But then eventually she’s terrified, because he’s going psycho. And then… she gets death threats.

“So it’s seemingly very selfish, but I have to play it ambiguous which is really complex for me to do as an actress.”

Tracie added: “You see Sharon struggle with her morality. Ultimately she’s doing it because she’s selfish and being guilt-tripped but she’s worked out that she might go down for 30 years for something she does. And she realises that that’s really dangerous for her – so what is she going to do about Harvey?”

And though Tracie is coming back to the Street shortly after the pandemic, she says the move was planned for “two years” due to her packed schedule.

And she’s coming back to Corrie after a very tough year, and explained that the COVID-19 pandemic had hit her particularly hard.

“Nobody trains us in the word for FaceTime to say goodbye to your mates. I lost about 12 people. So my American mates would call me at 5 o’clock my time and it takes you a while, but suddenly you’re thrust on the phone and you have to say goodbye to your mate. And then they die!

“It’s traumatising. I couldn’t deal with it. In four weeks I lost about eight people. It was the thought of doing it with technology… you don’t wanna be saying goodbye to your mates and watching them die. That was hard. It still is.”

Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk