Street wise

FORMER Hear’Say singer Kym Marsh has been happy to prove wrong those who thought she’d fall flat on her face when she arrived in Coronation Street, in 2006.

“A lot of people were expecting me to fall on my a***,” she says. ‘‘I don’t blame them for thinking that. You know, you’ve got to be cynical about it, because nobody knew me to be an actress.

‘‘I’d just done six months in the West End in Saturday Night Fever, and I got the acting bug again. It was something I really wanted to do, because I used to act a lot at school. Then taking on bit parts here and there really helped groom me for Corrie.”

She was nervous, knowing that if she made a mistake it would be the end for her. But people were not only surprised but impressed, as her character, Michelle Connor, enjoyed juicy storylines and a rocky love life.

While many Corrie characters come and go, Kym thinks the Connor clan are also part of the reason for her ongoing soap success.

“It’s probably one of the few families that have been instantly accepted in years,” she explains.

“There’s always that funny period when a new family comes in, where people don’t really like them because they don’t fit in. Introducing us one by one was probably the best way to do it. It’s probably why people took to us.”

Viewers have been “on a right old journey”

with Michelle in the past three years. ‘‘She’s had many ups and downs really.

She’s had a bit of a tough time,” says Marsh.

‘‘She’s just got stronger really, if anything.

We’ve seen her take some knocks, but she just keeps getting up. Also, she’s made a lot of friends, and now Maria’s part of her family. I think she’s nice and settled there really.”

Merseyside-born Marsh has had her share of troubles herself over the past eight years, since rising to fame as part of Hear’Say, the band who won ITV’s Popstars in 2001 and scored two chart-topping hits.

Her marriage and split from ex-East- Ender Jack Ryder, and her romance with Hollyoaks star Jamie Lomas ensured Kym has been a frequent subject for the tabloids.

In February, Jamie and Kym were in the news again for tragic reasons. Their baby son, Archie, died shortly after being born 18 weeks early.

It’s obviously been a tough few months since then, but the actress admits she and Jamie are on the road to recovery and were recently pictured out in public for the first time since their loss.

‘‘I’m much better,’’ she says. ‘‘You know, it’s been a long old struggle, but we’ve had a lot of support from our family and friends, which has really helped, and everybody at work has been great.’’ Kym, who has two children, David, 13, and Emily, ten, from a previous relationship, returned to work a few weeks ago, and was thrilled to find a wealth of storylines awaiting her.

BUT after two years with cheating Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) at the Rovers Return, the thought of a romance with boozy bookie Peter Barlow (Chris Gascoyne) made her a little nervous.

‘‘When you’re told you are not going to be with the character you’ve been with for the past two years, you tend to be a bit scared,’’ she admits.

‘‘It’s like, ‘right, okay. I feel a little bit out of my comfort zone. I’m not in the pub any more. I have nothing around me that was familiar’, so I was really nervous.

And then when they said I was working with Chris, I was really, really happy. He’s such an amazing actor.’’ But there’s about to be yet another love interest for Michelle, as factory boss Luke Strong tries to win her over as well. So who will Michelle go for, Peter or Luke?

Or maybe even a reconciliation with Steve?

‘‘She deserves a bit of happiness.

Whether or not she’d find that with Peter or Luke. I don’t know,’’ says Marsh. ‘‘Me?

I think she should go for Ken.’’