Coronation Street – Claire Sweeney on Tyrone’s mother shock

coronation street spoilers follow.

coronation street kicks off a huge new story for Tyrone Dobbs next week, as his long-lost mother Cassie shows up in Weatherfield.

Ancient Brookside Star Claire Sweeney has landed the role of Cassie, which will turn the lives of Tyrone and her grandmother Evelyn upside down over the next few months.

Ever since Evelyn hit the cobbles, she claims her daughter Cassie, Tyrone’s mother, is dead. However, in the upcoming scenes, viewers will see that Evelyn keeps in touch with Cassie, who is alive and well.

cassie and evelyn plummer in coronation street

TVI

The next week, Evelyn ignores Cassie when she sees her hiding on the cobblestones, but she later receives a disturbing call about her admission to the ER.

When Cassie is later discharged from the hospital, she shows up at Tyrone’s house and leaves Evelyn in a panic, wondering what she will reveal.

Claire recently met digital spy and other media to discuss the upcoming drama.

How would you describe Cassie’s character?

“I love Cassie and I hope the audience loves her as much as I do. She’s vulnerable, she’s troubled, and she’s in big trouble. While I’m reading the scripts, I want her to hold her own because we let’s all love Tyrone – you don’t want anything to upset him, do we? It’s nice to see another side of Evelyn as a mother.

“Cassie is feisty and she’s going to cause trouble on the cobbles. She’s a loose cannon, but she’s also vulnerable.”

Can you tell us about Cassie’s arrival?

“Cassie has a problem – she’s a drug addict. That’s what makes her so unpredictable and loose. She really has big intentions to get better and be with her family, but she’s a drug addict and it’s is quite sad, really.

“Evelyn has had a relationship with Cassie for a while, and people don’t know about it. Evelyn provides her with occasional support and help.

“Then Cassie shows up on the street and she wants to see Tyrone. She wants to get clean, she wants to be involved with the family. She’s a tough girl, but there’s a vulnerability about her where she needs a little help. mom, and her mom can help. So Cassie comes for help.

Evelyn had gone to help Cassie the last time she took a break from the street, hadn’t she?

“Yeah, we find out Evelyn was helping Cassie clean up at the time. Poor Cassie – she gets clean and then goes back to her old ways.

“The first scene I filmed was a 14-page double with Dame Maureen Lipman, who I’m a huge fan of. A normal scene is three or four pages. I thought, ‘Well, this is a baptism fire !’

“Working with Maureen – it was like a master class, she was so fantastic. I’m really looking forward to doing more things with her and with Alan [Halsall, who plays Tyrone]. I did my screen test with Alan and what a wonderful actor he is too. So I’m surrounded by great people.”

claire sweeney as cassie in coronation street

TVI

How does Evelyn react to Cassie’s arrival?

“Well, Evelyn lived a lie, didn’t she? She didn’t tell Tyrone the truth and suddenly the truth is in front of her. Evelyn tells Tyrone that her mother is dead, then Cassie shows up .

“So first of all, Tyrone is going to find out that his mother is alive and that his grandmother has been lying to him. It’s a whole scenario that’s going to unfold before our eyes.

“So Evelyn wants Cassie away. Evelyn loves Tyrone and she loves children, so she wants to protect them because she knows Cassie is a loose cannon and she will cause trouble. She wants to protect them and keep them in their little good bubble.”

Can you tell us where things are going in the longer term?

“Cassie is going to wreak havoc. It’s a live thread. But not only is there great drama, but you also have this wonderful Corri the humor we love. One minute you laugh and one minute you cry and that’s the wonderful thing about it Corri.”

Will Cassie share scenes with Abi, who has had similar addiction issues?

“I think that might be on the cards. I don’t know if Abi wants to help Cassie or not – I don’t know that far into the story. But there are a few scenes with them together coming up.”

How was your involvement in Corri arrive?

“My agent got an email asking me to do a self-tape. It arrived at 6 p.m. and they wanted it the next day. It was one of those times when I was really busy with work and it was the only night off.

“Luckily I was home. I phoned my buddy who’s an actor and said, ‘Can you come? I have this self-tape to do.’ It was a big scene, but there were no names. There was no Tyrone, there was no Evelyn – they were different names, I think to protect the confidentiality of the script.

“It was a two-handed game, I learned it and did it in my bed. Which wasn’t really appropriate because I have a big silver bunk bed and the scene was supposed to be unfold in a hospital bed.

“They seemed to like it, then they asked me to come and do a chemistry test with Alan who plays Tyrone.”

Claire Sweeney

Karwai Tang//Getty Images

How did you feel when you got the role?

“When I got the role Brookside, it was my birthday – April 17th. When I got the role of Cassie, it was also my birthday! I was in Mallorca with my family and my agent swore me to secrecy, insisting that I had no right to tell anyone.

“So my mates called me to wish me a happy birthday. Even my mate Tony, who I auditioned with, said, ‘It wouldn’t be nice if you got the part on the day of your birthday?’ I wasn’t allowed to say anything, so I got two soap opera roles on my birthday, which was the greatest gift ever.

“I just wanna talk about [Coronation Street producer] Iain [MacLeod], Also. Over the past few years, I have done quite a bit benidorm, Scarborougha drama i filmed last year – not massive parts, but wanting to come back and do some really good acting.

“I never dreamed Corri would be an option. Iain gave me a chance and it only takes one person to believe in you and say, ‘Yeah, you can do it. Give him a chance”. And I’m so grateful for that.”

Have you ever auditioned for the show before?

“I never auditioned and I was never seen for it. But I always thought if I was going to do another soap opera, Corri would be the one I dreamed of. I grew up watching it. I remember being a kid sitting around and being obsessed with Pat Phoenix initially and then Bet Lynch.

“It’s just been iconic and part of my childhood, with all these wonderful women on the show over the years and in comedy. So Corri is a dream role.”

Cassie doesn’t look like the glamorous Claire people expect. Did it appeal to you when you accepted the role?

“It’s true. I’m not vain, I’m an actress. The first day of filming on the cobblestones, one of the extras said to me: ‘Oh, we didn’t recognize you.’ was brilliant – that’s how I wanted to be, I want her to be so far away from me.

“As soon as I put the clothes on, the leggings, the converses and the cap, I look really tough, I become that character. It would be interesting to see if she ends up getting a little glamorous if she pulls it off, I don’t know yet so far.”

How did you feel on the first day?

“I felt like an impostor. I had real impostor syndrome, like I slipped into one of the tours. I couldn’t believe it. Honestly, I’m such a fan.

“I’ve said before that if it’s Hollywood or Corrigive me Corri any day! Not that Hollywood was an option, but to me it’s the equivalent. It’s so wonderful. It is an institution. It’s the soap we all grew up with.”

After doing a lot of theatre, did you feel that the time had come to do more television again?

“I’m also a mom. I’m a single mom to my 8-year-old son, Jaxon. So my decisions aren’t just based on loving what I do, they’re based on stability for me and my son. I’m 52 now.

“Not only is it Corri the best soap opera for me, not only is Cassie a wonderful role, working with Maureen and Alan and all those wonderful people, but the work was also stable.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to be because I never take anything for granted in this business. But just to have that stability for a while too, it just happened at the right time. It’s not shooting in a musical in a different place every week and then rushing home, I’m going to have my full weekends with my boy now, which is lovely.

coronation street airs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.

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Portrait of Daniel Kilkelly

Daniel has been writing about soap operas on Digital Spy since 2004 and took over as soap editor in 2010.
He’s interviewed hundreds of soap opera stars over the years, from Bill Roache to Lacey Turner, and regularly visits the sets of Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks for behind-the-scenes trips and press events.
He has been an awards judge on numerous occasions for the BAFTA TV Awards, the RTS Program Awards and the British Soap Awards. In 2020, he was highly commended for Best Section Editor at the BSME Awards.

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