No shrinking VIOLET

JENNY PLATT chats to TV Times about her dramatic return to the cobbles

In 2008, Coronation Street barmaid Violet Wilson fled Weatherfield with baby son Dylan - her child with pal Sean Tully to start a new life in London with boyfriend Jamie Baldwin.

Now, 16 years later, she's back on the cobbles, but she's in no mood to play happy families. She's staggered to learn that her lad, who came to live with Sean several years ago after being bullied, has not only been a bully himself, but has also been in serious bother with the police.

TV Times joined actor Jenny Platt, 44, for an exclusive chat to discuss her highly anticipated comeback to the ITV1 soap...

Have you ever been asked back to Corrie before, or was this the first time?

This was the first time - apart from when I did a one-off episode in 2011, set in London. But I've always been open to a return because I didn't feel the character had been put to bed.

When I left in 2008, I loved the job so much; I just wanted to spread my wings and it was the right time to do that, before I had responsibilities. But I had this inkling of, 'I wonder if I'm going to get a call..." when Dylan came back to the Street. With what's been going on, more and more it seemed strange that Violet wasn't there.

What have you been up to since 2008?

I've done a lot of theatre, including a brilliant play [in 2016] called Wit with Julie Hesmondhalgh [who played Weatherfield's Hayley Cropper]. TV-wise, I was in BBC1 drama Waterloo Road last year as [school governor] Rose Massey, and I've done various other stuff, including BBC2's Versailles and ITV's The Long Call.