Coronation Street stars have reunited as Denise Welch meets up with Sally Dynevor and Jane Danson 24 years after being on the soap.
The 65-year-old spent some time with her former colleagues which also included Samia Longchambon and Angela Lonsdale who previously played a police officer called Emma Watts. The group enjoyed a bite to eat at restaurant Smoke, in Wilmslow, Cheshire.
Posting the snap on Instagram, Denise wrote: “Always happy to be back with my girls.” While Angela, who appeared in the soap from 2000 to 2003, replied: “Now that’s what ya call a Girl Gang!” Jane, who has played Leanne Battersby in the ITV1 soap since 1997 said: “Always happy to be back with you,” along with a red love heart emoji.
Denise played the role of Natalie Barnes in Coronation Street from 1997 to 2000. She was the mother of Tony Horrocks, co-owner of MVB Motors, and the landlady of the Rovers Return. However, Denise’s time on the show wasn’t all smooth sailing as behind the scenes she was struggling with depression and an alcohol and drug addiction.
Speaking in 2022, The Sun reported that Denise said: “My drinking really started to be a problem during the Coronation Street times. I had always loved a party. But that was getting p***ed on a Saturday night and feeling rough on a Sunday. I didn’t have a problem. When I was doing Corrie it was watched by 21million people an episode. That is a third of the country. There is a lot of f***ing pressure on you for that. The schedule was unforgiving. Rather than stay off work — people stay off if they’ve lost an eyelash these days — I was from ‘the show must go on’ school.”
