Goodbye to love: Major character quits Coronation Street.
Bethany Platt desperately wanted her relationship with the widowed Daniel Osbourne (left) to work on Coronation Street but it seems that the grief over losing his wife Sinead to cancer is still too raw for Daniel. So Bethany is off to start life afresh in London. James Rampton talks to Lucy Fallon about her character’s departure.
The course of true love seldom runs smoothly on Coronation Street. And it certainly hasn’t turned out that way for Bethany Platt (played by Lucy Fallon).
Despite her overwhelming feelings for Daniel Osbourne (Rob Mallard), Bethany knows that Daniel can never feel the same way about her until he has fully come to terms with the tragic early death from cancer of his wife Sinead.
So Bethany has decided to turn her back on Weatherfield and start her life anew in London.
Bethany is a major Coro Street character who has had several huge stories down the years.
The most memorable one was when as a teen she was groomed by Nathan Curtis (Christopher Harper) and initiated into a child abuse ring.
Lucy Fallon, 24, who has played Bethany for the past five years, looks back on her time in Weatherfield and picks out her number-one storyline.
“I am most proud of the grooming storyline because of how important it was,” Fallon says.
“It helped people and encouraged them to open up about things that they might not feel that they can talk about.
“Not so long ago someone messaged me to say that between the ages of 10 and 21 they had been abused, and as they were watching the storyline play out they realised that that was what was happening to them. Now their abuser has been jailed for 17 years.”
Fallon adds that this plotline led to her most demanding moments as Bethany.
“The court scenes towards the end of the grooming storyline were the most challenging because they were emotional,” Fallon says.
“There were a lot of people there and I had a lot to say. Even during the line run, I got upset reading my lines.”
The actress, who has won multiple TV awards for her performance as Bethany, assesses where her character is at with Daniel.
“Bethany still really loves Daniel and wants to be with him, but from what her family are saying, she is starting to
realise that he may not be over Sinead. “There are certain moments where Daniel’s actions start to make Bethany think that all is not what she originally thought. “She starts to feel like he is using her to fill a void.” For that reason, Fallon says, the time is now right for Bethany to depart from Weatherfield. “When the day comes, she is 100 per cent ready to leave. “Everything that has happened recently and everything that has happened in Bethany’s past just cements in her mind that there is no reason for her to stay. “She needs to go and do this job in London, grab the opportunity and see what happens. Even though she is sad because she will miss everyone, she is ready for a new start.” The actress, who is leaving Coro Street to pursue other acting projects, thinks it is a fitting exit for her character. “It’s really nice. I think it would be really sad if
we had seen Bethany killed or if something really horrendous had happened to her that made her leave.
“After everything that’s happened, it’s really nice that she is leaving because of a decision that she has made for herself and there is no bad blood between anyone.
“She will miss all her family and she loves them all, but she is leaving in a really lovely way to start a new chapter.”
As Fallon bids farewell to Coro, she reflects on how she would like Bethany to be remembered.
“She’s a really good person and cares about people – maybe too much – and that’s why she keeps getting herself into situations like the one with Daniel.
“I would like her to be remembered for being really strong and being able to come out of a really horrible situation and wanting justice to be done.
“She has got on with her life and I want people to remember that.”
The actress signs off by revealing what advice she would give to Bethany about leaving Weatherfield.
“I would tell her that she needs to go to London, work really hard, go above and beyond, make new friends, say ‘yes’ to everything, and focus on getting stuck into things. Then good things will come.”