Michelle Keegan
From behind the bar in Corrie to the frontline in Africa, Michelle Keegan’s career is going from strength to strength
Acouple of years ago, Michelle Keegan took the bold step of leaving Corrie – her safe haven where she’d played the role of Tina McIntyre for almost seven years.
However, since then, both her personal life and acting career have enjoyed new levels of success.
Last year she wed boyfriend, Mark Wright and this year she bagged the lead role in the second series of popular ITV army drama, Our Girl, playing army medic Lance Corporal Georgie Lane.
Already the second series is proving to be every bit as popular as the first which aired in 2014 and starred EastEnders actress Lacey Turner, as Molly Dawes. This time the series is set in Kenya as 2 Section, led by Captain James, are deployed on a six-week humanitarian mission.
Michelle loved the chance to take on a seriously action-packed role.
“We did a lot of stunts – I actually did a few of my own which I really enjoyed, including going up in a helicopter and getting flung out of cars by my hair! It was very physical and I found it very liberating.”
She also had to learn how to handle a gun before they started filming – which was no mean feat.
“They are so heavy! I didn’t know how to hold a gun when I started and we had to shoot numerous guns. It was scary and really loud and I’d never seen a gun in my life. It was really intimidating.”
For many years her career never took her much beyond Rosamund Street so getting the opportunity to film out in South Africa was a dream come true.
“I loved it. I was working six days a week in every single scene, so I had no time to miss home. It was one of those experiences when you look back and think: what an experience of a lifetime, I loved every single minute.”