Ellie Leach, an actress, is hoping to put on a good performance in the Strictly Come Dancing ballroom this year after signing on as one of 15 celebrities for the 2023 series.
Ellie, 22, will dance with Vito Coppola when the live performances begin, with the duo making their dancefloor debut with a jive to Zara Larsson’s Can’t Tame Her.
‘It still doesn’t feel real that I’m going to be doing Strictly!!’ she said in August after being confirmed for the competition.
‘It’s always been my dream, so I suppose dreams do come true!!!!’
Ellie did, of course, become famous on the Coronation Street cobblestones – but who was she in the serial, and when did she leave Weatherfield?
Here’s what you should know…
Who did Strictly’s Ellie Leach play in Coronation Street?
Ellie played Faye Windass on Coronation Street.
She first appeared on the drama in 2011, when she was just ten years old, as Anna and Eddie’s adoptive daughter.
Faye has been at the focus of several important tales over the years, most notably the birth of her daughter Miley, whom she eventually gave up for adoption.
Jackson Hodge (Joseph Evans), the baby’s father, eventually reconciled with Miley and returned to Weatherfield, and Faye found herself re-connecting with the kid.
She later found herself in the middle of a love triangle with Craig Tinker (Colson Smith), forcing her to choose between the two.
Faye was also imprisoned after assaulting Adam Barlow (Sam Robertson), assuming him to be her sex attacker Ray Crosby (Mark Frost), only to be freed early after Debbie pressured Ray into admitting guilty to the crime.
Later tales had the character dealing with the effects of early menopause.
Discussing the story last year, Ellie said: ‘People know about the menopause, but it’s not really spoken about much, especially not early menopause.
‘People don’t realise – I didn’t even realise – how young it can happen to women. So yeah, I have done a lot of research and found out a lot.
‘It’s been really interesting and great to be able to play out a story like that.’
When did Ellie Leach leave Coronation Street?
The actress left her role as Faye Windass in May this year, with Jackson and Miley, starting a new life in Slough after Jackson landed a job down south – with the character saying an emotional goodbye to Craig
‘It was very, very emotional. Faye’s been here for 12 years but I’ve been here for 12 years and it’s been my life,’ Ellie said earlier this year.
‘I know that everyone says we all get along so well and we’re like a big family but we genuinely are’, she explained.
‘I’ve absolutely loved being able to work with my best friends and I feel like that is just an amazing experience in itself.
To be in one of the biggest soaps ever is crazy and it’s been an amazing, amazing time and I’ll never ever forget it.’
Strictly Come Dancing is on BBC One on Saturday night at 6.15pm.
