Mikey North's Real-Life Romance
Mikey North, known for portraying Gary Windass on Coronation Street since 2008, shares his life off-screen with actress wife Rachael Isherwood. The couple married in 2016 after meeting three years earlier and have two children together: son Archie, born in 2017, and daughter Eliza, born in 2019.
Rachael Isherwood's Acting Career
Rachael Isherwood is a fitness instructor and actress who appeared in the 2011 Hollywood blockbuster Captain America: The First Avenger as a USO dancer, according to MCU Fandom.
Traumatic Birth of Son Archie
The birth of their first child, Archie, on 10 November 2016 was harrowing. Rachael suffered a severe episiotomy complication when a vein was cut, causing a loss of one and a half litres of blood and nearly requiring a transfusion. She described the pain as worse than anything she had experienced, and Mikey likened the scene to a "chainsaw massacre." Rachael told OK! magazine: "I had to have an episiotomy but unfortunately they cut through a vein and I lost one and a half litres of blood." Mikey added: "She was throwing up with the pain. I had tears in my eyes just watching." After 20 hours, Archie was born weighing 8lb 5oz.
Romantic Proposal in the Lake District
Mikey proposed to Rachael in 2015 during a romantic break in the Lake District. He described the moment to OK!: "I asked her to shut her eyes. When she opened them I was down on one knee with the ring. I was looking up at Rachael, with my knees getting wet, and I just said: 'Will you marry me?'" He added: "In the moment before I proposed I was shaking like a leaf. Then when she said yes, I called my mum and just couldn't stop crying."
Coronation Street Cast at Wedding
The couple's wedding in 2016 was attended by several Coronation Street cast members, including Bruno Langley (Todd Grimshaw) and Sam Ashton (Chesney Brown). Mikey chose Ian Puleston-Davis, who plays his on-screen stepfather Owen Armstrong, as his best man. Mikey admitted: "Rachael looked amazing. I'm known for letting my emotions run away with me, so I was really concentrating on trying not to cry."
Current Coronation Street Storyline
On-screen, Gary Windass has been a prime suspect in the murder of Theo Silverton. In the June 22 episode, it was revealed that Sarah Platt (Tina O'Brien) is the killer, with Gary helping to cover it up. Coronation Street airs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
