Julie Hesmondhalgh made a surprise appearance on stage with Self Esteem during Pulp's headline gig at Wythenshawe Park on Friday night. The Coronation Street legend joined the singer, real name Rebecca Lucy Taylor, during her set, delighting the crowd of over 30,000 fans.
Surprise guest during Self Esteem's set
The show began just after 6pm with Saddleworth's Seb Lowe, followed by Self Esteem, who expressed her joy at performing alongside her fellow Sheffield natives Pulp. Her set was a blistering run through of her biggest hits, backed by her chorus and band.
As her set drew to a close, Self Esteem welcomed Julie Hesmondhalgh to the stage during her song If Not Now, It's Soon. Wearing a Choose Love t-shirt, Julie walked out to huge cheers at around 7.30pm, speaking lyrics from the song.
Fan reaction and upcoming role
Julie boomed out: "Something will happen, because it's got to." She continued: "It's not just perserverance we need, it's patience." She stayed on stage to sing along with the chorus, jumping up and down arm in arm with Self Esteem, and showed off some of her own dance moves.
The moment was shared on Self Esteem's official Instagram account, with one fan, Daisy.rds, writing: "Our future celeb traitors winner btw" alongside a video of the on-stage moment. Julie has won acclaim for roles from Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street to Mr Bates v The Post Office, and it was announced earlier this year that she will be one of 21 stars in the second series of Celebrity Traitors on BBC One this Autumn, alongside James Blunt, Miranda Hart, Michael Sheen and Jerry Hall.
Pulp's final tour date
After Julie's appearance, Pulp took to the stage for the finale of the night, performing a blistering set of their biggest hits. Frontman Jarvis Cocker said it was the last gig the band would be playing "for some time", marking the final night of their tour following the release of their album More.
