Coronation Street actress Sydney Martin has teased a new romance for Betsy Swain, as her character continues her recovery after suffering a stroke earlier this year. Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Sydney promised scenes of "hope" ahead for the character, revealing that Brody Michaelis (Ryan Mulvey) will help Betsy with her recovery in "sweet scenes".
Chemistry with Brody
After her split from Dylan Wilson, Betsy would grow closer to Brody, and their "chemistry" could be explored by the ITV soap. Betsy suffered a stroke after a neck injury when she was choked by Dylan during consensual sex. The plot raised awareness of the little amount of pressure needed to cause such a severe injury. While Betsy doesn't blame Dylan, knowing he had not meant to hurt her, the pair have ended their relationship.
Sydney said they will remain friends, while Betsy and Brody could make a go of things, depending on what the producers make of their scenes. She explained: "I've had a few more scenes with Ryan who plays Brody. There's a nice little bit of chemistry there. I think we've always had a very nice chemistry, but I think maybe it seemed like the obvious choice for Betsy? I think her and Dylan make gorgeous friends, like it's a really nice energy there."
Hopeful recovery scenes
"For Betsy and Brody, I think there's a chemistry that the writers have held off on, but they've kind of maybe given into it a little bit and said, 'We'll see what you do with it.' It's been fun filming with him. He's like a softie, but still annoying in the best way. Just enough that he's still a 'bad boy', and Betsy still likes the bad boy. But he has got that streak of softness, and I feel like that's a trope that I love. The bad boy gone sweet."
"There's scenes of him kind of helping her in her recovery and stuff, which has been really sweet to film. There's a lot of hope coming in the recovery."
Portraying the storyline
Sydney admitted it was daunting to take the storyline on, but with the help of charities and stroke survivors, she's thrilled she's been given the chance to reflect the topic correctly. She said: "I was scared, because of how fast things film, how much we plough through things. There was so much that I wanted to get right. Working with Louise and Niamh was unreal. They're just the most gorgeous girls, and it was such a privilege to work with them. But it was tough, because I want to get it right."
"It was so rewarding, and it's obviously gone down really well. It's been really educational from both perspectives. It's a real, real privilege. I felt the pressure, but at the same time it was nice to know that I was trusted with such a big storyline."
Sydney has been overwhelmed by the feedback from viewers since the storyline aired. She said: "I found out the storyline in November last year, and I went home, and I watched about 100 videos. I drove back to work with like a 100 more questions. They set up loads of great things, we worked with so many amazing charities. But I was like, 'Can I talk to more? Can I do this? Can I do that?' and to see the kind of feedback it's had."
Sydney says she hopes the storyline continues to be covered as Betsy moves on. She said: "A stroke can become a hidden disability. Although someone might seem back to normal to other people, there's so many other things. I've had so many conversations with Niamh about fatigue and your fine motor skills, like just using your individual fingers. So someone might seem completely normal, per se, but there's so many little things, and just doing it in a really subtle way. It's not something that goes away, and it'll be something that, there'll be little bits and bobs that happen throughout her life after this. It's about showing it in a really clever way."
Coronation Street airs weeknights at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITV X.
