Lottie Henshall was cleaning a gym treadmill when she discovered she had landed a role in ‘Coronation Street’.
The cobbles star, who plays John Stape’s (Graeme Hawley) daughter Jade Rowan, was working in a gym when she auditioned for the ITV soap, and she still has to pinch herself when she is on set.
She said: "It’s a dream come true. I think I was 15 minutes into my shift and I’d been waiting about a week to find out if I’d got it and I got the call whilst cleaning a treadmill and I was crying.
"I can’t stop smiling. Every day I’m filming I’m looking around the set like, ‘I can’t believe I’m here.’
"And to work with Maureen Lipman, what a legend. And all of them."
When asked if she threw in the towel, she laughed and joked: "I literally threw the towel on the floor and walked out."
Lottie – who made her debut as Jade in September – admits she had to make a conscious effort to learn the ‘Corrie’ stars’ real names because she knew them so well as their characters.
She said: "I had to really try to learn everyone’s actual names because I was like, ‘Hi Ken.’ "
Jade arrived as a nanny for Fiz Stape’s (Jennie McAlpine) daughter Hope Stape (Isabella Flanagan), and she has become a controversial character on the cobbles after it has come to light that she has been brainwashed that Fiz is evil.
Lottie admits the character has been inundated with abuse online, but, fortunately, none of it has been directed at her.
Speaking on ‘Lorraine’, she added: "I haven’t personally had any abuse. But Jade is very much hated online. But I love it.
"She’s just the polar opposite to me. To play a ‘Corrie’ villain is a dream come true."
Lottie starred as Jade for two months before viewers found out that she was late serial killer John’s daughter, and the star later admitted it was "amazing" that the twist didn’t leak.
She said: "I’ve had people thinking that Jade is going to have an affair with Fiz. People have gone to town with their ideas.
"But not many people have guessed that Jade is the daughter of John Stape. I know some people have their theories, but the fact that it hasn’t leaked out is amazing."
Lottie Henshall was working in a gym when she found out Corrie news
