‘Coronation Street’s Shelley King struggled to switch off from her character’s coercive control storyline.
The 64-year-old actress – who plays Yasmeen Nazir on the ITV soap – has admitted she couldn’t stop thinking about the real-life victims of abuse while she was shooting her scenes.
She shared: "The past few months were tiring to film. The storyline has been going on for two years and at times it was difficult to unwind.
"I felt a heaviness. It was a feeling that not everything is right in the world. But in a strangely positive way, I am getting messages from people all the time.
"I’ve heard the most distressing stories from women and men from so many different backgrounds and cultures.
"One woman of 80 shared her story with me. It’s not something you ever forget.
"’Corrie’ is informing people there is help out there. It’s such an important issue to tackle – that’s why I love it.
"A lot of the messages I’ve been getting are from people saying, ‘That’s happening to me’. They’re watching the storyline and are now seeking help."
Shelley also revealed her performance was inspired by her late mother, who suffered a stroke in 1999.
She told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: "This has been one of the most traumatic experiences.
"I’m a theatre actor – and all actors, in order to give an acceptable, truthful and vulnerable performance, have to open themselves up to the situation of the person they are portraying.
"You have to rehearse and make connections that are often painful. I was remembering my mother’s sudden stroke. She died in my dad’s arms. She was a huge ‘Corrie’ fan. It’s such a shame she never got to see me on the Street."
Shelley King ‘struggled to switch off’ from Coronation Street
