Former Coronation Street star Angela Griffin has defended Michelle Collins's attempts at a Northern accent.
Collins joined the ITV1 soap in June as Stella Price, but has since received criticism for her fake Northern accent.
Griffin defended her accent, telling the Sunday Mirror: "I think Michelle Collins is brilliant and a fabulous actress. I've heard her Northern accent and think it's ace!"
As for whether Griffin would ever return to the show as Fiona Middleton, she added: "I would never say no. I'd never turn down a job because I'm self-employed!"
Former Coronation Street star Sally Lindsay and current actress Catherine Tyldesley, who plays Collins's on-screen daughter Eva, have also insisted that there is nothing wrong with her Northern accent.
Producers are said to have handed Collins a last chance storyline to help viewers warm to Stella.