Tracy Barlow

[Perdita]

Coronation Street star Simon Gregson has teased the latest romance twist ahead for Steve McDonald and Tracy Barlow, admitting that his character may not be "thinking straight" when he gets involved with the Weatherfield schemer again.

Steve and Tracy receive a new shock later this week when they discover that they are expecting twins, which soon leads to another unexpected development as they share a kiss.

The pair edge closer to a proper relationship as a panic-stricken Tracy needs reassurance that Steve will be there for her once the babies are born.

Gregson told Hot TV of the twins twist: "Steve loved being a twin and he's swept up in the memories, but Tracy is scared. Steve's insistent she won't be alone, but Tracy's serious that she can't do this on her own."

He continued: "[They have] an emotional conversation and, caught up in the moment, Steve kisses her. It's not planned and I'm not sure he's thinking straight at the time, but it happens and then he has to deal with the consequences.

"I'm not sure Steve knows what he wants at the moment, but one thing is for sure, he wants these babies and I think that will be the deciding factor."

Following the heart-to-heart, Coronation Street viewers will be left to wonder whether Steve really can make a commitment to Tracy for the sake of their children or whether he will leave her heartbroken again.

[alan45]

will leave her heartbroken again.

Heartbroken my ****

Traceyluv only thinks about one person and that's herself. This is probably a good job as the viewers don't care about her or her character

[ellie2]

Let's hope Steve sees the light soon. I can't stand Toxic Tracy - and how come she got away with murder? By rights she should still be banged up.

[Perdita]

Coronation Street star Kate Ford has admitted that she has fun playing superbitch Tracy Barlow.

The actress, who is contracted to stay in the soap until at least 2012, said that while portraying her character is enjoyable, she sometimes struggles with some of Tracy's meaner lines.

"I really like Tracy, as odd as it sounds," she told The Mirror. "There's a real sense of danger with her - she did kill someone after all and you wouldn't want to p*ss her off. You get to say the most ridiculous, vicious things which can be fun. But it can be horrible too. You'd be surprised at how difficult it is sometimes.

"She's said some really hurtful things to Becky about her not being able to have babies, and when her little boy Max was taken into care. I'm a mum myself and I've found it hard to say some of those things.

"They feel like the most spiteful things that would be hurtful to any woman. I'd never dream of saying things like that in my life."

Ford added that she believes Steve McDonald will never love Tracy and wouldn't be with her if they didn't have children together.

[alan45]

She makes our blood boil as the most evil woman in soap. And as she pouts and sizzles her way through our Halloween photoshoot, Kate Ford looks every inch the sexy she-devil we know and loathe.

But away from the Coronation Street cobbles the actress, 34, couldn’t be more different than her alter ego Tracy Barlow, who she has played for almost a decade.

Kate is supersweet and a bundle of nerves at talking about herself but, ironically, she loves tapping into her inner bad girl to play the soap superbitch who has done time for murder,


“I really like Tracy, as odd as it sounds,” she says. “There’s a real sense of danger with her – she did kill someone after all and you wouldn’t want to p*** her off. You get to say the most ridiculous, vicious things which can be fun. But it can be horrible too. You’d be surprised at how difficult it is sometimes.

“She’s said some really hurtful things to Becky about her not being able to have babies, and when her little boy Max was taken into care. I’m a mum myself and I’ve found it hard to say some of those things.

“They feel like the most spiteful things that would be hurtful to any woman. I’d never dream of saying things like that in my life.”

For the first time since Kate took on the role of the poisonous Miss Barlow in 2002, things have finally taken a positive turn for Tracy. She’s bagged the bloke of her dreams, she’s pregnant with twins and she’s all but banished her arch love rival Becky, played by Katherine Kelly, from the Street.

But can conniving Tracy actually make things work? “Well she’s finally got what she wants,” says Kate. “The whole time I’ve played Tracy, she’s wanted Steve McDonald and now she’s got him. I think she genuinely loves him and it would be a shame for her to find out after all this time that he wasn’t worth the effort.”

But Kate’s under no illusion that Tracy can make Steve, played by Simon Gregson, love her back. “Becky was the love of his life,” she says. “He will never love Tracy. I think he could love the family life, but he’ll never love her. Steve’s only with her because he thinks it’s the right thing.

“Tracy will never compare to Becky. Until now, they’d only had sex twice, and look what happened – three kids from two bonks! If she’d never got pregnant, they would never be together. He doesn’t desire her the way he did Becky. Poor Tracy!”

Poor Tracy indeed – especially compared to Kate’s own blissful family life. She married TV producer Jon Connerty four years ago and the couple are devoted to their little boy Otis, three.

“We were together nine months before we got married,” says Salford-born Kate. “Maybe 11 months? Oh God I can’t remember. I’m spontaneous and do everything quickly. When I see something I want, I just get it. It’s bad for the credit card, but it worked with Jon!”

The couple got their first house together quite quickly too. “We’d been together a few months and we were walking down this street when I told Jon I’d love to live there one day,” recalls Kate.

“As we walked on we saw a house for sale, rang the number off the sign and asked the bloke to show us around. He came right round, we put an offer in within an hour and that was it, we got it.

“So we were married pretty quick, had a house in a couple of hours and I was seven weeks pregnant on the wedding day – I guess that’s another sign of how I like to get on with things! But we were engaged before I was pregnant, we just decided not to hang about on the baby front.”

With her alter-ego expecting twins, would Kate be feeling a bit broody too? “Em, no,” she laughs. “I would love to have more, but not right now. Otis and I are at a really good place. He’s nearly four and we’re having little chats and lots of fun together.

“He likes watching Corrie and he totally gets the whole pretend thing. He sometimes asks ‘How’s Stevie?’ and he likes to pretend himself. He introduces himself as different superheroes and wears all the different costumes.”

With a hectic filming schedule in Manchester to juggle with family life in London where the family lives, Kate insists that while being away from her son and husband can be tough – she commutes the 200 miles every week – she has it easier than lots of working mums. “Of course I miss them when I’m away,” she says. “But I have it better than mothers who work nine to five. Over the past few weeks I’ve only been in about one day a week so I’ve had lots of time at home.

“If you work nine to five you drop them off, don’t see them all day and when you get back they’re practically ready for bed. I don’t see Otis every day, but the days I’m home I have him all day. That’s unusual for a working mum.”

Luckily for Kate, Jon is a hands-on dad and takes the reins when she’s working. “Jon is brilliant,” she says. “But I’m not left out. Otis is such a mummy’s boy. I think that’s normal at three. Dads get their time later on when kids get bigger and get into sport and all that.”

When she’s working, Kate still takes on a caring role, looking out for other cast members. Recently she’s been a support to Helen Flanagan, aka Rosie Webster, who will leave the soap in December. Helen, 21, who shares a dressing room with Kate, suffers from panic attacks. Having suffered from them herself for years, Kate has been able to help. “I’ve spoken to Helen about what’s been happening,” she says. “But that’s not the reason she’s leaving. She’s interested in travelling and doing different work.

“I’ll miss her though. I have been able to talk to her about the panic attacks because I get them a lot. Nothing really causes them but panic itself makes the attacks worse.”

What advice does Kate have for Helen, and anyone else who has panic attacks?

“Just don’t fight it. It’s horrible, but it will never last for more than half an hour. You have to remind yourself it can’t actually harm you so you have to ride it out.”

With the help of Jon, though, Kate does manage to unwind. “We have date nights every week, we always have since Otis was born whether it’s just to the cinema or out for dinner.

“But more than a night would be good – it would be lovely to lie in bed with breakfast and the papers like our pre-baby days.”

And with twins on the way, Tracy Barlow must surely be thinking the same.



Read more: http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/tv/20...#ixzz1cCRTyu9O

[walsh2509]

Its a racing cert that the kids will not be Steve's

[Perdita]

IT'S touch and go when Tracy is taken ill with an infection in her only remaining kidney.
Her health deteriorates after Emily has enough of her antics and asks her to pack her bags and leave.
Deirdre then finds her wayward daughter collapsed in a heap.

Please kill her off

[Perdita]

IT'S touch and go when Tracy is taken ill with an infection in her only remaining kidney.
Her health deteriorates after Emily has enough of her antics and asks her to pack her bags and leave.
Deirdre then finds her wayward daughter collapsed in a heap.

Please kill her off

[LostVoodoo]

Considering we've never seen her go to the doctors, take any medication and carry on drinking copious amounts of wine for about 15 years I'm not really surprised!

[tammyy2j]

IT'S touch and go when Tracy is taken ill with an infection in her only remaining kidney.
Her health deteriorates after Emily has enough of her antics and asks her to pack her bags and leave.
Deirdre then finds her wayward daughter collapsed in a heap.

Please kill her off

A character on another soap Shortland Street I think died of this but I doubt Phil C would kill off TraceyLuv which is a shame

Somehow she will prob get a new kidney from somewhere miraculously