Michelle Connor-McDonald (Kym Marsh)

[owenlee4me]

Oh not more of moany Michelle for at least a year? she is always always twisting her face, it would be better having Sue Johnston staying and Kym Marsh leaving, at least she can act and you know which eye to follow, how is it, no one else can not see Michelle's "boss" eye, bet she wore specs as a Kid!!!
As for the rumour she is to have a affair with Peter Barlow, how desperate are the women on the street to be interested in a smoking, alcoholic bookie and a womaniser, what is his attraction? or is it hidden in his pants!!!!!!!!!!!

[lizann]

Oh not more of moany Michelle for at least a year? she is always always twisting her face, it would be better having Sue Johnston staying and Kym Marsh leaving, at least she can act and you know which eye to follow, how is it, no one else can not see Michelle's "boss" eye, bet she wore specs as a Kid!!!
As for the rumour she is to have a affair with Peter Barlow, how desperate are the women on the street to be interested in a smoking, alcoholic bookie and a womaniser, what is his attraction? or is it hidden in his pants!!!!!!!!!!!

michelle already sampled peter and tina is now sampling him

[lizann]

Oh not more of moany Michelle for at least a year? she is always always twisting her face, it would be better having Sue Johnston staying and Kym Marsh leaving, at least she can act and you know which eye to follow, how is it, no one else can not see Michelle's "boss" eye, bet she wore specs as a Kid!!!
As for the rumour she is to have a affair with Peter Barlow, how desperate are the women on the street to be interested in a smoking, alcoholic bookie and a womaniser, what is his attraction? or is it hidden in his pants!!!!!!!!!!!

michelle already sampled peter and tina is now sampling him

[lizann]

kym has signed a new contract

[owenlee4me]

read somewhere, MIchelle is to have an affair with Peter?

[Perdita]

Coronation Street's Michelle Connor will make a big decision about her future with Steve McDonald over the festive season after he rejects her once again.

Still struggling in the wake of their split, Michelle is given hope by Steve's change in mood on Christmas Day and leans in to kiss him. However, she is left mortified when he rejects her, prompting her to consider moving on from her former partner for good.

Here, Kym Marsh - who plays Michelle - discusses her character's latest heartbreak and teases her new romance in the New Year.

How does Michelle cope with Steve's behaviour over Christmas?
"Michelle really doesn't know where she stands with Steve and his behaviour during the run up to Christmas and on Christmas Day really hurts her. Steve decides to throw all of his efforts into making it the best Christmas ever for Amy - I think it's one way of channelling his emotions - and so he decides to throw a big party for the family and invites Michelle.

"At this point, Michelle is confused and is still struggling with the fact that they've split because she still doesn't feel as though she knows why. Then when he asks her to go upstairs with him, she thinks this is an invitation and really hopes that this is a sign of him wanting them to rekindle things. As they are throwing fake snow for Amy out of the window, Michelle gets all nostalgic and goes in for a kiss but when he knocks her back she comes crashing down again. She's hurt and humiliated by his behaviour towards her and she's really not coping well at all."

Does she realise that it's a mental health problem at this stage? Does she know how deep his problems run?
"Gosh no, she has no idea. Michelle has no idea that he's got a mental health problem because obviously he hasn't told her and in her eyes he's just been pushing her further and further away. She has absolutely no clue that the reason why he's been pushing her away is because of a deeper rooted problem. Michelle just thinks he doesn't love her anymore; the actual truth - that he has depression - is the furthest thing from her mind."

Michelle is very commonly misreading this situation as a reflection on her. How does that feel for her?
"Michelle thinks this whole thing is about Steve not loving her anymore and not wanting to be with her. She feels completely rejected and confused - she doesn't know why he's moved away from her. I think Michelle is humiliated as well as it's clear for everyone to see how much he's pushing her away. She's absolutely devastated and I think she questions what's gone wrong. She's still in love with Steve so she's really upset."

How has the situation affected her?
"I think she's frustrated by it. Michelle's tried to help him and tried so many times, well before Christmas, to talk to him and try and find out what's going on in his head. But he's a completely closed book and she's falling to pieces with it. I think what Michelle really wants is for Steve to fight for her, to realise what he might lose and decide not to let her go, but he has no fight left in him, and Michelle sees this as a reflection of how he feels about her.

"To Michelle, he's just given up on her and them and she's absolutely crushed by that. I think the moment he rejects her on Christmas Day is a turning point for her - up until that point she's tried and tried again, but when he turns away from her kiss she thinks he couldn't make it any clearer that he doesn't want her anymore."

Has she got wind of the financial problems with Streetcars at this point?
"No, I think that's Eileen, Andrea and Lloyd's discovery and they deal with that. Michelle obviously knew a while back that he had missed a few shifts at the cab office but as it stands she doesn't know anything about the money he's been taking from Streetcars. I think Michelle is just so preoccupied about her own problems with Steve she can't really get past that."

Does Liz share any of her concerns with Michelle?
"Absolutely, yes of course. Liz is privy to all of it because obviously they still share the same home. I think Liz is at a loss as to what to do. Liz is devastated as well that he's pushed Michelle away because Liz knows how much they love each other and it pains her to see both of them in this position. Neither of them can seem to get through to him and get frustrated with him, especially when Liz finds him in his bedroom instead of at Amy's panto, but it's because they don't know the real reason."

Can you tell us what Michelle is saying to Tony when Steve overhears them?
"A lot seems to have happened over Christmas that makes Michelle think she really has to accept that they're over. Obviously she felt so rejected and embarrassed after he rejected her kiss on Christmas Day and then he failed to show up to Amy's panto. She's trying to talk herself into moving on so I think she feels she needs to vocalise it to someone so that it feels real and she can hear herself say it out loud. She tells Tony that she's moving on and that Steve's her past."

Does she mean it? Does Michelle genuinely think they're over?
"She means it when she says to Tony that she has to move on but whether her heart wants to or is ready to is another story. She's saying it to convince herself more than anyone else. In Michelle's mind Steve couldn't make it any clearer that he doesn't want her so she knows she has to move on and move forward with her life. She doesn't know what else she can do, she's tried everything to get him talking and it just hasn't worked. Michelle is trying to be positive and spur herself on, which is what she always does."

Do you think she's ready to move on?
"No, she still loves him and it is too soon, but I can understand why she's doing it. She's licking her wounds, she's been hurt and she's trying to mend her own broken heart. She's been left feeling so rejected and she doesn't know why. She's confused and everyone is spurring her on to do it and move on anyway. But in her heart, it's too soon."

How do you think Michelle would react if she found out what was really going on with Steve?
"She would be absolutely devastated. I think it would make her realise that it isn't her or their relationship that's the problem, it's something far deeper rooted and I think she'd be sad that he wasn't able to talk to her... but she'd obviously do all she could to help him get through it."

Do you think she would stand by him?
"Of course, definitely. It will change the way she sees things. She would realise how much bigger this is than just her. She's never stopped loving him and there'll always be something between them. She'd do everything in her power to help him get through it. Michelle would never dream of leaving him to get through it without her. They both deserve to be happy together and I think with her help, love and support they might have a chance of getting through it together. I'd love to see them settle down."

What's it been like to do such a different storyline with Simon?
"It's been a great journey. Me and Simon are friends off screen and I think that comes across on screen as well. Luckily for us it's worked - we love working together and it seems to have paid off because viewers want them to be together too."

Depression affects so many people, so did you both feel a responsibility to get it right?
"Yes of course, especially for Simon, having to portray the person suffering with depression. But it's been such an important storyline because it's shown how much depression has an effect on not just the person suffering but the people around them and how it affects their relationships with those closest to them. We all wanted to do the best for this story and do it justice. The writers have been really good and it's been so well researched."

Do you want them to get back together?
"Yes, absolutely and the public definitely want them back together. I've had people say that they're heartbroken that they've broken up. But I think they will come out of this the other side."

We've heard Michelle is going to get a new love interest...
"Yes, she kind of doesn't want to move on but she thinks there's no hope for her and Steve. When a nice man comes along everyone encourages her to go for it, but how ready she'll be is another story..."

[owenlee4me]

Sorry I just cannot stand Michelle, she is such a misery has no fun or sparkle, I dont' blame STeve dumping her, and no wonder he's depressed suffering her put downs and negativity.
Michelle may be attractive (even with her straying eye!!) but she needs to lighten up

[alan45]

Kym Marsh has spoken about Coronation Street's forthcoming mini-bus crash storyline.

The actress, who plays Michelle Connor on the ITV show, discussed how the "challenging" story links in to Steve McDonald's depression.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Marsh said about the storyline: "We have actually spent a lot of time on that and we were all quite exhausted by the time we finished filming it, but it's amazing. It's a great storyline and a challenging one.

"It is linked to Steve and Michelle and Steve's depression as well, so there's more to come from that. It's very dramatic. I actually stayed behind to watch the stunt and it was brilliant."

Discussing Michelle's recent split from Steve, she said: "She's just so confused by him at the moment. Nobody knows that he's suffering from depression, so he's just behaving so oddly and of course they've split up now. She just thinks it's her.

"I think [Steve's] in massive denial. He's been in to see a doctor, the doctor's told him he's got depression but he's not actually doing anything about it. He's certainly not talking to anyone around him about what's wrong. I think he's trying to kid himself in a way that he doesn't need any help."


© ITV

Marsh went on to discuss depression and the Coronation Street storyline about it, saying: "I think it's a bit of a taboo subject all the time - through men and women, but I think men in particular. Women tend to talk about their emotions a bit more freely, whereas men tend to see things like that as slightly more of a weakness.

I think when we first found out we were doing this story with Steve, both Simon and I were a bit like, 'Is Steve the right character to do this?' But the more we thought about it, the more we thought, 'He is absolutely the one who should be doing it'.

"He's such a jovial character and so upbeat all the time and joking. It's showing people that if somebody like Steve McDonald can have depression, it can happen to anybody at any time."

Speaking about her personal experiences, she added: "I've suffered a couple of times. Depression is something that remains with you. You do get better obviously and there are times where you do end up revisiting it - well I certainly have.

"The last time I had it was when I lost my little boy in 2009. It was really weird, because at the time you don't realise that that's happening to you. You feel that what you're doing is completely normal and it actually isn't and it takes people to point things out to you.

"I went and discussed things with a doctor and got help that way and had a bit of counselling. It also really helped me to have my family and friends around me and rely on them."

Marsh recently spoke at length to anyone who would listen about her Coronation Street character, saying Michelle 'needs to move on'.

[parkerman]

Marsh recently spoke at length to anyone who would listen......

So that was nobody then.

[parkerman]

..................