Brookside actress Nichola Stephenson fondly remembers her iconic role in the groundbreaking Liverpool-based soap.
The 50-year-old played Margaret Clemence and is still blown away by the impact her character had - and continues to have.
Fans of the Channel Four programme will remember Margaret had a long list of taboo romances, the first notable one being with the Catholic priest, Derek O’Farrell, played by Clive Moore.
However, the relationship for which Nichola’s character is best known was with Beth Jordache, played by Anna Friel. After Margaret befriended Beth, she quickly began to develop feelings for her.
The pair eventually shared a kiss, and it became the first lesbian kiss to be broadcast before the 9pm watershed.
Nichola told the ECHO : “Looking back now I’m amazed. Never in one million years did I think at the time that this storyline and that kiss would still be being discussed, and have relevance to LGBT history today, nearly 30 years later.
“To us the kiss felt quite tame and just a small part of a wider storyline but we knew that it was actually quite a big deal. It felt a real privilege and I felt very lucky to have such a big storyline and one that I felt very passionately about.”
The former Waterloo Road actress said she still has fans approach her to tell her the impact the storyline had on them, which is perhaps not surprising given it was shown to 6 million viewers.
Nichola added: “I still have middle-aged women say to me that the storyline helped them come to terms with their own sexuality or help them come out to members of their family.
“It amazes me and I’m so proud every time someone mentions it. I was recently asked to go into my daughter's school to talk to the kids as part of LGBTQ history month.
“The kids had watched the Beth and Margaret story on YouTube and had lots of questions about how attitudes had changed.”
Now, with hindsight, the soap star said she wouldn’t have changed anything as “the writers handled the storyline with such sensitivity.”
The kiss was later shown to thousands of people when it was included in the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games in London, directed by Danny Boyle.
It was screened, without censorship, in 76 countries where same-sex relationships remained illegal meaning the low-definition footage was the first televised lesbian kiss many viewers had ever seen.
Nichola added: “It was a thrill, I’m such a big Danny Boyle fan and the fact that it was shown in countries where homosexuality is still illegal is just fantastic.“
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