Coronation Street star Ellie Leach has revealed the famous actress she has been compared to as she headed out for a special night in Manchester. Fans best know the actress for playing Faye Windass in the ITV soap.
She joined some of her co-stars as well as members of the Emmerdale cast for the official premiere of Disney's Beauty and the Beast musical in Manchester. The musical, which officially began at Manchester's Palace Theatre on March 31, will stay in the city for nine weeks, bringing a sprinkle of magic to families' visits.
The Olivier Award-winning production has been re-imagined and re-designed for its latest UK run and boasts the best-loved songs from the film like Be Our Guest, Gaston, and of course, the title track Beauty and the Beast.
So it is likely that the ITV soap stars were singing along in their seats as the story of Belle and the Beast played out in front of their eyes.
Among those on the guest list, and receiving a welcome rose on their arrival, were Corrie legend Alan Halsall (Tyrone Dobbs), Rob Mallard (Daniel Osbourne) and Emmerdale newcomers Jessie Elland and Lawrence Robb.
Also, hitting the red carpet, and posing in front of the rose-filled wall, was Ellie who looked stunning in a black bodysuit which she paired with a pair of blue denim, asymmetrical jeans and leather jacket casually resting over her shoulders.
And it turns out she may have a connection with the Disney hit after being told she looked like actress Emma Watson who starred as Belle in the 2017 remake of the hit film.
She told us at the star-studded premiere after our very own lifestyle editor picked up on the resemblance: "A few people have said that to be fair," as she laughed at the comment.
But Ellie confessed to not being a good singer. "I would say yes but my mum would probably say now," she smiled before turning to her mum who was with her at the show. "Absolutely not she said," Ethe soap star laughed before shaking her head.
The 21-year-old soap star's night out meant she missed her own dramatic scenes unfolding on-screen. Ellie's character Faye hasn't had the easiest of times since being released from prison last year but she and boyfriend Craig Tinker recently got the exciting news they were expecting a baby.
But on Wednesday night (April 6) fans saw upsetting scenes on Coronation Street as a pale Faye emerged from the bathroom and told her friend Emma Brooker she feared she was losing her baby after the pair told Jon Spear the truth about his grandfather's death. At the hospital, Faye and her partner Craig waited for the scan results but were shocked by what they were told.
As the couple went for a scan and the sonographer disappeared to get some advice, fans wondered if she could be having twins or quads like Gemma Winter. But they were stunned when Faye was told there was no baby, and not only that she had never been pregnant. The sonographer then told her to get checked out by her doctor leading to health fears from fans for Faye.
Speaking of her Corrie schedule before heading to see the show, Ellie said she was "very busy but it's so good," before adding that it was "steady" without giving too much away on what was to come for her character.
