Claire Sweeney can't wait for fans to see her in a completely new light when she makes her Coronation Street debut next week.
The 52-year-old is set to arrive on the Cobbles as Tyrone Dobbs' mum, Cassie, in the episode broadcast on June 28. The troubled character is a recovering drug addict and first look images have showed off Claire's incredible transformation to play the role.
The former Brookside star told the ECHO and other press why she has relished the opportunity to play a character world's apart from her usual glamorous self. She said: "I want her to be so far removed from me and the minute I get the clothes on, the leggings, the converse, the cap and looking really rough, I then become that character."
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The Walton star explained how the transformation has been so convincing that it even fooled members of the Corrie crew. She added: "On my first day of filming on the Cobbles, one of the extras went I didn't recognise you like that and I thought 'brilliant'."
Claire heaped praise on the show's make-up team as she provided an insight into how they changed her appearance on her first day of filming. She said: "I had a flare up on my skin, I was tired and I was a bit stressed. The make up artist is wonderful and she was putting blue and purple on my face and she was kind of following the rosacea. Then she darkened under the eyes and done a fantastic job. With my hair she oiled it down and sprayed black on the roots."
However, she was in hysterics as she admitted she found certain aspects of the transformation difficult. She joked: "Being a Scouser, getting my nails and lashes off is quite traumatic. She's really stripped back and the makeup design have done a fantastic job of making me look as rough as anything."
Claire branded her character as a loose cannon and said Cassie is set to cause havoc on the show as Evelyn Plummer has lied to Tyrone that his mum is dead. The soap star said: "She really does have great intentions to get better and to be with the family, but she's an addict and it's quite sad really.
"She wants to see Tyrone, she wants to get clean and she needs her mum, Evelyn. She's a tough girl, she's been around the block but she needs her mum and she turns up for help."
Claire will initially appear on the soap for two episodes but will return as a regular member of the cast in August - and she branded the part as a dream come true. She said: "I always thought if I was to do another soap that Corrie would be the dream one for me. I remember as a kid sitting down and being obsessed with Pat Phoenix initially then Bet Lynch.
"It's just been iconic and part of my childhood with all these wonderful women over the years so it is a dream role." She added: "Hollywood or Corrie? Give me Corrie anyday."
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