Coronation Street favourite Melanie Hill has quit the soap after seven years of playing Cathy Matthews. The actress, whose character arrived in Weatherfield in 2015 as a love interest for café worker Roy Cropper, is leaving the show to spend more time with her family.
Melanie, whose character now co-owns Corrie's iconic newsagents The Kabin with her partner Brian Packham, made the difficult decision after taking stock of her life following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Melanie, who turned 60 in January, admitted: “It’s not been an easy thing to decide. My family has been important but the pandemic has made a lot of people think about the future," reports The Mirror.
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“It has changed a lot of things in my head. You’ve just got to see what’s important to you. I absolutely love everybody but it’s made me think about my family a lot and what the priorities are in my life.”
Melanie, who had to rush up to her native Sunderland two weeks ago to look after her 88-year-old mother Sylvia, believes the way forward after Corrie is to take on more roles like her part in the BBC One drama The Syndicate in 2015.
She explained: “I’ve been at my mum’s for two weeks and what’s nice is I’ve got the freedom to do that because soaps are pretty relentless. You never stop, really, and you’re always on call.
"My sister Samantha normally helps look after my mum but she is in hospital with a smashed leg. It’s lucky that I finished shooting just over two weeks ago so I’m here the whole time.
"If I was still working on Corrie, I would have been going out of my mind with worry. I cannot stand letting people down – and even if I’ve been ill, I would turn up for work. Now I don’t have to worry as much."
Melanie also wants to spend more time with her grandchildren Bowie, five, and Daisy May, three, who live in Melbourne, Australia. But she is thrilled bosses aren't killing off Cathy, who was saved by a fire by Roy after she became trapped in her home because of the clutter she had acquired as a compulsive hoarder.
Melanie said: “Corrie has been absolutely fantastic because I could have just disappeared. I won’t say where Cathy goes but I’m a stone’s throw away from Weatherfield.
“My nephew Alex, played by Liam Bairstow, is there and Peter Gunn, who plays Brian Packham, so the door is open for me to come back – and that’s a great compliment. I’m flattered and grateful."
