Elle Mulvaney has grown up in front of Coronation Street viewers' eyes. Thirteen years after taking over the role of Tracy Barlow and Steve McDonald's daughter, the actress has been thrust back into the forefront of the ITV soap.
In recent episodes, viewers have seen Amy struggling to come to terms with what happened after she spent the night with her best friend's boyfriend, Aaron Sandford. In concerning scenes, after playing drinking games and polishing off every drop of alcohol in the flat, Aaron followed Amy into the bedroom where she had fallen over in the hunt for more alcohol.
The pair ended up kissing and Amy started to undress before admitting she felt sick and rolled away from him. But Aaron, played by James Craven, continued to kiss Amy who was unaware of what happened next. It wasn't until the next day that a horrified Amy discovered how far things went the night before.
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She has since been struggling with the situation and made it clear to Aaron that she didn't agree to sleep with him, despite him protesting his innocence. Fans of the ITV soap will now watch Amy as she comes to terms with being raped and see whether she takes things further in telling her parents and the police.
Speaking about filming the scenes, Elle, from Bury, admitted they were a 'challenge'. "It has been challenging at times but I feel like we've been very well supported," the soap star told the Manchester Evening News and other press. "Myself and James have both had numerous people come up to us during the storyline to check in with us and ask how we are and even just working with James has been brilliant."
She added: "Everybody says it but I'm going to say it, it's cliché [but] Corrie is a big family so I feel like even if I do come off set... I actually came off set [one day] and thought, 'Oh, I do feel quite stressed now' and I ended up sat talking to Sue Devaney [Debbie Webster] for an hour and she just made me feel so much better.
"And that's what it's all about. Sometimes you do have those challenging moments but having those people around you to say, 'Oh it's fine, I've felt like that before' and having that is really comforting."
Elle has also been lucky enough to learn from some of the TV’s most-loved stars, like soap stalwart William [Bill] Roache, who plays her grandad Ken. "I always say, ‘If you love your job, why leave?’ Bill obviously loves it. He is Corrie’s biggest fan," she told the Mirror.
“I really look up to him and admire that he’s so down-to-earth. When we first met, Bill came up to my parents and he was, like, ‘Hi, I’m Bill’. And my dad was, like, ‘We know who you are!’ He’s just so nice.
"There’s no air of self-importance with Bill, despite how long he’s been on the show and how well known he is. It’s so lovely to see… he’s such an icon and I don’t know anybody who has got a bad word to say about him. He’s incredibly professional… the man is 90 and he never messes up!"
Elle, who is 20 in real life, slightly younger than her character, also has support away from the ITV soap as she's super close to a number of her co-stars including James, Harriet Bibby, who played Summer Spellman, and Jack James Ryan who starred as her former on-screen boyfriend Jacob Hay.
"Me, Harriet, Jack and James all just really get on… we’ve got a group chat together and talk all the time. We’re like a real-life foursome," Elle previously told the Mirror. And she also has a new man in her life.
It was just before Christmas that Elle went public with her relationship with former co-star Liam Scholes. She sparked rumours she was in a relationship with her fellow actor, who played Eli Higginson during Corrie's huge hate crime storyline, when she posted a snap of the all-smiling pair after heading down south for some festive cheer at Winter Wonderland in London's Hyde Park.
"Miss u winter wonderland," Elle, who actually headed to the capital's Christmas event at the end of November, shared alongside the post before returning to social media where she shared a sweet unseen snap of herself with her new boyfriend. Before Christmas, Elle implored her Instagram followers to tell her what she should show them photos of on her Story.
Asked for an unseen photo of her and Liam, who has recently starred in the reboot of Waterloo Road as Noel McManus and is also a singer with his band The Lanks, Elle didn't disappoint. The black and white snap showed the pair posing again in a mirror but this time they appeared dressed up for a fancy occasion. Elle grinned into the mirror while donning a classic black dress while Liam held onto her waist and looked away from the camera
They since enjoyed their first festive season together with the adorable couple posing for cute snaps beside the Christmas tree. Elle and Liam romantically looked into each other's eyes after dressing up for the special day, with Elle donning a black and white dress while her new man donned a vibrant teal suit.
Then on Valentine's Day last month, Liam took to Instagram to share a beautiful black and white photos of his girlfriend alongside another snap of him planting a kiss on his partner. "What a lucky guy I am @ellejmulvaney," he captioned the post as Elle replied with a string of red hears.
Elle, who started her acting through the Carol Godby Theatre Workshop, which she attended since the age of four, still lives in her family's stunning Cheshire home, which features in a number of her Instagram posts, reports OK! It boasts a grand entrance hallway, with a winding staircase. The home's cosy living room has comfy grey sofas - which the family's two pet pooches, Bowie and Ziggy, make the most of.
Selfies taken in the young star's bedroom show she has opted for a Mrs Hinch-inspired grey colour palette, with a crushed velvet bed and mirrored bedside tables. The room also features a gorgeous vintage chandelier. Her bathroom is minimalist with chic white-tiled fittings and a backlit mirror.
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