Michelle Collins hints at Coronation Street return

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog May 2017, reposted to this blog with permission.)


Speaking to The Sun online at last night's BAFTA TV Awards, Michelle Collins hinted that she wouldn't say no to returning to Coronation Street.

During her time on Corrie Michelle's character Stella Price was shoe-horned into a number of major storylines – including being revealed as the biological mother of Leanne Battersby, and being trapped in the Rovers when it went up in flames – before her character left the cobbles for a new life in New York.

“Would I return to Corrie? Not at the moment, but never say never. I couldn’t say I wouldn’t do it again.”

Away from Corrie, Michelle told The Sun that she is keeping herself busy.

“I’m producing a short film at the moment and I’m really busy and I’ve got my fingers in lots of pies,” she said.

Well, this fan says let's hope her fingers stay in those pies and she doesn't get her hands on the hot pots again.

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Tvor @tvordlj on Twitter

An Audience With Michelle Collins

(This post was originally posted by Craig Laurenson on the Coronation Street Blog in April 2014.)

Stella Price may have bid the Street farewell for the heady heights of the Big Apple, but closer to home, actress Michelle Collins is currently touring the country promoting her new autobiography, This Is Me.

I was lucky enough to attend An Audience With Michelle Collins at the Aye Write! Book Festival in Glasgow last weekend, and it was a lovely way to spend an afternoon. Michelle was an engaging and entertaining talker, and gave a candid account of her life, with plenty of amusing anecdotes and tales along the way.

A lot of the audience, myself included, were interested to hear what Michelle had to say about her time on Corrie. She had nothing but praise for her time on the show, and was extremely grateful for the opportunity to take on the prestigious role of a Rovers Landlady.

She spoke of her time filming the Rovers fire – and was pleased that Stella was trapped inside so she didn’t need to endure a lot of the cold night shoots! She admitted to being disappointed the Price family were removed from the Rovers, but had already given her year’s notice by this point so was not surprised this was the case.

Michelle explained she had always planned to only do a three-year stint on the show, as she was having to commute from London every week and didn’t see it as a long-term plan. The decision was secured by wanting to have more time to spend with her daughter Maia during her final year of school. Asked what she envisaged Stella would have been up to if she’d stuck around on the cobbles, she suspected Stella would have taken over managing the Bistro, and possibly end up marrying Dev!

Afterwards, came a meet-and-greet opportunity, and Michelle took time to speak to us all individually and sign autographs. She was gracious and welcoming, and it was a great end to a wonderful afternoon!



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Michelle Collins talks about Corrie disappointment

Michelle Collins' autobigraphy has been serialised in some of the tabloids.  In The Irish Mirror, they include the section of her book where she talks about leaving Coronation Street as Stella Price.

From The Irish Mirror:


Michelle Collins writes in her book about joining Coronation Street: “I didn’t even dare watch my first episode, which aired on 16 June 2011. Apart from the fact that I was nervous, I really don’t like watching myself on screen – I never have. The first clue I had that all might not be hunky-dory was when I received a text from a concerned friend the day after it aired. ‘Don’t take any notice of them, Michelle. Ignore them’.

“What? Ignore who? This was in the days before I was on Twitter, but plenty of other people were and pretty soon the jungle drums were beating. The lowdown was that my northern accent was absolutely laughable and many people were saying I shouldn’t have been cast at all. I should have known it was on the cards.

Some people wanted me to fail before I’d even started, and talk of my supposedly dodgy accent was just the ammunition they needed. I didn’t get it. I’d worked hard with a great dialect coach called Mark, and as critical of myself as I often am, I really didn’t think I sounded bad at all.

My opinion didn’t matter, though – it was the public that counted.

“I couldn’t seem to avoid it. I turned on the radio to hear someone chuckling about it on a phone-in. Then I heard it was trending on Twitter. I had no idea how to deal with it. I’d never really suffered any tough criticism about my performances and this couldn’t have been more public.

“I was deeply upset but I didn’t want to show it, so I began to disengage from everything and everyone.”

Michelle says she shut herself off from the other actors. “If you had asked anyone else in the Corrie cast what I was like in that first few weeks they’d probably have said something like, ‘Oh, she’s a bit uptight, that one’.

“It felt like a witch-hunt, with the world and its mother having their say about my appointment to the show.”

In April 2013, new producer Stuart Blackburn made changes, bringing back Bev Callard’s Liz McDonald and ousting Michelle’s character from the Rovers. It was a bit of a blow, to be honest,” Michelle writes. “In fact, I’m not sure I would have signed up for another year if I’d known it was going to happen.

I wasn’t sure how it was going to work if Stella wasn’t running the pub, and I can’t pretend I wasn’t disappointed.”

She adds: “Once Stella’s murdering husband Karl had been locked up and the Price family had moved out of the pub, my fears were realised.

“Stella just seemed to be hovering around without purpose, popping in here and there with the odd wise word for her daughters. That wasn’t enough for me, especially when it meant being away from my family.”

She says: “I’m walking away from Corrie with no malice or bad feeling.”

And she adds: “It’s funny, though – after all that time working on the show, I’d never plucked up the courage to hang out in the green room. I’m not really sure why but just the thought of it made me nervous. It’s not like there was anyone I dislike intensely or wanted to avoid, but it harked back to those first rough few weeks. Perhaps it was a bit like being traumatised by a bad childhood experience that never leaves you.”

© Michelle Collins 2014. Adapted by Dan Wight from This is Me published by Michael O’Mara books on April 3



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Michelle Collins on leaving Coronation Street

(This post was originally posted by Graeme N on the Coronation Street Blog in February 2013.)

Digital Spy are carrying details of an interview with Corrie actress Michelle Collins today. In the interview Collins, who plays Stella Price, discusses in more detail her reasons for leaving Coronation Street.

Michelle has spoken about how tiring the Corrie schedule can be, especially when you are at the centre of so many important storylines. She also mentions her desire to spend more time with her daughter. Interestingly, she also addresses the recent exchange on Twitter when several fans commented  onStella's lack of screen time.

Michelle admits to feeling a bit left out of recent storylines, praising the Roy and Hayley story in particular and wishing that Stella could have been more involved with that plot.


Also, apparently Corrie producer Stuart Blackburn did try hard to convince her to stay on for a longer stint, however she is happy the door has been left open for a future return.

I've never been the greatest fan of Stella Price, although I do wish Michelle all the best with whatever she does next. I don't really see how the character has been sidelined in recent times. The Croppers have dominated and rightly so. Any Stella involvement in their storyline would have been jarring to say the least. Almost like the time she helped clear out Betty's house...


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Goodbye Stella

(This post was originally posted by Graeme N on the Coronation Street Blog in April 2014, reposted with permission.)

So tonight we bid Stella Price farewell. I've never been a fan of the character and I've written at length about this on this very blog in the past. However I don't have anything against Michelle Collins and I wish her well for the future.

I never questioned acting abilities. My beef was always with the over-exposure of Stella from the off. She was railroaded into every scene going, holier than thou and sticking her beak in to matters that didn't concern her. The arrival of her horrid mother did nothing for the character although I'm glad daughter Eva is staying on.

The lowest point was Stella's involvement in Betty's exit storyline. It was just plain jarring on every level and did no favours to what should have been a wonderful tribute to 42 years of Corrie gold.

The Rovers Return is now much more watchable with the McDonalds in charge. Perhaps it could have worked out differently if Stella hadn't been forced down our gobs from the word go. Who knows? 

Anyway, best of luck to both Stella and Michelle.




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Michelle Collins launches her autobiography

Michelle Collins has already filmed her final scenes as Stella Price in Coronation Street.  And now she's  preparing to come to Glasgow next month to launch her autobiography, This is Me, at Aye Write! Glasgow's Book Festival.

Michelle will be talking about her remarkable journey in the industry and the truth behind the tabloids at the literary talk.

Michelle said: "‘Sometimes I think my life has more ups and downs than many of the characters I've played. Writing this book has opened the floodgates and brought back so many memories, good and bad. I've been accused of being a man eater, a child snatcher and on top of all that of having a bad Northern accent…but you know what? I wouldn't change a minute!"

Tickets for the event at the Mitchell Library on April 6 are priced £8.

The ninth Aye Write! Glasgow's Book Festival 2014 takes place from April 4 until April 12.


Here is the listing on Amazon.ca for the Kindle version.


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Corrie's Michelle Collins to pen autobiography

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog October 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Digital Spy is carrying a story confirming that Corrie actress Michelle Collins will reveal all in an autobiography to be published next year. Collins, who has played Stella Price since 2011, will see her life story published  mid way through 2014. 

The book will cover her time in both EastEnders and Coronation Street - I'm sure it will be interesting to find out what she has to say about her three years in Weatherfield.

So will this be top of your shopping list when the as yet untitled biography is released next year?



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In praise of Corrie's Stella Price, again

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog June 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

A second Coronation Street Blog reader has put pen to paper, or at least fingers to keyboard, to write in to us in support of Stella Price.  We've already had Lara's post here in response to our request for Stella fans to defend her, and now we have another.

And so, this time, it's over to Nic Richards...

"Firstly, I think the introduction of Stella and the Prices was great. Particularly following the departure of Janice, Leanne had felt a little cast adrift. Aside from her on-off friendship with Carla, she had no friends (something I would still level as a criticism, both in terms of Leanne and others - some time developing the friendships between female characters in the show would be great), and despite being involved with the Barlows, she had nobody to fight her corner on the many occasions that things went wrong with Peter.

The story regarding her mother wasn't retconned, it had always been written that her mum had left when she was young. Of course the powers that be were going to pursue it some day - this is soap! At least it wasn't a Danny Baldwin or Christian Gatley type affair where they unapologetically rewrote a character's established history in order to introduce a new character!

I thought it was a brave move to put someone completely new in charge at the Rovers following Liz's departure. It was more realistic than the prospect of an existing street resident suddenly revealing a hitherto undisclosed desire to be a Publican, and I couldn't think of a suitable candidate from the existing cast anyway. Michelle seemed to be the only person mooted for the job, but she's been too busy playing Apprentice at t'Faktry and turning a blind eye to all sorts - Steve's history of doing the dirty on her (it's like like they just got back together after a row - he married two women in the time they were apart, for God's sake!), her biological son's existence etc etc..

So, I think establishing a new family was a great move. It was also refreshing that the Prices were almost a nuclear family, rather than a family headed up by a single parent who was obviously destined to rapidly pair off with an existing character.  Yes, Stella was involved in a lot of storylines - but does that not come with the landlady territory? I think the Prices were settling in nicely, and then came the affair..

The scene in the street when Stella found out about Karl and Sunita was brilliant - one of my favourite ever Corrie moments! In the months that followed, throughout his time living with Sunita, Karl had made it obvious that he regretted the affair and losing Stella. Depending which way you look at it, the fact that Stella resisted the temptation to joyfully inform Sunita of Karl's duplicity shows that she was either reluctant to act vengefully, or she was keen to let treacherous Sunita make a fool of herself (I like the think the latter - and good for her!).

I really don't take issue with the fact that Stella sounded caution to Dev when he decided to reconcile with Sunita.  The tradition of the older Corrie woman dishing out advice whilst making a pig's ear of her own life is nothing new. She's the landlady of the Rovers - isn't that part of the job description?! And whether you agree with it or not, Sunita was written as a highly unlikable character for her last year in the show. She had shown full commitment to the relationship with Karl until he called time on it. Only then did she go crawling back to Dev. Stella was right - Sunita's heart wasn't in it.

So, Stella took Karl back. Whilst I gratefully can't speak from experience; I think we're supposed to accept that a man running into a burning building in an attempt to save you is a bit of an aphrodisiac and displays some level of devotion. I guess the magnitude of almost losing her life and his actions to attempt to save her (weird suicide pact moment aside) made her reevaluate things. Remember their backstory - he'd cheated before in similar circumstances and she'd forgiven him.

Anyone watching Corrie in the past decade or more will have, on many occasions, found themselves screaming at the TV as one of the women plans her future with a man that we know to be a wrong-'un (Deidre and John Lindsay, Sally and Greg Kelly, Gail and Richard, Carla and Tony, Maria and Tony, Carla and Frank, Sally and Frank, Gail and Lewis). If you're suddenly bored of that, you can hardly blame Stella!

I can't help but think that a lot of the criticism she comes in for is about her storylines rather than her character. If everyone on the street made the right, sensible call every time, it would make for pretty dull viewing. So there you go, just some of the reasons that I actually like Stella. I hope Liz's imminent return doesn't herald the end of her tenure behind the bar at the Rovers - although a power struggle could be good!"



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In praise of Corrie's Stella Price

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog May 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Coronation Street Blog reader Lara has taken up the challenge we posed here for a fan who likes Stella Price to write a blog post in praise of her. 

And so, it's over to Lara, who is on twitter @larapetale

"I think Stella is a very diverse character, you either love her or you hate her, and in my case love her.

She is strong, independent and has been like this from the offset. From being Leanne's biological mother to being run over by a drunken Carla, Stella has never been short of big storylines - and that was only in her first 6 months!

I know everyone has an opinion and that is totally justifiable but I just wanted to respond, and as you said defend her.

She has been on our screens for almost two years now and in my opinion contributed greatly to the events which occurred in that time. She has been at the centre for many story lines, each showing a different side to Stella, from the vulnerable Stella to the fiesty Stella and I'm sure there's plenty more sides to be see!"

If there are any Canadian Corrie fans that would like to add their voice to Team Stella, please email us and we'll post more of your comments here.

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Michelle Collins talks about former eating disorder

(This post was originally posted by me on the Coronation Street Blog in February 2013.)

In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Michelle Collins speaks about her former eating disorder. Earlier on in her career she would routinely starve herself and then binge and purge until her body and appearance was so emaciated she looked like a heroin addict.

She also used boozed to fill the empty space instead of food and only weighed five stone at her lowest point. When she lost a job due to her appearance, she got a wakeup call and realized how obsessive and damaging she was being to herself. She got help and slowly returned to a healthier weight.

She worries today about young girls and the pressure they are under to be thin. I think it's a good thing that she's speaking out about it. Women and girls of any age can get caught up in this sort of cycle and they go far beyond a healthy weight into the same danger zone that Michelle found herself in. 



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Michelle Collins signs to Corrie until April 2014

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog March 2013, reposted to this blog with permission.)

I can't stand St Ella of the Back Room. I've tried and I've failed to like her.

You, on the other hand, may enjoy her. And if you do then you'll be happy to read that Michelle Collins, the actress who plays Stella Price, has signed to Coronation Street until April 2014, says Digital Spy.

However, to this Corrie fan of almost 40 years, Stella Price is a void, a blank, a waste of a space in my favourite soap and could very well be the reason I stop watching Coronation Street.



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Michelle Collins chats about Karl, Jason and the fire

(This post was originally posted by me on the Coronation Street Blog in March 2013.)

There's an interview with Michelle Collins on the ITV site today and she's telling all about the Rovers blaze. She reveals that Karl will save Stella and manage to get her out through the flames. This will probably have the effect of softening Stella's recent hard attitude towards him. He's been showing distinct stalker-ish signs and she's been insisting that he back off.

The pub has electrical problems and Jason and Tim try to fix it this week. Is this the cause of the fire? The Plot Recycling Department may be in play here. If you will recall, the last Rovers fire was caused by the wrong sized fuse installed by Jack Duckworth. Time will tell but Ms. Collins says that Stella suspects that Jason may have made this similar mistake.

On filming the fire, Michelle says she felt safe but admits it was kind of scary just the same.

Prior to the fire, Stella has a go at Dev, pointing out that she thinks Sunita is unstable and untrustworthy. Michelle also think that Stella is starting to be disillusioned about Jason but jumps into asking him to move in, more to prove to Karl that she's moved on. She thinks Stella still has strong feelings for Karl in spite of everything and when he proves himself to be a hero, those feelings appear to be warming up again.

ITV has a full gallery of photos from the fire here.



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Michelle Collins takes Corrie advice from her psychic

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog September 2012, reposted to this blog with permission.)

Michelle Collins, who plays Coronation Street's Stella Price, says that it was down to her psychic and her spiritual life coach who gave her the strength to carrry on in Corrie.  

Yes that's right, she's got a psychic called Cara and a spiritual life coach called Simon.

According to the Mirror, Michelle she told Spirit & Destiny magazine in an interview: 'I was nervous to be joining Corrie, but consulted a dialect coach to get the accent right. So when I was slated, I seriously considered walking away. But Cara and Simon gave me the confidence to stay, to defy my critics and prove myself.'

Explaining her aura is 'shiny and bright', Michelle says in the interview that she has regressed to her former life as a young girl living in Victorian London on two occasions.

Also this week it was reported that Michelle was involved in a serious car crash after she crashed into a parked car at the end of a long journey last week. Michelle’s convertible was seriously damaged in the smash, although luckily she escaped unharmed.

Anyway, this Corrie fan still hasn't warmed to St Ella of the Back Room, for  it is she who has ruined my viewing enjoyment. My opinion is that St Ella still doesn't fit, she grates and her accent, whatever ITV might say about it - is and always has been rubbish.

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Michelle Collins considered quitting Corrie because of dodgy accent

Michelle Collins, who plays my least favourite character in Coronation Street, St Ella of the Back Room, is all over the front of the Sun's TV Magazine today saying: “I’m definitely not quitting.”  Oh.

She talks about the criticism she received for her dodgy Northern accent when she first joined Corrie. But it hasn't improved, has it? It's still all over the place. Look, I'm not a St Ella fan. I've tried, really, really hard, but I can't get to like her. I don't find her watchable, she's not lovable and I absolutely hate that she's forced into our faces in almost every scene of every storyline in every episode, saving souls in the back room of the Rovers Return.

This week's Corrie has been more enjoyable of late because she has been in it less. And you notice her absence because it's like a high pitched whine that's been turned off and you can get on and enjoy the business of your favourite soap rather than having to try to blot out a character I can not, just can not, enjoy.

I know she's got her fans, lots of people like St Ella but I'm not one of them and the sooner she goes, the happier this fan will be.

About that continued ropey accent Michelle says: “It was a real shock when the press criticised my accent, because I’d ‘done northern’ before and never been criticised for it. I did get to the point where I said to people high up: ‘Should I just resign? I’ve had enough. I can’t do this.’ But they said no, absolutely not. They told me to fight it and get through it. So I did.”

“The enormity of the criticism made me too scared to watch Corrie on the telly. I still can’t.” 

See also: Michelle Collins: "I have no plans to quit" in response to:  Michelle Collins to leave Corrie next year

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Putting the steel in Stella

(This post was originally posted by Scott Willison on the Coronation Street Blog in March 2012.)

Peter's affair with Carla's had wide-ranging repercussions.  Leanne fled to stay with Our Toyah in That London.  Simon turned into an emotional wreck.  Ken furrowed his brow and chewed the end of his glasses.  And finally, nearly a year on, Stella's started getting interesting.

Up until now she's been too good to be true.  Floating behind the bar with a beatific smile, she's never failed to provide a wise word, a comforting hug or a cup of tea in the back for Weatherfield's emotional wrecks.  Stella's air of saintliness has, let's be honest, become annoying.

Peter's betrayal of Leanne has ripped back the mask, however.  Suddenly she's screaming at people in the street, threatening to bar all and sundry, and loudly proclaiming that she wouldn't be surprised if Carla had lied about the rape all along.  She's become a bitch.  And much better for it.

I understand why they've done this.  Cindy Beale last appeared onscreen in 1998, but we still know Michelle by her Walford name.  Cindy was a soap bitch par excellence, giving birth to another man's son, lying, cheating, and sleeping with her husband's half-brother.  Twice.  She did try to kill Ian Beale, so she wasn't all bad, but when her character died in childbirth fourteen years ago Albert Square partied like it was 1999.

This is all baggage that Michelle Collins needed to drop to be Stella.  Remember Jerry Morton?  Or, as he was known by pretty much everyone who watched the show, Sinbad?  Michael Starke entered the show playing basically the same character he'd played on Brookside, meaning we never really believed in Jerry.

By making Stella good, decent and honest, and giving her a Manchester accent (which is more than Jerry got), the writers and producers have tried to draw a line under Cindy.  She might have the same, surprisingly well-preserved face, they've said, but Stella is completely different to that woman who ran a hat stall and made cow eyes at David Wickes.

Trouble is, good is dull.  Nice is boring.  You have to be a bit quirky for it to work (see Roy and Hayley).  If you're just a normal person who's very pleasant to everyone and cares a lot you're - well, you're Emily Bishop in a push-up bra.  The revelation that Stella has a nasty streak underneath has made me like her a whole lot more, and I'm guessing the unpleasantness will continue in forthcoming storylines.  The landlady at the Rovers needs to wield a rod of iron, even if you wrap it in a lace doily first like Annie Walker.  She doesn't need to be spitting bile across the hand pumps, but it's good to see that underneath the immaculate bob there's some fire and passion.  That's a character I can get behind.

Come on Stella.  Unleash your inner cow.  We all want to see it.


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A storm in a Coronation Street teacup

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog July 2011, reposted to this blog with permission.)

ITV's This Morning had Michelle Collins and Phil Collinson on, er, this morning, to answer some of the stories that have appeared in the press recently.

Firstly, Stella's accent: Nobody at Coronation Street has a problem with it and it won't be changing. Phil thinks it's important that with the Rovers' landlady being such a pivotal role, she should have a northern accent and Michelle defended it as actually being toned down from the strong Bolton accent she was using for a play up there earlier this year. As far as the family is concerned, storylines are already planned through next year and so there will be no hasty rewrites to get rid of them. New families take time to bed in, cf. the Battersbys and the Slaters.

Ratings: As we pointed out on this blog, if anything, the ratings are up. This Morning also did a comparison and found the same thing, year on year, summer on summer, ratings are actually up. The comparison that the late, unlamented News of the World did, compared an episode that had appeared in the Britain's Got Talent week, where you would expect the audience to be higher, against one which was shown at the same time as an Andy Murray match at Wimbledon. Hardly a fair comparison.

Crisis meeting: It didn't happen. What The People got hold of was the notes from a regular progress meeting where the state of the show is discussed openly and honestly between the whole production crew. There is no crisis and everyone at ITV is happy with where the show is and where it's going.

Is Corrie too gay? No it isn't. There are only 2 gay couples, Roy and Hayley don't count. And anyway, audience feedback shows that  Hayley, Sean and Sophie are 3 of the best-loved characters and so of course the producers are going to write stories about them.

So, it's all a storm in a teacup, though that makes me wonder why they've gone to such lengths to defend themselves against criticism in the press when they could just so easily have left it all to be tomorrow's chip wrappings.

Your verdict: What did you think of Michelle Collins on Coronation Street?

(This post was originally posted by Flaming Nora on the Coronation Street Blog May, 2011, reposted to this blog with permission.)

So, she's here.  Michelle Collins finally turned up in tonight's Coronation Street as Stella Price.  Come on then, let's have it - what did you think?

And in a related post:

There's an interview with Michelle Collins in Closer magazine, and via this site, we find out that Michelle Collins is working hard to get to grips with the Manchester accent for her upcoming part on Corrie as the new Rovers manager, Stella. Sounds like a bit of an uphill battle, but it's not an easy thing. I, for one, plan to cut her a bit of slack on this one, knowing she's working with a dialogue coach and trying to get it right.