“I wrote a poem about Corrie when I was 14 and now I’m on the cobblestones,” says Stephanie Davis
It’s been three years since Stephanie Davis gave up her acting career to focus on raising her young son after a turbulent time in the spotlight.
At her lowest point, the former Hollyoaks star drank three bottles of wine a day and was “dragged” into rehab by her parents, who feared for her life.
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But now the self-proclaimed “comeback queen” has landed a role on Coronation Street in her first audition after returning from work.
Stephanie signed with a new acting agent this year and said her dream is to star in Corrie.
Two days later she was presented with the perfect role – as married seductress Courtney Vance.
Mum-of-one Stephanie, 30, said: “You know that feeling, ‘This is too good to be true, it’s all happening too fast’? That was my first audition in three years.
“As soon as I read the brief for the character, I thought, ‘This is mine.’ This is mine’.
“I did the audition and then I went through this wave of emotions.
“I believe everything happens for a reason, but my first audition back? Nobody understands that.”
It’s a chance she’s dreamed of since she was a child.
She said: “When I was about 13 or 14 years old, I wrote a poem that said, ‘One day I’ll be on the cobblestones of Coronation Street.’
“My mom put it in the nightstand drawer and got it out the other day.
“She said, ‘How great is that?
“You wrote that as a kid as one of your dreams and now you’re doing it.”
“It really is a dream come true.”
Stephanie rose to fame when she took part in the BBC One talent show Over The Rainbow in 2010 at the age of 17.
An attempt was made to find an actor who could play Dorothy on stage in The Wizard of Oz.
Her performances impressed the bosses of Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, who invited her to audition.
That year, she joined Sinead O’Connor as the teenage Tearaway and has been at the center of some of the show’s biggest storylines.
But as her acting career took off, her boozy off-screen antics caught up with her.
She was dramatically fired from the soap in 2015 after arriving on set “incapacitated”.
Two years later she went to a rehab clinic because of alcohol addiction after several suicide attempts.
Do you know the feeling: “This is too good to be true, everything is happening too fast”? That was my first audition in three years.
Stephanie says her mental health took a turn for the worse after her appearance on Celebrity Big Brother in 2016 and her concerned parents Pauline and Roy had to step in.
Stephanie previously said: “I was so deep.
“I drank myself to death.
“I was so mentally abused and physically tortured.”
She continued: “I drank every day, probably three bottles of wine in the morning.
“I was told I had trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I was skin and bones.
“I was heartbroken and scared to say it.
“I didn’t want to live and that’s why I drank. I wanted to die.
“I was so suicidal and kept trying to kill myself.”
She added: “I was dragged into rehab by my parents.
“My mental health was so bad, it wasn’t just an addiction.
“A psychiatrist consultant told me I had high-functioning autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.
“When I got the diagnosis, I didn’t really understand what that meant.
“But as I did my research, I was like, ‘Whoa, that’s me!’
“It made me accept myself and move forward for the first time.
“It was the greatest relief.”
After eight weeks in rehab, she returned to Hollyoaks in 2018.
But after two years, she decided to leave to spend more time with her young son Caben, who is now six years old.
Stephanie, who lives in Liverpool with Caben and her boyfriend Joe Mckalroy, 27, a pharmacist, broke down in tears on learning she was making her way to the famous cobblestones.
She said this week: “The phone rang, it was my agent and I got it.”
“I thought, ‘What?!’
“It didn’t grab me and then I started crying.
“I belong on TV”
“She said, ‘Why are you crying? You should be happy’.
“I just couldn’t believe how quickly it all happened and I’m so grateful.
“I grew up watching Coronation Street on home television.
“On my first day on set, the first scene I shot was The Rovers, which was incredible.
“I used to tell my mom and my partner, ‘I can’t wait to get on set and hear ‘action.'”
“I made a little video of myself hearing it.
“I could have cried, I was so happy.
“I’ve been in TV since such a young age and that’s all I know.
“It’s like I’m back home where I belong.”
Stephanie, who is still in therapy but has turned her back on drugs and alcohol, arrives in Weatherfield this month as Courtney, the wife of Darren, played by Ryan Early.
He is a business partner of shop owner Dev Alahan.
Dev, played by Jimmi Harkishin, convinces him to give his teenage son Aadi a job.
I’ll let Caben watch the first few episodes and after that we’ll have to wait and see. It will depend on what episodes it is.
But with Courtney in a loveless marriage, it doesn’t take long for the “slut” to be secretly having fun with Aadi, played by Sam Hussain.
And while some of her scenes are too raunchy for Caben to see, he’ll be there for his mother’s Corrie debut.
Stephanie said: “I’ll let him watch the first few episodes and after that we’ll have to wait and see. It will depend on what episodes it is.
“She kisses a lot with Aadi so probably not those moments but he can watch me join in.
“We will all get together with my family.
“We’re going to spend an evening at my house and watch the first two episodes.”
Enjoying the stability of a full-time job, Stephanie thanks Joe and her mother Pauline, 56, for helping out with childcare.
She said: “My Corrie plan is so good and I’ve never had it before.
“You find out what you’re going to do next week the Friday before, whereas I’m used to finding out the night before.
“Joe is a big help and so is my mom, so we do a breakfast club or an afternoon club.”
“Joe will pick Caben up from school or if he has to work my mom will help him.
“Having been with Caben all the time, it’s weird not being with him all day.
“But he’s a really good age now and the younger years go by so quickly that I wanted to spend time with him because I didn’t do that on the previous filming.
“I’ve spent amazing years with him 24/7, but I’m ready to go back to what I love.
“There are so many levels to explore with Courtney and she certainly felt at home.
“I would like to see her stay here.”
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