Lucy Fallon has passionately defended 'Coronation Street' from critics over its darker storylines.
Lucy Fallon
The 22-year-old actress - whose character Bethany Platt was groomed and sexually exploited by Nathan Curtis (Christopher Harper) - insisted while people are entitled to their opinion, there are plenty of positives to take from addressing such serious issues on screen.
She told BANG Showbiz: "Both audiences are important but my opinion is, if you were watching something like the rape storyline or the grooming storyline or the suicide storyline and you think, 'This is too uncomfortable, I can't watch this', I feel that says more about you.
"These stories are raising awareness and people are actually sat at home who do know someone who killed themselves, or does know someone that was raped, and for those people it is so important that we do these stories on a platform like 'Corrie' so we raise that awareness.
"Someone sat in the comfort of their own home saying they found it uncomfortable, I think is quite sad. We do it so well and the balance is really good."
Lucy admitted the change of leadership on the cobbles - with departing producer Kate Oates being replaced by 'Emmerdale' boss Iain MacLeod - could have a big impact on Bethany's future.
She added: "I think it's really sad, because we all really love Kate and she's done a lot for me since she started. I've had the biggest storyline I probably could have ever had. But then again, it's also really exciting that we get somebody new, who might switch things up again. Maybe they'll make Bethany really happy! You just don't know, it's really exciting."
However, the actress would prefer to keep things "challenging and gritty", which she joked is "a bit sadistic", and she is excited to see how her plots unfold.
Asked about her goals, she said: "I really love playing Bethany and I love the character; she has just turned 18 so there are many things they can do now that they weren't able to do before with the character. I just really like playing her and I think we would get on. It's a role I can play for years."