Michelle McDonald has been through the worst few months of her life, but could the Coronation Street favourite finally be about to get some happiness?
According to actress Kym Marsh, who plays the feisty former Connor, things may at long last be about to improve for Michelle.
The barmaid has suffered heartbreak and betrayal, losing her baby son Ruairi who was stillborn at 23 weeks, then discovering her husband Steve had fathered another baby with her pal Leanne.
She was driven close to suicide by grief, and is now out for revenge and fighting Steve and his mum Liz for her half of the Rovers.
So everyone can agree she is certainly due for some happier storylines.
“She went a bit off the rails for a while, we saw evil Michelle and I don’t blame her, to be honest,” Kym admitted.
“What comes next is another journey for Michelle, it’s a long one which you’ll have to stay watching but I’m sure you’ll see some happiness for her at some point.”
Fans who have spotted the chemistry between Michelle and Tracy Barlow’s ex Robert Preston (played by Tristan Gemmill) are hoping he could be behind her happy ending.
He’s already admitted to having feelings for her and been a good and supportive friend. But could that turn into something more?
“There could be something with Robert,” teased Kym. “I think people are warming to the idea of them together.”
The 40-year-old was speaking at the recent TRIC Awards, where she was named Soap Personality of the Year for her powerful portrayal of the harrowing stillbirth storyline.
Scenes which were made even more poignant because in real life Kym had lost her baby son Archie in 2009, when he was stillborn at 21 weeks, and she revealed she had drawn on her own memories for her performance.
As she accepted the award, Kym said: “We’re absolutely delighted with the way our storyline has been received, it was obviously something very close to mine and Simon’s (Gregson, who plays Steve) heart.
“All we wanted to do was tell the story truthfully and reach out to people, to make a difference somehow and we’ve definitely done that.
“I’m so proud of Corrie for doing this storyline, we didn’t just dip our toe in the water, we told the whole story.
“We are so proud of telling the story as it is, I think that’s the great thing about soaps, it brings important issues into people’s living rooms and gets people talking, it also helps to educate people on subjects they might not know about.”
Kym recently had her contract on Coronation Street extended to summer 2018, so there is still lots to come for Michelle – including, hopefully, that much-needed happiness.
Meanwhile, in real life, Kym is working with a stillbirth charity and organising a fundraising ball in honour of her son.
“I’m looking forward to holding the Archie Ball next year in memory of my son, which will also be part of the charity I’m involved in, so I’m very excited about that.”