Stephanie Davis is best known for her role on Hollyoaks as Sinead O’Connor, her dramas in the Celebrity Big Brother house, and of course her role on Over The Rainbow, competing to play Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.
But now she’s joined Coronation Street as newcomer Courtney, who’s about to cause all sorts of chaos in Aadi Alahan‘s life!
A dream come true for Stephanie Davis
So how is Steph feeling about joining the legendary soap?
“It’s a dream come true,” she gushes. “I’m loving it. Everyone’s been so welcoming. I’ve settled in straight away.”
And Steph, who’s been in showbiz since she was a little girl, says it’s something she’s wanted since she was a youngster!
“I wrote a poem when I was about 13 and it said ‘one day I will be on the cobbles of Coronation Street’ and my mum put it in her bedside drawer,” she tells us. “She got it out the other day. How amazing is that?”
Written in the stars
In fact, Stephanie says her new role was meant to be after she told her new agent her ideal job was working on Coronation Street.
“It must have been two days after that, I was getting my lashes done, and my phone rang and it was my new agent,” Stephanie tells us. “She said, ‘you’re never going to believe this. A part has just come up in Coronation Street!’ It was my first audition back, after three years. So I did the audition, and I went through a wave of emotions, because it was everything I wanted. It was too good to be true!”
And when she found out she had got the part, Stephanie said she burst into tears.
“I just couldn’t believe how quick it had happened,” she explains. “I was so grateful and I felt like everything happened for a reason.”
Stephanie on alter ego Courtney
Stephanie is playing Courtney Vance. She’s married to a business associate of Dev Ahalan‘s, called Darren, but Aadi catches her eye and they start an affair!
“Courtney is a bit of a minx,” Stephanie tells us. “She’s a bit of an onion – there are a lot of layers to her. She’s sassy, with a lot of confidence, but there’s a lot of layers there.”
At first, Courtney seems to be a trophy wife for businessman Darren, but Stephanie says there’s a lot more to her.
“She’s referenced her mum in some scenes, and you can tell she’s not had a great life. She’s met this Darren who’s got loads of money and settled to have a great lifestyle, but there’s no love there. Courtney in a nutshell, is just longing to be loved.”
True love?
So is Aadi the answer to her prayers?
Stephanie isn’t sure!
“She’s desperately attracted to Aadi, but a lot of it comes from her relationship with Darren,” she explains. “He’s cheated on her multiple times. It’s affected her self-worth and her confidence. It’s to get one back on her husband.”
So what is it about Aadi that attracts her? After all, she’s a fair bit older than Dev’s teenage son.
“What Courtney wants, Courtney gets,” Stephanie tells us. “But that’s all bravado. Aadi is the first guy that pays a bit of interest to her, and she goes for it.”
Is it just revenge, then? Or does she have proper feelings for young Mr Alahan?
“She definitely cares about him,” Steph reveals. “At first, it’s a bit of fun – that thrill, she’s loving the attention from this young good-looking guy. It’s making her feel good and she’s not felt like that for a long time. At first it’s a bit of fun, but then she starts to see this other side to him and he definitely starts to see this other side to her…”
Beauty and brains
Because as it turns out, Courtney isn’t the trophy wife she first appears to be.
“She’s the brains,” Stephanie tells us. “She could run that whole business if she wanted to. She doesn’t have that confidence in herself, she doesn’t think she deserves it, or that she’s worthy. And that’s where Aadi starts to show her that she’s more than that.”
“She’s an amazing character. What I love is we’ve only just scratched the surface with her. There’s so many layers to her. There’s a lot of stuff underneath and actually I feel sorry for her. She’s never been loved in her life.”
Is Courtney staying?
So will Courtney be staying in Weatherfield?
“I’d love to see her stick around. She’s certainly made herself at home straight away!”
And Stephanie says her fans, friends and family are already predicting what Courtney’s next big storyline could be!
“I’ve had so many messages saying we know what it is, you’re coming in as Claire Sweeney’s daughter! (Claire Sweeney is playing Tyrone’s biological mum, Cassie Plummer). They’re trying to join the dots. But who knows? We’ll have to wait and see.”
Read more: Complete Coronation Street cast list 2023 – meet them all here!
Coronation Street usually airs on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8pm on ITV.
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Coronation Street newcomer Stephanie Davis says her new role was “meant to be”!