Coronation Street Blog: Sue Devaney interview: Debbie's on the cobbles till April 2022

Now that Ray has been exposed and is out of the way how determined is Debbie to put right their wrongs?

She wanted to get Ray out of the picture and she wanted to expose him for the man he is, there is a lot behind that, he really hurt her in the past more than we will never know, in a way it is a kind of revenge, she wants to take away the one thing thing that matters to him the most and the only way to do this is to get him to sign everything over to her. She has got a lot of making up to do and she thinks the only way she could have got rid of him and set him up was by telling Abi she had killed him. She lied to Abi and to Kevin and she wants to make it up to them by gifting them things, she thinks money can make everything right, she offers to pay for a solicitor for Faye, she wants to put everything back like it was, she wants to be the hero really. She thinks she can solve things with money but if somebody really hurts you it takes a while to get over it and she may have underestimated how hurt Kevin is.

Does she regret going into business with Ray?

Yes I think in the past she liked him a lot more than he liked her but I think he promised her the world and gave her very little. She doesn't trust people. She had gone back into business with him but he was actually more shady and seedy than she remembered him to be. She didn't realise how far he would go. The scales fell from her eyes every time he did something else and the last straw for her was what he did to Faye.

What made her think she could trust Ray to lie low? Why hasn’t she gone to the police straight away if that is her plan?

If she told the police straight away he would just go off to prison a rich man, still owning his businesses and profiting from them and she would have nothing. He would have his hotel and the bistro so what she tells him is that she will get him out of the country and set him up in Turkey and in return he will have to sign everything over to her and she can run it from the UK.

Has she been naive in underestimating him and thinking she would get away with this audacious plan?

Yes she has got some balls to take him on, she is telling him that she is not frightened of him. It is probably because she has had the relationship with him she thinks she knows him and perhaps this has given her false sense of security that she can get one over on him.

Is she frightened when he turns up at the Bistro and threatens her?

Yes she is definitely scared but she puts on a front and tries to talk her way out of it. She has more front than Blackpool and it has helped in the past but she has really bitten off more than she can chew this time. She has seen what he did to Abi so she should be scared but she is convinced that because she has that past with him he won’t be that cruel to her. Too late she realises that he would actually be prepared to kill her.

Kevin and Debbie find themselves locked in the fridge together which gives them some time to talk about their past

It is really interesting, when Debbie first came back she came home because she wanted what her brother had, she wanted that community, that connection, she had the money but nothing else and she had never had that since she was a young girl. When they are stuck in the freezer it is one of those situations where you think that it might be your last chance to say these things. They talk about their childhood and their upbringing and she tells him that she always wanted to make something good out of herself. She said she had always looked after Kevin and their dad and she didn't want to be anybody’s doormat again. There is a really wonderful moment where she says to him that there will be loads of people out there looking for him but nobody would even know she is missing. That really hit home to me that there are no friends in business, she has always been on the move, she has no family. Kevin realises how vulnerable she is.

What was it like filming those scenes?

It was filmed over 3 days, it was a great way of having proper catch up with Mike. It was absolutely boiling in there, Mike does the best cold acting, I’m there with a red face having a hot flush and having to put more grey on my face and he is shivering and looks freezing. We had such a laugh, at one point they are singing to try and keep awake and keep their spirits up so I was teaching him Abba songs from when I was in Mamma Mia on stage. I can also sing Dancing Queen in Korean so I taught him that!

Do you think Debbie can win people’s trust again after this?

She wants to turn everything around, it will take a while but she is hoping in time that she can make good and start again in Weatherfield with a community and family around her and her own business. She wants to help and be of use in the community, she wants to belong. Her problem is she always thinks she knows what is right for everyone else.

Would you like Debbie to be around in Weatherfield for a while?

I absolutely love playing her and I have just signed a new contract that will take me to April 2022, when I first came back I never imagined I would be around for that length of time and I am delighted. Every day when I drive into work I have a big grin on my face. I am so happy to be here. When I get to work with new people I haven’t worked with before that I have watched on screen I am so excited. She is such a fun character to play, she reacts differently with different people.If she is talking to someone important the posh voice is on, when she is having a row with Abi all the northern twang comes out. I describe her as the Joan Collins of Weatherfield, I love the fact that she is a bitch with a heart, I love that she doesn’t let anyone get in her way, she thinks in her world what she says is right. When she was in the freezer with Kevin you see a real vulnerable side of her but she doesn’t let that out that often. She goes out of the door, she puts her armour on and paints her face on and she is the warrior woman. She is a powerful strong woman with great style.

What about romance? Is she looking for love?

Ooh I hope so but if she is going to get a man I hope it is when all these restrictions are over so she can get up close and personal and doesn’t have to wear a mask!

Glenda Young

Author of gritty, family saga novels with Headline