Rachel Leskovac interview: Natasha's emotional exit

Last week, unlucky Natasha found herself in Harvey’s firing line after he mistook her for Leanne. Tonight, after a heart-breaking goodbye to Sam, Natasha died from her injuries. Rachel Leskovac tells us about filming these emotional episodes and reflecting on her time at Coronation Street. 

Since Natasha’s return, Rachel has formed a close bond with her onscreen son Jude Riordan, and she said she found it emotional filming their goodbye. “I’d done a bit of filming with Ben Price (Nick) before Jude came onto set and I was already feeling quite emotional. From the moment I saw Jude, I just started crying and I didn’t stop until they said cut. 

“It was really emotional to the point I couldn’t look at him in between takes because I just found it too difficult; it was pretty much non-stop crying. I’m a very emotional person- or some might say a right softie! The bond I have with Jude (Sam) is very strong and I hope that comes across on screen.”

To commemorate their last day filming together, Rachel and Jude had bought each other gifts to lift each other’s spirits. “We ended up cheering each other up in the car park after we’d finished,” Rachel said. “He’s got a really special place in my heart, from the first time I Facetimed him before I met him on set, I just knew that we would get on really well and it’s been an absolute joy to film with him. I’m going to really miss working with him, but we’ve said hopefully at some point in the future we’ll get to work together again.”

As Natasha headed into surgery, she made sure to say goodbye to Sam, and Rachel says that Natasha was aware her time might be up. “Natasha doesn’t want to be so direct with Sam being so young.  

“There is an element of her wanting to protect Sam but certainly it felt like she knew it was unlikely that she’d be seeing him again so that was another reason why that scene was particularly tough to play.”

Having lost Natasha, it is now up to Nick to care for his grieving son- but can he rise to the challenge? “She doesn’t really say much to Nick but there’s a moment where she looks at him and she just says his name, hopefully in that moment what will come across is that feeling of knowing.

“The way she looks at him and his response is basically letting her know that he’s going to be alright. I think she does trust that he will be a good dad to Sam despite what they’ve been through. I don’t think she’s ever doubted his love for him but perhaps sometimes his priorities. But sometimes it takes something really big to happen for people to step up and she doesn’t doubt that he will.”

Last year, Natasha returned to the cobbles after 10 years away. While circumstances were different for Natasha, Rachel says she felt like she had never been away. “It’s been an absolute pleasure to be back. I feel really honoured to be a part of Coronation Street and although this time it’s been in the new building that felt like the only new element about it because there are so many of the old crew still there. 

“I was absolutely welcomed with open arms; people often talk about a sense of family on soaps, and it does sound pretty corny but it is true. You’re in this bubble together, it’s very intense but despite it being 10 years ago it very quickly felt like I’d never left. It definitely has that sense of family, and I was really lucky to be working with Ben and Jane who are both really generous actors and were really excited to bring in this whole new dynamic to their storyline and explore the possibilities.”

Joining a show is challenging enough, but Rachel had to return amidst the Covid pandemic with heavy restrictions to filming. “It’s been bittersweet, I’m hugely grateful to have worked during this period of time unlike a lot of my peers but on the other hand it does feel like there was so much more we could have explored with the character had times being different and Covid not so restrictive. 

“I think that’s what I’ll miss the most, having that opportunity to watch her branch out and form relationships with different characters on the street. On the positive side of going in during a pandemic because the crews were stripped back it felt quite intimate which is always nice. There was more opportunity to do two handers and I like the intimacy of that.”

As we say goodbye to Natasha Blakeman, what does Rachel have planned for the future? “Part of the joy of being an actor is the prospect of new work, new beginnings, having the opportunity to challenge yourself creatively over and over again, whether that’s on stage or screen we shall see but I’m very much looking forward to spending Christmas with my family.”

Sophie Williams

I'm on Twitter @sophie_writer1

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Natasha's return! Corrie blog interview with Rachel Leskovac

Can it seriously be 10 years since Natasha's incredibly camp departure from Corrie? Double-crossed by Nick, and Gail, she flounced across the cobbles unleashing venomous diatribe to all and sundry, before leaving the cobbles in a taxi. As a fan of the show, Natasha still stands out as great femme fatale and something the show continues to do well.

Fast forward a decade, and as a Corrie superfan, I’m not only overjoyed that she is returning to the show, but unbelievably, I got a chance to chat with actress Rachel Leskovac for this very blog!  

Q - Welcome back to Coronation Street! How are you settling in?

A - It’s been interesting adjusting and following strict rules, it’s felt like the first day, every day. At the minute I’m filming about once a week but today it doesn’t feel like it, so that’s a good thing!

Q - What’s it like stepping back into a character after 10 years, and have you watched back any of the old episodes? 

A -I did look back at a few of the old episodes as 10 years is a long time and my memory is not great. A fan had put up a load of old clips together on Instagram of my last few episodes, and I loved watching those old interactions with Gail and in the factory, I had a lot of fun doing it. When it comes to reengaging with Natasha, however, I don’t think it was that beneficial as her life has changed so much. The ‘powers that be’ wanted her to come back as a stronger and independent woman.

Q- What has Natasha been up to in the last 10 years, and what makes her tick these days?

A - She’s still in the hairdressing business and runs a couple of salons and it's scripted that she’s looking to open a third, so she’s a good businesswoman. She’s good at her job and has thrown all of her efforts into that. initially, all we see of her is the fact that it’s just been her and her son. She’s not kept Nick a secret from him, he was just too young. However, he’s not at an age where he’s questioning who his Dad is and she’s trying to be open about it. We have a lot of blended families these days so it’s quite a common storyline. It wasn’t an intentional secret for Natasha though. 

Q - Is Natasha coming back to get together with Nick? 

A - No. I was relieved when I got the call, I wondered if she was coming back to steal someone’s man because you see that quite often in character returns but luckily it’s a story that has a bit more depth than that. 

Q - Were you shocked when you got a call to return to Corrie? 

A -  I think so. Because of the exit, I always thought the door was left open to return and they contacted me a couple of times at least over the last few years, they checked my availability and interests but it never materialised for one reason or another. It’s nice to know that they have actively been trying to bring her back. When you join a soap unless you came with a family, you are on the periphery, which is fine but it does come with some uncertainty. To come back with Nick’s son is just brilliant.

Q - Why has she kept Sam (her son) a secret from Nick for all this time? 

A  - I’ve not been told the reasoning but I don’t think she’s purposely kept this a secret. She always knew she was going to tell her son who his Dad was when the time came, it was just a case of her telling Nick. I think given the fact that when she left, he had no intention of a relationship with her and still had feelings for Leanne, she was devastated about the abortion and the emotional attachment to him so didn’t want to deal with it. Fans on Twitter have speculated that she’s back to break up Nick and Leanne but that’s not the case at all!!

Q- How does Leanne feel then when she finds Natasha back on the scene?

A - Initially Leanne is very suspicious of Sam being Nick’s son and Natasha’s intentions but Natasha is now a parent as well, so she sympathises with Leanne and it becomes a Mother to Mother understanding. When Nick feels that the time is right, she wants him to be a full-time father to Sam, and for keeps, but the timing may be a bit difficult. 

Welcome back, Natasha! I cant wait to see how this story develops.

Rachel also disclosed that she’s just done some filming with Helen Worth (aka Gail Platt), so we’ve also got that to look forward to!

Keep your eyes peeled on the Corrie blog as I also chatted Ben Price about how Nick will cope with Oliver’s illness and to Jack P Shepherd about David Platt’s 21 years on the street! 

All to come this week. 

I’m @rybazoxo your cobbles connoisseur and Wednesday episode reviewer

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All original work on Coronation Street Blog is covered by a Creative Commons License

Coronation Street - how well does it handle mental health storylines?

I've blogged about this before as it's a bugbear of mine. I'm up on me soapbox and blogging about it again today as this happens to be World Mental Health Day so it's as good a time as any.

One in four of us (the usually quoted statistic) will experience a mental health problem at some point in our lives. All of us will know someone who's been affected. It's part and parcel of every day living, and that is why it pops up in Corrie storylines. We all know that Corrie is not real. It's soapland. We can't expect an in-depth analysis of 21st century attitudes towards mental illness. But I'd just like them to do a bit better. The storylines are just a bit too rushed, for my liking.

Two examples. The Natasha Blakeman storyline ( and like most of you I thought Rachel Leskovac was superb by the way) in which Natasha takes an overdose. How many of us know someone who's done the same? I know I do. One minute she's semi-comatose, the next she's kicking back-sides down Coronation Street saying "Back of the net." Doesn't happen like that. Too rushed.

My other bugbear is the Claire Peacock post-natal depression storyline, which I've written about before. We all know how ignorant people can be, calling others "nutters" and so forth. We've all heard it. It's unacceptable. And that's why I WISH the Corrie writers had given the latter end of this storyline a little bit more time, and provided some consequences for those such as Sally Webster (and I do like Sally as a rule!) whose verbal abuse of Claire was shocking. Okay - in "real life" perhaps there are no consequences for those who say such things. But they can have a terrible effect on those on the receiving end - and I'd like to have seen a bit more acknowledgement of that, in the script. There was some, I'll give them that - but it wasn't sharp enough. It's obviously not Corrie's job to tackle stigma, but if they're going to have these types of storylines, then I think they should make sure they're doing them justice.

Angel of Fury

All I can say is: I LOVE NATASHA.  In her last few moments, Rachel Leskovac turned into a furious banshee of vengeance, working her way through her tormentors with efficient and cruel brilliance.

From her dismissal of David as heartless compared with loveable naif Grahame,  to her sowing the seeds of doubt between Leanne and Peter, to twisting the knife in with Nick and his work colleagues, Natasha became the kind of bitch goddess we have all wanted her to be.  No more cringing and cowering; her evil side was finally released and she tore into every enemy she saw with cold, brilliant precision.

Of course, her greatest cruelties were saved for Gail.  Even if La Potter-Tilsley-Platt-Hillman-Platt-McIntyre hadn't hacked into Natasha's records, she still would have been top of her hit list.  As it was, Natasha got to wrench her away from her smug middle-class high horse and deposit her back in the gutter. Watching her wreak havoc was blissful; having Betty as a silent, but none the less reactive, witness to the whole thing was the icing on the cake.

Natasha's long been one of those characters who have filled in the gaps in Corrie's cast (think Poppy, or Minnie) but unlike them, she's been a firebrand when she's got a plot.  The whole pregnancy storyline has been tragic and disturbing, effectively showing her unravelling sense of reality and her desperation to keep the one person she loves.  Rachel Leskovac has been superb throughout.  Having her turn her back on all the false promises at the end is a real high point for the character, and leaves her return gloriously open.  What if she got pregnant in her last few days with Nick after all?  Wouldn't that be a twist..?

Corrie: The Musical album

Rachel Leskovac, who plays Natasha Blakeman on Coronation Street, has revealed that there's going to be a Corrie: The Musical album. Rachel will be singing a number of tracks on the forthcoming album, including an homage to iconic Rovers landlady Bet Lynch.

The all-singing, all-dancing production of Corrie: The Musical is expected to launch in Manchester before heading to London for a further run. Composer Trisha Ward has been working on the songs.

Rachel said: "Corrie: The Musical isn't happening until next year, but they are recording the album with some Corrie stars and other people to tie in the with 50th. There's a duet with Elsie Tanner, saying He's My Man, so they're fighting over a man. It's all brand new material from the musical. There are quite a few Corrie stars involved," she added.

Natasha the hairdresser in suicide shock

According to today's Sun, Natasha Blakeman the hairdresser will be killed off in a suicide plot.

The paper says that scriptwriters have not yet decided on how Natasha will take her life. The scenes are set to be screened in the autumn. Apparantly, we'll see a nastier side to Natasha before she decides to end it all.

When Nick shows he still has feelings for ex-wife Leanne Battersby, (Jane Danson) - after she helps him find new factory premises - Natasha delights in telling him about Leanne's past in the sex trade. And she launches a campaign to convince Audrey that at 70 she's too old to run the salon. But she will also find a brief happiness after the couple set up home together.

Natasha's leaving the Street

Just a couple of days after it was announced the Peacocks are moving on to pastures new, it has been revealed today Natasha Blakeman is leaving Coronation Street too.

Hairdresser Natasha, played by Rachel Leskovac, will be part of a dramatic storyline towards the end of the year leading up to her departure and the show's 50th anniversary.

Another disappointment for me, Natasha is one of my personal favourite characters and I'll be sad to see her go. Personally I think she has been criminally underused, and most of the time a glorified extra working in Audrey's. What are your thoughts on Natasha's departure? And who do you think will be up for the chop next?

Corrie's Natasha is a Passionate Woman

Rachel Leskovac, who plays Coronation Street hairdresser Natasha Blakeman, is starring alongisde Billie Piper in the new BBC1 drama, A Passionate Woman.

Rachel will be on screen as the older sister to Billie Piper's character, Betty. The show starts on Sunday night at 9pm on BBC1 and you can find out more about it here at the Manchester Evening News in an excellent write up by Ian Wylie.

Psst... wanna read some of Ian Wylie's Corrie gossip? Click here.

Rachel Leskovac on playing Corrie's Natasha

There's a long interview with Rachel Leskovac in The Mirror in which she says she'll find out at the end of this month whether she's getting the chop from the cobbles. Rachel also speaks about doing the love scenes with Tony Gordon and her life as a working mum. It's an interesting read and The Mirror are getting some good stuff on Corrie right now.

See also: Is Coronation Street's Natasha a young Audrey Roberts?

Rachel Leskovac - last in, first out at Corrie?

Rachel Leskovac who plays Coronation Street hairdresser Natasha, reveals in an interview with The Sunday People that she's worried she might be sacked from the cobbles cast. As cutbacks are being made at ITV, Rachel says: "I am secure till August and I will know in May whether or not they want to keep me. But I am worried that if ITV are going to make cuts, I might go." She also reveals that she originally auditioned for the role of Lauren Wilson, Violet's younger sister on Corrie.

For more Corrie tabloid tales from this weekend's press, have a look here.