Catherine Tyldesley admitted she once would have killed to play the landlady of the Rovers Return on Coronation Street as she prepares to take on the role.
The soap star, 42, played barmaid icon Eva Price from 2011 to 2018 but bid farewell to the show seven years ago when her character went to live in France with her daughter Susie.
When producer Kate Brooks reached out to the actress to propose a return to the role, Catherine admitted she assumed it could be the case of a funeral rather than a job offer.
Little did Catherine know, she was about to be offered one of the most desired roles in the soap world – the owner of the legendary fictional pub, The Rovers Return.
Catherine will reprise the role alongside her on-screen partner Ben Driscoll, played by Aaron McCusker.
The TV star revealed she was in Malta filming when Kate contacted her, believing at the time that a character had died and Eva needed to return for a funeral.
Catherine Tyldesley admitted she once would have killed to play the landlady of the Rovers Return on Coronation Street as she prepares to take on the role
The soap star , 42, played barmaid icon Eva Price from 2011 to 2018 but bid farewell to the show seven years ago when her character went to live in France with her daughter Susie
‘We were on a Zoom call and Kate said, ‘Would you like to be landlady?’ and I went ‘Aaargh!’,’ she told The Sun.
‘My agent was like, “Nice one.” I was just really shocked.
‘It’s an absolute dream. I remember watching the show as a kid, thinking, “God, I’d kill to be landlady one day. How cool would that be?”
Catherine quit the soap to pursue other acting roles, but also to dedicate more time to his son Alfie, 10, whom she shares personal trainer husband Tom Pitfield, as they also share daughter Iris, three.
She was the on-screen daughter of Stella Price, played by EastEnders star Michelle Collins, who was also the long-lost mother of Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson).
During her time on the show, Eva famously had a relationship with Aidan Connor (Shayne Ward) but he had an affair with Maria Connor (Samia Longchambon).
As an act of revenge when she found out, Eva faked a pregnancy and spent Aidan’s savings on a pink Range Rover.
The pair later become engaged but Maria burst into the wedding to expose the truth about the fake pregnancy.
But when producer Kate Brooks reached out to the actress, Catherine admitted she assumed it could be the case of a funeral rather than a job proposal
Little did Catherine know, she was about to be offered one of the most desired roles in the soap world – the owner of the legendary fictional pub, The Rovers Return
In a shockingly surprising comeback, Catherine will reprise the role alongside her on-screen partner Ben Driscoll, played by Aaron McCusker (Eva and Aidan pictured)
A short time later, Eva discovered that she was actually pregnant with Aidan’s baby but agreed to give the child to her half-sister Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor).
Soon after that, Aidan took his own life in 2017, and Eva became attached to baby Susie and left the Cobbles in the back of a taxi with her.
Catherine then starred in the short-lived sitcom Scarborough and played a leading role in Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical, but it was cancelled halfway through the tour amid poor ticket sales.
The soap star reunited with X Factor winner Shayne on The Good Ship Murder, which began airing its second series in January.
In 2023, she was caught up in the bizarre ‘cake gate’ scandal after a baker refused a PR’s request to supply free cakes for the actress’ big bash.’
News of Catherine’s comeback comes shortly after she admitted she would ‘never say never’ to a return.
She told Prima magazine: ‘Coronation Street feels like forever ago, but I always look back with such great fondness
‘But if they approached me with an amazing storyline and the time was right, of course, I’d go back. So it’s always a case of never say never.’
