Coronation St's Samia tells of family heartache

Coronation Street actress Samia Smith has revealed how her current storyline mirrors a tragedy that occurred in her own family. Samia's character Maria gives birth to a stillborn child - an experience Samia's own mother went through before she had Samia and her brother. "When I confided in mum she just looked at me and said, 'I can't believe it - the exact same thing happened to me 30-odd years ago," the 25-year-old told the Daily Mirror. "She told me that before my brother and I were born she'd been pregnant with a son. Sadly, he died when she was six-and-a-half months pregnant. She had to go through the ordeal of giving birth. "It is so painful for her even now and she finds it hard to talk about. Something like that you never get over. "Because of my mum I wanted to do the scenes well but they left me feeling exhausted and drained. I know mum will be watching it at home, as will thousands of women who've been through it so I need to do it justice for them." Viewers will see Maria Connor, pictured with husband Liam, find out that her baby has died in the womb after six months. Samia added: "When I filmed the birth I'd never had a day like it. There was a prosthetic baby, but the director didn't show it to me until filming started so I'd get the full impact. It looked so real and I just broke down."