'Leanne can't take Simon's hatred towards her,' says Corrie's Jane Danson

Coronation Street star Jane Danson tells Soaplife why Leanne lies to protect Simon after he lashes out at her…

Simon flies into a temper and kicks Leanne next week - why does she lie about her nasty bruises?

"She’s really embarrassed and wants to deal with it on her own. Leanne worries that other people won’t understand Simon’s behaviour and that they’ll think badly of him – of her, too."

What hurts Leanne the most about Simon’s behaviour – his physical aggression or the nasty comments?

"It’s all painful. They were so close, but now it’s like she’s the worst person in the world to him. She can handle the physical bruises, but the hatred in him towards her is really hard for her to take."

How does she feel when Simon admits he has trouble controlling his anger?

"Really sad, but she’s scared, too. Leanne wants to help him, but it’s a vicious circle. She’s so happy when he’s nice to her, she rewards him for it. She gives him a hug and spoils him. She tells him he can invite a group of friends for lunch at the Bistro, for instance, but that will end very badly indeed."

Simon’s spiralling out of control – how worried is Leanne?

"She’s at a complete loss about what to do. Simon’s missing that male figure in his life and Leanne is worried about the state of their relationship and whether he’ll ever stop this behaviour and see how damaging he’s being."

Has she considered getting professional help?

"She’s living a bit of a nightmare at the minute and doesn’t know what to do. After Simon’s been nasty or abusive towards her, he’s then nice again and she thinks they can sort it out. But she doesn’t have any real support network to lean on so eventually she will probably have to consider some form of help."