Seconds out! Corrie's Michael takes on Sally

Seconds out! Corrie's Michael takes on Sally
Seconds out! Corrie's Michael takes on Sally

Just when you thought that every drop had been squeezed from Sally and Kevin Webster’s relationship breakdown along comes another twist. We talk to Coronation Street's Michael Le Vell and Sally Dynevor... How does Sally find out about Kevin’s win and how does she react? Michael: "Sally and Kevin are in the solicitor’s office about to sign the divorce papers when Tyrone bursts in. He heard Kevin celebrating in The Rovers and tells Sally not to sign because Kevin has just won £200,000. Kevin tells him to mind his own business, but it’s too late by then." Sally: "Sally immediately wants half the money and won’t sign until that £100,000 is hers." Do you think she’s right to want half? Michael: "Legally she’s entitled to it and I’d like to think that if it happened to me in real-life, I’d go halves." Sally: "Of course she is. She has got two girls to bring up and Kevin is kicking her out of the house!" Can money buy Sally’s love? Michael: "Kevin thinks so. He believes that because Sally has always wanted to be rich and slightly better than anybody else, this is the way forward for them. So he woos her. Buys her gifts. He buys her a car, gift wraps it and leaves it outside the house." Sally: "She’s not interested in his gifts. All she cares about is protecting her family." What do you think about the way this story has developed? Michael: "I think it’s great. It’s realistic, too. Sally and Kevin wouldn’t get back together overnight because a lot of damage has been done. Having said that, there is still Ian Davenport! She had an affair with him [back in 1995] and Kevin turned a blind eye to it." Sally: "Michael keeps going on about that. I wish he’d get over it and move on! She didn’t have a child with Ian. And he was her boss. It was different. I think Sally and Kevin had to split up. It’s been such a great story with her getting breast cancer, him having the affair and the tram crash – it had to lead to this." Have you enjoyed filming their big rows? Michael: "I am naturally aggressive and love a good row. Sally can be so vicious though! They are always good fun to do. Sally and Kevin have some of the best arguments." Sally: "I always feel a bit mean! She has some cracking lines during their rows. I wish I could think of things like that when I’m in full swing." Is it strange for you two, not to be an on-screen couple any more? Michael: "I like it. It’s exciting and it keeps the characters interesting." Sally: "It is strange in some ways as I am not working much with Michael and I kind of miss him. He’s good at sitting down and running through the lines with me, and he’s brilliant when I nag him and ask if we can do it again." Can you see them reuniting? Michael: "I think they could definitely get back together, but I don’t know when or how. They could make it work as long as Sally accepts baby Jack." Sally: "So many people have said it just wouldn’t be right if Sally and Kevin weren’t together. But I’m sure it would be really difficult for her to accept Jack as her own. Could you do that?" What’s it like working with babies on set? Michael: "The twins who play Jack are a joy to work with. I love it when Helen Flanagan and Brooke Vincent [who play Rosie and Sophie Webster] coo over them. It’s really sweet." Sally: "I hope I get to work with the babies a bit more as mine are all grown up now and it would be nice to have little cuddles before handing them back. I feel sorry for Kevin because he’ll be the one who’s up all night. Sally won’t because it’s not hers." Will Sally’s relationship with Jeff work and who might Kevin date? Michael: "Kevin might become a sugar daddy and hook up with somebody younger. That would be fun!" Sally: "He hasn’t got time! He’s got a baby to look after. Sally really likes Jeff, but Kevin is like your first love – nobody is ever going to take his place." What would you do if you won £200,000? Michael: "I would pay off my mortgage and take my wife to California. Since I’ve known about this storyline, I’ve been doing Lucky Dips just in case!" Sally: "I’d pay off my debts, give some to charity and to my brother who helps me out a lot as he’s an at-home dad. I’d go on holiday – but I am already going to the Maldives for a sneaky week. I’m leaving our three kids with my brother. I’ve never done that before, but having cancer has made me realise that you have to do things when you can [Sally was diagnosed with breast cancer while filming Sally Webster’s cancer story, she has had a lumpectomy and chemotherapy and is now hopeful of a full recovery]. "It’s something my husband [Emmerdale scriptwriter Tim Dynevor] and I have always wanted to do and we’re looking forward to having a week where we can just read books and talk to each other. We’ve been knee deep in work and children for so long, we haven’t sat down and had proper chats. You have to have those times together when you’re a couple and we’re both really looking forward to it.

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 


An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.