Joanne Froggatt: 'Anna makes a nice change' VIDEO

Former Coronation Street Joanne Froggatt tells whatsontv.co.uk about her uncharacteristic character in Downton Abbey. Joanne Froggatt has played her fair share of troubled characters since bursting onto our screens as teenage mum Zoe Tattersall in Coronation Street in 1997 - and she's pleased to be playing someone 'nice' in ITV's new period drama. The actress stars as head housemaid Anna in the seven-part series, looking at the lives of those above and below stairs in an Edwardian country house in 1912. "Anna is quite different from a lot of characters I've played," says Joanne. "She is genuinely a nice, kind girl really." And Joanne's delighted with the change of role. "Some people might say that 'nice' is not what you want to play," says Joanne. "But it was just good to play someone very sweet and kind - and not a murderer!" Downton Abbey begins on Sunday, September 26 at 9pm on ITV1. CLICK below to watch an interview with Joanne Froggatt

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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.