Corrie star drops hint she could be Stephen's next victim
A beloved Coronation Street star has hinted that she could be the next victim of serial killer Stephen Reid, after raising concerns that her character can be ‘mouthy’ to the crazed murderer.
Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Cherylee Houston has admitted she fears for Izzy Armstrong's safety if she continues to challenge her Underworld manager.
The son of Audrey Roberts has been wreaking havoc in Weatherfield ever since he arrived on the cobbles in June 2022, brutally murdering three people over the past year in a seemingly unstoppable killing spree.
The first of Stephen’s victims was Jenny’s fiancé, Leo, who was slayed by the madman in September during a blow-out on the factory's gantry. Next on his hit list was Teddy Thompkins, Leo’s father, who came from Canada to look for his son following his disappearance. Stephen murdered him in January after realising he was onto his crimes, whacking him over the head before bundling him into the roof box of Audrey’s car. He later disposed of the body in the canal, in a desperate attempt to rid the evidence for good.
In April, it was confirmed through a flashback scene that Stephen was also responsible for the death of his business rival, Rufus Donahue. After discovering that Rufus was going to tell someone about him drugging Carla, the deranged scammer murdered him by lacing his drink with LSD and staging his drowning to look accidental.
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Stephen Reid has murdered three people in Corrie alreadyCherylee Houston, whose plays factory machinist Izzy Armstrong, has now shared her concerns that her character could inadvertently place herself in Stephen's firing line.
"I’ve gotten a bit mouthy with Stephen," she admits to the Mirror. "I have to say, 'Don’t wind him up too much.' Izzy doesn’t listen to him as a manager at all. You never know."
As for what she'd say to Izzy, who has been a fan favourite on the ITV soap since 2010, Cherylee has some simple words of advice: "Don’t be too rude to him!" She also praised Corrie's writers for the gripping storyline, hailing it as "brilliant" before adding, "We love playing around with that in the factory."
Could Izzy be next to go? (ITV)While Cherylee was reluctant to give more details of Izzy's fate, she did say that she's enjoying seeing the no-nonsense seamstress evolve. Despite having previously shared her desire to play a villain, the Lancashire actress is notably attached to her Corrie alter-ego. "I just love what I’m doing," she says. "I’m finding new things with Izzy. It’s a real joy."
Izzy's wide-reaching impact is another reason the 49-year-old actor enjoys playing her so much. Like Cherylee, her on-screen character also has EDS, or Ehlers-Danlos syndromes. The condition refers to a group of disorders, the most common of which is Hyper-mobility Spectrum Disorder (HSD), that affect the body's connective tissue, and cause symptoms like chronic pain, severe fatigue, easily dislocated joints, and gastric disorders.
Cherylee Houston has spoken out about the importance of NHS funding for EDS (Daily Mirror)
Cherylee has been a prominent disability rights activist for decades (Mike Marsland/WireImage)Early diagnosis is complicated by the wide spectrum of symptoms, which can vary significantly even amongst family members It's estimated that about one in 500 people have it, many of whom are undiagnosed.
Izzy's journey with the EDS has been well documented on the soap, with Cherylee's real-life experiences as a disabled person in Britain inspiring many of the Weatherfield local's storylines.
"The amount of people that tell me I’ve been diagnosed because I saw you on Coronation Street and it made sense to me after searching for life," she reveals.
Cherylee has recently expressed her support for Fran Heley, who has taken on a number of endeavours to raise awareness of EDS after struggling to find the appropriate treatment for her own symptoms.
The 57-year-old recently completed a 200 mile-long walk from Blackpool to Cleethorpes as part of her #EnoughIs Enough campaign, which aims to reach 100,000 signatures on a petition to secure funded NHS support for others with the illness. Along the course of her impressive excursion, Fran stopped into multiple Bannatyne Health Clubs after they publicly backed her cause. She was also joined on the Lancaster route by Cherylee, whose support has brought invaluable media attention to the important cause.
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Cherylee joined Fran on the Lancashire route of her 200 mile coast-to-coast walk earlier this month"Even if you get a diagnosis, there’s no pathway beyond that. The only way to get treatment is private," Fran tells the Mirror. "The issues that I’ve been left with because of the connective tissue disorder are neurological issues with my spine and the NHS don’t recognize the condition. I’m looking at a bill of £70k." She explains that many people with EDS have been forced to go abroad to access the appropriate healthcare, with Spain and the US being two of the most common destinations for treatment.
Cherylee insists that our perception of disability needs to change, especially when it comes to conditions that are invisible or less obvious.
"There’s an awful lot of prejudice. I fought that in my teenage years, and half my twenties - not being believed, diagnosed or supported," she recalls. "Society needs to have a big shift in its attitude towards disabled people. Society has this very negative view of us. It’s an inherited view and it needs to change."
You can support this important cause by signing the petition 'Provide dedicated funding for diagnosis/treatment of hypermobile EDS and HSD' at: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/637313.
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