Posted: Wed Nov 26, 2008 4:07 pm Post subject: Corrie : Fiz (Jennie McAlpine)
Jennie McAlpine, aka Fiz, on diets and fashion Julie McCaffrey
25/11/2008
She’s never expressed a desire to be super thin. So it came as a shock when Coronation Street actress Jennie McAlpine, who plays loudmouth knicker-stitcher Fiz Brown, showed off a dazzling new slim figure earlier this year. Fans had to do a double-take when a two-and-a-half stone lighter Fiz sashayed proudly on to their screens. At the time she put her new look down to “feeling good about herself” and doing sit-ups at home in front of the telly. But today Jennie, 24, has regained a few pounds and some of her old curves – not that she gives a stuff.
The star, who claims she has never in her life stepped on a pair of scales (“outrageous contraptions”), insists she can’t be faffed with all that diet nonsense. “I haven’t been on a diet and have never claimed to eat healthily,” she laughs. “Everyone knows diets don’t work – end of story. And everyone also knows eating an apple instead of a bag of crisps is better. But how sad would life be if you didn’t eat a bag of crisps?”
Long hours working on the Coronation Street set can’t help eating healthily either. “Corrie catering’s a mix of everything,” Jennie says. “And no offence to Betty, but her hotpot is vile. It comes straight out of a tin and they bung it into a hotpot dish. No thanks!”
Anyway, at the moment there’s no time for calorie-counting and workouts – Jennie is at the centre of a massive storyline. After boyfriend John Stape cheated on her with teen temptress Rosie Webster, it was Fiz who found out that John was so infatuated by Rosie he’d kidnapped her and held her hostage.
It’s not the first time Fiz has been unlucky in love – she previously dumped hapless but harmless Kirk after he proposed marriage with a fairy cake. Now, whenever Jennie goes out in public, fans offer her love life advice. “Half the people say, ‘Ooh, when are you going to get rid of that John?’ And the other half tell me Fiz should give him another chance because they feel sorry for him. Everyone wants to see Fiz happy. And maybe there’s a glimmer of happiness ahead.”
Jennie recently left the rain-soaked cobbles of Weatherfield for a stint in South Africa where she filmed spin-off episodes with her screen mum Cilla (Wendi Peters), little brother Chesney (Sam Aston) and old flame Kirk (Andrew Whyment). She meets a handsome local man who looks set to mend her aching heart. So could fans see Fiz finally find true love? “She does meet a nice bloke who’s very smooth and maybe a bit of a player, and you’ll see Fiz with a chance of happiness.” But will he turn up in Weatherfield? “Ooh, I can’t say.” “It’s nice to play Fiz happy, but actually it’s better fun to play her unhappy so we can scream and shout and cry all the time.
“Is this the end of Fiz and John Stape? Well, John’s in the nick and he’ll have to stand trial – which’ll happen soon because the justice system moves quickly in Weatherfield. Fiz might stick up for him and give him a character reference – or maybe wash her hands of him and watch him rot.”
Jennie, from Bury, Lancs, was 17 and working part-time in Boots while studying for her A-levels when she landed the role of Fiz. With her fiery red curls, curvy figure and crazy dress sense, she stood out from the rest of the young actresses with their highlighted hair and skinny, perma-tanned bodies. Antony Cotton, who plays Fiz’s factory friend Sean, even branded Cilla, Kirk and her the Street’s “grotesques”.
But that’s just the way Jennie likes it. Fiddling with fake tan, spending hours undergoing a beauty regime to look like every other showbiz starlet is not her way. Jennie says: “I like to be different and stand out. It’s fun to get glammed up for red carpet dos, but I like to do it my own way. I couldn’t cope with that Hollywood thing of getting up at 5.30am three days before the Oscars to have my hair done. It’s nice when I get a tick in a magazine for a red carpet outfit, but I’ve had a fair few crosses as well. I sometimes think you can’t really be an expert in style. You can be an expert in nuclear physics but style isn’t on the GCSE curriculum.”
As Fiz has matured, gained extra responsibilities as a guardian to Chesney and fallen in love, producers have toned down her wardrobe and let her good looks blossom. Gone are the frizzy bunches and kaleidoscope clothes she cobbled together on the factory’s sewing machine behind the boss’s back. But Jennie hopes the gentle restyle doesn’t go much further. She says: “Fiz’s style is coming together, but I still want her to be quirky and eccentric. But these days, thanks to Fearne Cotton – who I love – all the fashionable people are wearing crazy, mismatched things. So maybe Fiz needs to wear something ordinary to stand out.”
Although she loved her time in the heat of South Africa, she didn’t get a tan. “I’m a redhead so I burn in minutes.” And she sorely missed her fix of reality TV shows Strictly Come Dancing and The X Factor. “Ooh, I love those shows! Laura White is from Bolton, which is near me. I met her on This Morning and commiserated with her for getting voted off. But you can’t enter a competition and then complain about the rules. If you’re voted off, it doesn’t matter if you’re the best singer, you’re off. Tough!”
Jennie attributes her grounded attitude to her northern roots. Her dad Tom raised her and her older brother Thomas single-handedly after he and her mother divorced when she was young. Tom is a trainer in mental health issues and chairman of the charity Mood Swings Network, which Jennie helps run.
It’s safe to assume Jennie is not the type to drench herself in baby oil and pose provocatively in a lads’ mag any time soon. But that’s not to say she hasn’t already stripped off in front of the camera. Jennie says: “My topless protest on the roof of the knicker factory is one of my favourite scenes. But you wouldn’t catch me doing that now. It was February and I was freezing! Next time I’d ask them to send me back to South Africa."
Jennie McAlpine pays tribute to her Scottish roots June 21 2009
Laura Davidson
CORONATION Street star Jennie McAlpine reckons her Scots roots have turned her into a summer wallflower. The actress thanks her grandparents from Fife for her fiery red hair and pale, freckly skin. So while her Weatherfield co-stars love soaking up the rays on set during summer, she is happier hiding in the shade.
She laughed: "I'm not one of those people who has to do their family tree to see where their ancestors come from - I mean, just look at me. If I stand in direct sunlight for less than five minutes, I start to go pink. It gives the make-up people a real headache. If I'm doing a scene that takes a few hours to film, they're on the sidelines with worried looks thinking 'Oh dear, she's changing colour'. I'm a nightmare for continuity." But Jennie's sun-savvy attitude will give her the last laugh as she gets older.
In the week that Cancer Research UK announced skin cancer is now the most common cancer among 15 to 34-year-olds, Jennie's sensible approach should see her skin improving with age while those around her will have more wrinkles and sun spots. She said: "I must admit, I am careful in the sun, I really have to be. I wear Factor Billion even in winter and a moisturiser with an SPF every day. I'm not the sun-worshipping type, I get bored on beach holidays. I'm happier on city breaks, that's more my thing. In fact, I love coming up to Glasgow and Edinburgh. I really love Scotland. I think I fit in a bit better in Scotland than I do in Manchester. There aren't many pale-faced redheads down here but in Glasgow or Edinburgh I blend in with the crowd better, it's great." It is a big week for Jennie's Corrie alter ego Fiona Brown, better known as happygo-lucky loudmouth Fiz.
She pops the question to her ex-lover by chaining herself to the railings of the prison where he is banged up for the kidnap of Rosie Webster, holding up a banner saying "John Stape - marry me." It is all in typical Fiz style but Jennie insists filming was no laughing matter. She said: "I had to chain myself to these railings with long bicycle chains, then the crew decided it was time for a break and left me there. We were pushed for time so I had to have my cup of tea and choccie biscuit one-handed. It wasn't fun, believe me." Jennie, 25, who lives in Manchester, has been with her boyfriend Chris for four years but has no plans to follow in Fiz's footsteps and pop the question.
She laughed: "I couldn't see me going down the Fiz route. Not in those circumstances anyway. Proposing to anyone who's serving time is never going to be a good idea really." It seems certain that Fiz's road to the altar will be a rocky one, something Jennie is relishing. She added: "Half of me wants it to work out for Fiz but half of me doesn't want it to work out. It's great fun to play when she's miserable. It would be a bit boring if everything worked out and everyone was nice to her. It's good to have a fight now and again."
Jennie, who regularly volunteers with a mental health charity called Mood Swings Network, set up by her health worker father Tom, has made headlines this year because of her dramatic weight loss. She says she doesn't keep track of how much she has lost and never steps on the scales but she has shed at least a couple of stones and dropped a few dress sizes. She showed off her svelte figure in a slinky black minidress at the soap awards but unlike some other stars, she was not fussy about where she shopped for her frock - it was £16.99 from TK Maxx.
She said: "It's lovely of people to say I looked great that night but you know what, I think it was because I didn't try too hard. It's nice to look nice and I'm not saying I purposefully go out trying to look horrible, but if you're chilled about it, you're halfway there. I honestly just don't put too much effort in. It's the same with the weight. I just ate more healthily and exercised more, there was no mystery. There are more important things than image and you can always tell if someone is too preoccupied by it. I just couldn't be doing with it. That's just not me."
She is looking so much better these days. When I first started watching Corrie, I thought she looked like a pig in ponytails. Her character has come a long way and so has she. I've enjoyed watching her on Corrie.
'Coronation Street' star Jennie McAlpine chats to Linda McGee about her character Fiz's troubled love life, getting advice from people on the street and the possibility of joining 'Fair City'!
Linda McGee: Poor Fiz, she's had a bit of a tough time lately, hasn't she? On what should have been the happiest day of her life nobody really wanted to get behind her, did they?
Jennie McAlpine: Yeah, poor Fiz. You're right, because the happiest day of her life, or it should have been the happiest day of her life, but I think she knew deep down that it was never going to be the happiest day of her life because it just had disaster spelled all over it from the start, didn't it? First of all it was in a prison - it wasn't ideal. It really wasn't. Even though it kind of did end OK, in that she got married, and Chesney kind of got behind her, but not properly - but she's putting up with that. It's the best she can get from Chesney at the moment. He's not 100% behind her but there's a civil word between them and that's enough for her at the moment.
LM: And it doesn't look like things are going to get any easier for Fiz in the coming weeks. From what I've been reading it looks like things are going to get worse and worse for her because Sally Webster is planning on stirring up more trouble, isn't she?
JM: Yeah, that's next week. Well obviously it's kind of been OK so far because John's been in prison, which is not OK but it is for the relationship. He's not there. She's able to keep everything at bay. And now, he's due out next week, he's coming out in a few days time, and what do they expect is going to happen? Obviously all hell is going to break loose.
LM: It looks like Sally is the ring-leader. I've seen pictures of her painting Fiz's windows black and getting up to all sorts of other nastiness. Is she going to make their lives hell?
JM: She's so nasty, isn't she? It's really interesting actually because Sally is going full throttle. The only thing in her head at the moment, when she knows that John is being released, is 'I'm going to try make their lives a misery' and 'I don't want them on the street' - but obviously, her husband Kevin, that is far from his mind because he's having a nightmare trying to keep his affair with Molly quiet. He's like: "Blooming heck Sally, the blacking out of Fiz's windows is the least of my worries!". So I think that's really interesting. She keeps saying: "Are you behind me Kevin?" and he's like "Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm here, I'm here" and thinking 'Now I've got to meet Molly for an hour'.
LM: It sounds like it's going to get very messy and seeing as Fiz works with Sally there doesn't seem to be any getting away from her campaign.
JM: Exactly. But if the factory girls are going to take sides, to be honest, at the moment they're going to take Fiz's side because Sally, she's such a pain. She thinks she's better than everyone, she's so annoying. So yeah, I think everyone there is gunning for Fiz.
LM: Do you enjoy playing all the nasty scenes with Sally and the other busy-bodies on the street or do you prefer when Fiz's life is a bit quieter?
JM: Yeah, it is fun. To be honest, I get the best of both worlds because I get to do the shouting but Fiz always kind of comes out of it looking alright. Sally, I kind of feel for her a bit more because she's actually the baddie so the audience are booing her. So I get to say all the horrible lines but then the audience are cheering for me so I don't think Sally likes it as much as me. But we get on really well and when you're mates with someone it is easier. We're all great mates, there's no real room for not being. But when you are really good mates with someone you can play around with it in the fight scenes. You can really go for it and not be afraid of hurting them too much.
LM: What's the reaction on the streets been like? Did people feel the need to come up to you and say things like: "Don't go back to Stape, what are you thinking?".
JM: Yeah. Well, what happens is, people love to give me their opinions and advice. They really do. So before Fiz and John started talking about getting married people were saying: "Aw, you're going to get back with John, aw he's lovely, marry him", but then when Fiz took the decision in her own hands they didn't like it then. It was like 'When it was on our terms we were happy about it but not the way you're doing it Fiz' because, even though everyone was telling me that Fiz would be happy marrying John, I don't think that anyone anticipated for her to do it in such dramatic style.
LM: Because it wasn't the romantic big day that we would have expected for Fiz.
JM: It wasn't. And it wasn't the romantic fairytale day that I think probably someone like Fiz would dream of.
LM: Because she is quite girlie and she's into her quirky style. Do you like that element of the character?
JM: Yeah. She is like that. But she's kind of grown up a bit in recent years. Obviously now she's a married lady...
LM: Are you saying she can't wear pigtails anymore because she's married?
JM: Aw she can't. You can't do that when you're married. That's a definite. It's like law! And also, to be honest, apart from wedding, she's not really had much chance to celebrate or much reason to celebrate so she's not been able to put her party frocks on and do her make-up because she's not really felt like it. It's been very tough for her, bless her. But maybe she'll have a bit of a happy Christmas... I hope.
LM: I've heard that you were very keen to visit the 'Fair City' set during your visit to RTÉ. Did you get to wander around Carrigstown?
JM: I just went over. I did more than that. I've had my photograph taken at the McCoys set. This won't really work for our Internet listeners but I'll show you the photograph anyway (Takes out her mobile phone and proudly displays a picture of herself at McCoys). I just went round. I went round everywhere. And we saw The Hungry Pig. I was very impressed. I've got to tell you, I was very impressed with the set. I think it may be slightly better than the 'Corrie' set. McCoys, it's bigger than The Rovers. It's easier to film in, I imagine, McCoys than The Rovers. It's much bigger. I'm liking it. I'm preferring it. That's terrible. I'm going to get the sack!
LM: Never mind, I'm sure Fiz could move to 'Fair City' and do some scenes in Carrigstown? Would you like a cameo?
JM: Aw yeah. I'd love it. I'd love a little cameo... walk-on... I want a guest-lead.
LM: What do you fancy? A fight-scene?
JM: A fight-scene, yeah. Have you got the equivalent of Sally Webster in 'Fair City'? I'll have a fight with her.
LM: Do you enjoy visiting Ireland? You're here quite a bit.
JM: I do. I love it. I am Irish. I've definitely got Irish roots, on my dad's mother's and father's side. Dad's mother from Sligo and some of dad's side are from Limerick. There's no Dublin in me but I do feel very at home here.
LM: You're in the middle of filming for the Christmas episodes at the minute, can you share any little secrets with us?
JM: Yeah, same as 'Fair City', we're in the middle of filming all our Christmas episodes, of course. What can I say? It is dramatic, really dramatic, but I think it's going to be really, really traditional 'Corrie', in that there's real high drama over the Christmas but then real farcical comedy as well. Christmas Eve is very funny.
LM: So a bit of light relief after all the madness with evil Tony?
JM: Aw yeah, the murder. Well, that's also going on so watch that. That actually gets really interesting. Definitely watch that space because it involves so many people. It's really one to watch.
Poor Fiz...the first episodes I watched were the day before the wedding and the wedding episodes. I wasn't sure what exactly was going on, but I kinew I liked her right off the bat.
I love being married to Graeme Hawley on screen but doubt I'd have hung around in real life,
Jun 13 2010
Steve Hendry,
Sunday Mail
MOST people would curse their luck being paired off with a bloke who has been banged up in prison for questionable offences but Coronation Street star Jennie McAlpine is counting her blessings. As Fiz Stape, wife of wayward Weatherfield teacher John, played by Graeme Hawley, the 26-year-old has stood by her man despite, well, everything - having an affair with 16-year-old Rosie Webster, then abducting her and being sent to prison for the deed.
It gets worse. In a bid to get his life back on track, he's back working as a teacher having stolen the identity of a friend who emigrated to Canada. Fiz is in a tizz but Jennie is just grateful she has teamed up with 'teflon' John, a partner in crime who seems to survive every scandal which comes his way.
She laughed: "I think they've married me off to a winner. He could run and run forever. Every time you get a script and see what he's going to do next it looks like he's for the chop. Graeme himself will tell you that, he's like, 'well, it was lovely to work with you, see ya,' but he survives again and again. I think that's testament to the writers coming up with brilliant stuff and the way Graeme plays it. People really like him. I've been so lucky and privileged to have been part of some great storylines since John returned to Fiz's life. They always have twists and turns. I'm glad they didn't marry me offto Tony Gordon. It would have been good fun but maybe a bit too dangerous."
Jennie, as bright a personality as her flame-red hair, has been going out with her own boyfriend, Chris, for five years. She has endured none of the trials and tribulations of Fiz in real life. She said: "I would possibly have bailed out before now. I don't know if I would have gone through with the prison wedding. But you never know what love can do to a girl. I've always been able to believe in Fiz. She stands by him because, ultimately, she loves him. He makes her happy. And the more it goes on, the more believable it is to my mind. The fact that she went out with him against all the odds, against everyone's advice, including her little brother, Chesney, all her close friends and all her workmates. It's become a pride thing. There's a bit of determination on her part to make it work. I can understand that."
Making sure the plot is watertight is important to Jennie and not just because she has to bring the story to life. She is also one of the show's biggest fans and has been as far back as she can remember. She's just as keen to find out what happens to Fiz next as everyone else. She said: "I love watching it. I get totally involved in the story. I watch it and say, 'oh, poor Fiz'. It's ridiculous, isn't it? But I really do. It is different watching yourself but I can still enjoy it and I like keeping the plot a secret from everyone else. I watched it before I came here and I haven't stopped."
Jennie arrived in Weatherfield in 2001 aged just 17 but her showbiz career began years before Coronation Street. She was competing in a young comedian of the year contest at the The Comedy Store in London aged just 13. She did stand-up at comedy nights and charity gigs alongside her Scots father, Tom, a mental health worker and amateur dramatics enthusiast. Her move into straight drama was more by fault than design but she's never looked back.
She said: "I never imagined being a proper actor. In a way I always saw myself as a joker but it just kind of happened. I still do stand-up every now and again at charity events but not too much. I would like to do more comedy but it's pretty scary and I'm not as young any more so the audiences might not feel sorry for me. It's quite a hard industry. I love doing stand-up but I also love straight acting and I've been doing it in Coronation Street for almost 10 years now. Time goes so quickly. When I look back at the scripts just from this year, Fiz has been through a hell of lot and I have done a lot. It's mad how quickly it goes but I still feel fresh with it. I love working here. The people I work with are like family. I love Sam Aston, who plays Chesney, to pieces. I see more of him than I do my own brother and it does add to the fact that I've seen him grow up. He's turned into a very nice young man and I joke that I should take some credit for that.
"I feel fortunate to play a character who everyone likes. When I'm out on the street, people always say hello and say nice things. I like that. I know it's great fun to be a bad character but I would be worried what people would say. I don't know how Gray O'Brien got on playing Tony Gordon. He must take some stick in the street."
She might get the chance to find out soon enough. John's scam is about to be rumbled by an old teaching friend Charlotte who also knows the real Colin Fishwick, the teacher whose identity he has stolen. When she finds out the truth, she enjoys her knowledge and turns up on the Street. Fiz is already stressed out dealing with her little brother Chesney, who is bunking offschool to sell dog collars on a market stall. The arrival of Charlotte - played by Becky Hindley - might just tip her over the edge. But Jennie's delighted.
She said: "From what I've heard of the plans, they have a lot lined up for Fiz over the next year. It sounds like there's a lot to get through and I couldn't be happier to be a part of it. The show is about to celebrate its 50th birthday. It's a treat to be here for that. Every one of us hopes to be part of the storyline that goes out but when it comes down to it there's only one star on Coronation Street and that's Coronation Street itself. Going forward, I have no influence on what happens to Fiz, whatsoever. It surprises me so much and I like that. People seem to want her to be happy but I think a little bit of worry is good for most people. And Fiz has a lot of worries coming up."
10 years of Coronation Street's Fizz Jennie McAlpine on her glamorous new image and her best moments
Sue Crawford,
Sunday Mirror
3rd April 2011
IT’S 10 years since Jennie McAlpine burst on to the screen as Coronation Street’s feisty redhead Fiz. Now a married mum of one, she’s firmly part of the Weatherfield furniture. But her life has had a lot of ups and downs. And one of those has been her weight. At 27, looking sleek and trim, she’s a shadow of the roly-poly teenager who first took to the cobbles in 2001.
“I do look different, but it wasn’t planned,” she says. “I think people just change as they get older. People say I’ve gone from a size 20 to a size 10, but I don’t think I’ve ever been a size 20 and I’ve never been a size 10 either. They think there’s some secret way I lost weight. I’d love to tell you there was something magic, but I think it was simply a case of growing up and being sensible. I try not to eat massive amounts. I eat some fruit and veg every day and I exercise by walking to work and that’s it.”
She says diets don’t work and she has never been on one. She also says she’s never worried about her weight or weighed herself. “I don’t notice if I go up or down a few pounds. If you go to slimming clubs there’s a good chance you’ll end up weighing more than when you started. And that’s what they rely on. Ice cream is bad, salad is good – it’s not rocket science. If you eat more of the good stuff and take more exercise you’ll lose weight. But it’s not worth beating yourself up about. I know there’s pressure in this business, but I can honestly say I’ve never felt it myself.” She doesn’t even like compliments about how much weight she has lost. “People say to me, ‘Oh you look good – you look really slim’. And then they wait for a response, which I think they expect should be, ‘Thank you’. But I don’t find that a compliment. So I smile and go, ‘Mmm’ as I don’t know what to say. Thank you? For what?”
Jennie grew up in Bury, Lancashire with her older brother Thomas, 39, who works in retail, and her dad Tom, 60, who runs the mental health charity Moodswings. She stayed with her dad following her parents’ divorce when she was 10. Her career began at the age of 13 when she spotted an advert on the back of a Fanta can for a Young Comedian of the Year competition. She made it through to the finals, held at The Comedy Store in London, and on her return home set about organising guest comedy spots at local charity nights and galas. She also enrolled at a local theatre workshop, and in 2001, when she was 17, was among dozens of teenagers invited to Coronation Street to try out for the role of foster child Fiona Brown.
“I’d been to loads of auditions like it before and they never phone you back, ” Jennie recalls. “The only difference with this one was that they did. And it was quite big because it was Corrie. but I didn’t think much about it at first as it was only four episodes.” At first Fiz was a far from popular addition to the Street. In fact she was frequently accosted by angry fans. “They’d say, ‘You’re horrible,’ or, ‘Leave Roy and Hayley alone’,” says Jennie. But she had made an impression during those four episodes and four months later was brought back as a permanent cast member. Fiz was loud and boisterous and people thought she was rude,” says Jennie. “But I think after a while they could see that she was a bit of a troubled soul and had had a terrible upbringing. When her mother Cilla came in to the show people felt dreadfully sorry for her.”
Part of Fiz’s appeal is that she is not the Street’s most glamorous woman – but Jennie says she doesn’t worry about comparisons with stunning colleagues like Samia Smith (Maria Connor) and Helen Flanagan (Rosie Webster). “The show is set in an ordinary street in Manchester and I like being an ordinary-looking person,” she says. “I’m not perfect and I like that. I probably look like most of the young girls who watch Corrie and I think that’s important.”
Yet life has been far from ordinary for Fiz since she married John Stape in prison two years ago. She gave birth prematurely to baby Hope after a tram crashed into the street last year and she still does not know her husband is a multiple murderer. Now desperate Fiz has been driven to defrauding the estate of Colin Fishwick’s mum Joy – spending the legacy left by the woman who was murdered by John. It is a web of deception that’s set to get even more tangled as John is about to mentally unravel once again. So there’s plenty for her to get her teeth in to working on the show, although Jennie has no plans to quit the Street.
“I could definitely see myself here in 10 years,” she says. “It’s not for everyone, but I never get bored or restless. It’s like a second home, to be honest, and I spend more time with my on-screen family than I do my own family. It’s weird, but it means you do become close to people. I’ve spent my entire adult life here and I love it. Coronation Street was part of my life before I joined and it probably would be still if I wasn’t in it. I also live in Manchester, so I can see my dad and all my friends and family. It’s the perfect job really.”
In real life Jennie lives with her boyfriend of five years, Chris, who runs a restaurant in the city. But filming scenes with baby Hope has not made her feel broody. “Working with a dog for seven years hasn’t made me want to go and get a big slobbering pooch either,” she jokes, referring to her on-screen brother Chesney’s Great Dane Schmeichel. And she says that Fiz’s chaotic home life would not suit her. “Living like Fiz does would be my worst nightmare and I wouldn’t swap places with her in a million years,” she says firmly. “Some people find all that drama exciting, but I don’t – I just find it stressful and upsetting. I’m definitely one for a calm, quiet life.”
Meanwhile Jennie is thrilled to have reached such a landmark anniversary on Britain’s most famous fictional street. “I think people at school thought I’d probably end up as prime minister, rather than an actress, because I was quite gobby – but there’s still time,” she says.
DRESSED TO KILL! WE TRANSFORM CORONATION STREET'S FRUMPY FIZ
Jennifer Dunkerley
31st May 2011
dailystar.co.uk
CORONATION STREET star Jennie McAlpine can’t believe what’s she’s seeing as she wriggles into Jessica Rabbit’s famous slinky red dress. “Wow,” she gasps. “This is the sexiest Fiz has ever been. Imagine if she rocked up like this to the Rovers Return? That would definitely turn heads.” For our exclusive photoshoot, the 27-year-old Manchester lass has been made over into that other famous redhead who becomes embroiled in a murder plot.
She’s celebrating a week of special Coronation Street episodes in which Jennie’s character Fiz discovers husband John Stape (Graeme Hawley, 37) is a killer. She reveals: “I couldn’t have asked for a better storyline to celebrate my 10 years in the soap. You can definitely expect fireworks. John finally has to confess – he’s murdered three people and is holding more hostage.” So will Fiz stay loyal to her man like her Jessica Rabbit alter ego or shop him and risk losing what she’s always dreamt of – a family? “When John finds out that they have to dig up the factory floor where he buried Colin Fishwick, his lies unravel,” says Jennie. “She decides to help him move this body – which is her first big mistake.”
In real life, down-to-earth Jennie is happily settled with long-term boyfriend Chris, a chef, and leads a much quieter life. “Chris isn’t in the showbiz world which really helps,” she says. “When I get home I like to make a cup of tea, feed my cat and just watch Corrie and the other soaps like everyone else. I’m not fussed about showbiz parties.” She’s also wowed soap fans by losing nearly three stone and today reveals her new figure as a slinky size 10-12.
But Jennie prefers not to make a big deal about her weight loss. She says: “I can’t talk about going on a diet because I honestly haven’t done one. “I believe in having a healthy body image and want to be a good role model to young women rather than endorse wacky diets. I’m happy as I’ve always been.” Does she ever feel self-conscious on a set with glamorous co-stars such as Michelle Keegan, 23, and Helen Flanagan, 21? Jennie smiles: “It’s nice that there are so many girls in the show. But I love my red hair and feel proud I look this way. There was a time when it was unfashionable to have ginger hair but now it seems quite fashionable. I’m a happy-go-lucky person and I’m happy in my skin. I think I’m quite similar to Fiz in that we’re both a bit quirky. Fiz is a typical Northern girl and so am I.”
So how will this normal Northern girl cope when she’s caught up in the murder plot? Jennie says: “Once John know’s he’s in the sh*t he runs away. Fiz is left on her own to deal with it all. Originally she just fell for him and loved him because she thought he was safe and secure. Now he’s the father of her baby Hope and she loves him because he’s her family and it’s her life. There’s too much at stake. When all this is happening the thing that keeps flashing through her mind is that her daughter could actually end up in care – just like she did. When she finds Chesney (her brother, kidnapped by John), Fiz doesn’t want anything to do with John and that’s why he then goes missing. She hates him but still loves what they had which was their family and their baby.There is a big showdown on the roof where he takes the baby up and he is teetering on the edge.”
So will he harm baby Hope? What will happen to Chesney and will Fiz be left to face the music with the police alone? Jennie laughs: “You’ll just have to wait and see!”
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