Preview: By The Waters Of Liverpool at Darlington Hippodrome

Sian Reeves Takes A Break From Corrie To Join Cast Of Helen Forrester’s By The Waters Of Liverpool

By The Waters Of Liverpool

Darlington Hippodrome

Thursday 9 - Saturday 11 April 2020

Sian Reeves has kept Coronation Street viewers on the edge of their seats since rolling up as Charlie Wood, the deluded wife Tim Metcalfe didn’t know he had. But viewers will have to wait to see how it all pans out for Tim, Sally and Charlie as she takes a break from the cobbles of Weatherfield to star in the brand new stage play adaptation of Helen Forrester’s, By The Waters Of Liverpool which is coming to Darlington Hippodrome Theatre on 9 April for a short run.

Sian Reeves

From ex-con, Hannah Temple in Hope Springs, to the psychotic Sally Spode in Emmerdale - and now Charlie Wood in Corrie, Sian seems right at home playing the vulnerable woman with issues. And her new role in By The Waters Of Liverpool is no exception.

Sian said: “I’ll be playing ‘Mother’, Celia Forrester, who is a wonderfully complex person. From money, status and class, before the great depression of the 1930’s, to then losing everything and being dumped in a damp bug infested house with one cold tap, one toilet –and seven children to look after. I think she absolutely cannot shake herself out of the nightmare that is now her new life. She is stunned that her husband, who once held a senior position in the financial world, cannot find work and they have to grovel for handouts from the local parish. And to escape the confines of this smelly, claustrophobic house she leaves the day to day running of the family to her 11 year old daughter, Helen, which manifests itself as a very strict and uncaring woman. Helen actually said of her mother,‘ her bouts of temper bordered on insanity’. But really she is exhausted and so dreadfully depressed. It’s a great role to play”.

Sian continued: “I have read about five of Helen’s books and I feel very honoured to have been asked to unveil Helen’s blue plaque with the lovely Mark Moraghan. Helen was a magnificently, clever woman and it will be lovely to meet some of her family at this very special occasion”.

By The Waters Of Liverpool is set in the 1930s after Helen’s father went bankrupt during the Depression. Her family were forced to leave behind the nannies, servants and comfortable middle-class life in the South West of England. The Forresters chose Liverpool to rebuild their shattered lives, but they were in for a terrible shock. Taken out of school to look after her young siblings, Helen is treated as an unpaid slave. So begins a bitter fight with her parents for the right to go out to work and make her own way in life.But by 1939 and with Britain on the verge of war, Helen now aged 20, has still never been kissed by a man. But things start looking up for her when she meets a tall strong seaman and falls in love.

The touring cast also features Parry Glasspool, Lucy Dixon, Eric Potts, Lynn Francis, Danny O’Brien, Roy Carruthers, and Chloe McDonald.

West Bromwich born Sian Reeves is an original cast member of the 1985 stage production of Les Misérables. She also later appeared in the 25th anniversary performance at London’s O2. Sian has already shared a stage with fellow cast member Mark Moraghan in celebrity TV singing contest, Just The Two Of Us – when Sian and opera singer Russell Watson won the competition. Sian’s television credits also include Casualty, Cutting It, Holby City and, more recently Coronation Street. Theatre credits include West Side Story, Love Me Tender, The Merchant Of Venice, and The Little Match Girl.

Tickets:

By The Waters Of Liverpool has sold more than a million books. Now this is your chance to see it come to life in this brand new stage play adaptation. The play runs at Darlington Hippodrome from Thursday 9 to Saturday 11 April, 2020. Tickets are on sale now. For more information or to book call 01325 405405 or visit www.darlingtonhippodrome.co.uk.