Coronation Street actress Sally Dynevor has revealed she ‘burst into tears’ when she found out she’d be made an MBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours list in 2020.
Sally, who has played Sally Webster in the ITV soap since 1986, received her medal for services to drama from Princess Anne in a ceremony at Windsor Castle yesterday.
Speaking after the investiture ceremony, she commented: “(The princess) was lovely. She said ‘how long have you been in Coronation Street?’
“And I said it was thirty-six years, she said ‘that’s a very long time’. I said ‘it is but I’ve enjoyed every moment of it'”.
Though she did admit she was a little skeptical when she first received the email, saying she ‘thought it was a hoax’.
Speaking at Windsor Castle, Sally said she had even rang her son to double check when she was informed about being offered the MBE.
She said: “I said ‘Sam, I’ve had this email and I’m really worried about it because it says I’m up for an MBE but that can’t be right’.
“Sam said, ‘I don’t think anyone would joke about that, mum'”.
The actress also said Princess Anne had remarked on how ‘very dangerous’ her recent decision to appear on ITV’s Dancing on Ice seemed.
And, asked if she had any hopes for where her Coronation Street role would take her next, Sally said she simply hoped Sally Webster would ‘grow old with fun’.
She said: “I hope [the storylines] are just as exciting as when she was in her twenties… I thought the breast cancer storyline was a very important story to raise awareness, but I’m really looking forward to seeing what the writers are going to do in the next ten years.”
Popular BBC detective drama Shetland is returning for two new series.
The long-running crime drama will return with Ashley Jensen and Alison OâDonnell reprising their roles as Detectives Ruth Calder and Alison âToshâ McIntosh.
Filming on the next season, its ninth, will get underway later this month.
The broadcaster said Shetland was the biggest drama of the year across Scotland and all channels and streamers in 2023, after Yorkshire crime drama Happy Valley.Â
Last season averaged seven million viewers and was the first to see Ashley Jenson take the lead role after taking over from Douglas Henshall as Jimmy Perez â a role he played for a decade.
Ms Jenson said she was âthrilledâ to be coming back as Detective Calder.
She said: âThe reaction to the last series was incredible and Iâm excited at the prospect of unravelling more intrigue.
“The Shetland Isles are breath-taking â without a doubt one of the most memorable and unique filming locations Iâve been to.â
Ms OâDonnell also expressed that she âcould not be happierâ about returning to film another series. She added: “Ashley and I just scratched the surface of our dynamic in Series 8 and I am delighted that we now have the opportunity to build on that.”
Fans of the programme will be delighted to know Steven Robertson (Sandy), Lewis Howden (Billy) and Anne Kidd (Cora) are also confirmed to return.
Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, said the news showed the corporation was âfurther strengtheningâ its commitment to the show, which first aired in 2013.
The latest series will be written by Paul Logue and Denise Paul and produced by Silverprint Pictures, with filming scheduled to take place throughout this year and next.
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A new true crime docuseries on Netflix is leaving viewers traumatised and ‘disturbed’ after bingeing it in a night.
The three-part show delves into the world of âcons, cults and kidnappingsâ.
And of course, it’s called The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping, and details the traumatic events a group of school kids experienced.
The true story highlights serial abuse at Ivy Ridge, a disciplinary school in rural Ogdensburg, New York.
Imagine being at school and suddenly youâre called to the principal’s office and then put in handcuffs or solitary confinement. It may sound like a horror story but this was real life for Katherine Kubler and a number of survivors of this troubled youth academy.
Kubler, who directs this docuseries, was sent to Ivy Ridge for acting out as a teenager.
At first glance, it seemed like a regular high school, but behind closed doors something a lot more sinister was going on.
It features interviews from former students who expose what happened while they were there.
The series reveals how students were prohibited from speaking to, or looking at each other. They were mostly not allowed to go outside and the school was run on a points system â which determined how long they would remain there, according to former students.
Ivy Ridge closed down in 2009, but Kubler decided to make this documentary, as she explains âthere really was nothing out there to help explain what had happened to [her], to [her] friends and family to warn them about these places, The Times reports.
âSo, now that resource exists,â she said.
A former student, Kubler found video footage and files on students lying around in the abandoned building.
On her return visit to Ogdensburg, she spoke with a former staff member who said she was just carrying out orders.
Kubler said: âThese programs destroy families, and it’s very hard, so I wanted [viewers] to see what it’s done to my family.â
The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping has captivated audiences with its three episodes and many have even binged the series in just one night.
On X (formerly Twitter) one viewer said: âThe Program on Netflix is crazy from the start but about 7 minutes into episode 2 the level of f**ked up psychological warfare reaches another level. No idea how so many parents bought into this s**t.â
Another said: “Twisted AF. âThe Programâ on Netflix is one of the wildest most disturbing docs I have seen.”
After sharing her harrowing story, Kubler hopes that the troubled teen industry will be exposed and shut down.
She adds: âThis industry exists because there are not many good resources out there for families in a crisis, so we need to figure out alternate solutions,â she explained.
âUltimately the goal is to expose these places and to get this industry shut down.â
You can stream The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping on Netflix now.
Jason Manford will join the cast of Waterloo Road when the high school series returns later this year.
The actor and comedian will take on a more serious role as headteacher Steve Savage, and he says viewers can expect his character to âruffle a few feathers along the wayâ.
Manford, 42, from Manchester said it was âan absolute treatâ to be joining the show âright here in my home cityâ.
The series was originally axed in 2015, but following a revival in audiences during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, it returned to screens after an eight-year break.
After admitting to binge watching the show with his family during lockdown, Manford added: “It’s such a brilliant, iconic show, so I’m dead proud to now be part of its history.
“Growing up, I always wanted to be a teacher and now, becoming a headteacher, I know I would have been terrible!”
While fans of the show may be left wondering where the current headteacher Kim Campbell might be – played by Angela Griffin – viewers will have to wait to see how the storyline plays out, the BBC said.
Waterloo Road’s season 13 finale aired on Monday night (February 26th), with series 14 coming to BBC One and BBC iPlayer later this year.
Cameron Roach, Executive Producer of Waterloo Road and Founder of Rope Ladder Fiction, said: âWe’re thrilled that Jason Manford is joining Waterloo Road, as the show returns for a fourth series since returning to BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
âJason is a phenomenal comic actor, and has fully embraced the tone and spirit of the show, we can’t wait for the audience to meet Steve Savage and his son Billy.Â
âAs with all of our adult cast, Jason has been an inspiring and approachable mentor to our younger cast and crew; we love that a new generation of Northern talent are able to learn their craft alongside brilliant household names.Â
âThe legacy of Waterloo Road goes from strength to strength.â