It’s been a week to remember for Coronation Street teenager Betsy Swain as she recovers after being accidentally shot by her own mum Lisa.
Actress Sydney Martin, 22, tells me what the consequences will be for the family unit with Carla Connor (Alison King) that Betsy and Lisa have built on the cobbles, and reflects on her Weatherfield journey so far.
She also discusses how she winds down from more intense and overwhelming months, and shares love for the fans who continue to support her.
How is life at Corrie for you at the moment?
It’s been a whirlwind. It’s been really good, and I’m obviously very lucky to be busy and to be working with Ali and Vicky. It’s been mad! Obviously, we had the big Mason storyline that came out in January, which is when all these Rob scenes were shot.
In a good way, it was a busy, overwhelming month – it’s been great, I feel very lucky to be busy and working.
How does it feel to be trusted with these powerful storylines?
I’ve got a really good relationship with our producer Kate [Brooks], she’s just fabulous and she’s really supportive. It’s been amazing to be given the opportunity to be at the forefront of a lot of things, I’ve really, really enjoyed filming the stuff with Luca and Liam in the special ep [that aired] in January.
It’s just been great to be able to tell these stories and to be given the trust to be able to tell them as well. We have such a close relationship with everyone that it’s a second family.. I feel very grateful.
What does it feel like to have a big fanbase, do you get a lot of nice responses?
People are so incredibly lovely. TikTok has just gone crazy, in the best way! People are so supportive and to see all of the time they put into the edits is just so sweet, and so nice to have that backing for the character.
We always have fun with it, but it adds an extra layer of sweetness to it.
At the end of the day I’m playing a teenager growing up, and a lot of young people can relate to that. It’s good that the younger audience of Corrie can have someone to relate to, and to see themselves in. I really enjoy doing the ‘being a teenager’ stuff as well as the bigger storylines.
And the reaction to Swarla [Carla and Lisa’s relationship] has been massive and I really felt the love off that, which has been really nice.
Carla, Lisa and Betsy have built up this really lovely family unit, are you enjoying seeing that develop?
We have so much fun with the domestic side to it, there’s such a nice chemistry between us all. Obviously, they didn’t know at the start when they brought us in as a three what it was going to look like, but it works so nicely.
Three characters that are so different in their own right, but they make such a good combination and obviously throwing Bobby and Ryan into the mix, just that household atmosphere, it’s really fun to play.
It’s not always [about] the explosive stuff. The home life, the laughs, watching telly, we love doing little things like that. People relate to the home life, and this blended family just works so beautifully together. But obviously, there is some drama in the mix!
It’s quite important that we see a lot of vulnerability in Betsy, she’s had quite a tough life so far and has quite a fierce guard up. Do you think it’s important that we keep seeing that side of her?
Definitely. Off the back, she comes across as this really feisty teenager, but underneath it, she’s still a baby. Mentally she’s probably a little bit younger than her actual age because of everything she’s gone through. She’s put on this tough exterior for quite a long time. It keeps being worn away and it seems to be one thing after another thing.
I think since January, she’s been a little bit more timid than she usually is. It’s hard for her to keep this front up and she’s shy in a way. She has the odd argument, but she hasn’t been as explosive and feisty as she was when she joined The Street. She’s been worn down a bit and it just reminds people that she’s still young and she has been through a lot.
It’s nice that we get to see this vulnerable side to her, it just reminds people of her age and everything that she’s been through. No matter what her age, she just wants her mum. She just wants that support. That need to be loved and need for attention.
She’s clearly got a lot of stuff that she probably needs to work on, but at that age, you don’t really realise that. You put a front on and deal with it.
We’ve now reached a big moment where Betsy is shot. How did it feel to be handed the story?
Every time we have a [new] storyline, they always bring Ali and Vicky in first and they never tell me! I’m usually about a week after them. I never heard anything and then I went in for [my meeting], I went into the little booth for a Zoom with Kate and I was like: “Ok… that’s the storyline, I’m going”
Vicky literally almost cried because she thought that was it. She was like: “Please don’t take her away from me!” We come as a little pair. It was a lot.
[Kate] then told me that Betsy makes it through. It was a bit of a shock, but you have to expect the unexpected in a soap. It’s full of drama.
Imagine the fan reaction!
It would’ve had a big reaction, I think. I’m so lucky to have Vicky, I think we’re lucky to have each other through it all. Even now, we never go into meetings together. Vicky tries to avoid me and won’t tell me what’s going on! She always wants me to hear for myself.
In the wake of the accident, although she survives, it doesn’t end there. How does she come to terms with the frightening thing that has happened to her, and what impact does it have on Betsy’s relationship with Lisa?
We find out that it was Lisa’s hand on the trigger. It was her mum who shot her, basically. Lisa instantly feels guilty for that and blames herself. With Betsy, I don’t think she initially thinks about who she can blame. For the past year, she’s just tried to beg her mum not to put herself in danger.
It kind of feels like she’s broken that promise of keeping herself out of it rather than being: ‘I’ve been shot, this is all your fault.’ She considers that Lisa puts herself in that danger for her to be shot, which is what upsets Betsy more.
She’s already lost a mum and has told Lisa that it’s something she has anxiety over. But she still chooses to put herself in these situations. This is what is the root of it all is. Lisa knows this, but at the forefront of it, she’s always promised to look after Betsy and has broken that.
Do you think that they are strong enough to get through this, or their relationship might be fractured for some time?
I think until Lisa listens to her, there will always be that strain there until she fully takes on board. She’s trying to be a good mum but it’s her actions she needs to change. Until she does anything about it, there will be that strain there. Carla has played a peacemaker in the relationship between the two and I think that continues to happen. She tries to die it down.
The strain will always be there. It’s Betsy, she’s just like her mum! She loves justice and she will get herself in trouble and will try and make sure the people that were involved get their comeuppance. The people involved have hurt her, and they’ve hurt her family unit.
Would you like to play some happier times for Betsy? Some friendships and some fun? A bit of a breather?
Relationships and friendships on The Street are what makes it what it is. The units. I have some nice stuff coming up with Nina, which is really nice. Me and Mollie [Gallagher] work really well together and I think the characters have been through really similar situations and there’s a nice dynamic between the two.
I’ve got some good stuff coming up with Cait [Fitton] who plays Lauren. We’re besties in real life and to already have that chemistry that is already that and to bring it on screen is good. We worked as a pair to try and find the comedic light in it. Among all the drama, it’s nice to have a bit of comedy. As serious as it is, she’s still a teenager. She’d still have these funny moments with friends. They’re teenagers having a laugh.
With Betsy and Lauren, they come from two completely different worlds. Betsy has been brought up not having to worry about money and has had superficial things in life. Although she’s been through a lot, in terms of upbringing she’s had a lucky time.
Lauren hasn’t – and I think that’s a really nice dynamic that they explore. Betsy’s had the silver spoon and Lauren hasn’t. To explore that between the two of them is really nice. Happy moments, friendships and connections are what makes Coronation Street.
What do you do away from work to wind down after a dramatic time filming?
I live with my two best friends and currently, we’re obsessed with Married at First Sight. I love just putting on good telly. It can become a lot – January was a tough month. We had all of the big episodes come out – which was fantastic – but it can be a little overwhelming and we were really busy at work, back-to-back.
It’s a privilege to do but it can, when you’re doing a lot of emotional stuff, have an effect on you. I’ve got such a great support system around me.
Coming home, getting in my jammies and putting my phone down, putting on Married at First Sight, and just spending time with the people around me are the reasons I can keep doing this.
They’re such a great support system. That’s what winds me down.
I’m always busy and doing something because for some reason I can’t sit still but my great support system helps me wind down from it.
