Georgia May Foote on leaving Coronation Street: 'It’s definitely a sad exit'
GEORGIA May Foote is regularly nominated for Sexiest Female at the British Soap Awards – so why’s her character unlucky in love?
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Coronation Street’s Katy Armstrong is heading for heartbreak. She’s dating yet another wrong’un and then this week her long-lost mum arrives to put the cat among the pigeons. Actress Georgia May Foote, who turns 24 this week, talks to Saturday about Katy’s problems with family and men.
Katy gets a huge shock this week when her mum Linda (Jacqueline Leonard) turns up. How does she feel to see the woman who abandoned her at the age of three?
Katy’s very stand-offish. She’s angry her mum stayed away for so long and doesn’t want to speak to her at first, but Linda talks her round. Katy and Izzy (Cherylee Houston) have been told by their dad Owen (Ian Puleston-Davies), for as long as they can remember, that their mum left because she couldn’t cope with Izzy’s disability. It turns out that wasn’t necessarily the case…
Owen has lied all this time?
Yeah. It wasn’t the full picture. Linda had an affair and moved in with her new man. She says, “I couldn’t cope when Izzy was diagnosed. My head was all over the place but I tried to come back and sort things out. Your dad wouldn’t let me.” It’s something the girls find hard to forgive. Owen says, “She had an affair. She’s not worthy of being your mum!” Katy says, “Well, I had an affair, too!” She thinks, “We could have been happy…” but Owen was selfish.
A Marvel film would be my dream role – playing a superhero or the superhero’s girl. Something fun like thatGeorgia May Foote
Katy’s been profoundly affected by her mum abandoning her, hasn’t she?
Everything she’s done has been affected by the fact her mum wasn’t there. There was something missing in her life. That’s why she had her son, Joseph, so young. She wanted to create the happy family unit with Chesney (Sam Aston) that she didn’t have as a child. But her mum was the gap and it hasn’t been filled by a child. Now Katy wants to know what it’s like to have a mum.
Why do you think Katy’s found it hard to find lasting love?
She picks lads who make her feel good, but aren’t necessarily guys you’d marry. The man she could marry and have a lovely relationship with – Ches – didn’t appeal in the same way. She felt a bit dull and middle-aged after they had Joseph.
She does like a bad boy…
That’s why she was attracted to Ryan Connor (Sol Heras). When Callum (Sean Ward) came along, I thought, “There she goes again!” She’s drawn to him and his edgy ways. It intrigues her somebody would be so cheeky. It’s exciting because you don’t know what to expect from him. That’s where she gets sucked in. The fact somebody like that would look twice at her makes her feel special.
It’s not going to end well, is it?
It’s always going to end in tears because Callum’s main motive isn’t that he likes Katy, but that she’s a hook to bring him back to the street so he can be near his son Max (Harry McDermott) and wind up David (Jack P. Shepherd). She knows this deep down but she wants a bit of fun.
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Who would be her ideal match?
I like Katy with bad boys… it’s more fun to play! She needs to be with somebody a bit feisty. I always thought Katy and David Platt would be good together. He’s loving and would be good fun, but takes family life seriously. He’s a caring dad.
You’re set to leave Corrie soon. Will Katy find happiness before she goes or is she set for more trauma?
It’s definitely a sad exit but it’s the right decision for Katy. I cried when I read my last scenes. As I was reading I was saying goodbye to cast members in my head and that was difficult. It’ll be worse when I do it for real. The door is being left open, though, so she could come back in the future.
What are your plans? Might you go to America?
If something comes up over there, I’d definitely go. Just like if something came up in Australia or Russia. I’d go wherever the work is. As a jobbing actress many different things might come my way. I’m excited.
Are there actors you’d love to work with?
If there’s somebody who stands out in a show, I’d love to work beside them in that show. Like Lena Dunham in Girls… she’s unreal. I’d love to do something like that. And Sarah Lancashire in Happy Valley. She’s amazing. It depends what comes up. I’d love to do an action movie. A Marvel film would be my dream role – playing a superhero or the superhero’s girl. Something fun like that.
What will you miss most about Corrie?
I’ve got a lot of friends here and it will be hard not to see them on a daily basis, but I’ll keep in contact. You become so close and talk about everything. You don’t get to see your real family as much as your Corrie family. I see more of Ian than I do my own dad!
Coronation Street, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, ITV