Beacham to join Coronation Street

Former Dynasty star Stephanie Beacham will join the cast of Coronation Street in January as a potential love interest for soap stalwart Ken Barlow.

The 61-year-old, seen last year on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, will play Martha, a slightly eccentric theatre actress who lives on a canal barge.

Beacham will be in the show for around three to four months, according to the long-running ITV1 drama's website.

Her other roles include Phyllida Oswyn in prison drama Bad Girls.

According to ITV, Ken and Martha's relationship begins "as a friendship born out of similar cultural interests".

Romance

"Will it blossom into romance? Only time will tell," said the Coronation Street website.

Meanwhile, across the Pennines, Amanda Donohoe has begun shooting scenes for rival soap opera Emmerdale.

Alex Carter, who plays Jamie Hope in the programme, told BBC 6 Music he would soon be filming with the actress, who also appeared in Bad Girls.

She and former US soap star Maxwell Caulfield play Natasha and Mark Wylde, a wealthy couple realising their dream of retiring to the country.

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