Beth Nixon, 25, from York, is currently appearing as controversial character Megan Walsh on Coronation Street – her first role on the small screen.

She credits York College with lighting the spark that has led to her big break and helping her overcome the self-doubt that nearly ended her career before it began.

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Beth said: “I came to college and did an audition, but I then decided I was going to do media. But the tutor doing the interview for the media course told me I should do acting instead because all I spoke about was how I wanted to become an actor!

“We did A Vampire Story by Moira Buffini at college and I had the best time doing that. I was a baddie – obviously – with a Cockney accent. then, the second year show we did was Everyman and I played the Devil – the ultimate baddie.”

She described the fear and excitement she felt upon hearing she had got the part, saying that she had ‘screamed her head off’ when hearing the news.

Beth with co-star Rob Mallard, who plays Daniel Osbourne (Image: Provided)

Beth said: “I cried because it’s been four years since I graduated and this is my first TV role. It’s been a hard time and I was really close to quitting and pursuing a different career, so this just came at exactly the right time. 

“I’d auditioned for Corrie twice before – as a baddie both times – including for the role of Lauren, then, earlier this year, my agent sent me a casting brief and explained it was for a paedophile, which is a bit crazy to play because they’re obviously not a redeemable character, so they can push it pretty far.”

Her storyline – playing a sports coach and teacher who is having a relationship with a schoolboy – has prompted strong reactions from the public and is set to feature in the Christmas Day episode.

Beth is hoping her storyline will shed light on the crime her character is committing and raise awareness in society (Image: Provided)

She added: “It creates a lot of debate because a lot of people say, ‘It’s a 15-year-old boy’s dream,’ but if you flip it the other way round, it’s always seen as disgusting.

“If it’s a storyline that makes one person recognise that this is happening to them and it’s wrong, then it has done its job.”

Beth said she hasn’t yet been recognised, but that one of her fellow actors – Rob Mallard, who plays Daniel – has warned her that ‘it takes about six weeks of being on the show and then it goes a bit crazy’.

Since landing the role, her initial six-month contract on The Cobbles has since been extended and for Beth’s mum – a Corrie superfan – it was a real challenge not to scream her daughter’s big news from the rooftops.

Beth, second from left, with the Driscoll Family in the Rovers Return (Image: Provided)

Beth said: “It had to be a major secret for ages. I was told I couldn’t tell anybody, other than close friends and family, but to make sure that they didn’t tell anybody else.

“I got the job in July, started shooting in August and it only aired in November, so it felt like a huge chunk of time not being able to tell people that you’re filming Coronation Street. Me and my Mum loved watched Corrie together when I was growing up so, for her, keeping it a secret was eating her alive!

“It felt a bit weird, seeing myself on TV for the first time. It’s like it’s not you, because they’re not your clothes. Everything is picked out for you and your hair and make-up is done for you as well, so it’s a bit of an out-of-body experience and I hate watching myself.

“But, for me, I have to, because I hadn’t acted for two years and I was scared I’d forgotten everything that I’d learned. I even got my old college text books out again!”