SARAH Lancashire’s final outing as Sergeant Catherine Cawood will have been emotional for many viewers last night – but for me, it was extra special.
It’s been 40 years since Sarah and I first met back in a local theatre workshop in Manchester and later studied a foundation course in drama at Oldham College.
Viewers were first introduced to Sarah Lancashire in Coronation Street before her star turn in Happy Valley
Sarah’s Coronation Street co-star Sean Wilson always knew she’d end up a national treasure
There was a real energy that buzzed around the air at that time.
We were ambitious, determined and super serious – well, as serious as 16-year-olds can be.
Sarah’s star quality became evident during the first night of a week-long run of the musical On The 20th Century.
When she performed it was like she had done it all before and had acted for years.
She hadn’t.
In 1985, I got a role on Coronation Street as Martin Platt and six years later Sarah joined as Raquel Wolstenhulme.
She was performing alongside the soap greats Julie Goodyear and Roy Barraclough, who were hard to impress.
But they loved her and thrived off the onscreen chemistry.
It was a great training ground for Sarah and it was a privilege watching her hone her craft.
I dearly remember her cheeky side.
She regularly tried to put me off when I would walk into the Rovers Return Inn with a cheeky wink or rearranging her knickers to get a giggle out of you.
Backstage was the same, you could hear her roaring with laughter as she rocked back in her chair and joined in with our many pranks.
After five years on Corrie, Sarah took the biggest gamble of her career by deciding to leave the soap.
It would have been easy to continue playing Raquel or remain in comedy roles, which she was adored for by audiences.
But Sarah made the conscious decision to venture into the world of serious drama – a crossover many soap stars fail to succeed in.
She proved herself time and again before Happy Valley, which has rightly made her a national treasure.
It takes a certain talent to convey such a complex story.
She’s someone who head over heels gets stuck into a character and engages with the writers to develop the story to ensure it all feels right.
Sarah takes more than just an actress approach to her job, she’s part of the production and always puts her heart and soul into everything.
Like all great shows, Happy Valley must come to an end and I hope Sarah is able to recognise her success and knows we are all very proud of her.
I’ll always remember our time as teenagers with big dreams.
Even back then it felt like Sarah was destined to burn brightly and that light shines ever brightly to this day.
Sarah is incredible in Happy Valley as Sgt Catherine Cawood
