Sally Dynevor has no plans to retire as she prepares to celebrate 40 years on Coronation Street
Sally Dynevor has no plans to retire as she prepares to celebrate 40 years as Sally Metcalfe in Coronation Street in 2026.
Sally Dynevor will not retire.
The 62-year-old actress will celebrate 40 years on Coronation Street in the role of Sally Metcalfe in 2026 and hopes to remain on the ITV soap until she is in her "70s and 80s".
Sally told the new issue of Woman's Weekly magazine: "I'm not a retiring person."
She added: "I want to keep working, it's good for my brain. So, if they still want me, maybe I'll be in the show in my 70s and 80s. I'll just keep going.
"It's such a great job and I feel very grateful I've still got it after 40 years. I'm not in it as much as I used to be, but I drove in the other day and, as the barrier went up, I just had this huge smile because it felt like I was home. I knew I was going to have a fun day."
Having a strong work-life balance is important for Sally.
The soap star said: "I've got such a lovely routine now.
"On a day off, I'll go to the gym or for a swim, in the morning, then come back and have breakfast. I might go for a walk, and afterwards I'll meet a friend."
Sally celebrated her 60th birthday in 2023 and says that she feels a sense of freedom at her age.
She explained: "I'm really enjoying this time of my life. In your 60s, you can just be yourself. You don't have to worry about all those things that younger people fret about."
Sally and her husband, 63-year-old writer Tim Dynevor, have three children - Bridgerton actress Phoebe, 30, son Sam, 28, and Waterloo Road actress Hattie, 21 - and she cannot wait to become a grandmother.
The star said: "I can't wait for grandchildren. I'm excited about that, whenever it might be - I know that's going to be a very special relationship, and I'll be showing everyone the pictures!"
The latest Coronation Street storyline for Sally is that her alter ego and her on-screen husband, Tim Metcalfe (Joe Duttine), are looking after Lou (Farrel Hegarty) and Mick Michaelis' (Joe Layton) two young children full-time as Mick is in jail after a prison escape, and Lou is behind bars awaiting trial for attacking Gary Windass (Mikey North).
Speaking about the storyline, Sally - whose on-screen kids were Rosie Webster (Helen Flanagan) and Sophie Webster (Brooke Vincent) - said: "Her own girls have grown up and gone, and this is a new chapter in her life. Although it's hard, she's really enjoying it.
"At the beginning, Sally wasn't at all interested in fostering, it was more of a Tim project, but now she's realising what the girls need and what she can give.
"It's a lovely story. It's nice to show something good.
"There are times when I've wanted to foster myself and times where I don't know if I have the patience anymore to do that full-time.
"I think you have to be a special person to foster and adopt."
