Sally Ann Matthews doesn't hold back when explaining her exit from Coronation Street
Sally Ann Matthews has candidly explained her departure from Coronation Street.
Sally Ann Matthews has brutally confessed that she quit Coronation Street because she wasn't "enjoying" the show or working with her co-stars.
The 55-year-old actress portrayed Jenny Bradley on-and-off from 1986 until the character departed Weatherfield last year, and she has now spoken out about why she decided to quit her role on the ITV soap, admitting the programme no longer ignited a "spark" within her.
She told The Mirror: "Every year when your contract comes round, there's that question: 'Am I enjoying it?' If I am, I say 'Yes, I'd like to stay.'
"When you come to a point where you're not enjoying it, you say no."
She continued: "I'm 55 now, I don't wanna waste my time doing stuff that I'm not enjoying with people that I am not enjoying doing it with."
Sally Ann went on to admit she and some of her colleagues felt the show was becoming more like a police drama.
She said: "If I wanted to watch a police drama, I'd watch Line of Duty. I really think the soap genre should stick to its USP (unique selling point)."
Sally Ann added: "Obviously for ITV, Corrie brings in a big audience, which helps them hugely with their overall figures, and it would be a big risk for someone to take, but Corrie needs to stay in its lane and be what it is, which is a soap!"
The actress - who is currently starring in the Steps musical Here and Now - announced she had left Corrie last August.
She wrote at the time: "I was supposed to stay for five months but ended up doing an extra ten years because I loved it so much!
"It's time though to play the parts I always hoped I would when I'd 'grown up'.
"Thanks Trafford Wharf Rd for the memories and endless laughter x."
She last appeared on screen as Jenny in October.
