'Coronation Street' Katherine Kelly thrilled with life after soap

Former Coronation Street star Katherine Kelly has expressed her delight over the "amazing" success of her new stage project.

The actress, who recently bowed out from her role as Weatherfield's Becky McDonald, is currently portraying the lead part of Kate in a production of classic play She Stoops to Conquer at the National Theatre in London. Her performance has secured a warm response from critics in recent days.

Kelly told This Morning today: "The press night didn't happen until a week into the run for us, and the reviews have been amazing. It's lovely being in a hit! But the audience have loved it from the very beginning. They don't stop laughing.

"I had some friends in last night, and they couldn't believe that it was written in 1773. We haven't changed anything - it's the original script, we're in corsets and it's exactly of that period.

"But the director wanted it to be so accessible. He didn't want anybody to leave thinking, 'I didn't really understand that'. You understand the story straight away, so I think that makes it really present and really fun."

Kelly added that her departure from Coronation Street is still sinking in, as she was busy on stage when her final episodes were broadcast on ITV1.

She explained: "I didn't see them [go out]… It's all felt very surreal. The thing that's made it feel like it's actually true is things like Twitter and the messages I've had through."

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Watch a preview of Friday night's Coronation Street double bill in the video below: