Coronation Street star Beverley Callard has said that she was terrified ahead of her recent return to the cobbles as Liz McDonald.
The 55-year-old actress, who has battled depression left the soap in 2011 after appearing on and off in the role since 1989 and speaking about her exit, she told Reveal magazine: "I left because I was poorly, and you can't dip in and out. If you're in it, you have to give it your all. Sometimes I give more than my all.
"Sometimes I care too much and I've got to try not to. Not because I'm a goodie-goodie but because I'm a worrier and perfectionist. I know next week's lines already.
"Charlie (Lawson), who played Jim, used to say: 'Ask Callard, she's learning next f****** December's!'
"The thing is, you pay a price for that, so I have got to try and relax more. I still take medication but I can listen to myself more."
Speaking about her return, she said: "I've been there nearly 25 years and on my first day back I was driving in on the Tuesday morning and I actually felt sick. I thought, 'I can't believe this'.
"It was like the first day back at school after the holidays. Then I took a big deep breath and walked in. And I kept thinking, 'How does Liz actually speak? Exactly what accent did I do?'
"Then as soon as I worked with Simon Gregson [who plays Steve McDonald] again, half an hour later it truly was as if I'd never been away."
The actress previously said in an interview with Manchester Evening News: "But depression’s not only about the person who’s suffering from it – it can be so hard on the people around you because they don’t know how to help."
Callard, who is married to fourth husband Jon McEwan, is now a supporter of mental health charity Mind.
