Corrie’s Daisy Midgeley actress wants her to be worse than Tracy Barlow

When it comes to being wicked, Tracy Barlow takes some beating, but Corrie ­newcomer Charlotte Jordan has set herself that very challenge in her role as Daisy Midgeley.

The 25-year-old joined the ITV soap last year as Rovers Return landlady Jenny Connor’s manipulative step-daughter and hopes she can have as big an impact on fans as the shameless man-eating ­character played by Kate Ford.

Charlotte also reveals she was mistaken for a wardrobe assistant by one of the soap’s leading stars and tells how she was worried she may not be able to pull off a northern accent properly.

Speaking of her ambitions for the role of Daisy, she says: “I’d love her to be an iconic bad girl, why not?

“I don’t know what the long-term plans are, but she’s somebody who will do whatever needs to be done to protect herself. That makes her quite dangerous, so I actually think potentially she could be as bad as Tracy Barlow.

“It’s great to come in and cause some mischief and raise eyebrows. People like that are much more fun to play.

“I tend not to play nice characters. I don’t know what that says about me. Maybe it’s my face, or maybe it’s that I revel in playing characters that are so different to me.”

Charlotte says her boyfriend Paul’s family are massive Street fans and ­especially love Roy Cropper, played by David Neilson, so were delighted when she landed the role – hoping she would be able to get the actor’s autograph.

But when she bumped into him on set, it did not go quite to plan. Although she had begun filming, Charlotte had yet to appear on screen so David had no idea who she was – and politely asked if she could help him find some of his character’s clothes.

She recalls: “I was new and he mistook me for a wardrobe assistant.

“He asked if I wouldn’t mind getting him some clothing and for some reason instead of just introducing myself I was like, ‘Yes, let me go and find out, what would you like to wear today?’ This was David Neilson after all.

“My boyfriend’s parents are colossal Corrie fans. They’ve been watching it for around 40 years, maybe longer. They’ve got their favourites, they love Roy and Steve McDonald ( Simon Gregson ), but I haven’t been able to fulfil any autograph requests yet, due to Covid restrictions. There are currently only so many people you can have in a scene and we tend to stay in our own dressing rooms between scenes.”

Daisy is Charlotte’s biggest role to date, but she could have had a career in pop after being scouted to join a new band at 16.

She says: “I was with them for over two years, but we never even got launched in the end. We did ­choreography, we bonded and developed a rapport and recorded a bunch of songs, but we never released a single and we never even settled on a name.

“We went through so many different names that eventually the management just referred to us as The Band. It was quite the learning curve.” Charlotte was then offered a solo ­development deal. She adds: “I thought maybe it would be different if I was on my own, but it wasn’t. It was only when I got a bit older that I realised acting was what I wanted.”

After some guest roles she landed the role of Gaby Grant in two seasons of Netflix series Free Rein, about a group of ­troubled horse-mad teenagers. But six months after filming finished, the first lockdown was announced.

Charlotte says: “I’d just passed on a job, the first time I’d said no to anything, then this apocalypse happened. I was filled with panic, anxiety, dread and regret.” With all TV filming suspended and theatres closed Charlotte gave up her London flat and moved back to her mum’s Surrey home.

When lockdown restrictions lifted last summer, Coronation Street invited her to audition for the role of Daisy. As keen as she was to land the part, Charlotte thought it was a long shot because she was doubtful she would be able to do a convincing northern accent.

She admits: “That was the thing I was most concerned about. I’m normally quite a good parrot, but I’ve always thought the northern accent was quite a challenging one for me.

“I don’t know whether it was because it was my first audition after lockdown and I was so ready for a job, but the accent came much easier than it has before.

“I remember thinking, ‘Right, I’m not joking around. I need to make this work.’ I’d had a whole year of ­unemployment. It wasn’t a pleasant time, but I’m lucky that I have a supportive family who bring me up when I’m feeling down.”

Between acting Charlotte has made ends meet with a variety of part-time jobs, from temping to reception work.

She says: “Ironically, the only job I haven’t done is bar work, so the first time I had to pull a pint at the Rovers it was mortifying.

“They showed me how to do it and made it look effortless, but I made such a meal of it.”

In the soap, Daisy takes a cold-hearted view of Jenny’s marriage to Johnny Connor, showing little sympathy for the fact he is in jail and suffering from MS.

While her step-mum is devastated and worried by his ailing health, Daisy has made it very clear that she doesn’t think he is worth the effort.

Her scheming ways are on show this week when she learns Sean Tully ( Antony Cotton ) is struggling to meet the sales figures for his dodgy pyramid-selling make-up brand Double Glammy.

Daisy offers to help him host a seminar – but only in exchange for a cut of the profits. When the seminar is a success, Daisy signs up to the company herself, with dreams of making her fortune.

Charlotte says: “She’ll step over everyone else to get where she needs to get. She’s out for herself and has questionable morals. But she is loyal to those she loves. We have that in common, but ­otherwise she’s a work in progress as a human. In real life I’d never do or say the things she does, so it’s fun to be able to do it in character.”

Corrie bosses are lining up a romance for Daisy.

Charlotte adds: “She is aware of her effect on men and uses that to her advantage. There are plans to put her with somebody who is very different to her, which would be an exciting contrast.” Charlotte began acting as a child, competing in ballet and singing competitions before landing the role of young Eponine in Les Miserables in the West End when she was 11.

Later that year she made her TV debut in police drama series The Bill.

Charlotte has b een dating Paul for two years. Recalling the first time she met his family and told them she was an actor, she says: ‘They said: ‘Can you get on Corrie, we love Corrie.’ I said, ‘It doesn’t quite work like that.’ But it turns out that yes, I can get on Corrie. So they now think I’m a real actor.”

Originally from https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/coronation-streets-daisy-midgeley-actress-23782957