CORONATION Street star Shelley King has revealed the impact her ‘difficult’ life-changing diagnosis has made on her life.
The Yasmeen Nazir actress has been a fixture on the long-standing ITV soap since 2014.
On Monday Shelley appeared on Good Morning Britain and discussed her recent health diagnosis with hosts Susanna Reid and Ed Balls.
The 68-year-old bravely discussed her autism diagnosis at the age of 67 and detailed the problems she faced with sudden script alterations and unexpected storyline shifts on set.
She also explained the difficulties she had with socialising with new people.
The soap star told the presenters: “In Coronation Street, things change all the time, if somebody gets ill you suddenly are doing their scenes.
“Also, on my first day, 10 years ago, I went into the studio and I hadn’t met any of the cast before… I find that very difficult, meeting new people.
“[It takes] me a good few months to actually get to know the people I’m working with to therefore feel comfortable. I’m not very used to change, change is not a thing that actually helps me.”
The chat show sit-down follows Shelley’s revelation last year that she was undergoing an assessment for autism, a move she welcomed.
Reflecting on that time she said: “I don’t think 67 is too old, it’s never too late.
“It’s been a great outpouring and it’s making me less scared of my life and that I’m not doing things right,” reported the Mirror.
Shelley suggested that her potential autism seemed to have steered her towards an acting career.
She revealed: “I always wanted to perform… if I sing, it makes me feel better.
“Most actors are damaged in some way. They go into acting to fill a big hole in themselves or become somebody else.”
Shortly after undergoing her initial autism assessment Shelley sat down with Kaye Adams on her podcast How To Be 60 and said: “This morning has been quite a big deal for me.
“I’ve always had a temper, I’m very pedantic and I like to plan things. Simple things that people take for granted have not been easy for me.”
During the chat she showed appreciation to her partner of 25 years, director Trilby James, for aiding her in managing symptoms resembling autism, noting: “I’ve learnt a lot more about myself as she has helped me to become more tolerant and to like myself more.”
The couple happily reside in London.
In 2023, Shelley’s character Yasmeen had some tough news to break to Stu Carpenter next week as she got ready to leave the cobbles.
The exit saw Yasmeen tell Stu that her grandson Zeedan Nazir (Qasim Akhtar) had planned to take her to Pakistan for her 70th birthday, which she celebrated on September 16.
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8pm on ITV1 or catch up on ITVX.
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