Coronation Street fans have waved goodbye to gobby factory worker Janice Battersby after 14 years. East Lancashire actress Vicky Entwistle takes a look back at her time on Manchester’s most famous street.

IT was the role of pie maker Margery Lovett in a Rhyddings High School production of Sweeney Todd that gave Vicky Entwistle a taste for fame.

Growing up in Oswaldtwistle, the only daughter of shopkeepers Maureen and Alan, Vicky, a shy child, found her opportunity to shine in O-level drama.

“Hearing a whole room of people laugh at your joke is electric.

"I worked on this Cockney accent and the delivery of her comedy lines for weeks and the reaction was a real buzz.

"I knew then at 13 that I wanted a career in acting,” said Vicky, whose character Janice Battersby has left Weatherfield for good this week to travel the world with binman Trev.

And so, aged 18, Vicky left her parents’ home above M&M News, in Clayton-le-Moors, where they lived with her brother Martin, after receiving a scholarship to attend drama school in London.

After graduating Vicky soon gained theatre roles, a small part in The Bill and some radio work and the acting career she had dreamed of was slowly taking shape.

But she had to wait until she was 27 for one stage role to catapult her to national recognition.

She was touring with Madonna play Like A Virgin when she was spotted by Granada TV’s casting director and offered the part of machinist Janice Lee in the country’s biggest soap, Coronation Street.

“That just doesn’t happen any more,” said Vicky, whose mum drove her to Granada Studios for her first six weeks on screen before she passed her driving test.

“Even small roles have to be auditioned countless times.

"But back then they just saw you and, if they liked you, you were in.”

In January 1997, Vicky made her Corrie debut and what began as a one-off appearance with just 11 lines became the permanent character, Janice Battersby.

The family the nation loved to hate arrived on the cobbles later that year, made up of Janice’s slobbish husband Les, stepdaughter Leanne and daughter Toyah.

In her 14 years in Weatherfield, Janice has had an affair with a policeman, dealt with daughter Toyah’s rape, shaved her head after catching nits, been arrested for stealing Underworld’s syndicate Lottery win, trained as a nurse and got into more scraps then she has sewn knickers.

And although she had great times playing the long-serving character, Vicky, 41 revealed she isn’t going to miss being Janice.

“I’ve really enjoyed Janice. I love her. But I’m not going to miss her,” said Vicky, sporting a new cropped red hairstyle which she had done fewer than 24 hours after filming her last scenes as Janice.

“For the girls it’s quite annoying that you can’t just do what you want with your appearance and before you do you must ask permission, so I couldn't wait to have a change.”

Vicky, who told bosses last August that she wanted to leave, added: “It’s long 12 hour days of filming and there’s nothing remotely glamorous about that.

"Plus I felt after 14 years it was time I left and put into practice more of what I’d learned at drama school.”

So, after 14 years, what secrets can Vicky reveal about the famous cobbled street?

“Well no-one eats the hot pot, it’s horrible,” she laughed.

“And after Health and Safety arrived, we don’t really sew either.

"The needles were taken out of the machines in Underworld, so that’s why you only see us cutting up fabric or picking hems these days.

“And I’ll tell you a little secret,” she whispered.

“I accidentally ran over Janice’s sovereign necklace on our drive a couple of weeks before I left.

"I had to wear a scarf around my neck for Leanne’s wedding.

“They still don't know. I took it as a good omen, though.

"It was like it confirmed it was time to say goodbye to Janice.”

It’s clear Vicky has a lot of fond memories from the ITV soap.

Her friends on the cast include best mate Sally Dynevor (Sally Webster) and Jane Danson (Leanne Battersby).

And she has the show to thank for meeting husband, Holby City set producer Andrew Chapman.

The couple, who married in 2002, went on their first date to Wellsprings, on Pendle Hill. on Hallowe'en night.

“Andy jokes he got his little witch that night,” laughed Vicky, who lives with Andy and their two labradors Meg and Fudge in a converted barn in the Ribble Valley.

“At times when we’re watching Corrie and Janice is getting angry, Andy will say ‘I’ve seen that face’ or ‘I’ve heard that tone’ and I think ‘oh no’.

“But we had some of our best times in those early days on Corrie.

"We lived in the city centre then but those were the only times we were late into work because we couldn’t resist going out.

"There’s so much on your doorstep.”

Unlike her on-screen alter ego, Vicky is a shy person who prefers life out of the spotlight, which was another reason for leaving the Street.

“I’m looking forward to taking a back seat for a while,“ said Vicky, who once hid from fans in the toilets of a restaurant.

“I just want to curl up on the couch and watch Midsomer Murders for a little while, then take on some really challenging roles.”

She has been practising for her first project, as The Wicked Queen in Blackpool Grand’s pantomime Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs in December.

“I’ve been walking past mirrors cackling. Those kids in the front row are going to be so scared.

"I will be doing a different voice and bringing out my acting skills. I’ve even thought about introducing a pet into the role.

“Hopefully you won’t be able to tell it’s me, and it’ll be nothing like Janice Battersby.”