Catherine Tyldesley: Corrie actress reveals that she was forced to miss 'Bonnie and Clyde' opening night due to migraines

Ex-Corrie actress Catherine Tyldesley has revealed that she was forced to pull out of a huge stage show due to her health.

The actress is currently in the cast for the UK tour of the music Bonnie and Clyde, which follows the story of the famous criminal couple. However, while Catherine was due to make her debut on opening night, she was struck down by a migraine which forced her to remain off-stage for rest.

She posted an update to fans on Instagram, saying: "Due to visually impaired migraine striking moments before curtain up I am gutted to not be performing tonight. But rest assured the incredible @oonagh111 [Oonagh Cox, understudy] will be absolutely brilliant as Blanche.

"Heartbroken to not be doing opening night here in Woking but it's never about watching me bump into things/people on stage. Off to rest! Enjoy the show folks."

Catherine was notably excited to kick off the tour in Woking, posting images of herself in costume only hours before she made the announcement. While she has performed on stage before, Bonnie & Clyde is her first foray into musical theatre. She played glamorous Eva Price in the ITV soap from 2011 to 2018, and also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2019.

Speaking to Norwich Theatre about her role in the show, she said: “Me and my husband [Tom Pitfield] got one verse in, and he looked at me and went, ‘Oh my God, you have to do this show’. I fell in love with it, and I knew that this was the one musical I had to do. I’ve been extremely lucky with film and television, but I’ve waited a long time for this.“ She also opened up about her time on the cobbles, saying: “I’d watched  Corrie  since I was a little girl and my family were obsessed with it. It really was a dream job but I felt I left at the right time because I wanted to explore other things and to develop as an actor and as a person. “