'I think now I'm free to say it out loud': Coronation Street star Shobna Gulati now identifies as non-binary

Speaking on the How to be 60 podcast with Kaye Adams, Shobna, 58, explained that she recently discovered a term to describe the feelings she has had her entire life.

"I've become more happy describing myself as a person. What do people call it now? Non-binary. So, I suppose that's who I am," Shobna said. She added that she had never had the vocabulary to explain her feelings until she learned from younger generations about non-binary identities. "I've never had a word for it, but I've learnt from our younger generation what that might look like in terms of a word, because I know what it feels like in terms of being me."

Shobna explained that her family had always accepted her as a person, saying they never really thought about her identity in terms of gender. "They've just thought: 'Shobna is either extremely feminine or extremely masculine.' Because I was just accepted as a person who fell out of the tree and equally the person who put on all this make-up and did a dance," she said.

The actress described the moment she realised how she identified, recounting a conversation with a non-binary sound engineer on a job. "The sound person said to me that they were non-binary and I said: 'what is that?' So, then they explained and I thought – 'well, I feel like that, but I didn't ever have that vocabulary.'"

Shobna also shared her growing understanding of non-binary identity, saying: "They said that they saw themselves as a person and that the gender – the he or the she – wasn't important to who they are. And I thought: 'that's all I've ever thought.'"

Shobna, who lists her preferred pronouns as "she/they" on social media, explained that now she feels free to share her identity publicly. "I think now I'm free to say it out loud. I think people around me have accepted who I am for a long time without any explanation, but I suppose when I'm asked now, I'll say it."

Reflecting on her past relationships, Shobna mentioned that she had married architect Anshu Srivastava in 1990, but the couple split four years later. She went on to have a son, Akshay, now 30. She also dated Emmerdale actor Gary Turner from 1999 to 2003 and mentioned the challenges of public relationships. "I did have relationships, but then they were very public... It was sad for me, because I didn't feel that I got enough time to have a relationship and to have more children and have a private life."

Shobna also spoke about her evolving views on dating, saying: "That is also something I'm looking at – what that means to me. So yes, I would go for a person absolutely, regardless of their gender."

Throughout her career, Shobna made her name in Dinnerladies and Coronation Street and has continued to pursue a diverse career in both acting and comedy. Shobna, who recently appeared in The Serial Killer’s Wife and the Bake Off festive special, has also reprised her role in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie for the 2023-2024 UK and Ireland Tour.