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that if I got with Ben,
it would probably
be forever, so we
wanted to make sure
it was the right time
for us both and that
was four years ago.
Ben: I was ready
to settle down and
wanted the next
relationship I had to
be with the person I
had a family with, so
we went on a date
in a London pub and
we’ve been together
ever since.Have you found
out the baby’s
gender yet?
Ben: No, we’re
having a surprise,
but it was tempting
at the 20-week scan.
Julia: He or she has
got a personality
already. At the scan,
it posed for a minute
and then turned
its back on us and
wouldn’t move! Which
means they may take
after Ben, who’s more
camera shy than me,
or perhaps they’ve
got my attitude!
We’ve got a sassy
one, whatever it is.
Ben: We do! It’s
been amazing.
The first time I felt
the baby kick was
amazing.Do you have any
names yet?
Julia: We’ve got a lot
of girls’ names but
we haven’t got any
boys’ names yet.
Ben: I want Han if it’s
a boy as then he’ll
be Han Silver, which
sounds like Han Solo
and I’m a big Star
Wars fan.
Julia: Plus, Ben thinks he looks like a young
Harrison Ford [laughs]! I’ve ruled out Han
so boy names are proving difficult. Ben also
wanted Wolfgang but that also got vetoed.
Although, weirdly, my mum wanted to call
me Wolfgang if I’d been
a boy – I’m glad I was a
girl [laughs]! I think you’ve
got to be a certain kind of
cool to pull off a name like
that and I don’t think I’m
that brave.Julia, who was the first
person you told at
Coronation Street?
Tina O’Brien guessed the
day I found out! I went
into work and she lookedat me and she asked if I was pregnant! I was
like: ‘How the hell can you tell?’ She knew
we were trying but I must have had a look on
my face. She told me she was a bit of a white
witch when it comes to that sort of thing. It
was weird!Your co-
star Brooke
Vincent is also
pregnant. Has
it been nice to
have someone
to confide in?
Brooke’s been
great. I told
her fairly early
on as she said:
‘When is mybaby going to have
someone to play
with?’ And I said:
‘Maybe soon!’ She
was over the moon
for us.When did you tell
Jack P Shepherd?
Julia: I wanted him
to guess, so I was
asking him whether
he thought I looked
fat. He didn’t even
look at me and said
no, as he’s very well
trained and knows
never to look at a
woman when they
ask that question!
Then I said: ‘Look
again,’ and he
saw my belly and
said: ‘Ah, you’re
pregnant,’ and gave
me a big hug and
then texted Ben. He
was very sweet.How’s working
been while
pregnant?
It was hard at the
beginning but it’s
my job and I just
got on with it. I
saved all my energy
for work and when I
got home my guard
would go down!Ben, you’ve just
got back from
LA with Taron
Egerton. How
was that?
Taron, my brother
Josh and Julia all
went to RADA
together so we’ve
been friends for
years. He invited
me out while
he was doing
the promotion
for The Dark
Crystal, his new
Netflix show. We had a great time.You must be so proud of Taron. He was
incredible in Rocketman...
Julia: Oh I’m completely proud! I’ve known
him for years. I knew how good he was but
he was incredible in Rocketman.
Ben: Knowing Taron, playing Elton John was
the perfect role for him. He did all the singing
himself and he was made for the part.Julia, you also studied at RADA with
Peaky Blinders and Gentleman Jack star
Sophie Rundle, didn’t you?
Yes, Sophie’s marvellous – she was at our
wedding last year. She’s an amazing actress
and deserves all her success, as she’s one
of the hardest working people I know –
she always was.Above: Ben says married
life has been ‘a dream’.
Below: Julia on Corrie
with Jack P Shepherd