4 SATURDAY MAGAZINESamia Longchambon on her flighty Coronation
Street character’s hot new storyline...I
t’s hard to imagine a character with
a more tumultuous love life than Maria
Connor. She has dated two murderers,
a fraudster and a drug smuggler; she’s
been cheated on more times than we care
to remember, and has also done the dirty
herself. She was sentenced to 12 months in
prison for marrying gay friend Pablo when he
needed a visa, and she stormed a wedding
and wrestled bride Eva in a fountain.
Thankfully, Samia Longchambon, the
37-year-old actress who plays Maria, has
a much more stable home life. She lives
with husband Sylvain, her former Dancing
On Ice partner, their son Yves, four, and
Freya, her nine-year-old daughter from
a previous relationship. ‘My love life has
been very boring compared to Maria’s,’
she smiles. ‘I’ve never really even been on
any proper dates – I’m living through her.’
After almost 20 years on the Street (yes,
really), Samia is a veteran of soapland,
but that doesn’t stop her getting excited
about a meaty storyline. At the moment,
Maria is dating the Street’s dishy doctor,
Ali. But there’s trouble in paradise...What do you think about Ali – has
Maria finally met a decent man?
So far, so good. She’s waited a long
time for her prince and she’s really
happy. But I’m a little bit worried for her.
Uh-oh! Tell us more...
On the surface he ticks all the boxes- good job, loyal, gets on well with Liam.
I don’t think he’s in danger of having an
affair or anything, but he’s a bit of a
troubled soul and Maria isn’t aware of
that. He’s struggling with his demons.
It’s a bit like a pantomime where you
want to call out, ‘Be careful, Maria!’
‘If anyone gets paired
up with Maria, they
know they’re in trouble’
Does he have more secrets than the
ones we already know about?
He’s been fighting issues since long
before Maria came along. This is just the
beginning of a long road for her. It’s going
to be exciting, and it’s going to keep the
viewers on their toes.
Would you say this has scope to be
one of Maria’s best storylines yet?
Oh my God, yes. It’s going to be really
unexpected. I’ll look back on this storyline
with fondness. It’s going to be epic.
Maria obviously has a bad track
record with the men she dates.
Do you think James Burrows,
who plays Ali, was secretly
worried when he saw the script?
He knows the odds are stacked against
him. If anyone gets paired up with Maria,they’re in trouble. I did have
a laugh with him and say
he needs to be careful
coming near me.
What will his mum,
Michelle, think about it?
They have a little blip. At first
she accuses Maria of being
a gold-digger, which I find
quite funny, as Maria’s got
her own cash. Michelle
is quite overprotective,
but when she sees
that it’s genuine she
comes round.
Maria’s dating storyline must
be keeping you occupied...
Yes, it’s a very busy time. I’ve got
a couple of weeks off to visit Syl’s
family in Lyon, then as soon as I’m
back we’ll be straight into it. It’ll be fine- we’re used to doing the juggle.
Do your kids speak French?
Yves is bilingual. It puts me to shame.
I have to say, ‘What did they just say,
Yves?’ Freya needs to get warmed up
a bit, like me. But from birth, Syl has just
been speaking French to Yves. He already
uses it as a little line to people. The kids all
play out on the street and we couldn’t find
him recently. The neighbour came
round and she said that he had
come to the back door
and said, ‘My name is
Yves and I speak French.’
I was like, ‘Wow, it’s
already a chat-up line
and he’s three!’
Do you think Freya
and Yves will follow
in your footsteps
and go into acting?
Freya is definitely a
future actor – she can
vet?
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ge musthim recently.
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YaSamia met
husband Sylvain
on Dancing On IceCORONATION STREET
Mon Wed Fri, times vary, ITVMaria gets to grips
with her new man
Ali (James Burrows)