Coronation Street's Sue Cleaver has revealed the real reason why she is exiting the soap.
The star, who has played Eileen Grimshaw for 25 years, announced last week that she would be departing the show, saying she wants to "embrace change, look for new adventures and live fearlessly".
In a new interview on Loose Women today (January 9), Sue opened up further about her decision to step away.
Related: Best streaming services
"I’m now 61 and I feel I’m now at a stage in my life... like most mums we have responsibilities, we have other things we have to consider [and] we’re bringing up our families," she said.
"I’ve got to the stage – my son is grown up now, he’s 29 – I have no responsibilities left and I want to do something new. I want this decade to be about me.
What to Read Next
"I really want to empower other women," the star added. "Society at this point wants us all to shuffle off, don’t they? Just go away quietly, ‘You’ve had your days’.
"No, this is my decade. I’m more excited about this decade, hopefully you know, as long as I remain well, that this is going to be the most exciting decade for me. I’m really excited."
Related: Coronation Street star reveals alternative exit announcement after making statement
The star admitted that there had "been moments of fear about stepping outside your comfort zone", though noted that "nothing good happens if you don’t step out of your comfort zone".
Sue predicted that her departure will be "emotional" and "hard", elaborating: "I’ve got a lot of friends there [so] I will still have a connection to [the show].
"You know, my husband is the lighting guy on it so I don’t feel I’m going too far away from it but, it will be very emotional. I just know in my gut that it is the right thing to do and I’m going with that."
As well as Sue, the past week has confirmed the departures of Corrie stars Charlotte Jordan as Daisy Midgeley, Colson Smith as Craig Tinker, as well as Luca Toolan as Mason Radcliffe.
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.
Read more Coronation Street spoilers on our dedicated homepage
