Becky McDonald
Becky McDonald is a fictional character from the British soap opera Coronation Street, played by Katherine Kelly. Becky was created by producer Tony Wood, and made her debut in the episode airing on 5 February 2006. Kelly was initially contracted to appear for three months, but became a series regular after impressing the serial's producers. In April 2011, Kelly announced her decision to leave the soap. Producer Phil Collinson created dramatic storylines in the build-up to her exit.
Becky's storylines focused on her friendship with Roy and Hayley Cropper, which helped change public opinion of the character, and her relationship with Jason Grimshaw and her marriage with Steve McDonald, with the latter producing two wedding storylines which were highly publicised by ITV. Other notable storylines have included her drunken rampages, two miscarriages and her desire to adopt a child. Becky was portrayed as a no-nonsense character, whose time on the show has been described as a journey. Viewers saw her change from a "thieving ex-con" into a vulnerable woman. The character was praised by crime-reduction charity Nacro for changing opinions on former prisoners. She has been referred to as a "Coronation Street icon", and one of the serial's most popular characters, with critics often praising her activities. However, her tendency to smoke when under stress and litter the streets with cigarettes were criticised by UK environmental agencies. Kelly garnered various awards and nominations for her portrayal of Becky.
Creation and casting
Becky was created as a short-term recurring character, working in the Underworld sewing factory. The character was deemed popular so producers decided to bring her back, with executive producer Steve Frost initially pitching the idea of bringing in her family, stating: "Becky will leave Weatherfield for a short period of time and shock the Street's residents when her relatives return with her." However, this never materialised and Becky returned without any relatives. It was also thought that producers were going to kill the character off, in her early stages.Auditions were held for the role of Becky which required the auditionee to look deliberately scruffy. Actress Katherine Kelly commented: "I was told to turn up looking as crap as possible, with no make-up. But that morning I'd also been for an audition where I had to look really glamorous. So I sat on the Tube putting grease in my hair and wiping my make-up off with everyone looking at me. By the time I got there I looked a right state!". Kelly was initially only cast for a three-month period when she began filming in 2006, but impressed producers and was offered an extended contract as a regular character. On 17 June 2008, after further impressing the producers, Kelly was signed for an additional 12 months. In February 2009, Kelly again had her contract extended, securing her role in the soap until August 2011. However, in 2010 Kelly was signed to a new 18-month contract by new producer Phil Collinson, a contract which was described as "unprecedented" at the time.
Development
Characterisation
The Daily Mirror Beth Neil has observed that during her time on Coronation Street, Becky has morphed "from a thieving tearaway into a vulnerable young woman, clearly damaged from a troubled upbringing." Kelly has commented that Becky finds it hard to rely on others, as she is: "Very out of sorts, because she's a very independent, feisty sort of character." She has stated that she loves Becky's "trailer trash" appearance.Image:Becky Granger 2006.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Becky Granger as she appeared in 2006.
Becky is not an aspirational character, and she strives to be normal, satisfied with a "hard up lifestyle". She has changed since her early days, having calmed down a little in terms of her often out of control behaviour. Of this, Kelly comments: "If someone had said to me that in three years' time she'd be Becky McDonald and would be behind the bar in the Rovers, I wouldn't have believed it When Becky first came in she was a totally different character, but she's calmed down a lot and her softer side has come out."
Over the course of the series, elements of Becky's backstory are revealed to the viewer. The character is stated to have been raised by an abusive, alcoholic mother until leaving home at the age of 14 after being raped by her mother's boyfriend. Becky was left to fend for herself until she was taken into care. Becky has mentioned living with numerous foster families, but stated that none of them were willing to adopt her as she was somewhat of a "wild child". Becky had a heavily disrupted education, having attended many schools, several of which she was expelled from.
Becky became the 50th barmaid at the Rovers Return Inn in June 2008. Kelly opined that the character's ex-con personality would give her an advantage behind the bar, explaining: "The previous producer, Steve Frost, loved the idea of a barmaid who could lose her temper and throw a punch. Becky's an ex-con so she can fight dirty like nobody else." The character's chain smoking tendencies often play out onscreen when she is experiencing stress, something which drew off-screen criticism for her disregard of littering the streets with her cigarette butts. ITV publicity has described Becky as having many different levels to her persona, stating that she loves drinking cider, and that she is not bothered by how she looks, though when she dresses up, she "dresses to the nines" with big earrings, gold rings, logo belts and hair pieces. She dislikes anyone ordering her about, as she cannot handle being told what to do.
Kelly has also revealed that she often changes the material within scripts to play out best how she thinks Becky would act in certain situations. Kelly stated she did not think Becky would slap other characters, instead opting for punches. She stated: "The script often says, 'Becky slaps Steve' but we try to find a different way to do it. I always think she wouldn't slap, she would punch". Kelly was involved in other violent scenes featuring her character, adding "The slap is too common in soaps".
Relationships
Becky formed a friendship with local residents Roy and Hayley Cropper. Becky's on-screen partnership with Roy was particularly successful. Kelly stated it was the turning point in her character's development that won public affection, while Neilson stated that it was an "arranged marriage" by producers, delighted with its outcome. Becky's first serious romantic relationship in the soap was with builder Jason Grimshaw. Their relationship was a turning point in what has been described as a "journey" for the character. Kelly spoke of Becky's different attributes in their relationship, during an interview stating: "She absolutely believes that she's 100% in love with him. I see it as a very teenage relationship because of the on-off status. Becky's very mature in many ways – she's very streetwise and if you needed something, you'd go to Becky and she'd find it for you. But emotionally, she's very immature. That's a lot to do with why she gets on so well with Roy because he's quite emotionally immature, too. It's probably the one level that they do connect on." Fans approached the actress in the streets, claiming they were jealous of her because of her on-screen romance with Jason. Following her breakup with Jason, and the aftermath which was highly publicised in the media, such as the Daily Mirror.She then embarked on an affair with fellow resident Steve McDonald. Kelly stated during an interview that she felt Becky was "punching above her weight" with Jason. Kelly revealed that she felt Steve was the best man for Becky over her previous lover Jason, stating: "Both boys bring out different things in Becky. With Jason, they liked going clubbing, and it was no strings attached, I think Becky needs more than that, even though she wouldn't admit it. I think, long-term, Steve's better for her." When Gregson was interviewed by entertainment website Digital Spy, he was asked if he thought that his character has had a positive impact on Becky's life. In reply, he stated: "I think he's turned it around. She was all over the place getting into trouble all the time but he's made her grow up. And having a little girl there in Amy, that's made her grow a bit, too. She's got responsibilities now. She's besotted with him. She's still a total pisshead, though!" Steve and Becky attempted to marry twice in 2009; their first wedding was given a promotional push from ITV, which aired adverts for the first wedding episodes. Their relationship was featured in a series of romantic plots which ITV dubbed the "Summer of Love" season of the soap, with advertisements for it airing.
In 2009 Slug, who had been seen on-screen dating Becky in her early appearances, returned. The two characters share a backstory, which was partially created by Lancaster and Kelly themselves. During an interview with Digital Spy, Kelly spoke the impact Slug has had on Becky, stating: "Marshall and I have invented a whole back story between us. It's nice to remember where Becky came from and what a journey she's had. Slug was an important part of Becky's life – they've got a lot of history. They grew up together and looked out for each other." The storyline progresses into Slug confessing his love for Becky. Kelly points out that Becky has been on a journey, subsequently changing, stating that "Becky and Slug didn't know what love was" and that she proves she has changed by rejecting his advances.
Becky later forged a friendship with Claire Peacock. Of this unlikely love/hate friendship, Kelly stated: "Claire and Becky strike up a weird, weird friendship because the kids are a similar age, Josh and Amy. So the trouble begins. One minute are good friends and the next, they're really not." Becky's relationship with her mother was never shown onscreen, but when she died, Kelly stated: "Becky hated her, and the death has brought back a lot of bad memories." In 2010 it was announced that Becky's half-sister would join the cast, with Kelly stating: "We've got some really, really exciting stuff happening. Becky's going to get a half-sister – a younger sister". Kelly had stated that her family was not introduced on-screen because producers didn't want to "pin her character down" with one set of characters.