“I Would’ve Been Sacked”: Amanda Barrie on Hiding Her Sexuality While Playing Alma on Coronation Street
Coronation Street Star Reflects on Life in the Closet
As she prepares to celebrate her 90th birthday, Amanda Barrie has opened up about the fear and secrecy that shadowed her time on Coronation Street. Best known as Alma Halliwell, Barrie played the beloved café owner and Mike Baldwin’s wife on the ITV soap from the 1980s until Alma’s heartbreaking death from cancer in 2001.
But away from the cameras, Barrie was living a different drama. The actress, who came out as bisexual in 2003 and later married crime novelist Hilary Bonner in 2014, admitted she spent years convinced that revealing her sexuality would cost her the role that made her a household name.
“I Know I Would’ve Been Sacked”
Speaking on Good Morning Britain, Barrie revealed that she felt under constant pressure to hide her true self during her soap fame.
“Somebody shopped me to the press,” she told hosts Kate Garraway and Ed Balls. “I should’ve known better but I never kept my life from anybody, all my friends knew everything.
“I think people thought it was catching, you were pushed away and whispered about in corners. They would not, and I swear to God, I know that I would’ve been sacked from Coronation Street.”
Although she admits she has no direct proof, Barrie believes the attitudes at the time would have left bosses with little choice but to write her out. “It would’ve been, ‘Oh we don’t want anything to do with that, darling,’” she added.
Bracing for Backlash, Met with Hugs
Barrie’s fears built for years, but when she finally came out after leaving the soap, the reaction was the opposite of what she expected.
“I thought I’d be stoned in the street,” she laughed. “But I got a lot of hugs. What was I in such a state about? Because it was just, ‘Oh, I see, oh…’”
Even so, she admits years of secrecy left their mark. “You automatically revert to the way you’d always behave, lurking about with your head down, editing your life. You change they, he, she… all that editing.”
A Different Era in Weatherfield
Barrie acknowledges that attitudes within Coronation Street — and society — have shifted dramatically since her time on the cobbles. While close friends like Helen Worth (Gail Platt) always knew the truth, others in the cast made remarks that reinforced her decision to keep quiet.
“It wouldn’t have been the bosses who caused a problem so much as some of the other cast,” she explained. “You heard people say certain things… not naming names.”
Now, she views the soap with pride as it embraces LGBTQ+ representation. “There are so many LGBTQI characters on the show I often joke they should rename it Canal Street!” she quipped, referencing Manchester’s famous gay district.
Alma Halliwell’s Lasting Legacy
For fans, Amanda Barrie will always be remembered as Alma — the witty, warm-hearted character whose friendships with Gail Platt and Audrey Roberts were central to Coronation Street for more than a decade. Her tragic cancer storyline in 2001 remains one of the soap’s most moving departures.
But Barrie’s off-screen journey is just as remarkable. From years of hiding her sexuality to finally living openly with her wife, her story mirrors the societal changes that Coronation Street itself has reflected over its long history.
Looking Back, Moving Forward
Now, with the release of her memoir I’m Still Here, Barrie is reflecting not only on her long career but also on how far public attitudes have come.
“I could never have come out before Alma’s death,” she admitted. “But what happened after I left? It’s not contagious, you know!”
At 90, Amanda Barrie remains a trailblazer — a reminder that while fear once forced her to live in the shadows, today she stands proudly in the spotlight, celebrated for both her work and her truth.