Betsy, oh Betsy, how clever Corrie have been in casting the Swain teen?
It’s fair to say that in the last year, a certain blonde D.S. known as Lisa Swain has made a rather large impact on viewers of the ITV soap. Not only has she brought the local station towards the forefront of the show, her relationship with Carla ‘Queen of everything at your gaff’ Connor bred a new fandom, Swarla. But it isn’t just them becoming a couple that has been a win for the long running drama, the addition of Lisa’s teenage daughter Betsy was a big win and a very clever move for the soap.
The character of Betsy is rare, I know what you are thinking, a stropping/angsty teen is not rare, but hold on. Usually in soap-land, the kids of the main cast rarely exist beyond their family or other teens. Their appearances are far and few between with the odd big story to remind us they exist, apart from Betsy Swain. Since her debut in 2024, Betsy has had her fair share of big stories, being shot by her mum, blackmailing Joel, handing over the factory keys to the Radcliffes which lead to Carla’s kidney ordeal, and that’s not even all of it! She has even had to deal with the murder of her boyfriend Mason, a heartbreaking moment for all involved, especially her who felt so much guilt of her treatment of him beforehand. Apart from maybe early days David Platt, I think you would be hard pushed to find another young character who has been as busy as Betsy.
Unlike a lot of other teen characters, Betsy is involved in so many different character’s stories beyond her just being Lisa’s daughter, which means that it feels natural to see her outside of the Lisa/Carla bubble. We’ve seen her with Joel, albeit for a short time, she had a relationship with Mason, we’ve seen her involved with her factory workers as well as the Radcliffes, Nina, Lauren, Bobby and Dylan. She has built so many different and interesting connections in such a short space of time, whether good or bad, that Betsy doesn’t require Swarla on our screens for her to exist. This is going to be key in the future of Betsy and how much we see her on our screens. Hopefully we will see her more involved with the factory, as that seems to be a passion of hers and we’ve been promised both the Connor family and factory being developed moving forward, but I am incredibly grateful they have built her up as her own person.
But let’s also talk about Sydney herself, an actor who made their TV debut on this momentous stage and absolutely smashed it out of the park. To be given so many hard hitting stories and screen time is a true testament to Sydney’s abilities, and again a clever way of ensuring that Betsy isn’t just a character who is going to randomly appear from time to time, to then not been seen for months on end. She’s a firm cobbles resident. I am struggling to pin point a particular highlight of hers that is stand out because in less than a year, Betsy has already had multiple stories that have displayed the power in Sydney’s ability. From breaking down over her involvement with Lauren’s baby Frankie’s premature birth, her panic attack after being followed by Rob, tearfully telling her mum how she feels about her being in the police force, getting shot, and so much more. She has had a busy year!
I see a bright future for Sydney, and I hope Coronation Street continue to develop her character and offer her more opportunities to be centre stage, and I have a feeling with her blossoming friendship with Lauren Bolton, we certainly will!
Images copyright of ITV