Coronation Street's Brooke Vincent goes from soap to stage as The Syndicate comes to Newcastle

Brooke Vincent in The Syndicate
Brooke Vincent in The Syndicate -Credit:craig sugden


Brooke Vincent has left her soap days behind her, to swap the Coronation Street cobbles for the boards of theatres up and down the country in the cast of The Syndicate, the much buzzed about show based on the hit TV drama of the same name. And the star, known to millions as Sophie Webster, isn't afraid to admit the transition from screen to stage has her plagued with nerves.

Given that she landed the role of Kevin and Sally's youngest daughter Sophie at such a young age, Brooke grew up in front of millions of viewers, with the conversations about what she was having for her tea and squabbles with sister Rosie, giving way to some huge storylines as Sophie came out and fell head over heels with Sian, with the couple getting engaged, before their relationship came to a abrupt end when Sian realised that Sophie was willing to cheat on her and fled Wetherfield.

That was back in 2011, with Brooke's last appearance in Corrie coming in 2019. Now she' s settling into a new character, Amy, having taken her first theatre role in The Syndicate, based on the hit TV show written by late TV great Kay Mellor and she's not afraid to admit that, while she got very used to having to learn lines in Coronation Street, things are very different in theatre.

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"Even though I've been in the role a while now, it's still so surreal to step out on stage and see all those people sat watching you," she told ChronicleLive. "When you're in a show like Corrie, you know people are watching at home, but you can't actually see them."

"In a soap you get your scripts, you learn the lines and once the scenes are done you can let them go whereas in theatre you have to keep them in your head for much longer. Every night, when I'm waiting on the wings to go on I'll have that moment where I get nervous and I'm like "Oh my god, what's my line again?!"

The stage adaptation of The Syndicate, opening in Newcastle on May 8, is based on the first series of the much loved BBC drama about five supermarket employees whose lottery numbers come in and, while slightly biased given that she's in it, Brooke said it's a switch that definitely works.

"There's never really been a crossover quite like this one," she explained. "And I think the fact that it really works is testament to the talents of Kay and the fact that she's made the characters so well rounded and relatable. My character Amy is someone I would love to know - I'm having a ball playing her!"

*The Syndicate, with a cast featuring fellow soap icons Gaynor Faye and Samantha Giles, is at Newcastle Theatre Royal from May 8 to 11