Sue Johnston To Reprise Her Role As Legendary Brookside Matriarch Sheila ‘Grant’

Acclaimed British actress Sue Johnston will revisit her cherished character Shelia Grant, for the Brookside soap-crossover this autumn.

Sheila Grant, later Corkhill, is one of Brookside and continuing drama’s most important and enduring characters.

Sue Johnston’s truthful portrayal of Liverpudlian matriarch Sheila in Channel 4’s flagship drama is still praised as one of the strongest performances in soap history. Appointed OBE in the 2009 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to drama and charity, Sue rose to fame in 1982 as Sheila and become a household name.

Sue is best known for her iconic role in The Royle Family and was BAFTA-nominated in 2025 for Best Supporting Actress for her moving performance in Channel 4’s Truelove.

Hollyoaks celebrates its 30th anniversary in October and will mark the milestone with a special episode that also honours its predecessor Brookside and their creator Sir Phil Redmond.

Sue is the first cast member to be announced as returning for the Brookside story arc, which will be filmed on Brookside Close.

Of the return, Sue said: “It’ll be so lovely to go back and be Sheila for a day as it was such big, enjoyable part of my life.”

Hollyoaks took over as Channel 4’s flagship continuing drama when the Liverpool-based soap ended on November 4th 2003. It started filming on part of the former set of Brookside and many actors have crossed to Hollyoaks over the years.

Sue’s trailblazing storylines – as Sheila – were pivotal in establishing Brookside’s reputation for tackling hard-hitting, socially relevant issues, a type of issue-based storytelling that Hollyoaks continued. But it was Sue’s textured performance as a mother beset by hardship, who would do anything for her family regardless of their struggles, that turned her into a national treasure and soap
matriarch for the ages.

Sheila Grant and her family launched Brookside, when it began on the first night of Channel 4 in 1982. Viewers loved Sheila and sided with her as she battled with the family finances and her husband Bobby (Ricky Tomlinson). Most-poignantly some viewers related to her as a rape survivor and a bereaved mum.

The nation was shocked when in 1986 Sheila was attacked by a taxi driver, finding herself pregnant and her marriage falling apart from the strain. The storyline was ground-breaking in showing the long term impact on a survivor.

In 1987 Sheila’s youngest son Damon was stabbed to death in London. His death was one of the show’s most iconic and tragic moments. It was also the first time that there had been a soap ‘bubble’ as the tragedy happened in spin-off Damon and Debbie, a three-part special starring Damon Grant (Simon O’Brien) and schoolgirl lover Debbie McGrath (Gillian Kearney), who fall in love and run off together.

Shelia later found love again with Billy Corkhill (played by John McCardle) and the pair left Brookside for Basingstoke in 1990.

The crossover episode will see the return of iconic, heritage Brookside characters as a treat for the audience and to mark the milestone of Hollyoaks 30th anniversary. Filming will take place in September with exceptional permission granted by the owner of the close and the Liverpool Film Office – as the former set and production offices, as the unadopted road in West Derby is now home to residents.

Executive Producer Hannah Cheers said of the crossover: “This episode is a love letter to both Hollyoaks and Brookside.

“Brookside gave birth to Hollyoaks — it grew up on the same site and eventually took over its sets.

“For everyone at Lime Pictures (originally Mersey TV), Hollyoaks’ history is deeply rooted in Brookside, and its legacy lives on through our crew and, of course, some of our cast.

“This special feels like both a moving and fitting tribute to our origin story and a chance for fans to revisit much-loved Brookside characters in honour of that legacy.

“These iconic Brookside characters are soap archetypes that helped define British TV; soap archetypes that new generations are still discovering now through Hollyoaks. As a lifelong soap fan who grew up watching with my mum, I was passionate about revisiting Brookside for the anniversary. With Sir Phil’s blessing — after I had the privilege of pitching the idea to him — and the support of Channel 4, we’re able to make it happen.

“Writer Steve Hughes, who began his career on Brookside, has reimagined where these characters are more than twenty years on. We hope audiences will enjoy welcoming these old friends back into
their homes once again.”

Sir Phil said: “It is always bitter sweet thinking back to Brookie, the reminders of its success and impact, but the thoughts of many, like Dean Sullivan and Bill Dean, who are no longer with us.

“But it is great that Lime Pictures are paying homage in their Hollyoaks anniversary cross over episodes.

“I can’t wait to see how all the gardens are coping in the heatwave and, who knows, what might pop up if someone decides to re-lay their patio. I know we left something else down there.”

It will be the first time that Brookside Close has been on air, since it ended in with Jimmy Corkhill (played by the late Dean Sullivan) daubing a ‘d’ onto the sign, leaving it as ‘Brookside Closed’ before
driving out of the cul-de-sac.

Brookside episodes are available from the start on STV player, after they were digitally restored in a joint project between Lime Pictures and All3Media International.

Sue Johnston OBE is one of Britain’s most beloved actresses. Appointed OBE in the 2009 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to drama and charity, she rose to fame in 1982 as Sheila Grant
in Brookside and has since become a household name.

Sue is best known for her iconic role in The Royle Family and was BAFTA-nominated in 2025 for
Best Supporting Actress for her moving performance in Channel 4’s Truelove (Clerkenwell Films).
Recent work includes leading roles in Ben Wheatley’s Generation Z (Channel 4), The
Responder (BBC) opposite Martin Freeman, and the upcoming Riot Women from Sally
Wainwright.
Her credits also include Witness Number Three (Channel 5), Time(BBC) with Sean Bean and
Stephen Graham, The Help (Channel 4) with Jodie Comer, and the hit comedy The
Cockfields (UKTV). Other notable roles include The Cure (BBC), Hold the Sunsetwith John
Cleese, Death on the Tyne (UK Gold), Walk Like a Panther (Fox), Jack Thorne’s Kiri (Channel 4), The
Good Karma Hospital (ITV), and Jimmy McGovern’s Moving On. Sue continues to partake in
exciting projects, both on and off the screen.