By Julia Banim
More than 20 years on from her horrifying rape ordeal, Coronation Street's Toyah Habeeb is about to face past demons as a long-held secret comes to light.
In scenes that have already proven controversial with long-timeCoronation Street fans, it will emerge that Toyah (Georgia Taylor) gave birth to a stillborn daughter when she was 19 years old, after being raped by evil Phil Simmonds in 2001. Although this heartbreaking moment was never shown at the time, traumatised Toyah then buried her baby at the Red Rec, apparently never speaking of the pregnancy again.
All Toyah's old feelings have come to a head, however, after she came across a group of amateur sleuths searching for the body of missing Lauren Bolton (Cait Fitton) \- digging in the exact same spot she buried her child, all those years ago.
As Toyah's ghosts come back to haunt her, the Mirror takes a look at actress Georgia's away from the cobbles, including her surprising real name and romance with her former onscreen hubby...
Surprising real name
Corrie fans may be surprised to learn that Georgia, 44, went by a different name before joining the soap, and was actually born Claire Jackson. Speaking with the Mirror in 2021, Georgia revealed: "It's not that I planned this to happen. But when I started with Coronation Street I had to register with Equity, the actors' union, and at the time there seemed to be a hell of a lot of Claires so I had to think of something else."
"I couldn't tell you where I got Georgia from, other than I liked it, but my grandad's surname was Taylor and he passed away not long before I got the part. As a teenager, I didn't really think the consequences through of opting for a completely different name, but it's meant there's been quite a bit of confusion over the years. At this point, I'll pretty much answer to anything!"
Georgia, who took a 13-year break from the role in 2003, still goes by Claire on her passport, as well as to her mum, Caroline Jackson. Over on the Corrie set, things are pretty much split, with half the cast and crew at Corrie referring to her as Claire, while the rest know her as Georgia.
She explained: Basically when I started on Corrie the first time around I was still Claire. "It was a few weeks into the job before I was able to change my name so to everyone there at the time I was Claire Jackson, although I was Georgia Taylor in the credits. Then when I left in 2003 I went out into the world as a jobbing actress, and everyone called me Georgia.
"That was the case for years and years, and some of my very best friends call me Georgia. I met [then husband Mark Letheren] as Georgia. But back to Coronation Street five years ago and there were still loads of the cast and crew who'd known me before as Claire, so I was back to Claire again for them while the people I hadn't known me before called me Georgia.
"It's pretty funny when I introduce myself to people. Anyone who recognises me from Corrie thinks of me as Toyah, and then I say ‘I'm Georgia, but I'm also Claire, so really call me whatever you like.'"
Famous ex
Georgia met her now ex-partner Mark Letheren on the set of BBC's Casualty in 2008, while they were playing Ruth Winters and Ben Harding respectively. Speaking out about how they met during an episode of Lorraine, Georgia confirmed that they had never married but that they 'practically were' given the length of the relationship.
She shared: "We met, he was a sort of semi-regular character, he was playing a counsellor ironically, which is then what Toyah ended up doing. We met, gosh 13 years ago. So yeah, got him out of the job and lots of friends and it was a really good time."
As well as Casualty, actor Mark, 53, has appeared in a number of high-profile shows, including The Bill, Silent Witness, and Wire in the Blood. In January 2023, The Sun newspaper reported that Georgia and Mark had called it quits in July 2022, after 14 years together. Mark appeared to allude to the break-up in an emotional social media post shared at the end of 2022, writing: "It's been the worst year after a number of increasingly s**t years. My life finally fell apart. Thankfully, I'm incredibly lucky and have a family who have picked up the pieces and are trying to help me rebuild myself.
"It's thanks to them I'm still here and trying to move forward. For that, I am truly grateful. Whatever the new year brings I hope that strength, humility, joy, and love are in abundance for you all."
Finding love again with onscreen husband
Georgia has since found love again with former co-star Charlie De Melo, who played Toyah's solicitor husband Imran Habeeb. Imran was written out of the soap in 2022 following a deadly car crash, and Georgia confessed at the time that she would miss her onscreen hubby.
Describing herself as 'heartbroken' at the time, Georgia shared: "I absolutely adore him. He's been a dream, an absolute dream. He's so funny so we laugh a lot but he is honestly one of the most supportive people I have ever worked with and even now, we're still in touch obviously, he's texting me, 'How did the day go? Are you okay?'
"He's just a team player. And I mean look at him, there's no complaints there either. He's beautiful."
Their friendship has since blossomed into a full-blown romance, and the loved-up pair have kept delighted Instagram followers updated with their adventures together, which have seen them travel to Sorrento and Belfast, and rock out at a Blur gig.
If you've been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via www.rapecrisis.org.uk or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999
Coronation Street airs every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8 pm on ITV, and can be streamed on ITVX. Follow Mirror Celebs onSnapchat,Instagram,Twitter,Facebook,YouTubeandThreads
Do you have a story to share? Email me at julia.banim@reachplc.com
