Coronation Street’s Jane Hazlegrove: ‘Bernie has some massive decisions to make’

Coronation Street star Jane Hazlegrove has teased tough times ahead for her character Bernie and family following recent health revelations.

Earlier this month the Winter-Alahan-Brown clans were left stunned by the news that Bernie’s side of the family is carrying a gene that makes them predisposed to breast cancer – and in subsequent scenes, Bernie’s son Kit (Jacob Roberts) discovered that he has breast cancer.

Kit has now finally come clean to Bernie, who was awaiting her own test results but has now been confirmed as a carrier due to his diagnosis.

“She has some massive decisions to make,” said Hazlegrove, who has just marked seven years playing Bernie. “For a woman pushing 60, deciding to lose her breasts is huge, especially because she and Dev are such a physical couple.

“But she has about a 70% chance of developing breast cancer, and she wants to be around for her grandkids and the quads. She’s determined to stick around.

“She’s not sure what the psychological effects of the surgery will be, but she has to make a decision and she says ‘I’m still going to be me.’ It’s going to be a long road, but she’s not going anywhere.”

For Bernie it marks the latest tragedy to beset the family, two years on from the devastating loss of her son Paul (Peter Ash) to Motor Neurone Disease.

Hazlegrove continued: “I think she’s got incredible resilience, but that’s also, I think that’s also comes from a place of guilt from not being around for so long, and she’s determined she’s gonna get it right.

“Look how her life’s changed in the last 7 years. She’s married to this beautiful man. She’s got stepchildren and grandchildren, a son she never thought she would find. She’s secure, she’s loved, she’s loved like she’s never been loved before.

“So, I think she’s probably stronger than she has been for a long, long time because she’s been accepted. She’s never had that before. She’s not likely to run away because of this. She’s gonna stick around and be there for all of them.”

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