My passion for acting keeps me alive and fresh'

Actress Claire Sweeney on how her job doesn't feel like work and why, although she's single, she's in no hurry to mingle

- NIKKI DNAFUYE

With Claire Sweeney's character going through a turbulent time on Coronation Street, the actress reveals she's not fazed by what's coming her way – on or off screen.

In fact, Claire, 53, tells new that after her pre-Christmas split from former boxer Ricky Hatton, life is "all good".

The pair enjoyed a whirlwind eight-month romance after getting together when they both appeared in Dancing On Ice last year. They had broken up by December and Claire tells us, "I'm not dating at the moment. I'm single. I've got my son Jaxon and I'm busy and just really enjoying where I'm at in my career."

The former Brookside actress became a mum for the first time at the age of 43. Ten-year-old Jaxon's father is her ex-partner Daniel Reilly. She's previously opened up about being on her own with Jaxon "since the beginning, practically", but said she was never lonely without a partner.

"I've always been very self-sufficient. I'm not someone who needs to have a boyfriend," she previously revealed on the Sunday Mirror's Invite Only podcast. The Liverpudlian also confessed she's learnt a good lesson from her grandma about holding out and not settling for any less than she deserves.