Coronation Street star Tina O'Brien fears 'revenge attacks' after getting caught in the middle of brawl with teen girls
22 March 2024, 06:47
Coronation Street star Tina O'Brien is said to fear "reprisal attacks" after trying to break up a brawl between two teenage girls outside her house.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
O'Brien, 40, appeared to get involved in the fight outside her property in an affluent Manchester suburb on Friday night - after wading in to try to stop it.
She also had her hair pulled and took some hits herself.
O'Brien, who plays Sarah Barlow on the beloved soap, rushed out of her home in Bramhall to tell the two teenagers to stop fighting, before becoming involved herself.
She held crisis talks with Coronation Street bosses after the story emerged, and was given some time off to recuperate.
"She told them she was the victim here, and they have accepted that," an insider told the Sun.
"They also think the incident has traumatised her so have been very sympathetic. Tina has been left really shaken and they told her to take a week off."
She is now said to fear revenge attacks for getting involved with the fight, which is said to have broken out over a boy. She and her husband have increased security at their home.
The mother of one of the girls in the fight thanked O'Brien for helping her daughter.
She said: "Tina has been pretty brave in stepping in. Tina is only little herself and she was defending my daughter, so I am extremely grateful to her.
"You can hear in her voice on the video that she is frightened.
“This is also not like her, and she is a really good person.“I have thanked her and would have done the same if it was my hous
Describing how the fight went, a source told the paper: "Tina came out to break things up — but ended up joining in.
"At one point, it ended up three-on-one with Tina and two girls against this other lass.
“She was throwing punches and also took a few blows herself."
They added: "Watching her on Coronation Street, you wouldn’t think in a million years she’d get involved in something like this, especially in such a public place."
O'Brien joined the long-running soap when she was 16 in 1999, before leaving the show eight years later.
She acted in several British television shows, as well as appearing on Strictly Come Dancing in 2010.
O'Brien returned to Coronation Street in 2015, reprising her earlier role as Sarah Barlow.
She has one son with her husband Mr Crofts. She has a daughter from a previous relationship with former fellow Coronation Street star Ryan Thomas.
A spokesperson for the actress said: “Tina was the victim of an unprovoked incident outside her home which she has reported to the police.”
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said: "Officers are investigating reports of an assault in Stockport between 8pm and 9pm on 15 March."
